Apple iPhone Essay

Japan to Apple iPhone â€Å"No Thanks† and Would Mickey Mouse Eat Shark Fin Soup these two case studies shows what happens when consumer behavior and marketing mix in globalization goes very wrong. These two studies reveal how marketer think they are giving a wonderful product and service in the case of Apple’s the iPhone and Disney the Shark’s Fin Soup. Understanding the consumer’s behavior and the customs and values of the culture impacted these two campaigns. Apologies good media press and changes in the strategy to get the approval of the consumers. Both case studies points out the impact of technology and how it at first affected the campaigns for bad with negative that changed the reputation of both companys. Apple’s dilemma was very embarrassing for the company with negative reports and predictions of how the iPhone was going to sell in Japan. The propaganda was already put out to the media about the Japanese saying No Thanks to Apple concerning the iPhone 3. Apple thought that Japan would be ecstatic with the new product but supposedly the opposite occurred with reports of weak showing of the iPhone3. Of course with Apple being the cutting edge in technology and innovation in the western world Japan did not feel the same way about Apple’s iPhone3. First Japan was a hard market to try to get into the for Apple and their competition Nokia, and Motorola, whose attempts to grab Japanese customers were futile. So this was going to be a difficult campaign for Apple. At the time Japan was hostile toward western brand including Nokia and Motorola which I thought were Japanese brands. What’s wrong with the iPhone, from a Japanese perspective? The high monthly data plans that go with it, its lack of features, the low-quality camera, the unfashionable design and the fact that it’s not Japanese. Besides cultural opposition, Japanese citizens possess high standards when it comes to cell phones. The country is famous for being ahead of its time when it comes to technology. Japanese consumer rather would use their own brand even if the feature is not used frequently. For example, Japanese handset users are extremely into video and photos .The iPhone had neither a video camera nor multimedia text messaging. A highlight feature enjoy on their handset is a TV tuner. Many consumers also used their cell phone as their only computer device and also as a TV. The monthly rates was considered to expense and many consumers did not want to pay the monthy bill. Apple had to make  decision because the consumer’s behavior was very different in Japan. The Japanese in the time of No Thanks were more communal than individualistic which a new trend with the younger generation is. They were not considered conspicuous consumption they way it is in western countries. The Japanese way of consumer behaving was inherited from Edo Period of history (each class had it own code) Brand shopping revealed two things about the Japanese consumer social status and quality of product. Japanese consumers are known for being demanding with products. The Japanese consumer shopped mostly in department stores but now this is changing with malls. The Japanese consumer is a cautious spender and that is why the monthly charge for service was problem for Apple. They are also very environmental aware and health conscious. Apple did not understand that Japan demographic of aging is very large with life expectancy being vey long. So Japan has a big 60 plus consumers demographic that live by the old tradition, values and customs. These consumer behaviors were very different from the western marketer Apple did not take these in to consideration when the iPhone came out. The marketer had to start at zero level and make huge marketing decision for the Japanese market. Quality of the iPhone its features had to be reintroducing to the consumers to the cell phone market in Japan. Many iphones were given away so as to help the consumer get comfortable with the iphone a great strategy. The monthly pricing had to be adjusted but they really had to do with the value of the Yen. The Bloomberg report today notes that the iPhone has captured 72 percent of the Japanese market. High price, lack of a video camera and support for multimedia messaging, all three of those shortcomings have been addressed. â€Å"Softbank w ho Apple used to sell iPhones gives away the phone for free, and Apple has added a video camera and support for multimedia messaging. The Bloomberg report further suggests that those moves were just what the iPhone needed to gain a foothold in Japan, which we also acknowledged in a report published August 2009.†(Tewney ,2008) Would Mickey Mouse Eat Shark’s Fin Soup? Became fiasco for Disney with reports that Disney wool start serving Shark Fin Soup to their customers in Disney Hong Kong. In a feature dated May 18, the Hong Kong Standard reports that shark fin soup, along with roast suckling pig and sliced abalone, will be included in wedding banquets Disney is promoting at the two hotels at the Hong Kong Disneyland resort. Shark’s fin soup is a traditional Chinese  delicacy popular at weddings and other important social events. Eating shark’s fin soup carries cultural significance and is seen as luxurious and a display of affluence and generosity. However the process by which sharks are caught and killed to provide the ingredients has long been criticized for the way in which fins are h arvested. A 2004 survey by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) found that out of 262 shark species around the world, 56 were endangered. The Hong Kong Standard publishes a follow up to the story on May 23 and reports that Disney’s plans to serve shark’s fin soup have outraged local environmentalists. Under the environmentally umbrella Disney has integrated conservation efforts into its daily operations. The company says its employees around the world proactively support environmental initiatives through all aspects of its business and states that it is â€Å"committed to balancing environmental stewardship with our corporate goals throughout the world.† Disney lesson was tradition and customs no longer overruled environmental issues because affluent consumer wants a certain food or clothes. The voice of green and environmental safety out powered and was louder than the money of the wealth who wanted the Shark Fin Soup. With the new rising environmentalist animal cruelty advocate this was not going to be easy for the affluent consumer to win. Disney was going to have to make a decision not to serve the soup at all and it did. Globalization, can intentionally or otherwise remove social and cultural differences, which can often have a bearing on consumer behavior and in turn, lead to brands developing a more consistent global identity, one which doesn’t have to worry about the backlash of possible misinterpretation in other parts of the world. This isn’t to say that marketers believe cultural issues are no longer important. In fact, quite the opposite is true. The more information a brand holds about the world and its contrasting consumers the more chance it has of understanding and manipulating them. The interlocking of economic spheres is another aspect, which has affected consumer behavior for very different reasons all together. The European Union and the combine currency of Euro connecting different countries with the same currencies make for a huge consumer behavior being established. This was also the problem with Apple’s because Japan does not have the same cultural values as the western hemisphere which was a learning campaign for Apple’s globalization. The arrival of the Internet and advances in technology have succeeded in breaking down social and cultural barriers, but have not succeeded in stopping the masses from being continually guided by those who are learning more and more about them and the way they behave. In conclusion these two global business dilemma help to open the way for a precise understanding of different culture that helps with evolving of globalization to include all cultures and to give the best culturally socially, environment decision while giving the best service and product. Reference Key Characteristic of The Japanese Consumer (2014) Retrieved from: http://www.slideshare.net/rpretet/key-characteristics-of-japanese-consumers CRS ASIA (2014) Retrieved from :http://www.csr-asia.com/weekly_news_detail.php?id=5318 Consumer Behavior (2014) Retrieved from:http://publicresearchsystems.blogspot.com/2009/01/report-on-global-factors-affecting.html Why Japans Hate Apple (2014) Retrieved from http://www.wired.com/2009/02/why-the-iphone/ . â€Å"Softbank who Apple used to sell iPhones gives away the phone for free, and Apple has added a video camera and support for multimedia messaging. The Bloomberg report further suggests that those moves were just what the iPhone needed to gain a foothold in Japan, which we also acknowledged in a report published August 2009.† Why Japans Hate Apple (2014) Retrieved from http://www.wired.com/2009/02/why-the-iphone/ Would Mickey Mouse Eat Shark’s Fin Soup Retrieved from:http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/17/business/worldbusiness/17 shark.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0

Worst Decision of My Life

My senior year of high school was coming to a close. Everyone was in anticipation for Graduation and the school year to come to an end. My parents had been planning a trip to Florida for quite some time now and I couldn't Walt for them to leave. I decided to plan a party for Friday night even though my parents had specifically told me not to have a bunch of people over. I could hardly sleep Thursday night because I was so excited for what the following night might have in store. Up until Friday, I had only told my closest friends about the party o that the whole school doesn't show up at my house.As Friday went on I continued to tell more people and word spread like a wild fire on a dry, hot day. I was almost tempted to throw off the party because by the end of the school day it seemed like everyone had heard about it. I decided to throw the party anyway because it was nearing the end of the school year and we had to go out with a bash. People started showing up at my house around 8: 00. Everything was going smoothly until about 10:00, when what seemed to be fifty kids showed up from my high school within a ten minute span.I knew It was going to be a problem but since I was already a little buzzed, I let them all come In. My street was full of cars parked all the way up and down the road. In the basement the music was blaring and everyone was dancing having a good time. There were beer cans littered everywhere with the trash can overflowing with cans, bottles, and red solo cups. There was a distinct strong smell of sweat mixed with the spilt beer all over the ping pong table and floor. As you would walk across the basement floor, you could feel the soles of your shoes sticking to the round from all the spillage.As you walk out into the garage, there are cigarette butts scattered throughout, with a dense cloud of smoke that filled the air. I had to keep the garage closed so that the neighbors couldn't see what was going on. Atone point around midnight, things too k a turn for the worse. People started getting out of control. All of us where underage, and could barely handle our liquor. It all started when someone began projectile vomiting all over the basement couch. All I could think at that point was that my parents are going to kill me. Just moments after that, omen tripped down the stairs and put a massive hole In the wall.The hole was so big that I you could fit a fridge through it. At that point I was fed up and started directing people out. When I thought it was all finally over, as I was telling people to leave, a fight broke out. To this day, I still have no idea what started the fight. The fight moved outside to the front yard to my dismay. The neighbors heard the commotion and came outside and immediately called the cops. When the cops showed up, pretty much everyone was gone except a few of my friends who were taming the night and the kid who got beat up.After the cop talked to the boy who got in the fight, he came up to my house and knocked on the door. My heart was racing as I answered the door, knowing that there were consequences to come. Luckily, I didn't get Into any trouble with the law, but In no way could I avoid having to make that call to my parents who were trying to have a good time on vacation. It was almost two In the morning when called and as soon as my dad answered he knew something was wrong.

Psychology of eating Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Psychology of eating - Term Paper Example In other cases, we tend to repent after having consumed a heavy meal, which affects our moods and declines our efficiency in the daily life activities. There is dire need to examine the psychology of eating in order to identify ways in which we can control our food intake, and maintain our good looks, and attitude towards food, which is the fundamental source of energy for us. Driving factors for eating behavior: Booth (1994, p. 1) has presented the psychological definitions of food and drink. According to Booth (1994, p. 1), food is anything that is edible and drink is anything that humans consider potable. In order to understand the psychology of food, understanding of the factors the drive hunger and thirst is important. According to Cleveland Clinic (2005), experts have expressed that factors that influence our attitudes towards food include, but are not limited to cultural, social, individual, evolutionary and familial factors. In certain cultures, food is fundamentally consider ed as a source of pleasure and eating is thought of as a good pastime. There are also cultures which take food as a necessity for survival, but do not consider eating for pleasure a good idea. Likewise, there are other social and personal factors that shape an individual’s attitude towards food. ... 5). Negative psychological effects of poor eating habits: We should be able to control our eating habits instead of letting our eating habits control us in order to maintain positive attitudes towards food and ensure the consumption of healthy diet. We normally take food as a means to regulate our tensions and feel good at least for the portion of time, in which we are eating. If we loose to our timeless and unnecessary cravings and eating temptations, we may in fact end up increasing our tensions. This may happen because the underlying cause of tensions is often not related to the food, yet food is consumed as a means to regulate the tension. This is the same as taking wrong medication to cure a disease that actually requires some other treatment. In such cases, not only does the original disease sustains, but also we acquire negative side effects of undue treatment. In the case of food, this shows up in the form of obesity and ruined looks. Thus, consuming food to regulate tensions not only sustains the original cause of tension, but adds to it by making us feel physically unfit. Overeating makes us feel negative about our self image as we gain weight, and add unnecessary volume to our figure. Human psychology and weight management: Psychology is a field of science that essentially depicts the reasons people indulge in certain activities or display certain behaviors and offers a rationale for the way people do it. Weight management requires deep understanding of the psychology of eating, which can best be explained by two core areas: Behavior: Regulating eating habits requires manipulation of behavior. Behavior can be treated through study of the patterns of eating an individual routinely maintains. Cognition: Human cognition can be controlled with

Is Obesity Destroying the Lives of Americans Essay

Is Obesity Destroying the Lives of Americans - Essay Example Obesity often comes with a lot of risk. Obesity is destroying the lives of many Americans through contributing to increase in number of health issues, medical costs, deterioration of the economy, social issues, and contributing to increases in number of depression cases. Obesity often results to a number of health issues. Obese people often have a high level of cholesterol in their bodies that have an adverse effect to their general health. Commonly, too much cholesterol in the human body often predisposes individuals in getting hypertensive diseases (Alex 38). Cholesterol in blood often results in formation of atherosclerosis that in turn contributes to hypertension states. Furthermore, a lot of cholesterol in the body often leads to production of more estrogen in the human body that in turn inhibits production of insulin. Therefore, such people become more predisposed in getting type 2 diabetes in their life time. In addition, obese people often have sleeping problems due to their massive weight. Furthermore, some obese people may have breathing problems due to excess fatty tissues compressing the respiratory tissues (Alex 40). Some studies have also concluded obesity depressing sexual drive in such individuals thereby interfering with the reproduction process. Obesity often results in increased medical cost. Obese people often become sick and acquire lifelong illnesses that become hard to treat. An excellent example could be an obese patient that develops type 2 diabetes and at the same time hypertension. Since this diseases require chronic management, these individuals and their families may require spending more in the management of such individuals. Furthermore, drugs used in treatment of some of the ailments they get may be expensive (Alex 63). Medical management of such individuals may require rigorous checkups as they spend more time in hospital being treated for their ailments. Furthermore, the medical insurances taken by such individuals often are he fty since they take in an attempt of covering for their health and other stuffs. Obesity also contributes to deterioration of the economy. Obese people often work less since they grow to extent of becoming unable to carry out some activities. Therefore, such people contribute negatively to the economy when they reach some level as there economic output reduces. Furthermore, a number of people take care of them thereby doing less on their own in contributing to the enhancement of the economy. Since the economy is often dependent on the general effort of every individual, such individuals generally contribute in destroying the American economy in general (Elise 66). Often people often become limited in doing physical stuffs and start relying on other people for their survival. Therefore, they encourage dependency instead of interdependency. For an economy to thrive, individuals in a given country often require to be more independent than dependent. Obese people sometimes wait for othe r people to work for them hence overusing others in the attempt of caring for them. Obesity leads to depression among obese individuals. The obesity rate among Americans is rapidly on the rise, and with it, so are the increasing cases of psychological dysfunctions such as depression. Depression is simply defined as a continuous feeling of hollowness, aloneness; characterized by extensive low mood swings.

The impact Advertising has on brand preference for consumers in the Essay

The impact Advertising has on brand preference for consumers in the mobile phone market - Essay Example While each component had its role in forming the marketing strategy, promotion essentially meant reaching out to the customer through advertising and media campaigns. In today's world 'promotion' field has been further widened by renaming it as marketing communication. Such a communication now forms a crucial part of managerial activities. This study is an effort towards analysing the mobile phone market in general and to what extent advertising or marketing communication activities help in building brands, creating brand loyalties, increase in sales, cutting costs etc. How customer perceptions have changed over the years towards going for a product which is seen all over the media space, fliers, signboards etc. will form the cornerstone of preparing marketing strategies for any company. Mobile phone market comprises of a range of brands offering a variety of features at affordable prices, depending upon the requirements of the customer, the market potential and other factors like, l ocal taxes, liberalisation policies etc. To what extent the customer's opinion gets influenced by running advertisement campaigns and how the balance is tilted by celebrity endorsement or the brand ambassadors will be studied through this paper. Technology is also a critical factor while reaching out to the customer. The advancements in technology has also come out with innovative ideas to reach out to the customer. ... The process of globalisation and liberalisation has resulted in uniformity of policies all around the globe, thus providing room for adopting the learning's from one type of market into another. The rapidly changing market dynamics though have kept the companies on their toes. Kotler (1974) termed marketing as a set of human activities directed at facilitating and consummating exchanges. Advertising helps in influencing the consumer behaviour. While on the one hand the competition helps the consumer in getting worth of the spending, and consumer has a range of alternatives to chose from, companies too have come out with innovative ideas to reach out to the consumer with their products and brands. While analysing the rapidly changing marketing scene, Peircy (2002) terms the emerging scenario as complex, confusing, and paradoxical. The mobile phone market is full of alternatives available with whole lot of features at attractive prices. This has led to a state where mobile phone compan ies are trying to include as many features into the small gadget and convert it into a workstation or computer which can be used for talking, listening radio programmes, watching movies, storing mp3 songs and of course in the form of a phone as well. At times, it appears the advertisements tend to confuse a general customer, with so many brands around. It is indeed a very difficult choice for an average consumer to be able to figure out his/her exact needs and look for the appropriate gadget. How advertising helps or complicates toward facilitating such choices is what matters for the ad-makers worldwide. 4. Aims and Objectives My project shall aim to test the following -

Howard Carter Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Howard Carter - Essay Example Perhaps Howard Carter's artistic abilities were never fully cultivated because his family did not have much money, or perhaps it was because Carter spent much of his early life as a very sickly, weak little boy (10). Whatever the reasons were, Carter never saw himself as good as his father, who taught Carter all he knew about drawing (11). However, Carter was good enough to get a job as an assistant copyist with Percy Edward Newberry (20). The recommendations of a family friend, Mrs. Margaret Tyssen-Amherst also helped to secure this position (22), thus began Howard Carter's career as an archaeologist. In the autumn of 1891, when Carter was just 17 years old, he made his first trip to Egypt and experienced sea-sickness for the first time (Reeves and Taylor 1993, 23). The voyage across the Channel is vividly - although not too fondly - remembered by Carter in his autobiographical sketches: It was then that I discovered I was not physically fitted for a sailor; that an appetite for food oozy with oil, and the motion of the ship caused very adverse sensations which centered around the sensitive nerves of the solar plexus, and which in my case resulted in a complete 'knock-out' (23-24). Carter was extremely relieved when the ship at last landed in Alexandria (24). From there, he journeyed to Cairo, where he met the famous archaeologist William Matthew Flinders Petrie (24). A few days later, he joined Newberry's archaeological work in Beni Hasan (24). Howard Carter soon proved his merit as a copyist. As Newberry wrote to one of his acquaintances: I never reckoned on getting done so fast. It is astonishing how much can be done by two men working hard when the hands are willing. I believe that Carter and I could almost trace all the tombs in Egypt in five years!!! On Sunday last I tried Carter at painting and found he could copy things here very well indeed (Reeves and Taylor 1993, 27). Not only did Carter copy quickly, he also copied with great attention to detail. A sketch he did of a relief in a tomb at Deir el-Bersha shows a complex and faithful rendering of how a gigantic stone statue was transported from the stone quarry where it was carved (31). When it is compared with other copies of the same picture, there is no doubt that Carter's is far superior (31). Carter's successes at the excavation of Queen Hatshepsut's tomb in Deir el-Bersha earned him a position as the first Inspector General of Monuments for Upper Egypt at the very young age of 25 (Warren 2005). He was responsible for supervising all archaeological activities that went on in the Upper Nile Valley, including the ancient city of Thebes (Warren 2005). During his tenure, he conducted extensive excavations and preservations, and established electric lighting in the Valley of the Kings and the temples of Ramses II and Nefertari at Abu Simbel (Warren 2005). Carter also made a significant discovery at the Tomb of the Horse, or Bab el-Hosan. He found a sepulchre with what he thought was a human body, but it turned out to only be a statue (Reeves and Taylor 1993, 66-67). The usually meticulous Carter informed the British Consul-General in Egypt, Viscount Cromer, of the discovery before he had actually examined it closely. His friend and employer, Gaston Maspero, describes the inci dent in this way: [Carter] had announced his discovery too soon to Lord Cromer. Lord Cromer came

Paraphrase Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 1

Paraphrase - Essay Example The book contains case studies explaining experiences of people who executed strategies from previous editions. Jacobson (64) illustrates development of AdWords mechanisms, human-machine relationships along with verified strategies regarding ad group interface, split testing and opt in landing page technologies. Latest edition overviews modern technologies that might be combined to guarantee AdWords success. Like, modified third-party tools and thorough analysis of free tool for examining and augmenting web links from Google. The readers acknowledges the significance of Website Optimizer and AdWords prize on card valued $25. This is an interesting technique to advertise a product/ brand and earn after the struggle. It provides essential knowledge for online marketing and boosts the abilities of shareholders for steering this digital marketing tool. Users can create business ads adjacent to search results. It curtails advertising expenses as products information is effortlessly retrieved. As per Jacobson, Optimizer tool teaches parties to run a landing page linked with technology, order forms, assisting them to boost revenues although they will be hidden from other websites. Jacobson illustrates beneficial cost-effective economic plans through conversion tracking to curtail costs. Google made online marketing atmosphere user-friendly to boost efficiency. It has executed a policy to stop showing URL; this step of limited interface was taken after instances when users were deceived and became victims of AdWords advertisers, which makes the online ad tool complex. Conversely, this user-friendly, technological and cost cutting type of advertising has some advantages and disadvantages. Drawbacks are imperative as they lead to constraints which equivocates damage claims from firms who think their trademarks are trespassed. The anticipated costs associated with such claims against Google might

Poplar Branch by Grace Benedict Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Poplar Branch by Grace Benedict - Essay Example Similarly, concerning birthdays the poplar tree uncertainty for individuals born between August 5th and 13th. These individuals are associated with characters such as artistic, lonely, lacking confidence and organized. Finally, according to the Heraldry, the poplar tree is significant as representation of strength. Grace Benedict’s artwork is a picture of a poplar tree branch. The artwork is a single branch of the poplar tree with several leaves attached to the branch, but with some falling off the branch. In this artwork, Benedict uses gentleness and smoothness in both the colors and texture, that resonates with the wonderful spirit and significance attached to the poplar tree. Poplar branch represents beauty magnificent spirit that relates to human characters and activities. The smooth and gentleness portrayed in the artwork represent the beautiful nature and role of the poplar branch. Poplar tree has always been known to represent smoothness and gentleness because of the si gnificant role it plays in the society. Therefore, the drawing in this case portrays how it is important for humans to embrace gentleness, which will in turn make life smooth as opposed to rough and rugged. In addition, the painting calls upon the society as a whole to recall the lost memories lost memories and dreams, and through gentleness allow them to thrive and become a reality. In this artwork, the smoothness is represented by the texture, in which looking at the photo it is all clear that both the background and the material used are all smooth in nature. Similarly, gentles is represented by the texture, as well as the colors used in this artwork for the leaves among other characters in this artwork. These represent the nature of the tree, and overall the expected nature of human beings in the society as symbolized by the poplar tree. Therefore, the lesson that we can draw from this technique used by the artist is that we as human beings should give gentles and smoothness a h igh value in our lives and the society as a whole. The tall and extensive nature of the poplar tree branch represented in the artwork reveals that it is fast growing, which gives it symbolic qualities related to human nature. For instance, the tree grows very fast and can grow tall with an extensive root system, and it does not require much coddling to grow fast. This means that the wonderful spirit of the tree teaches human beings how they should dream, and that projects have the ability to manifest quickly and bring great rewards in the shortest time possible. This extends to the possibilities in life that the tree branch represents, which reminds humans that they rise and grow to higher heights, and achieve these possibilities, as well as dreams (Klimt &Kallir 56). Similarly, the extensive nature of the tree that gives it strength teaches individuals how to endure life’s hardships and keep their feet strong on the ground, or on whatever they engage on in life. In addition, it teaches individuals to overcome personal doubts, fear, which may block possible endeavors. The artist uses several colors and a number of leaves in this branch to portray the variety nature of the poplar tree. For instance, some leaves are green with blue shadows while other leaves are white with black shadows. In addition, there are several small branches in the main branch, which

Case Analysis (another one) Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Analysis (another one) - Case Study Example Before 2007, the firm realized same growth rate that exceeded five percent for 15 consecutive years. This growth helped the company to establish its brand in the market, setting it apart from its rivals. The company maintained â€Å"standardization,† which helped it build its brand regardless of its rapid expansion. A lucrative business, the company has manage to merge growth and profitability with its competitive advantage, particularly by espousing strong ethical values (Ivey 7). In the recent years, however, Starbucks is showing weaknesses attributed to high prices, market saturation, and long waits in its stores due to the inexperience of its baristas and managers. The quality of coffee is low, and the food the company provides highly unattractive. With respect to opportunities, coffee culture is growing at a rapid pace globally, providing Starbucks with a chance to go up-market and compete with established coffee firms, especially in the luxurious European market and emer ging markets such as China, India, Brazil, and Russia. In this case, Starbucks will manage to cope with the threats posed by Dunkin Donuts, McDonald’s, and Peet’s Coffee & Tea, as well as those resulting from financial crisis and the company’s overexposure in the market (Ivey 8). Based on the strategic issues that Starbucks is encountering, which contribute to its downfall, the firm should hire additional managers and train its baristas appropriately to help streamline its menus, fill orders faster, and improve the overall services delivered to clients. The organization should also offer more products and services beyond coffee to address the diverse needs of its clients. The company should also provide its clients with natural food that does not affect their health negatively. In addition, the firm should lower the prices of its products and enforce fair workplace arrangements for it to create a

Meeting the Challenge of Supervisory Time and Stress Management Essay

Meeting the Challenge of Supervisory Time and Stress Management - Essay Example Cutbacks, budget crunching have become the buzz word in most of the organization which aftermaths in increased job security, uncertainty and fear which give way for increased level of stress and thus its is very important to find new ways to get away from stress Though an old saying, it’s a reality that time and tide waits for none. Time is the scarcest resource available on earth and something which rules the world. Conceptualizing time management is very easy, but to practice is continuously and religiously is a difficult task as time slips away time and again. People do say that time will repeat but till date it tends to remain as a saying because once you miss the time, it will never ever come back. In this fast moving world catching up with time is not as easy task. 24 hours have become insufficient for human beings because advent has increased incredibly. Defining Stress and time management Stress is a feeling that bars your pragmatism, maneuverability and curbs you from the gleaming torment less life. According to Richard S Lazarus â€Å"stress is a feeling experienced when a person thinks that the demands exceed the personal and social resources the individual is able to mobilize.†Extend to which stress management is given prominence to, in our daily life, analogously time management also plays a significant role. Managing time matters a lot in when it come to handling a lot of activities effectively, efficiently and delivering it within the time line. Claessens et al. (2007) defines time management as ‘‘behaviors that aim at achieving an effective use of time while performing certain goal-directed activities† Importance of stress & time management Managing stress has become a serious issue of concern in recent years as the number people getting stressed out have no boundaries. Managing stress comes into picture once you accost with stressful situations in both personal and professional life. It is very important to manag e stress as a continuing negative stress can negatively impact your body and mind, which in turn debilitates your health. The importance of managing stress is left untouched till it impinge your equanimity and lucre. (Griffin) Managing stress has become very crucial in your professional life as it helps you to increase your productivity, enable you to meet your deadline, ameliorates to motivate your employees and lead them, hinders deceitful practices, and enhances the flurry of communication. For each and every one a hassled economy will be like a roller coaster ride. A lower level of stress at work place not only improves your physical and mental health but also decides on your success and failure at profession. Managing stress in your personal life is also very important as it influence the quality of relationship with those you interact. The more positively you interact with people around, the less negatively other’s stress have influence on you. Building a strong bond am ong the family members can effectively reduce personal stressors and your home a place to rejuvenate, relax and energize your body and mind. (Segal, Smith and Robinson) A day begins with the list of activities that need to be accomplished within a specific time line; hence if you are unable to accomplish the tasks set for that particular day, the work gets mounted for the next day and the when the second day arrives your work will be doubles as you were unable to meet the timeline the previous day. As it keeps repeating the

Black Rage-Book Report Essay Example for Free

Black Rage-Book Report Essay The pages of human history daubed in bloodshed and thickly coated with ethnic, racial conflicts ask a crying question. How to make this Planet Earth heaven -like? The answer is simple and direct. Eyes full of understanding, heart full of love and the life that refuses conflicts—these alone are enough! When an individual or a people of a particular race are constantly nagged and abused, condemned and ostracized by the society, they become bitter and cynical individuals. Heartfelt care and concern, an understanding approach and tender regard for their feelings are necessary pre-requisites to heal their inner wounds. Adequate opportunities need to be created for their ‘reformation’ and ‘rehabilitation’ into the mainstream of the society. The authors feel that it is not an easy task. Each and every molecule of the Negro race is surcharged with the hidden grudge as for the inhuman treatment meted out to them in all walks of life, from the cradle to the grave and from the womb to the tomb and this process continued for centuries. They were branded from birth as ‘niggers. ’ This insult on their personality is difficult to condone. Brief summary of the book: This is a classic work on black identity. This is also criticized as one of the sexiest books. Slavery is no ordinary crime against humanity. The book explains the race relations and its dynamics in the day to day living of the blacks vs. whites. How at each step of the ladder the blacks were pulled down, how they were made to stumble at deliberately created hurdles by the whites, how slavery dynamics deeply impact the cross-racial sexual relationships etc. It is one thing to have freedom and protection for the essential human dignity of the individual legally. It is good to have uniform constitutional rights for whites and blacks. But what mattes is the interpretation of the laws and their applicability to the ground level situations, concerning the blacks. The book is an authentic source of inspiration to the educated younger generation of blacks, and for the African psychologists of the day. The book cites case studies and they are properly dealt with. The point by point analysis of the â€Å"intra-psychic† dynamics of Black life in every day America is extremely informative and an eye-opener. Blacks, in many parts of the world where the whites were the dominating community, suffered, and in USA they suffered intensely. The authors are psychiatrists by profession and they are eminently suited to treat this subject. The inner conflicts and the desperation of back life, how they carry on with their back to the wall existence—all these have been highlighted, with the zeal of pursuing the truth. As the black race is exposed to various social situations related to the individual growth through education, employment, achievement of status in life, the intra-racial problems have begun to crop up with great intensity. The authors cite the case of an educated school teacher, marrying a laborer. They explain: â€Å"†¦She was embarrassed by his poor education. He felt that she and her friends were phony and that she was preoccupied with maintaining senseless appearances. Their mutual hostility led to verbal and later physical assaults. Divorce was the result. This pattern is so common in Negro marriages that it deserves special study, which might shed light on the broader problems of how in America choice of mate and marriage in general is influenced by a persons blackness. †(p. 75) The authors put forth strong arguments that black people living in a racist, white dominated society have suffered and are suffering psychological pressure by the effects of racist oppression. This sometimes, has the telling effect in on the day to day disposition and black people act in unpredictable manner. The thesis of the book: Will the country ever awake in to that heaven of freedom, and when it will be free from the division of narrow domestic walls created by race prejudices? What you do to mitigate the mental barrier of racial discrimination on so many counts is not important. How you do, what you do is indeed important. More acts and legislations have helped to create a stir in the minds of whites and blacks. But the problem eludes permanent solution. This is so, because the feeling of superiority within the minds of the whites has to change. When the thought process will change, the action process will also change! When the thoughts are changed, the mind is changed; when the mind is changed, the man is changed; when the man is changed, the society is changed; when the society is changed, the Nation is changed. Then only we can way that plenty and prosperity engulfs USA, not otherwise! The contents and arguments in the book contain too much sex, much more than required by the literary standards. But some times, these issues are beyond the control of the authors. Firstly the book must sell. This is the prime objective of the publisher. Fortunately or unfortunately, sex sells. If it is handled well, it sells well. This could be one of the reasons for the extra dose of sex in the book—this may not be as well! This book has about 230 pages with 10 chapters, Who’s angry, the shadow of the past, achieving womanhood, acquiring manhood, marriage and love, character traits, the â€Å"Promise† of education, mental illness and treatment, and how come there’s so much hate and black rage. In a nutshell, the contents of the book discuss and analyze the bitter past of slavery in USA, the tension-ridden race relations in USA today, and the future of black and white race relations which have the possibilities to turn worst, on the slightest provocation, when the black race is making its presence felt strongly, in political, social, and economic spheres. In sports, blacks are dominating! The blacks accepted the domination of the white race-will the whites accept the domination of the black race in times to come? Will the law of divine retribution work in this context? Identify the evidence used by the author to support his/ her thesis That which is evident requires no introduction, elaboration, or appreciation. Light is bright and it is evident. Milk is white and it is evident. Simply say black race in America, and everything is evident. The saga of suffering of the Negro race, the era of slavery, violence and cruelty to subdue their legitimate aspirations rotates on the curtain of one’s mind. The authors of Black Rage do not mince words when it comes to condemning the atrocities committed on the black race. â€Å"The voice of black America has been heard in the explosions of Watts, Newark, and Detroit,† they warn. (p. 3) They assert their aspiration in strongest terms. â€Å"Black people continue to revolt against laws and customs that are deadly and humiliating†¦Aggression leaps from wounds inflicted and ambitions spiked. It grows out of oppression and capricious cruelty. †(p. 3). The younger generation of Negroes is not willing to wait and accept ‘the tactful handling of the situation’ by the whites when their interests matter. The white race is not willing to travel in the boat where the rudder is controlled by the black. The blacks are aware, by their bitter past experiences that the whites will go to any extent when their own interests matter. This causes more frustration and apprehension in the black community and adversely affects their psyche. The example cited in the text is that of Jimmy, a twelve year old boy. â€Å"His face was jet-black, and his expressions ranged from somber to sad. Whether relating stories of home, school, or the streets, he disguised his true feelings. At twelve he had learned one of his first lessonsalways play it cool. As much as possible, he worked to hide his inner life. One day he stared long and hard at his fist and said: I want to hit a white man. †(p. 59) State your own opinion and ideas about this book. The book contains tough opinions about the white race. To tell a black youngster to forget the past, say that he is constitutionally protected and enjoys equal rights as applicable to whites or any ethnic group is as good as telling him a story. The suffering of the Negro race is something very special and closely linked to the destiny of America. The black can condone the past; they can not ignore or forget it. The whites are not obliging the blacks by the present stance of understanding them. They have no other alternative. They must accept their newfound social position—equal in every respect as compared to the black people and it is their duty to say that the black-brother is first among the equal. They must attempt and secure the transformation within. The writers put it crisply and authoritatively. â€Å"After all, the thoughts begin, the Negro is also an American and if he is different it is only matter of degree. Cliches are brought forth and there is a lengthy recitation of the names of famous Negroes. Long association has bred feelings of familiarity which masquerade as knowledge. But there remain puzzles about black people; all is not understood; something is missing. †(p. 23) â€Å"It is better to have a world united than a world divided; but it is better to have a world divided, than a world destroyed,† said Sir Winston Churchill at the time of II World War. Presently, does this quote apply to the solution for the race problem in USA? USA will never be divided in geographical terms, the Constitution of USA is strong enough, the political leaders have enough foresight, but the example given in the book is shocking and is the definite pointer, how the division of the hearts is complete. How Come Theres So Much Hate? â€Å"When the man died, his wife of forty years was pitied by her friends. The widow was a stern New Englander; her dead husband was a black. In spite of strong social disapproval of their marriage, they had raised children and prospered. There had been some discord between them, but they handled it discreetly and the children had never heard them comment on racial matters. Even when a racial incident was prominent in the news, not a word was said about it. The children assumed that their mother had long since accepted the realities of marriage to a black man. They were completely unprepared for her words when her husband died: Thank God that nigger is gone! (p. 181) Spirituality, not religion, seems to be the only answer to this vexed problem of race relations. Once a human being crosses the mind barrier, all differences all tensions, cease! Mind is a bundle of negative and positive thoughts. The usual methods of suppressing the thoughts and emotions are not going to bring permanent peace. If the Negro race has to surrender at any point, it has got to be the dynamic surrender, of a supreme and brave human being. They should not accept the supremacy of the white race, nor demand the pound of flesh for the historical misdeeds of the whites. If the revengeful attitude persists, it will take them and the Nation nowhere. If the Nation does not survive how will the black and white races survive?

PESTLE Analysis for Turkey

PESTLE Analysis for Turkey Introduction The report will consist of different aspect of factors to consider for moving the plant into Turkey. The area which will be covered will be the PESTLE analysis along side with the Porters Diamond and also an analysis on the cultural factors. PESTLE Analysis for Turkey Political One of the current political strengths in Turkey is that their government have policies on liberalisation. Turkey is supporters of liberal trade and investment policies which allow open trade between different countries in the EU. Turkey forged a custom union agreement in 1996 to allow many Turkish firms to get bigger and more successful in the global economy. Exports have been rising on average at a rate of 10% every year and this will allow the fashion industry to flourish with the exports produced in the Turkish plant. One of the current political challenges in Turkey is the series of violent terrorist attacks that have happened in the country due to Islamic extremist, Kurdish radicals, Turkish militants that may have link with Al-Qaeda. This is a disadvantage for bringing the plant to Turkey as it may be targeted by these terrorist. Economy One of the current economic strengths in Turkey is that there is a high flow of foreign investment coming from abroad. The investment plays apart in Turkeys speedy expansion and this has been driving the countrys economic growth. In Turkey there is a privatisation program planned to start from 2008 that will allow the sale of major bridges, highways, electricity grids and a share in the partly commercial bank. The money generated from foreign investment will be used for expanding the infrastructure of the country; this will be an advantage for bringing the plant into Turkey as the Turkish economy will be in growth and to bring the plant here will only benefit the company and the fashion industry. One of the current economic challenges in Turkey is the current account deficit for Turkey. The declining current account has been was delayed the economic stability. The import market has seen a quick rise as an outcome of increased global commodity prices and a sturdy Turkish lira. Turkey is even more vulnerable during times of global financial doubt. This will be a disadvantage for bringing in the plant into Turkey as it the company may need to relocate if there is a financial crisis which may happen with Turkey. Social System One of the social system strengths in Turkey is that they have growing proportion of young population as they have more than half the population being aged below 30. This will allow Turkey to increase their employment rate by getting the most out of the young labour force. This is an advantage for the plant being brought into Turkey as shows there is a healthy supply of young population willing to work so the company could create jobs for these people. One of the social system challenges in Turkey is that they have a high level of unemployment. Turkey unemployment level rose by 38,000 in that year to 2.3 million in 2007 but then in 2008 it rose again by 737,000 from the previous year so this shows that there was a substantial increase from the previous year. This is a disadvantage to bring in plant into Turkey due to the high level of unemployment as they may not be skilled workers in the pool of unemployed people. There is another side to this where it can become an advantage by hiring these unemployed and training them to work sufficiently for the company. Technological One of the technological strengths in Turkey is the significant development in the ICT sector. During 2001-2007, Turkeys ICT sector expanded so rapidly it expanded by double-digits so that shows that it was a very successful growth. In 2007, Turkeys ICT market reached $24 billion and in the previous year it reached $21 billion so this shows that in a space of one year the market grew by $3 billion which is a very substantial amount of money. The reason for this sharp increase is due to the Turkish telecommunications sector as they have been privatised by the government. This is an advantage for the plant being brought into Turkey as this will attract more foreign investment project as well as creating more jobs for the people of Turkey. One of the current technological challenges in Turkey is the low expenditure cost on the research and development. Turkeys research and development cost in 2006 was around 0.6% which is below the average of the European countries which are at an average of 2.3%.This is an disadvantage for bringing in the plant into Turkey as there is not that much investment being put into the Turkish research and development, they will need investment from both the private and public sector because the country will need to have a healthily amount of investment in order to grow into a country which is in the EU. In the future is the research and development cost are still low then this will erode and stop the competitiveness of different industries in Turkey which will be bad for the long run. Legal One of the legal strengths in Turkeys is the comprehensive legal structure they have. The judicial system is made up of general courts which deal with domestic cases, heavy penal courts which deal with more serious case, military courts which will deal with the military cases and the Constitutional Court which is the highest level of courts that will deal with many different cases which is essential in the Turkish government such as war crimes. This is an advantage for the plant being brought into Turkey as this shows that the Turkish government are strict on the law and will enforce the law if need be, it will allow the company to have a fair trial if any form of disruption were to come up such as trade union issues that would cause the company any serious problems. Another legal advantage in Turkey would be the robust framework for the business entities, as the company who are looking to invest into Turkey will not need to go through a very long and lengthy business registration process as there is a freedom to start, operate and close a business by the Turkish regulatory environment. so for example in Turkey, it will take on average 6 day to starting up a business compared to 43 days in the other world countries which is a much longer time and could be beneficial for the type of market the company is involved with. As the fashion industry clothe range change very often and will need to be able to adapt quickly if the plant is being brought over to Turkey. One of the current legal challenges in Turkey is the judicial inefficiencies as there are some delays in the Turkish judicial system which can cause some serious issues. There are also judges who are politically biased and this has affected legal outcome. This is a disadvantage for bringing in the plant into Turkey as there may be a decision made against the company if ever in a legal battle as the judges may not have an unbiased view of the case but in fact have a biased view according to the political situation at the time. Environmental One of the environmental strengths in Turkeys is the prosperous biodiversity they have. Turkey has a very affluent natural resource base and has ranked ninth on biodiversity in the European countries. Examples of the type of biodiversity they have are not only a range of wild species but important domestic species such as wheat, lentils, chickpeas, pears, apple, chestnut and pistachios. The biodiversity has a very great potential for the development for Turkey and this is an advantage for the plant being brought into Turkey as this will materials such as cotton to be grown in Turkey and used in the plant so the material will be home grown and will have a cheaper price and there will be more jobs created for the company involved in cotton picking. One of the current environmental challenges in Turkey is the high pollution levels and the global warming being caused from the pollution levels. The water treatment facilities, wastewater treatment equipment and solid waste management in Turkey needs urgent attention as there is high level of environmental pollution as the is an increase in chemical and detergent overflow and this rises in the air and can cause severe illness to people who inhale especially in urban areas. The air pollution has increased over the past since 1990s and is the air pollution is quite severe in the capital of Turkey, Ankara and other city such as Istanbul. Smog in these cities is due to the increasing number use of cars. Also there is a lot of industrial air pollution from power plants and facilities used by the fertilizer, cement and sugar industries which dont have the flirtation equipment needed to filter out the pollution. Turkey loses out on approximately one billion tons of topsoil annually and thi s has an increasingly level of environmental pollution and that could harm the people and economy of Turkey. The air pollution is a disadvantage for bringing in the plant into Turkey as there many form of pollution in Turkey which are harmful and could affect the environmental value our company holds and the ‘green credential which many of our customers may consider before doing business with our company. Also the disadvantage is that the contribution to global warming where there are so many efforts to reduce the green house gas but Turkish government should invest into becoming green so that it could become a cleaner environment also it may need to cut down on the pollution level as they are in the EU and will have to meet the pollution level they have planned to cut to. PESTLE linked to Porters Diamond Turkeys political strength that links to the Porters diamond would be how the Turkish government are creating new legislation to help the industry and different companies to grow and foreign investment to improve and make it better for Turkey as a national advantage. Turkeys economical strength that links to the Porters diamond would be how they are making the market more demanding by stimulating foreign investment to make them more competitive for different industries and companies so it will benefit Turkey as a national advantage. Turkeys social strength that links to the Porters diamond would be how the Turkish have a growing proportion of young population which the Turkish government can use to create new job by encouraging and training them up to have new skills and qualified to work in different sectors and this will be a national advantage for having a very skilful workforce. Turkeys technological strength that links to the Porters diamond would be how the Turkish government are improving the ICT sector so not only is it modern but its structure would benefit Turkey and support different industries to enable them to achieve their optimum so that will be a national advantage that benefit Turkey. Turkeys legal strength that links to the Porters diamond would be how they have created a strict system for the courts which is there to keep companies and people within the law that Turkey have set out to help them grow so that would be a national advantage. Turkeys environmental strength that links to the Porters diamond would be how they have a good biodiversity and have a rich resource to different material used for various industries and the Turkish government are trying to maintain this biodiversity and creating job in the process so that it can supply to different countries and for Turkey this will be a national advantage. Cultural issues to be considered There are cultural issues that need to be considered before bringing the plant over to Turkey. There three main issues in Turkey would be religion, location and gender equality. Turkeys main religion is Islam and it is heavily influenced in the many aspect of Turkish life and it plays a major part of the Turkish people lives. The faith has many restriction and many special occasions where to celebrate the faith. Where the company will need to consider if they clothing being manufactured will be able to look good for most of the Turkish population taste and the dress sense as the faith has many restriction on the type of clothing worn and will not support inappropriate clothing for the people Turkey. Especially in the female section there are many restrictions what to cover up and where, but in recent year the restriction have been very flexible as the country is becoming more modern and more western. The location where the plant will be positioned will need to be thought over as there may have repercussion as there may be houses, schools and mosque nearby so this will create a bad environment because if the plant was to be made near houses then the community may be very unhappy with the disruption of they everyday live with a plant being made near them. Also the location will need to be considered in terms of pollution so if there was any pollution then it needs to be well away from people. Gender equality will need to be considered as the males tend to get paid more than the female as they feel that they do more. It is serious issue within the Turkish government but it relate to the Turkish culture on how the males are the dominate species so the company may need to consider this could be a chance to break the gender barrier and provide same wages for the female as the males. Conclusion In conclusion, the company should seriously consider moving the plant into Turkey as it is still an emerging country that has flaws but has many advantages and over time the flaws will be sorted out and benefit the company in the long run. References Books International Business, Environments and Operations, Pearson International Edition, Daniels, Radebaugh, Sullivan Online PDF Datamonitor Turkey PESTLE Analysis Websites https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/tu.html http://www.datamonitor.com/store/Product/turkey?productid=074DD3A8-BC2C-40A9-9672-3793A75DEBA0

Recording technology in music

Recording technology in music There have been dramatic advances in music technology; this has led to the use of technology in music being far greater and wider spread. There has been a dramatic impact on musicianship. The music recording process is defined as the act of composing, rehearsing the piece and physically making the recording, through to doing final editing and mastering to perfect the recording.The first music recording was made by Emile Berliner in 1884, this was recorded on a tin foil coated cylinder,but since then recording technology has vastly improved and editing techniques have became easier and more advanced. Through the transition from recording on wax cylinder, analogue tape, compact disc and digital download. These developments have had many effects, both positive and negative. There has been a lot of debate related to these developments. One of the main areas in which recording technology has affected musicianship is that advances in recording technology, thus the music that the end listener hears is hardy ever what the musician originally played, as recording and editing technology advances, this is becoming more apparent, and edited songs are drifting further away from what the musician had performed. This idea has created a lot of controversy with the listener, as they are unsure of what the artist is capable of, and what parts of the music have been manufactured artificially during the editing stage. Some people argue that these advances are an advantage as it means that the music that they listen to is of a higher quality, and has a higher musical accuracy and is free of performance errors, this is due to advances in technologies such as pitch correction, which allows for sections in the performance that are out of tune to be corrected, it also allows for new sections of a song to be written by adjusting the pit ch of a single note, to give samples of a range of other notes that can then be arranged to construct new melodies for the piece. In a similar faction sections of music can now be speeded up, slowed down and moved through time in order to allow a artists performance to be corrected if he or she falls out of time during there performance. Both of these techniques are product of improved recording technology, and a lot of listeners appreciate that music is of a higher quality and more enjoyable to listen to. In the contrary there is a group of people that think these improvements in technology are a disadvantage, due to the fact that the final edited version of a piece of music that the listener hears is often extremely different to the original recording that the musician actually performed. It is also criticized that how anyone can become a pop star due to the increased use of technology, which means that you dont have to have any musical knowledge or talent as any errors that are made can now be corrected. These opinions are reflected by Neko Case who says: Im not a perfect note hitter either but Im not going to cover it up with auto tune. Everybody uses it, too. I once asked a studio guy in Toronto, How many people dont use auto tune? and he said, You and Nelly Furtado are the only two people whove never used it in here. This shows that despite people like Nekos protest against the use of these editing techniques they are used in almost every piece of music nevertheless. These technologies have also given way to new genres of computer based music. Developments in recording technology, recording moving on to computer based systems has also largely effected musicianship, as now that most recording systems are computer based a lot of editing techniques are far simpler, and no edit or process is final, as all processes can be undone with the press of a button, where as in more traditional tape based recording systems undoing processes required a lot of manual work, or may even be unachievable. An advantage of this development is that music producers are able to experiment with different edits and processes, in order to find an outcome that they are satisfied with, if they try any processes that they are not happy with the piece can easily be reverted to its former state. When traditional tape recording methods where used editing involved cutting the tape up, then sticking it back together again, this means that it requires far more skill than using a modern computer systems. When using a traditional tape system undoing edits is f ar more difficult, so producers may be discouraged from experimenting with edits as it would require more work. In the other hand the same factors have disadvantages, such as the fact that producers may make edits on a traditional system that do not sound quite right, but it may be impossible or ineffective to rectify this, these small flaws would add character to the piece, which would not happen when using a modern computer systems, as any small imperfections can easily be removed without any bother. These facts about how recording and editing require far less skill is explained by David Wiliams and Peter Webster: When computers where large and delicate and required trained system operators, and when the first sound devices relied on complicated procedures to connect one element to another, you needed to know a great deal about technical things. This has all changed. This has given way to home recording which has enabled a lot more musicians to be able to produce there own pieces and become well known as home recording equipment is readily available. As recording technology has developed sound quality of recordings has improved dramatically. The initial recordings that where made on wax cylinders had a lot of hiss and crackling in the recording, a low signal to noise ratio, this made the music in the recording very hard to make out and the recording unpleasant to listen to, where as in modern recordings these noises have almost been eliminated. An example of this improvement in sound qualities is shown in this news article regarding new microphone technology: ‘new high-performance MEMS microphones enable dramatic advancements in sound quality.This has made listening to music far more pleasant. Which has improved musicianship as it has made it easier for musicians to listen to others performances and use them as inspirations for there own pieces. This has also allowed backing tracks to be produced to help musicians learn pieces which they can use to make there performances sound more realistic when they are playing solo or in small groups. As recording technology has developed and new distribution mediums have became available, music has became more portable, more widely available, and in general a higher quality. This has improved musicianship, as it has made it easier for musicians to listen to others performances, and use them to motivate and inspire themselves. In general this has improved musicianship but it has also had some detrimental effects such as sound quality being lost, particularly when music became digital in 1982 with the release of the compact discthat would replace the vinyl record. Many people argued that the use of digital data to represent audio led to a severe loss of quality in the music, as some of the sound is lost due to compression and digital sampling, which can give digital recordings a dull tone compared to the brighter tone or analogue recordings, one person that says this is Wayne Ellis Lee who says that: ‘vinyl has a warmer, fuller sound while CD has a digital, mechanical sound. In the contrary a digital compact disc recording can be played an infinite number of times without a loss in quality, but with an analogue recording some of the quality is lost, and you get a noticeable hiss if it is played repeatedly. Modern mp3 technology and internet downloading of music also has both positive and negative effects on musicianship. An negative effect is that due to internet downloading and peer to peer networks, it has became a lot easier for individuals to obtain free copies of an artists music illegally, this is expanded by Mark Katz who says: ‘While there is nothing illegal about MP3 and P2P technology per se, it is illegal to download or distribute digital files of copyrighted recordings with-out the permission of the copyright holder.These illegal downloads mean that the artist is not getting the royalties for there song that they deserve, and may be discouraged from producing there own music because it is not financially feasible for them. When music was distributed on a physical medium it was more difficult for listeners to obtain illegal copies of a recording. Consumers where also encouraged to purchase an artists product due to the fact that they where obtaining a physical copy of the song. Where with modern music downloading the listener gets a virtual file containing the music performance, the fact that the music is not in a physical form is also an advantage, as musicians and listeners are now able to have much larger music collections. The music retailers can offer a wider selection as they are not limited by the physical space needed to store the music. In conclusion there have been many advances in recording technology that have affected musicianship, most of these developments have made in easier for musicians to record, market and improve there performances, but these developments have also produced many disadvantages for both the musician and the listener.

In Favor of Social Security Reform :: Economics Politics Argumentative Essays

In Favor of Social Security Reform There are millions of Americans affected by social security. These Americans rely on social security to provide them with financial security. Recently President Bush agreed to proposing a method of privatizing the social security program so that in the future the vast reserves of the social security system would not run out nearly as fast. With the always increasing rise in inflation, and the baby boomer generation reaching ages of retirement fairly soon, this is an issue that needs to be dealt with correctly and rapidly. The way the president is handling the situation is definitely the right way to do it. There are many things and ways in which to do it wrong, but the president seems to be pointing the plans of social security in the right direction. The president’s plans of reforming social security are right because the privatization is the best way to go, changing the rules for those who would apply for it increases the savings and makes the money go farther, a nd working with the distribution of different tax percentages would really make the money go a lot farther. To understand how privatizing social security will help the social security program in the future, first it is important to know what it is and what it does. How social security works now is that everybody that gets benefits from the social security program all get them from one big pot, so to speak. By privatizing the different accounts, they can earn interest faster and make more money for the consumer on an individual basis. This can work better to because the accounts are individualized and earn the right amount of money for the different financial situation that the person is in. This will be a big change for the way that social security is run, but it is for the better and it will help lots of older Americans and the social security program in general for years to come. One of the big questions when dealing with the privatizing of social security is where it leaves the minority groups. All minorities are affected, but the African Americans are most likely the ones that will need to deal with it most.

The Soviet Union and the Legacy of Communist Rule Essay -- Politics Po

The Soviet Union and the Legacy of Communist Rule The December of 1991 marked the end of the Soviet Union—and with it, an entire era. Like the February Revolution of 1917 that ended tsardom, the events leading up to August 1991 took place in rapid succession, with both spontaneity and, to some degree, retrospective inevitability. To understand the demise of Soviet Union is to understand the communist party-state system itself. Although the particular happenings of the Gorbachev years undoubtedly accelerated its ruin, there existed fundamental flaws within the Soviet system that would be had been proven ultimately fatal. The USSR became a past chapter of history because it was impossible to significantly reform the administrative command system without destroying its very core, and because Gorbachev's "democratic socialism" was unattainable without abandoning the very notion of Soviet socialism itself. As R. Strayer had pointed out in Why Did the Soviet Union Collapse?, the USSR was held together under Communist rule with "a m ixture of ideological illusion and raw coercion" (Strayer, 36). The Gorbachev era saw both of these two bases of the party-state's power falling apart. By the mid-1980s, urbanization and higher education had transformed the Soviet society from a relatively homogenous one into one that was considerably diverse with a sizable middle-class. Educated and exposed to Western culture, the professionals and the white collars were far more likely to understand the Soviet Union's weaknesses and the system's fallacies than their counterparts decades ago. Coupled with the intelligentsia's anti-establishment tradition (as embodied by Alexandr Solzhenitsyn and Andrei Sakhorav), this new class of economic elite had ... ... an enormous void in Russian society. The old party-state machine was demolished, yet no new concrete political system had risen in its place. The old ideology was discredited, yet no newfound conviction could unite the country. After the 1991 coup, even Gorbachev was powerless to steer his Mother Russia. To this day, the old legacy of Communist rule haunts the nation still. Works Cited Aslund, Anders. How Russia Became a Market Economy. Washington, D.C.: The Brookings Institution. 1995 Brown, Archie. The Gorbachev Factor. Oxford: Oxford University Press. 1996. John L. H. Keep. Last of the Empires. New York: Oxford University Press. 1995. Strayer, Robert. Why Did the Soviet Union Collapse? New York: M.E. Sharpe. 1998. Tucker, Robert C. "Lenin and Revolution". The Lenin Anthology. Edited by Robert C. Tucker. New York: W.W. Norton and Company. 1994. The Soviet Union and the Legacy of Communist Rule Essay -- Politics Po The Soviet Union and the Legacy of Communist Rule The December of 1991 marked the end of the Soviet Union—and with it, an entire era. Like the February Revolution of 1917 that ended tsardom, the events leading up to August 1991 took place in rapid succession, with both spontaneity and, to some degree, retrospective inevitability. To understand the demise of Soviet Union is to understand the communist party-state system itself. Although the particular happenings of the Gorbachev years undoubtedly accelerated its ruin, there existed fundamental flaws within the Soviet system that would be had been proven ultimately fatal. The USSR became a past chapter of history because it was impossible to significantly reform the administrative command system without destroying its very core, and because Gorbachev's "democratic socialism" was unattainable without abandoning the very notion of Soviet socialism itself. As R. Strayer had pointed out in Why Did the Soviet Union Collapse?, the USSR was held together under Communist rule with "a m ixture of ideological illusion and raw coercion" (Strayer, 36). The Gorbachev era saw both of these two bases of the party-state's power falling apart. By the mid-1980s, urbanization and higher education had transformed the Soviet society from a relatively homogenous one into one that was considerably diverse with a sizable middle-class. Educated and exposed to Western culture, the professionals and the white collars were far more likely to understand the Soviet Union's weaknesses and the system's fallacies than their counterparts decades ago. Coupled with the intelligentsia's anti-establishment tradition (as embodied by Alexandr Solzhenitsyn and Andrei Sakhorav), this new class of economic elite had ... ... an enormous void in Russian society. The old party-state machine was demolished, yet no new concrete political system had risen in its place. The old ideology was discredited, yet no newfound conviction could unite the country. After the 1991 coup, even Gorbachev was powerless to steer his Mother Russia. To this day, the old legacy of Communist rule haunts the nation still. Works Cited Aslund, Anders. How Russia Became a Market Economy. Washington, D.C.: The Brookings Institution. 1995 Brown, Archie. The Gorbachev Factor. Oxford: Oxford University Press. 1996. John L. H. Keep. Last of the Empires. New York: Oxford University Press. 1995. Strayer, Robert. Why Did the Soviet Union Collapse? New York: M.E. Sharpe. 1998. Tucker, Robert C. "Lenin and Revolution". The Lenin Anthology. Edited by Robert C. Tucker. New York: W.W. Norton and Company. 1994.

Ideas About Trust in William Maxwell’s What He Was Like :: Maxwell What He Was Like Essays Trusting

In William Maxwell’s â€Å"What He Was Like†, the characters’ trust in each other changes throughout the story. For example, the father trusts that his diaries will remain unread, but this does not happen. However, the mother understands and obeys this trust. Unfortunately, the daughter does not understand her father’s trust. A person’s ideas about trust change after reading this story. â€Å"He was aware that his remarks were sometimes far from kind, but the person they were about was never going to read them, so what difference did it make† (p. 43). The father hides his diaries because he does not want his diaries to be read. The father does not request that his diaries be destroyed after his death because he trusts that they will not be read. If the father were still alive to know that his diaries are read, he would be disappointed and upset. The mother understands her husbands trust and she will not read his diaries. â€Å"... She saw where he had hidden the current volume, was tempted to open it and see what it was he didn’t want her to know, and then thought better of it and replaced the papers, exactly as they were before† (p. 44). The mother does not need to read the diaries to know what her husband is like. She knows that what her husband thinks is secret and unkind because she also has unkind thoughts. The couple’s daughter does not understand her father’s trust because she is young and does not have the wisdom that is acquired through age. Although her mother warns her not to read the diaries, the daughter does so anyway. â€Å"’It makes me feel I can never trust anybody ever again† (p. 46). The daughter learns that every person thinks dark things that are disturbing for other people to know.

State & Center Relation in India

An essay on the divisions of powers between the Union and the States . Because of its enormous size and economic, social, religious, cultural, linguistic and ethnic diversities our leaders thought unfit to give India a federal constitution. Our constitution provides for decentralization of political author ¬ity. The powers of the Centre and the States have been divided carefully in our constitution. In addition, Part XI of the Constitution (Art. 245 to 255) deals exclusively with the relations between the Union and States. The effort of the Constitution makers has been to grant autonomy to the States on one hand and to maintain unity and integrity of the vast country on the other hand by keeping co-coordinating authority with the Union, ‘Unity in Diversity' is a unique feature, which has been kept in view by Constitution makers. The Constitution clearly enumerates the areas of control under the centre and the states in three lists. List I consists of subject under the Control of Union, while List II contains areas of Control of the States. Yet there is a third list known as concurrent list. Associated essay: A.K. Kraipak v. Union of India Summary The Union and States have concurrent powers on the subjects contained in this list. These lists are contained in seventh schedule of our Constitution. By and large, defense of the country, foreign affairs, currency, railways, shipping and navigation etc. are the subjects of the Union List, while maintenance of law and order, prisons, police force, local govern ¬ments, public health etc. are subjects of State List. The subjects like criminal law and procedure, marriage and divorce, lunacy, forests, economic and social planning etc. are in the concurrent list. The Union Parliament can make laws for the whole or any part of India in regard to subjects contained in Union List while the states have exclusive power to make laws for the state as a whole or any part there of will respect to any of the matters listed in the State List. State Legislatures can also make laws on the subjects contained in the concurrent list. The residuary powers are vested in the centre. Parliament can, however, legislate with respect to a matter in State List if the subject is declared to be of national importance by a resolution of Rajya Sabha or when a proclamation of emergency is in operation. The centre has been given some administrative powers over the states for effective co-ordination. It is the responsibility of the States to ensure compli ¬ance of Union laws within their territory. The centre can give directions to the states for die purpose. The Union can also give directions to a state regarding construction and maintenance of means of communication of national or military importance and for the protection of the railways within the state. The centre can deploy any grave situation of law and order in the state. The power to settle disputes between states relating to distribution of waters of inter-state rivers lies with the Union. The centre can set up inter-state councils, if it feels necessary. For this administrative co-ordination, there is a provision of All-India Services in the Constitution. These services are common to the Centre and States. The recruitment and other service matters are controlled by the centre, while they continue to service their states. The centre, by rotation, utilizes their services on deputation for a specified period.

International Business Environment Essay

Venturing into new business and market frontiers like Malaysia requires extensive understanding of the environment in terms of the political establishment, business potential, legal and regulatory framework, and availability of resources, socio-cultural aspects and to an extent geographical position and infrastructural development of the country. The research and analysis of these key and crucial factors are important in analysing the potential and business environment of Malaysia. Malaysia possesses unique features and characteristics which are different from any other nation and it’s therefore essential to scan and research the market. Geographically located in Eastern Asia, Malaysia has been one of Asia fastest developing markets in the last half century. Malaysia is among the â€Å"Asian Tigers† a terminology given to the Asian economies which transformed from third world nation status to middle income nations within a short span thanks to sound and effective economic policies. It has a sizeable population of around 28. 3 million with diverse ethnic composition largely comprising the Ethnic Malays, Indians and Chinese population (CIA fact book, 2010). Similarly Malaysia is a developing nation with growing high per capita income making it a potential market for introduction of any business. The nation has well established and developed financial markets and excellent world class infrastructure in transport air and sea and moreover it’s known worldwide for the technology superiority and advancements. It’s highly developed commercial and manufacture sectors makes it a target for many international business. Malaysia has enjoyed a relative stable political stability which has been instrumental in spurring its economy and attracting foreign firms. It’s also a competitive business environment with flexible legal and regulatory framework making it easy to operate business. Therefore it’s very important to explore and understand these aspects and others in detail to ensure conclusion and market analysis of Malaysia is obtained through in depth understanding of the market. This would enable the company to undertake its strategies and plans effectively and efficiently in Malaysia. The paper tries to look some of the aspects mentioned above in more detail. Conclusively, In order to expand business to other countries, many factors should be put into consideration so as to ensure there is professional development of the business. Critical analysis, exploring and report writing is therefore important considering these issue and thus should be undertaken respectively. Introduction In business, the understanding of a given culture in which business is to be done and be based is very critical and thus important. With connection to these some aspects have to be considered so as to know where and which country qualifies better for allocation of such business. These can be well achieved through exploring and analysing the business environment of a prospective country. For instance, Culture and cultural practices are very important and have to be understood in order to make sure all the selling strategies have been able to offer good fruits in the business (Sandra, 2001, p 58). This paper thus comes up with the choosing of Malaysia as an example of a country on which as the Business Development Manager of Australia have chosen with the aim of expanding business. Therefore this paper discusses the critical analysis and the report obtained from exploring and analysing business environment of Malaysia which in return helps in determining where the country fits in the complexity of international business environment. Many factors should be put into consideration so as to decide whether the business will effectively run smoothly (Dunning, 1998, p 98). Country Profile Situated in Eastern Asia Geographically Malaysia covers approximately area of 392,748 square Kms, this is lightly larger than New Mexico in United States and a population of 26 Million people (C.  I. A fact book, 2010) this is a sizeable population which can be viable for any target market and introduction of business ventures. In Malaysia Islam is the pre-dominant and largest religion practised by the ethnic Malays but the nation is a multi-ethnic society and has other religious beliefs like Buddhism, Hinduism, Christianity and Taoism practised by the minority ethnic population of Indians, Chinese and a small proportion of immigrant labour force. Ethnic Composition of Malaysia has around 53. 3% ethnic Malays, Chinese 26%, Indigenous 11. 8%, Indians 7. 7% others 1. % and Islamic religion has 60. 4% followers, Buddhism 9. 2%, Christianity 9. 1%, Hinduism 6. 3% ( CIA fact book ,2010) Its essential to know the ethnic and religious composition in order to understand the fabric of the society properly. Bahasa Melayu is the official language along with Chinese , English and Tamil are the languages used pre-dominantly in Malaysia and it’s a plus to have English as one of the languages as it makes it easy for transactions and communication when the business and corporations aspiring to penetrate Malaysian market are from English speaking nations. The country is contained of two distinct parts which are separated by the South China Sea whereby, the parts, the east and west share similar landscape in that they have coastal plains which rise due to densely forested hill and mountains. Malaysia neighbours Indonesia and thus the two countries share some cultures (Carsrud & Brannback 2007, p, 54). This is due to the Indians ethnic community which is quite well represented in Malaysia and also it borders countries like Singapore and China. The nation is well endowed with natural resources, good infrastructural development in communications technology and transport and a good coast line with proximity to major sea routes. Economy Malaysia transformed from a third world economy to middle income economy within a duration of around three decades and the nation shifted from being a primarily agricultural economic based to an industrial and commercial economic hub. The country actively participates in international trade which has been enhanced by the shipping routes around its coastline and has well established manufacturing sector. Malaysia produces top exporter of manufactured goods, palm oil, rubber, petroleum and liquefied natural gas. Malaysia is considered as a newly industrialized country although not a developed one but on the way to become one and research shows its GPD per capita ( of around $14000) in the year 2008 was recorded high thus ranking the country 48th in the world and 2nd in Southeast Asia (Drucker, 2007, p , 23). The nation has a GDP of $313 billion and an average GDP annual growth rate of 5. 9 %( Ibp USA, 2008, p. 7 ) The GDP growth rate has been consistent over a long period of time and the economy has shown resiliency during the wake of economic crisis like the Asian economic crisis and recent global recession. It’s known for the developed commercial sector producing and exporting electronic products and other advanced technological goods. Export market is $158 billion and its currency Malaysian currency (ringgit) exchanges at $3 (Ibp US, 2008 p. 18) The exchange rate of ringgit against major currencies has been consistent and stable avoiding currency fluctuations. Malaysia has a floating exchange rate although it has pegged its currency to the dollar. Similarly the nation is a member of almost all major trading blocs around the region and Asia, from WTO to regional economic trade blocs making it an open and very competitive market. Political System  Since Malaysia gained independence its economic performance has been high in comparison with other Asian nations due to its stability and has avoided military coups ( Nayland,2001,p. 164) Another critical factor to consider is the political system of the country. Politics and economy are intertwined and interrelated and political stability determines the environment which economy and business operates. The political stability of the democratic nation like Malaysia makes it an attractive place for investment. Malaysia is a federal constitutional elective monarchy having a head of state is referred as the king of the nation who is elected to a five year term and a parliamentary system of government headed by prime minister and has a healthy democratic space with opposition parties Parliamentary elections are held after every five years and thus only registered voters of age 21 and above are allowed to vote for the members of the House of Representatives (Ahmad & Seymour, 2008, p, 76). Legal and Regulatory Framework MIDA (Malaysian Industrial Development Authority) is a body charged with promoting investments activities both local and foreign, and to helped and guided investments in the business environment (Cheang Lo, 1997, p. 57) This is one of the bodies created by the government to eliminate the bureaucracy in obtaining legal documentation in the country by simplifying the licensing and regulatory process of businesses which wish venture in that country. Although any business needs to go through the required government process in obtaining licences the government has created an environment where restrictions and licensing red tape has been reduced significantly. Socio- Cultural Environment The socio-cultural environment in Malaysia is well defined by its ethnic composition and religious diversity. Malaysia is pluralistic society with Malays being the majority and the other significant minority group like the Chinese, Indians and Tamils each with different religion. With such a rich cultural heritage, acquiring the relevant skills and cultural knowledge in order to conduct business in Malaysia is crucial to your success (Communicaid, n. d) the socio-cultural environment settings in Malaysia although comprising different ethnic groups and religious affiliations is a conservative society and thus it’s important for people to understand how to address the people. Each particular ethnic group has its own mode of communication and interaction and it’s critical to ensure you understand the culture and behaviour of each ethnic group in Malaysia. Generalizations of the all Malaysians while conducting business may be costly to the business as it may be viewed negatively by other ethnic groups. For instance â€Å"the Chinese for example expect punctuality, whereas both ethnic Malays and Indian business people have a more relaxed attitude towards time (Communicaid, n. ) In regard to the consumer attitudes towards products and goods there is a general tendencies among Malays of regarding goods produced locally to be somehow inferior to the goods made by the developed nations which are advanced more than them and hence produce quality products. Quality is sensitive to Malays consumers. â€Å" Malaysian local products are regarded with skepticism compared to south Korea products but are believed to be of high quality in comparison with goods fr om India ,china, Mexico and Thailand. (Ghazali et al,2008, p. 7) Resources  The country is well endowed with natural resources and enough raw materials which it has continued to exploit in its quest to develop its economy. During most of the 1970’s and 1980’s Malaysia was the largest producer and exporter of tin, tropical timber, palm oil and natural rubber (Vincent, 2005, p. 10) Although Currently, Malaysia is not a major producer of some of the raw materials like natural rubber it still has abundant supply of tin, timber palm oil and natural rubber which has been used effectively by the government in exploring and developing its economy. Malaysia has transformed itself from primarily agricultural based economy to an industrial, technological and commercial giant due to the availability of human resources in the country. Malaysia has been known to be open in attracting foreign labour in its economy to make it competitive and potent. However there have been slight problems in obtaining and retaining skilled labour from Malaysia. â€Å"In contrast to this 44% of Australians firms reported difficulty in maintaining skilled labour in Malaysia (Nayland, 2001, p. 0) Ethical and Social Responsibility â€Å"More than 60% of managers in Malaysia were supportive of the view that that to improve market share and public image their firms would have to show there are social responsible (Harrison, 2005, p. 208) Malaysian socio-cultural structure is based on conservative setting like Islamic religious dimension on the Malay population which actually sees the aspect of giving back to them community is a responsibility rather than f avour. Corporations and business doing business in Malaysia are therefore obligated to be active in supporting projects in communities to uplift their image of sharing with the community the profits obtained from them. Conclusion and Recommendations Having noted some of the major findings and factors affecting the level of entrepreneurial activities from research that has been done, it will be necessary to agree on the need of making Malaysia one of the key standards of venturing into any fast developing markets. Also, it is necessary to note that, some of the factors that affect the level of business and entrepreneurship in this country tend to have direct impacts on other economic activities and performances and they have been identified as positive and potent. Once all the factors have been keenly identified and outlined, it becomes quite easy to address them respectively so as to attain overall economic performance and development (Datamonitor, 2009, p, 31). From the analysis and research based on political stability, economic performance and availability or resources the general picture can be concluded that Malaysia is a potential and viable environment to conduct any business of any nature. Although it may have some challenges and obstacles, the business environment and its market potential makes it a conducive environment to establish business ventures and has a potential market for growth. The nation is also strategically placed to penetrate other markets in Asia.

Laozi and Dao Essay

1, Superficially understanding Laozi’s ideas, â€Å"those who know do not talk; / those who talk do not know† (56), are a bit conventional during his period time. It seems like that sages should try to follow the path of solitary, pretending to be ignorant and hide their talents to stay out of troubles. But we should think much deeper because Laozi’s wisdom is extremely profound that it is difficult for us to understand it. I think that â€Å"those who know do not talk;/ those who talk do not know† means that sage does not need to show off their talents. In Laozi, if a person is true erudite or intelligent, he himself will unify with what he learns and understands; I mean that everything a sage does can show how wise he is—a sage himself is wisdom itself. Laozi himself focuses more on how to live as an erudite person, act as an erudite person rather than talk as an erudite person. Related to Chinese tradition, Laozi prefers people who are humble and low-key but not ostentatious and hard-edged. So, Laozi writes about Dao instead of talking it; he believes that Dao itself is the truth which truly exists and does not need to be publicized by preaching. 2ï ¼Å'Confucius’ ideas of Dao focus more on ourselves, but Laozi’s Dao is more receptive, including the rules of everything in the universe. â€Å"An educated gentleman cannot but be resolute and broad—minded, for he has taken up a heavy responsibility and a long course. Is it not a heavy responsibility which is to practice benevolence? Is it not a long course, which will end only with his death?† (The Analects). Confucius thinks that no matter how difficult it is, man can make their will the will of the universe if they perform in the right ritual; that is the reason why Chinese emperor Wu (one of the most ambitious and powerful emperors in Chinese history) of Han dynasty decides to confucianize the whole China. Unlike Confucius, Laozi thinks that Dao decides what is possible and what is impossible, maybe possible can become impossible, but it should follow the rules of Dao; human being cannot force the impossible become possible. The biggest difference between Laozi and Confucius is that Confucius knows the past, now, but he does not know future, so everyone need to struggle now for future; Laozi  knows past, now and future because he knows that everything follows the Dao so he prefers that everyone should enjoys now and does not worry about future because it has already been decided by Dao.