Project Scope Statement

Scope Statement Section headings listed in gray font appear in both the Project Charter and the Scope Statement. Project Title: Web Site Enhancement Project Project Manager: Xin Tao Project Description (see Project Charter) Business Objectives †¢ A new company web site is proposed to best support the company’s mission to provide a complete recreational experience to the guests, including elegant meals, relaxing living quarters, and extensive recreational options such as golf, tennis, spas, gyms, night clubs, and excursions to local towns and areas of interest. Increase market share by 50% within two years of launch by providing on-line queries and reservations of rooms, on-line booking of guest services. †¢ Increase revenue by 25% within three quarters post-launch by tapping into a larger customer base accessible through internet sales. †¢ Avoid risk that some of the hotels will have to be closed within two to three years as pressured by other larger hotel chain s. †¢ Increase customer satisfaction by 25% among the existing customer base by becoming more technology-oriented, as measured via customer satisfaction surveys taken over the two-year period following the new web site launch.Project Objectives †¢ Allow technology team gain more experience in more sophisticated web technology, which is expected to reduce web site maintenance cost by 20%. †¢ Use effective project management techniques consistent with the company standards. †¢ Integrate the new company web site well with existed systems: the Reservation system and the Guest-Services System. Project Scope Description Q The new web site has a user friendly graphical interface, which shall allow user to do queries, reservations, browsing and booking easily.The new web site is enhanced to interact with existed systems: a Reservation System and a Guest-Services System. It has the capabilities to read data from and save data to those systems. The new web site shall displ ay results according to users’ requests. Requirements †¢ The new web site shall be accessed by popular web browsers, including Microsoft IE, Firefox, Mozilla and Netscape. †¢ The new web site shall run on a Linux based server. †¢ The web server software, which the new web site uses, shall be Apache. The new web site shall be a secure Internet site. †¢ All major credit cards will be accepted by the new web site. †¢ VeriSign will be the credit card processing vendor. Project Boundaries Out-of-Scope features discussed but not implemented at this time:†¢ Users can have additional payment methods besides credit cards, for example, Paypal and Google Checkout. †¢ Users can get invoice in a PDF format. †¢ Users have the capability to cancel a transaction even after it is done. †¢ Users have the capability to remove particular service even after it is booked. Users can ask for refund if booked price is higher than the current price. Project Deliverables (see Project Charter) Project Acceptance Criteria †¢ Delivery of the web site by the end of August, 2006 †¢ The new web site shall provide on-line queries and reservations of rooms, on-line booking of guest services †¢ The new web site shall operate 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. †¢ Expenditures on the project not exceeding $900,000 †¢ Reduce web site maintenance cost by 20%.†¢ Increase revenue by 25% within three quarters post-launch Increase customer satisfaction by 25% among the existing customer Project Constraints (see Project Charter) Project Assumptions (see Project Charter) Project Roles and Responsibilities (see Project Charter) Initial Defined Risks †¢ Because the management team is still somehow hesitant to embark on the project, the project could be canceled. †¢ Because funds for this project are coming from marketing budget of the marketing team, funds may be reduced if marketing team cannot control its budget wisely . Because the project requires more technical resources to be hired, which are scarce due to the red hot technology market, the new web site may not be launched on time. †¢ Because the project has a cost constraint of $900,000, an inferior web site may be developed, resulting in a poor quality that fails to realize its sales targets. †¢ Because the project has a time constraint of 10 months, the web site may not be tested thoroughly, leading to an unstable web site. †¢ Because the project requires the deployment of new hardware, shipment delay of the new hardware would lead to the project behind schedule.Schedule Milestones (see Project Charter) Cost Estimate (see Project Charter) Project Parameter Ranking |Parameter |Ranking (1,2,3,4) |Comments | |Time |1 |The sponsors hope that the new web site can be up and running, accepting | | | |online reservations and queries within 10 months before the start of the | | | |new peak season.Missing the target launching time mean s that the | | | |strategic objectives can not be meet to increase revenue by booking to | | | |capacity at peak times and by expanding peak seasons by marketing year | | | |round points of interest. | |Cost |2 |The budget for the project is fixed at $900,000. |Scope |4 |The sponsors are willing to sacrifice some of the web site’s features in | | | |order to reach the quality, cost, and time goals. | |Quality |3 |Since the company web site would bring significant revenue opportunity | | | |for the company, a stable site is much needed.A buggy web site leads to | | | |low customer satisfaction, which would adversely impact company’s | | | |revenue. | Approval Requirements Tom Ender and Susan Ryan, Co-presidents Mike Muller, Head of the Marketing Team Helen Hui, Head of the Travel & Tourism Susan Gill, Head of the Technology Team ———————– Query Reserve Browse Book Reservation System Interact New web site Users Inter act Display Results Guest-Services System Project Scope Statement Scope Statement Section headings listed in gray font appear in both the Project Charter and the Scope Statement. Project Title: Web Site Enhancement Project Project Manager: Xin Tao Project Description (see Project Charter) Business Objectives †¢ A new company web site is proposed to best support the company’s mission to provide a complete recreational experience to the guests, including elegant meals, relaxing living quarters, and extensive recreational options such as golf, tennis, spas, gyms, night clubs, and excursions to local towns and areas of interest. Increase market share by 50% within two years of launch by providing on-line queries and reservations of rooms, on-line booking of guest services. †¢ Increase revenue by 25% within three quarters post-launch by tapping into a larger customer base accessible through internet sales. †¢ Avoid risk that some of the hotels will have to be closed within two to three years as pressured by other larger hotel chain s. †¢ Increase customer satisfaction by 25% among the existing customer base by becoming more technology-oriented, as measured via customer satisfaction surveys taken over the two-year period following the new web site launch.Project Objectives †¢ Allow technology team gain more experience in more sophisticated web technology, which is expected to reduce web site maintenance cost by 20%. †¢ Use effective project management techniques consistent with the company standards. †¢ Integrate the new company web site well with existed systems: the Reservation system and the Guest-Services System. Project Scope Description Q The new web site has a user friendly graphical interface, which shall allow user to do queries, reservations, browsing and booking easily.The new web site is enhanced to interact with existed systems: a Reservation System and a Guest-Services System. It has the capabilities to read data from and save data to those systems. The new web site shall displ ay results according to users’ requests. Requirements †¢ The new web site shall be accessed by popular web browsers, including Microsoft IE, Firefox, Mozilla and Netscape. †¢ The new web site shall run on a Linux based server. †¢ The web server software, which the new web site uses, shall be Apache. The new web site shall be a secure Internet site. †¢ All major credit cards will be accepted by the new web site. †¢ VeriSign will be the credit card processing vendor. Project Boundaries Out-of-Scope features discussed but not implemented at this time:†¢ Users can have additional payment methods besides credit cards, for example, Paypal and Google Checkout. †¢ Users can get invoice in a PDF format. †¢ Users have the capability to cancel a transaction even after it is done. †¢ Users have the capability to remove particular service even after it is booked. Users can ask for refund if booked price is higher than the current price. Project Deliverables (see Project Charter) Project Acceptance Criteria †¢ Delivery of the web site by the end of August, 2006 †¢ The new web site shall provide on-line queries and reservations of rooms, on-line booking of guest services †¢ The new web site shall operate 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. †¢ Expenditures on the project not exceeding $900,000 †¢ Reduce web site maintenance cost by 20%.†¢ Increase revenue by 25% within three quarters post-launch Increase customer satisfaction by 25% among the existing customer Project Constraints (see Project Charter) Project Assumptions (see Project Charter) Project Roles and Responsibilities (see Project Charter) Initial Defined Risks †¢ Because the management team is still somehow hesitant to embark on the project, the project could be canceled. †¢ Because funds for this project are coming from marketing budget of the marketing team, funds may be reduced if marketing team cannot control its budget wisely . Because the project requires more technical resources to be hired, which are scarce due to the red hot technology market, the new web site may not be launched on time. †¢ Because the project has a cost constraint of $900,000, an inferior web site may be developed, resulting in a poor quality that fails to realize its sales targets. †¢ Because the project has a time constraint of 10 months, the web site may not be tested thoroughly, leading to an unstable web site. †¢ Because the project requires the deployment of new hardware, shipment delay of the new hardware would lead to the project behind schedule.Schedule Milestones (see Project Charter) Cost Estimate (see Project Charter) Project Parameter Ranking |Parameter |Ranking (1,2,3,4) |Comments | |Time |1 |The sponsors hope that the new web site can be up and running, accepting | | | |online reservations and queries within 10 months before the start of the | | | |new peak season.Missing the target launching time mean s that the | | | |strategic objectives can not be meet to increase revenue by booking to | | | |capacity at peak times and by expanding peak seasons by marketing year | | | |round points of interest. | |Cost |2 |The budget for the project is fixed at $900,000. |Scope |4 |The sponsors are willing to sacrifice some of the web site’s features in | | | |order to reach the quality, cost, and time goals. | |Quality |3 |Since the company web site would bring significant revenue opportunity | | | |for the company, a stable site is much needed.A buggy web site leads to | | | |low customer satisfaction, which would adversely impact company’s | | | |revenue. | Approval Requirements Tom Ender and Susan Ryan, Co-presidents Mike Muller, Head of the Marketing Team Helen Hui, Head of the Travel & Tourism Susan Gill, Head of the Technology Team ———————– Query Reserve Browse Book Reservation System Interact New web site Users Inter act Display Results Guest-Services System

The Truth Regarding Puppy Mills

Page 2 Puppy mills have long been a problem in the United States, specifically the Midwest region. Puppy mill dogs live in cages 24 hours a day 7 days a week. The dogs’ only purpose in life is â€Å"to sit in a cage, constantly producing more puppies to make a profit for their owners† (Best Friends Network, 2007). The dogs have little to no human interaction. Puppy mills are licensed facilities, which mass-produce puppies for pet stores and/or auctions, and should be banned due to the horrible conditions in which the animals live; they are bred repeatedly, and often killed when having outlived their usefulness. According to Pet Shop Puppies (n. d. ), Congress enacted the federal Animal Welfare Act (AWA). The AWA was meant to protect the animals, but instead opened up the door for dog farms. This act changed the definition of dogs from pets to livestock. Today we have moved up from dog farms to puppy mills. Puppy mills breed dogs repeatedly and have turned breeding into a multi-million dollar industry. Best Friends Network states there is an estimated 6,000 licensed puppy mills breeding approximately 500,000 dogs each year with an unknown amount of unlicensed facilities (The Skinny On Puppy Mills section, final paragraph). Puppy mill owners breed dogs, sell the offspring to pet stores and auction houses. The puppies are sent to auction to be sold to the highest bidder in order for other puppy mills to be able to continue the breeding cycle. When puppy mills run out of new dogs to breed, they will begin breeding mother to son, daughter to father, etc. creating inbreeding. Inbreeding causes many genetic problems for any breed. Page 3 The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) requires minimum standards for puppy mills, breeders, and rescues. According to Prisoners of Greed (n. ), the cages are required to be six inches longer, wider, and taller than the dog inside. The cages have to be made of coated wire. This coated wire cuts into the paws of the dogs causing severe infection, loss of limbs, and sometimes death. The USDA does not require dogs to be exercised. There is no requirement as to how clean the cages have to be kept. Often, the dog cages are stacked on top of one another to save space. The dog’s feces and urine drops through the coated wire bottom onto the dog(s) below. There are many differences between puppy mills and licensed rofessional breeders. A professional breeder only breeds to improve or sustain the breed. Puppy mills breed for purely profit. Professional breeders will only breed their dogs a maximum of once a year. Some breeders only breed their bitches every other year. Puppy mills breed their dogs repeatedly. When a person purchases a puppy from a professional breeder, the facilities, which the parent dogs live, is available for a tour. Puppy mills wholesale their puppies to stores and auction houses only. Puppy mills and private auctions are not licensed to sell directly to the public. This means the purchaser is unable to see the conditions of which the parent dogs live. Professional breeders will retire their dogs once they are too old to be used for reproduction. Retirement means these dogs get to live out their life as a family pet. Puppy mills kill the dogs, dump them on the side of the road, give them away, or send them to animal control once they are not able to reproduce. According to the USDA, animal control is not required to keep a surrendered dog for any length of time. Animal control is free to euthanize the animal when the owner brings them in. Page 4 The USDA has many responsibilities. The USDA is responsible for inspecting yearly all professional breeders, puppy mills, and rescues. When the USDA inspects the officer is required to enforce the federal AWA. The USDA does not always fine or shut down puppy mills when the officer discovers a violation. These facilities are allowed to continue to operate while the animals are kept in poor conditions. According to Prisoners of Greed (n. d. ) â€Å"there are over 4,000 federally licensed breeding kennels†. In Susan Montee’s report (2008), Missouri State Auditor, the USDA â€Å"failed to inspect 1,111 of 2,769 licensed animal care facilities in 2006. The same report states only 27% of licensed facilities were inspected in 2004. In Claire McCaskill’s report (2004), Missouri State Auditor, the USDA has received three negative reports in the last seven years. These reports inspections by the Missouri State Auditor happen every other year. The issue being the USDA is required annually to inspect every li censed animal care facility and is not even inspecting half. Puppy mills treat their dogs like livestock. The dogs live in small cages, stacked on top of each other, with a coated wire bottom cutting into their feet. The dogs breed repeatedly with no attention paid to genetic defects. Sick puppies are often produced and sold to pet stores. These pet stores in turn sell the sick puppies to the public (S. Rhoades, personal interview, June 7, 2009). There are people, which have the mindset of only buying from pet stores because they only want a purebred puppy, and do not want to pay the prices professional breeders charge. (S. Rhoades June 7, 2009) There are many pure bred dogs on death row at animal shelters all over the Midwest. (S. Rhoades, personal interview, June 7, 2009) It is important the general public knows the truth regarding where that cute puppy was born, and where its parents live. (S. Rhoades, personal interview, June 7, 2009) There are also breed specific rescues, which have Page 5 only purebred puppies and dogs for adoption. As long as we have dogs on death row do not breed or buy, adopt from the local animal shelter or rescue. (S. Rhoades, personal interview, June 7, 2009) Page 6 References Best Friends Network, The Skinny on Puppy Mills [A. Abern]. (October 20, 2007) http://network. estfriends. org/puppymillrescue/news/19928. html Pet Shop Puppies, Incorporated ( n. d. ). The Joy of a Puppy. Brochure distributed by Pet Shop Pet Shop Puppies, Incorporated [no author]. (2004-2009). The Truth Behind Pet Store Puppies. June 3, 2009, http://www. petshoppuppies. org/psppuppymills. htm Prisoners of Greed [no author]. (n. d. ). Puppymills Breed Misery. June 3, 2009, http://www. prisonersofgreed. org/Com mercial-kennel-facts. html Rhoades, S. (June 7, 2009). Personal interview with S. Rhoades, Follow Me Home Animal Rescue and Sanctuary, http://www. followmehome. org

Basic Argument for Fatalism

He thinks it is not up to him what will happen a thousand years hence, next year, tomorrow, or the very next moment. † (52) â€Å"A fatalist thinks of the future in the way we all think of the past, for everyone is a fatalist as he looks back on things. † (52) We all think of the past â€Å"as something settled and fixed, to be taken for what it is. We are never in the least tempted to try to modify it. It is not in the least up to us what happened last year, yesterday, or even a moment ago, any more than are the motions of the heaves or the political developments in Tibet. We say of past things that they are no longer within our power. The fatalist says they never were. † (52-53) Theological Fatalism According to the main versions of Western Monotheism (e. g. traditional Christianity), God is omniscient. To be omniscient is to have (in some important sense) unlimited knowledge. It’s hard to say what this amounts to, but let’s use the following defin ition (since it’s common) x is omniscient = for x knows every true proposition and x does not believe any false propositions. Many people think that omniscience is incompatible with human freedom, because it implies the doctrine of theological fatalism. Theological fatalism is the view that all human actions are unavoidable (and we are powerless to do anything other than what we actually do) because God has exhaustive foreknowledge of all future human actions. Here is an important statement of the argument for theological fatalism from Augustine (On Free Choice of the Will, Book III) I very much wonder how God can have foreknowledge of everything in the future, and yet we do not sin by necessity. It would be an irreligious and completely insane attack on God’s foreknowledge to say that something could happen otherwise than as God foreknew †¦ Since God foreknew that [Adam] was going to sin, his sin necessarily had to happen. How, then, is the will free when such inescapable necessity is found in it? Surely this is the problem †¦ How is it that these two propositions are not contradictory and inconsistent: (1) God has foreknowledge of everything in the future; and (2) We sin by the will, not by necessity? For, you say, if God foreknows that someone is going to sin, then it is necessary that he sin. But if it is necessary, the will has no choice about whether to sin; there is an inescapable and fixed necessity. And so you fear that this argument forces us into one of two positions: either we draw the heretical conclusion that God does not foreknow everything in the future; or, if we cannot accept this conclusion, we must admit that sin happens by necessity and not by will. The Basic Argument for Theological Fatalism Where S stands for any person whatsoever and A stands for any action, Augustine’s argument can be stated as: 1. For any person, S, and an action, A, that S performs, God knew in advance that S will do A. 2. If God knows in advance that S will do A, then it necessary that S will do A. 3. Therefore, it is necessary that S will do A. 4. If it is necessary that S will do A, then S is not free to refrain from performing A. 5. If S is not free to refrain from performing A, then S does not freely perform A. 6. Therefore, no person ever acts freely. Evaluating the argument Premise 2 is ambiguous †¢P2a: Necessarily, If God knows in advance that S will perform A, then S will perform A (De Dicto) †¢P2b: If God knows in advance that S will perform A, then necessarily S will perform A (De Re) P2a is true but the resulting argument is invalid P2a is true. It says that the proposition â€Å"if God knows in advance that S will perform A, then S will perform A† is necessarily true and this just means that it is impossible for God to know in advance that, for example, I will raise my arm at some time and I fail to raise my arm at that time. We can put this by saying that God’s knowing in advance that I will raise my arm at some time logically entails that I will raise my arm at that time. P2a is a way of expressing this truth. The resulting argument is invalid. Using P2a as the key premise, the argument is: 1. Necessarily, if God knows in advance that S will perform A, then S will perform A. 2. God knows in advance that S will perform A. 3. Therefore, necessarily, S will perform A. But this argument is invalid (the conclusion doesn’t follow from the premises). We can show this by means of a counterexample (an argument of the same form with true premises and a false conclusion). The form of this argument is: 1. Necessarily, If p, then p. 2. P 3. Therefore, necessarily q. To see that the argument is invalid, use the following substitutions: p = K. Sharpe weighs over 200lbs, q = K. Sharpe weighs over 199lbs. . Necessarily, If K. Sharpe weighs over 200lbs, then K. Sharpe weighs over 199lbs. 2. K. Sharpe weighs over 200lbs 3. Therefore, necessarily K. Sharpe weighs over 199lbs. The premises of this argument are true but the conclusion is obviously false (I could go on a diet and successfully lose some weight). I weigh over 199lbs but not essentially. I could weigh less than 199lbs and, i n fact, I did weigh less than 199lbs at one point. All that follows from the first two premises is that, in fact, I in fact weight more than 199lbs. It doesn’t follow that it is impossible for me to weigh less than 199lbs. Just in case you are not convinced, here is a second counterexample (Plantinga’s) 1. Necessarily, if I know that George Clooney is a bachelor, then George Clooney is a bachelor. 2. I know that George Clooney is a bachelor. 3. Therefore, it is necessarily true that George Clooney is a bachelor Again, the premises are true but the conclusion is false. George Clooney is a bachelor but he is not essentially a bachelor. He could get married, he just chooses not to. All that follows from the first two premises is that George Clooney is in fact a bachelor (not that he is essentially a bachelor). P2b renders the argument valid but it is obviously false 1. If God knows in advance that S will perform A, then necessarily S will perform A. 2. God knows in advance that S will perform A. 3. Therefore, necessarily S will perform A. This argument is valid (it’s just modus ponens) and so if the premises were true then conclusion would be true as well. But P2b is false. Given the de re reading of P2b, it says that whatever propositions God knows are necessarily true or, to put the point in terms of properties, if God knows that some object has a property then the object has that property essentially. Taken in this way, P2b is obviously false (nor does it follow from omniscience). Since the basic argument has to rely on either P2a or P2b, the argument is either invalid or relies on a false premise. Either way it’s unsound. Here is a way of thinking about this criticism of the argument. From the fact that God knows that Paul will mow his yard on July 7, 2015 it follows that, on July 7 2015, Paul mows his yard and that he does not refrain from mowing his yard on that day. But, it does not follow that it is metaphysically impossible for Paul to refrain from mowing his yard that day (that Paul does not refrain from mowing and it is impossible that Paul refrain from mowing are two very different things). All that follows from the fact that God knows in advance that Paul will mow is that Paul will not exercise his power to refrain not that he lacks the power the power to refrain. The basic argument for theological fatalism needs the later inference, but that inference is not a good one. Thus, the basic argument fails.

Audience Analysis Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 2

Audience Analysis Paper - Essay Example In the first place, it is necessary to consider the characteristics of the audience which can influence the communication. Admittedly, these characteristic features should be considered before the speaker starts working on the presentation. For instance, it is necessary to find out the number of listeners. This will enable the speaker to prepare the necessary quantity of visuals (Booher, 2002, p.48). Booher (2002) also points out that such data as â€Å"age, sex, race, religion, or political bent of the audience† are also important in terms of the preparation for the presentation. This information will assist the speaker to find the necessary communication channels with all members of the group. Booher (2002) states that it is essential to consider educational background of the audience as well. Apart from these characteristics it is also important to find out whether there are â€Å"taboo subjects or issues† (Booher, 2002, p.48). Thus, if the speaker touches upon some of such questions, the presentation effectiveness can be challenged since listeners (or even some of them) will not perceive the information or misinterpret it because of some prejudice. Sprague et al. (2008) point out that it is important to consider â€Å"specific speech situation†, i.e. the time of the meeting (p.100). The speaker should take into account whether the people had other meetings or this will be the first meeting they have, whether the audience is tired of listening or can easily perceive the information. Thus, the speaker can shape the communication and decide what style of speaking to choose (faster or slower) or whether to add some anecdotal stories which can let the audience get prepared for more important sets of information or not. The characteristic features which should be also considered may include many other points depending on each particular case. As has been stated above taking into account characteristics of the audience will enable the speaker to choose the right communication channels and use them more effectively. Sellnow (2004) defines communication channels as â€Å"the pathways through which messages are communicated† between the speaker and the audience and points out two major communication channels, auditory and visual (p.21). Both channels should be exploited during the in-person meeting since this will enable the speaker to communicate his/her information more effectively. For instance, the auditory channel is what the audience hears (Sellnow, 2004). Thus, the speaker should carefully choose words to make sure that his/her message has reached the audience properly. It is necessary to point out that intonation and the way of speaking is also important, so the speaker should speak loudly and stress important points with the help of intonation, stress, etc. Visual channels are also very important since they enhance the information received from the auditory channels. The visual channels include not only visu als like diagrams, charts, pictures and illustrations. They also include facial expressions, gestures, eye contact and even appearance (Sellnow, 2004). Thus, speaker’s gestures can be descriptive and explanatory, so the speaker can support the auditory channels and can be sure that communication is effective since the audience receives the messages. At this point

Film study and appreciation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Film study and appreciation - Essay Example In literal terms of, cinematography is means lighting in movement. This involves all the manipulations on the film strip by the camera during the shooting phase of a film. The processes that occur in the production laboratory after shooting also contribute significantly to the cinematography of a film. The director of photography plays a leading role in determining how the film will be shot. Cinematography is critical in deciding the eventual â€Å"look† of a film and this generally contributes significantly to the realization of the goals of a film. Ocean’s Eleven is a heist film that is with an element of comedy crime. The film is a remake of the 1960 Rat Pack film. The characters of the film include con artists and a group of former prison inmates. This movie was produced in 2001 and was directed by Steven Soderbergh. It features high a high profile cast of Brad Pitt, George Clooney, Matt Damon, Don Cheadle, Andy Garcia and Julia Roberts. The plot of the film revolve s on a plan by ex convict Daniel Ocean (George Clooney) to conduct a high profile theft. The robbery is to be carried out on a high security vault that is shared by three casinos in Las Vegas. Daniel Ocean assembles a rag tag group to conduct the heist. It turns out that the real reason that motivates Daniel Ocean to coordinate the heist is to win back his wife and bankrupt the owner of the casinos who happens to have married Ocean’s wife. Camera angles are critical aspect of cinematography. The use of camera angles can play a significant role in highlighting the desired features so as to resonate well with the audience. A film can employ several camera angles such as high, low, straight-on and bird’s eye view to portray various themes (Brown 76). In the movie Ocean’s Eleven, the element of low angle is utilized to suggest power and influence. This is evident in most scenes where the main character, Daniel Ocean, is often portrayed from a low angle. This imperat ively communicates that he has power and skills to coordinate what is considerably an unprecedented heist. On the other hand, some of the con artists who make up the team are portrayed from high angles. This implies their dependence on the leadership of the main characters in order to succeed. The con artists’ skills are not of significance without the coordination of Daniel Ocean to conduct the heist. The angle of projection in the scene between Daniel Ocean and the casino owner is straight on. This shows that Daniel Ocean considers himself to be equal even not better than the man who took his lover. In some instances, camera angles are used to purely to create striking visual compositions. Scenes in the casinos are shot from bird’s eye view. This helps the audience to appreciate the features of the interior of the casinos such the playing tables and the general settings. Camera distances are also an important aspect of film cinematography. The filming scale can influ ence the perception of relationships between the various characters in a given film. Camera distances can be used to either foster intimacy with the characters of a film or divert the attention from the character to the environment (Brown 74). Hence, shot scale can be exploited to influence the narration and impression created by the various scenes in a film. In the film Ocean’s Eleven, extreme long shot is used to establish a given

Attitudes to smoking changed since the smoking ban Essay

Attitudes to smoking changed since the smoking ban - Essay Example Research also shows that non-smokers that have partners who smoke in the home have a 20-30% chance of contracting lung cancer than non-smokers with non-smoking partners (BRANNON and FEIST, 2010). In addition, non-smokers who are exposed to tobacco smoke in work places have an increased 16-19% chance of contracting lung cancer (ANGER, KVASNICKA and SIEDLER, 2010). A study conducted by World Health Organization in 2002 suggests that second-hand smokers are exposed to the same amount of carcinogens as first-hand smokers. Second-hand smoke is known to contain 69 carcinogens, especially benzopyrene, and also radioactive decay, such as Polonium 210 (WAND, 2012). Moreover, studies conducted by well-known tobacco companies themselves show that many carcinogens are present at a higher concentration in second-hand smoke than in first-hand smoke. The reason why I chose this topic is that smoking has become very common; this is not to disregard the fact that I smoke also. I remember being staunc hly against smoking, but a year ago my friends convinced me to try it out. The ‘trying’ continued for a period until I realized that I was addicted to cigarette smoking. I tried dropping the habit, but it was too difficult a task for me, and I am continuing to struggle with this habit. This led me to put deep thought and research into what really prompts a person to start smoking, besides my story, what has been done to contain and eventually stop smoking, and what changes, if any, have been observed after the smoking bans have been imposed. As a result I narrowed down my study to researching the changes in attitudes and behavior of the people following smoking bans. The rationale for banning smoking, whether completely or partially at public places, is that smoking is optional while breathing is not. Therefore, patrons of smoking bans say that smoking bans are imposed to shield breathing people from the harms of second-hand smoke, than include heart diseases, lung dise ases, cancer and other ailments (PACIFIC TOBACCO CONTROL INTERIM GROUP, 2004). Laws prohibiting tobacco use in homes have been introduced and implemented by many nations, with Australia and Bhutan being the staunchest proponents, in different forms over the years. Law enforcers cite scientific evidence suggesting that second-hand smoke is as harmful to active-smokers (GOEL and NELSON, 2008). Furthermore, studies also show that smoke bans tend to reduce health care costs, improve work productivity, lowering the cost of labor in the community. In the state of Indiana in U.S.A, the agency of economic development planned in 2006 on including complete smoke bans in homes and in workplaces for making the workplaces and environment more attractive for local and foreign workers as a way for boosting economic development (INSTITUTO NACIONAL DE CA?NCER (BRAZIL), & PAN AMERICAN HEALTH ORGANIZATION, 2010). The Pan American Health Organization has stated that the 2014 Fifa World Cup in Brazil wi ll be a tobacco-free tournament. This has come at a time when famous athletes were caught using tobacco which sent out a bad image of the sport to its fans and also encouraged them to adopt the habit. This is being done in collaboration with the government of Brazil, which cites that this ban would ensure a healthy environment for athletes,

Safety at home for Senior citizens Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Safety at home for Senior citizens - Essay Example So senior citizens today are more and more hesitant to leave the safety of their homes. But how safe are the homes that we live in today. There are many things even at home that can harm us. Burglary, fires, faulty floor work or even a wet floor are just some of the things that can hurt us in the confines of our homes. Elderly people are even more prone to such accidents. This is because ones perception, senses, reflexes and presence of mind decreases as a person grows older. Also senior citizens have a weaker judgement of depth perception (Regnier, 1994). Older people have weaker and brittle bones that make them more vulnerable to accidents. According to the Home Safety Council, there are nearly 20,000 deaths and 21 million medical visits on average each year because of home related accidents. Just by some simple precautions and a few adjustments we can make our homes a much safer place to live in. One out of every five Americans needs help to see, hear, speak, walk, use stairs, or lift objects - and a well-designed space plan can mean the difference between an independent, home-based lifestyle or a severely hampered one (Leibrock, 1994). Mr. James Hall is a 91 year old widower who lives alone. He is my neighbour and suffers from Alzheimer's disease. A man in such a situation can be prone to many harmful situations so it is important that he takes preventive measures and is extra careful. I visited Mr. Hall at his home in an effort to educate him about home safety. My aim was not only to advise him on how to maintain safety but to also make sure that he remembers it and tries to implement the same in the future. At first like most people Mr. Hall did not take things serious and probably thought that he has been doing things for over 90 years and what could a person like me really teach him, but I soon changed his mind and managed to get his attention. I started by explaining Mr. Hall of the general safety measures that all houses must have. To keep focus on the topic I used pamphlets that seemed to interest Mr. Hall even more. I know that the pamphlets were effective since Mr. Hall was able to review them in my presence and he also wanted to keep a few of them for future reference. I next began to explain Mr. Hall about the potential dangers that an old man like himself can face especially when living alone. This I realised made him really pay attention and listen. Then I began to talk and explain of safety measures to avoid harmful situations in general after which I got specific about how safety should be maintained in each room. The following are the safety precautions that I advised Mr. Hall to follow. First the general precautions:- Every telephone in his house should have besides it a list of emergency numbers along with a few of them on speed dial. It would also be advisable to carry a cell phone at all times. In case of a fire I helped devise an exit plan and also asked to make sure each window can be opened easily from the inside. Smoke detectors must also be installed. Door handles must be levers and not circular knobs (Tremblay, 2007). Locks must be easy to operate but not easy to brake or pick. To prevent tripping, door thresholds must be removed or must be low. Also there must not be small rugs or even carpets

Q&A Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Q&A - Essay Example It is an efficient and usually an extremely effective way to test for certain antibodies. The indirect ELISA approach is typically applied in medical testing because it looks for antibodies present in a given sample. Samples are taken from an individual and then these are tested for the presence of antibodies. This helps to determine if the individual’s body is already producing antibodies against certain antigens. After the sample is taken, antigens are introduced. If antibodies are present, they will form a bond that is invisible to the naked eye. An immunuoglobulin is added to the sample in order to verify if a bond was formed or not. The bond between the antibody, antigen and immunuoglobulin will remain on the plate after rinsing. The immunuoglobulin added must be of the same species. Finally, a colour indicator is added so that the bond between the antibody and antigen are identified properly. The accuracy of an ELISA test does rely on certain factors. If these factors ar e in any way compromised or overlooked, the ELISA test results may be unreliable. These factors may also contribute to a false positive or a false negative. The design of an ELISA test may sometimes affect its outcome, and an ELISA test is either direct or indirect. When using the single antibody approach, the laboratory must used a specific, enzyme-labelled reagent. The assay sensitivity affects both the direct and indirect ELISA tests because it measures the amount of accurate positives that are found. There are four types of sensitivities possible in an ELISA test: true positives, false positives, true negatives and false negatives. Whether or not a patient receives a false positive or a false negative is dependent upon how accurately the ELISA test was conducted, and whether a variable important to the outcome were compromised in some way. A false positive indicates that a person who does not in fact carry the antibodies against a specific type of antigen is tested as positive f or those antibodies. Similarly, a false negative indicates that a person who does in fact carry those antibodies against a specific type of antigen, tests negative for them. This may or may not occur with an HIV-1 test if the standard protocol for the ELISA test is correctly or incorrectly followed. Unquestionably, it is of the utmost importance to follow standard ELISA test protocol. ELISA test errors may occur when the reagents used are mishandled or if their integrity is comprised in some way. The reagents for specific antigen tests are usually specific- they may not be interchangeable between different species. Additionally, certain antibodies require certain reagents in order to be effectively read; substitutions cannot be made. Temperature, preparation, preservation, and shelf-life of the reagent affects how its performance. Commercial availability limits the use of some reagents, and therefore the potential for testing for specific antigens. The handling of samples and the re agents used are extremely important to the outcome of the test. Checking expiration dates and properly storing reagents according to their individual requirements is imperative. Reagents must also be checked for signs of disintegration prior to their usage in an assay; examples include precipitation and discoloration. The substrates should always be colourless. The plates where the experiment is conducted must be properly handled. The plates must be large enough to

U.S involvement in Colombia Drug War Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

U.S involvement in Colombia Drug War - Essay Example In that direction, the US authorities starting from 1980s focused on stopping the flow of drugs into the US from South America, particularly Columbia. Although, the US authorities initiated covert measures earlier, it was in the late 1990s, the US and the Columbian government officially formalized their anti-drug strategy under the term called Plan Columbia. So, the US’ involvement in Colombia under War on Drugs will be focused here, starting with the discussion of Columbia’s drug background and the early US strategy, followed by military and other actions taken by the US and Columbia as part of Plan Columbia, and finally the results of that plan. Drugs abuse is one of the serious social problems that has affected and is still affecting many societies of the world. Apart from social impacts, it is manifesting into political and even military issue, particularly when the activity of drug trafficking is focused. Drugs that are cultivated and processed in South American countries are mainly trafficked into the United States. Among those countries, Columbia is one of the prominent ones from where there is an increased flow of drugs, further accentuated by internal conflicts. That is, Colombia has long been considered to be one of the most active markets for illegal drugs such as cocaine, heroin, and others and that illegal drug trade has contributed to it becoming a hotspot for rebel wars, social unrest, and other political, social, and economic problems. â€Å"The Colombian drug trade is estimated at $10 billion and presently accounts for 43 percent of global coca supply (as well as smaller amounts of marijuana and heroin poppy) .

Ipl Teams Essay Example for Free

Ipl Teams Essay IPL 2012 with lot of expectations and fanfare is just about to roll out in a few days and as the history of this version of cricket shows, in the country which is now called to be the Mecca of cricket, IPL with its star lit, glamour rapped extravaganza is likely to become the talk of the time. This year after the heavy crash of Indian squads fighter jet in Australia, there had been a sudden drop of public interest in cricket but once the news of the auction of the players reached the media, the cricket fever started to spread. This mega tournament made the T20 version of cricket hugely popular across various cricket playing nations. This year there have been a lot of changes in the squads of the teams. Here we would provide IPL 2012 team overview with a brief introduction to the teams. Chennai Super Kings As the champion of previous year IPL 2012 and as the most consistent team in the short history of the tournament, there is a huge expectation level for this squad. Except the presence of a number of good cricketers there are some of the big names of the world cricket are in this team like, Michael Hussey, Mohender Singh Dhoni, Muthia Murlitharan, Scott Styris and Suresh Raina. Mumbai Indians It is the most starlit team in the IPL 2012 team overview. If India is now considered as the global centre of world cricket, Mumbai is the Mecca of Indian cricket and for all the past versions of the tournament this team consistently shown some extraordinary brilliance and though it still could not be the champion, for number of times it aroused immense expectations of making it to the top. Sachin Tendulkar as unarguably the greatest batsman in the history of the game belongs to this team with a host of great players like, Harbhajan Singh, Kieron Pollard, Lasith Malinga, Andrew Symonds, Michell Johnson, Harshell Gibbs and Robin John Peterson. It has probably the biggest fanfare among the participant squads. Kolkata Knight Riders This squad should be characterized as the most under-performing team in the IPL 2012 team overview. Though there had always been huge expectations from this team from the debut tournament to the last version, this team made almost a reputation of under-performing in regard to the ability and potential of the team squad. This team is one of the most star crowded as it is having a great number of bigwigs and promising stars of the game like, Gautam Gambhir, Brett Lee, Jacques Kallis, Brad Haddin, Eoin Morgan, Yusuf Pathan, Shane Bond, Shakib Al Hasan, Mark Boucher and Iqbal Abdullah. Delhi Daredevils This is a team which has been well known in the history of IPL as a great starter and in all the versions of IPL it had to quit without making up to the final. This team got some of the finest players both in the departments of bowling and batting. With Virender Sehwag, David Warner, Aaron Finch, Irfan Pathan and the costliest player of the tournament Ravindra Jadeja, this team has the potential to make to the pinnacle of glory. Kings xi Punjab This year Kings XI Punjab is expected to produce some stunning cricket extravaganza with a promising squad comprising some great players like the electrifying stylish batting legend Adam Gilchrist, David Hussey, Ryan Mclaren, Piyush Chawla and Shaun Marsh. Decan Chargers This team has a great ability of showing some great performances when repeated defeats just come close to make the teams future written off and with shocking brilliance it had changed the fate of many teams when everything started to look as predictable. With the likes of great players like, Kumar Sangakara, Kevin Petersen, Ishant Sharma, Pragyan Ojha this team is capable to cause many upsets . Royal Challengers Bangalore This squad is made of some of the great youthful players and can produce a lot of wonderful performances with the presence of players like, Chris Gayle, AB de Villiers, Mohammad Kaif, Tilakratne Dilshan, Daniel Vettori, Virat Kohli and Zaheer Khan. Pune Warriors This year the team got the old time heavy weight and former indian captain Sourav Ganguly. Though the team would heavily feel the absence of the big hitter and classy batter Yuvraj Singh, the team is capable of producing some brilliance performances with the presence of Graeme Smith, Jesse Ryder, Michell Marsh and Rahul Sharma. Rajasthan Royals This team is always reputed to have shown some great examples of fighting spirit. After the recent retirement from the international cricket Rahul Dravid as the new captain of the squad is expected to have some extra zeal to produce a memorable performance as a classy batsmen and his cool captaincy can prove to be an asset for the team. It has a great bowling line up with the presence of stalwarts like Shane Warne, Shaun Tait and Shane Watson and also a great line up of players with promising batsmen and all-rounders like Faiz Fazal, Jacob Oram and Ross Taylor. IPL 2012 team overview made one point clear that this year the tournament is going to experience more balance in the performance of the teams because of the presence of good number of international level of players in every team.

The business strategy of marks and spencer

The business strategy of marks and spencer Marks Spencer (MS) is one of the leading retailers in the United Kingdom (UK). The high quality services are being provided to the customers in the areas of clothing, food and home products. Based on reliable statistical data, the number of customers visiting MS stores every week approaching the figure of 21 million. From all over the world, 2,000 suppliers take the responsibility of outstanding quality products to satisfy the customers. The key factors behind the business such as service, quality, value, trust and innovation are equally important since the beginning of MS 125 years ago till date [8]. Business is growing in 41 different countries other than UK by following the well-defined rules and regulations regarding customer care, product quality, innovation and trust. More than 76,000 people work in UK and overseas for MS. To become the worlds most sustainable major retailer is the ultimate goal of MS. For the achievement of this goal, Plan A was launched in January 2007 consisting of 100 commitments to attain in 5 years, but Plan A has extended to 180 commitments to reach by 2015 [9]. The Plan A consists of five pillars to help the MS customers to lead healthier lifestyles. To combat climate change, reduce waste, use sustainable raw material and trade ethically are the four pillars upon which Plan A stands. All the 180 commitments are under the five pillars of Plan A. MS is trying best to work through Plan A by involving customers and suppliers to achieve the desired results [8]. The first section presents the analysis of external environment of organization. Internal environment and identification is the main focus in second section and third section deals with the impact of external environment on the strategic direction of the organization. Identification of the major issues and challenges facing MS is key discussion in last section, and there is conclusion after that to summarize all the sections. Political, economic, social and technical (PEST) are the four most important factors to analyze the external environment of MS. The restrictions or limitations applied by the government in any country are covered under political aspects (import/export duties). But economic aspects indicate the strength and growth of organization based on stock market share value. Social aspects reflect the common people interest in the society and technical issues point to the involvement and utilization of modern emerging technology to advertise and enhance the organizations business. This external environment with four major factors plays a significant role in determining the organizations business strategy to achieve the optimal results. Q.1: Analysis of the organizations external environment. Strategic Analysis of Business Environment External and internal environment influence the organizational operations, therefore strategic direction of business depends on both environments. Strategic analysis helps identifying the environmental factors that can significantly affect the business. On the other hand, environmental analysis indicates the activities both inside and outside the organization. For appropriate business strategy to reflect the organizational environment, environmental analysis must be taken into account. The following discussion considers external and internal organizational environment in detail [6]. 1.1 External Environment External environment consists of conditions and forces such as (political, economical, social and technological) that are beyond the control and affect the organizations strategic options. External environment defines the competitive situation of organization and potentially have both positive and negative impact on business. The classical PEST analysis identifies four major categories of external factors that significantly affect organizations capability to survive and grow. Based on operating region, external environment is divided into three interactive segments having remote, industrial and operating environments. However, changes in the external environment also create new opportunities [1]. Different external factors have different influences which need to be discussed separately for clear understanding. Some influences inter-linked with each other create a bit of complexity. For instance, information technology completely changed the nature of work, customer behavior and life-style as well. External environmental study helps to decide the business strategy accordingly to gain the competitive advantage. Based on PEST analysis, four major external factors are going to discuss in detail [2]. Remote Environment Operating Environment Industrial Environment 1.2 Political Environment Business growth and investors interest both are strictly relevant to the political stability in a country. The government trade policy is another important factor that affects organizations business. Organization operates in an administrative and legal framework provided by the political government. The restrictive environment affects all aspects of organization. The legal and administrative framework cover lot of factors including pricing regulation, tax rates and incentives, mandatory employee benefits, wage legislation, trade regulations and tariffs, industrial safety regulations and product labeling requirements. Permissive administrative/legal context favors organizations business, employees and consumers. The development pace of organization depends on specific laws and regulations to work with. Political activities also affect suppliers, customers and competitors [2]. 1.3 Economic Environment To discuss the effect of economy on organizations business, there is a definite need to consider the crucial macro-economic trends. In this regard, the factors that influence business are taxation, interest rates, inflation, disposable income, unemployment, GNP trends, general demand, government spending, money supply, business cycle stage (e.g. prosperity, recession and recovery), economic growth rate and tendency to spend at national and international levels [1]. 1.4 Social Environment In social environment changes in values, attitudes, beliefs, opinions, different life styles and other trends are taken into consideration. Successful business strategy must have the ability to target different demographics, class structure in the society, various cultures and ethnic conditions of individuals. As a consequence of changing marketplace concepts, customers are compromising the quality over price. Fashionable clothing demand has increased to great extent. The price sensitivity of majority of customers left MS at less competitive position [1]. POLITICAL ORGANIZATION SOCIAL TECHNOLOGICAL ECONOMIC 1.5 Technological Environment Rapid change in technology greatly influences the market conditions and existing trends as well. Electronic media is playing very important role in introducing new fashions in the society. Therefore, organization needs to consider all such factors relevant to modern technology. Utilization of modern technology set the new standards regarding services and product quality. In the technological environment business is affected in terms of investment and consistent application of technology to compete in the market [2]. Q.2: Analysiss of the organizations internal environment and identification. Analysis of Internal Environment and Identification SWOT analysis may be used to measure the degree of fit between strategies and environment. Based on this analysis, strengths and opportunities are used for the profit of business and protect organization against weaknesses and threats. There is no great deal of thought in the utilization of SWOT analysis due to simple nature so the results are not very reliable. This analysis has no ability to cope very well with some of the complicated aspects of modern strategic theory. In the current situation simple analysis of internal environment of MS is concerned, thats why reasonable results may be achieved based on SWOT analysis [5]. 2.1 Strengths All internal and external aspects that give strength to the organization are included in the strong points. The strength indicates the current market position of business in terms of customers, competitors and internal resources. Strength is a resource advantage relative to competitors and the needs of the markets a firm serves or expects to serve. The distinct advantage that helps the organization to achieve the comparative advantage in the market. The origin of strength is the resources and competencies available in the organization [5]. Excellent and quality products give the strength to MS in terms of customers and competitors. Based on better treatment and good salary, the employees are in excellent relationship with MS. Large number of MS stores in the UK and overseas represent the strong infrastructure. The financial strength is obvious due to the large market share. MS is one of the major retailers in the UK, profitable and mature as well [4]. 2.2 Weaknesses In spite of good strength in industry, there are weak areas as well that require an improvement. MS products are more expansive than other competitors on the high street but justifiable based on excellent quality. The main focus is on the customers in between 35-44 years old, neglecting the younger and children. Because of expansion program to Europe, USA and other countries, MS lost focus on local market. There is no business strategy to capture the potential available in the younger generation market .Most of the times no special offers are available to the customers in the form of sales. Internally, customer services need to be improved including updating the use of technology to manage the merchandise in the store [4]. 2.3 Opportunities The most important factor in the business growth is to avail the new opportunities in the market. To grasp the potential available in the market, there is a definite need to arrange the flexible business strategy that may change according to the trends. Introduce the wider range of colour clothes, variety and different types of collections to target the majority of customers .By utilising suitable effective strategy such as younger more contemporary models to attract the younger generation. Superior resources and capabilities based on modern technology is a key factor to attain the competitors advantage level. There is a need to improve the food stores for successful MS food business [4]. 2.4 Threats In the presence of intense competition between different organizations in the industry, threat is ever present force. To avoid the danger of threat the organization always tries to improve the performance in terms of customer services, quality product and lower cost. Business extension to overseas has proven less successful for M&S; there is a need to target the local market. Strong competitors are targeting the youth market; therefore there is a danger that MS could lose this market [5]. Organizations Internal Factors Opportunities Threats Weaknesses Strengths External Factors Q.3: Identification of the major issues and challenges facing the marks Spencer. Challenges and Issues Facing Marks Spencer MS is one of the biggest retailers in the UK providing diverse nature services to the customers including clothes, food and home products. They always try their best to emphasize Quality at affordable prices, but this is not always the case. They are losing the trend to capture the younger market and other retailers are taking the advantage of this weak point. To grasp the potential of this area is the big challenge MS facing. The goods prices are going up and to provide the cheaper product, they have to import the stuff which decreased the image of MS as British Goods seller [8]. The customers trends were changing towards natural and environmentally friendly products so, MS launched plan A consisting of 180 commitments to overcome the challenges. Many problems are related to changing climate conditions. To combat the climate change is the major challenge that MS facing. Reduce the waste going into landfill is also the big issue for MS to deal with. The plan A is launched by considering the fact that great challenges exist and management needs to deal with customers and suppliers to achieve the targets. To attain the carbon neutral level is an important commitment that is trying to be achieved by efficient utilization of fuel. For example, huge vehicles are being used for transportation. Energy saving is also the important part of plan A [8]. There are a considerable number of clothes going to landfill in the form of waste. Instead of wasting, these cloths may be provided to the non-profit organizations who are working for the needy people of society. The reduction of waste is significant factor in plan A. MS is trying their best to improve the lives of people in the supply chain. To help the customers and employees live the healthier life-style through plan A [9]. Q.4: External environment and the impact on the strategic direction of the organization. Impact of External Environment on Strategic Direction The strategic direction refers to the action plan that leads to the achievement of ultimate goals of organizations strategy. The strategic direction of MS is based on the idea to become the worlds most sustainable retailer by 2015. In spite of the fact that there is no set bench mark exit to compare the worlds most sustainable retailer, this plan is admirable to provide so much services and containing large number of commitments. To achieve this target, the business development department launched plan A based on five pillars. The business is not limited to the physical boundaries of organization. What happens outside does affect the strategic direction and the organization has to act or react accordingly to cope with the situation [2]. The external forces such as political, economical, social and technological that affect the strategic direction of organizations business is beyond the control. Therefore, sometimes organization is bound to change the strategic direction of business to cope with the situation and to achieve the ultimate goal [1]. The political environment contains administrative and legal factors which affect the strategic direction due to some administrative and legal restrictions. The soft conditions support the business to reach the final destination (desired level). But hard conditions bound the organization to change the business strategy to achieve the desired result. The organization has to work within the framework provided by the political government in a country. The change in political setup may also influence the strategic direction because organization needs to follow new legal and administrative instructions by the new government [2]. In the social environment public trends play a very important role in the strategic direction of organization. Change in values, beliefs, attitudes, opinions and lifestyles influence the organization to change the business strategy to fulfill the demands of customers in a changing atmosphere. The cultural, demographic and religious tendencies create new opportunities in the market for business growth [3]. The major change in technology set the new standard to compete in the market and this scenario totally change the strategic direction of Organization to stay in the market and to achieve the business objectives. Strengths may be replaced by weaknesses and competencies can become rigidities. Technological change opens new opportunities to grow the business by exploiting new market potential and unmet demands. The cost, rate of change and innovation are the factors related to materials and machines used for manufacturing goods and services [6]. The existence of strong competitors is an ever present threat to the organization, change in the strategic direction and business plan may affect the organization to reconsider the business strategy to save the customers and business. Sometimes organizations has to introduce the new better business plan to capture the potential in the market. For example, MS gave second version of plan A by adding new commitments to achieve the level of worlds most sustainable retailer by 2015 [8]. The change in strategic direction of an organization is not an easy task as so many associated factors need to change. For instance, reconfiguration of existing resources and capabilities take place by changing the strategy. This action is taken only when no other option is available. Q.5: What should the organization do to achieve or maintain competitive advantage in its industries? . Competitive Advantage Competitive advantage refers to the state of organization when profit level exceeds the average of its industry. To achieve the status of competitive advantage is the ultimate goal of business strategy. Cost advantage and differentiation advantage are the two basic forms of competitive advantage. These two conditions are necessary for the existence of competitive advantage. One of them is to deliver the same benefits as competitors but at minimum cost (cost advantage) and the other one is to provide the competing product with more benefits (differentiation cost). The position of organization in industry as a leader is identified based on cost or differentiation [7]. 5.1 Competitive Advantage Model The block diagram describes the resource-based concept of competitive advantage by combining the resources and capabilities to provide the superior value creation [6]. Capabilities Distinctive Competencies Cost Advantage Or Differentiation Advantage Value Creation Resources 5.2 Resources and Capabilities Superior resources and capabilities are essential factors to develop the competitive advantage. In the absence of these factors competitors introduce better product with less price and advantage disappears immediately. Basically, resources indicate the organization-specific assets that are utilized to develop cost or differentiation advantage. The examples of such resources include installed customer base, reputation of company, brand equity, proprietary know-how, patents and trademarks. How efficiently the organization utilizes its resources to achieve the competitive advantage is measured in terms of capabilities. For example, bringing the product into the market quicker than competitors represents capabilities. The combination of resources and capabilities result in distinctive competencies which in turn activate efficiency, quality, innovation and customer awareness. Such attributes act as a catalyst to attain the status of cost or differentiation advantage [7]. 5.3 Achievement of Competitive Advantage Level Learn Customer Demands To achieve or maintain the competitive advantage in its industry, the organization should follow some necessary points as a routine matter in favor of customers and the business plan as well. Analysis of Competition Product Differentiation with Target Market Analysis Modern Techniques Economic Moat Creation Business Information Resources 5.3.1 Learn Customer Demands Customers are the most important entity in the business circle. To understand the demands of customers is a significant factor towards competitors advantage. Organization must offer good quality product at minimum price to attract the customers and capture the market [6]. 5.3.2 Analysis of Competition Another important step to achieve the competitors advantage level is fair analysis of competition. For example, who are the major competitors in the industry and what type of different products are they offering. The quality and price of similar goods need to be considered in the analysis. The strength of major competitors in the industry is taken into account [6]. 5.3.3 Product Differentiation with Modern Techniques Provide good quality products with low cost by utilizing modern fabrication techniques play very important role to maintain competitors advantage level. Modern technology, superior resources and capabilities with better management are the key factors to sustain the position of competitors advantage [7]. 5.3.4 Target Market Analysis The term target market refers to the group of customers and communities at which the organization aims its services and products. Distinction between target markets based on social, demographic and common characteristics make the best target for the organization to focus [6]. 5.3.5 Economic Moat Creation On the basis of advantage regarding barriers to enter into the market, discourage the competitors from challenging your market share. In some situations the capability of well established company to manipulate barriers to enter and compete in the market acts as an effective method against new competition. To preserve the profit potential and make the business secure for upcoming future is also included in the process to create economic moat. 5.3.6 Business information resources Information technology is playing a significant role in every field, supplying plenty of relevant information available to business resources. The business information resources may be used to set the suitable business strategy that is superior as compared to the competitors. Business information companies provide such services to become advantage competitors [7]. Summary MS is one of the biggest retailers in the UK who has the aim to achieve the position of worlds most sustainable retailer by 2015 based on the completion of 180 commitments. All commitments revolve around five pillars of plan A. Climate change, waste, natural resources, fair partnership and health and wellbeing are the five pillars on which the plan A stands. The organizations business is affected by internal and external factors. Strengths and weaknesses are the main internal factors that are under the control of management. But external factors such as political, economical, social and technological are beyond the control of the organization. The external factors put on the different restrictions and strategic direction of business depends on such forces. Threats and opportunities are the other two factors which may determine the business strategy. Superior resources and capabilities are utilized to attain the level of competitor advantage. Some necessary actions to maintain the pos ition of competitor advantage such as learn the customer demands, competition analysis, modern technology utilization and product differentiation are names of a few. To meet 180 commitments by the end of 2015 is the biggest challenge. Other major challenges are the efficient utilization of resources to work on plan A for the achievement of main objectives relevant to the five pillars. CONCLUSION MS launched Plan A in 2007 because they were facing tough competition from their rivals. MS was lacking behind in many sectors of the retail market, so they needed a comprehensive plan to become the worlds most sustainable retailer. In order to achieve all this, MS called this Plan, Plan A because they believe its now the only way to do the business and there is no Plan B. By adopting the Plan A MS has fought back really well and their sales are on the rise which resulted in increased market shares and they are successfully becoming one of the worlds most sustainable major retailers.

The Turkish-Venetian War in Othello Essay -- Othello essays

The Turkish-Venetian War in Othello   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   According to A. L. Rowse, William Shakespeare's Othello is one of the most perfect plays ever written (13). There is practically nothing in it that does not contribute to plot or character development (unlike Hamlet, which is filled with a large cast, complexities, and sub-plots). G. B. Harrison agrees that the construction is perfect (1058). Only two brief scenes with a clown in Act III don't seem to advance the play any. That, and one strange plot element: the Turkish war and change of locale from Venice to Cyprus. If the play be merely about Iago convincing a jealous Othello that his wife is sleeping with Cassio, why bother having a war between Acts I and II? None of the characters are killed or wounded in the war, nor does the politics of the Venetian acquisitions affect the plot (in Act IV, scene 1, Lodovico speculates that Othello is angry because he's called home, but we know he's really angry because he thinks his wife is cheating on him), nor are there a ny speeches expounding on either the glories or horrors of war, such as there are in Henry V and Julius Caesar. Why then, in this most perfect of plays, is there such a major element as a war? What possible relevance could it have to Iago's plots and Othello's jealous rage? I contend that the war is extremely important--it is the very crux upon which the entire plot turns. When we first meet Othello, he is the epitome of a calm, self-assured, non-provocative military general more concerned with honor, virtue, and his social standing than with war and battles. His very first line is, "It is better as it is" (1.2.6). This is a conservative, contented man, actually opposed to violence. Note how he breaks up the fight betwe... ...ith Introduction. Lanham, MD: University Press of America, 1985. Shakespeare, William. Othello. In The Electric Shakespeare. Princeton University. 1996. http://www.eiu.edu/~multilit/studyabroad/othello/othello_all.html No line nos. Vaughan, Virginia Mason, and Kent Cartwright, eds. Othello: New Perspectives. Cranbury, NJ: Associated University Press, 1991. Wayne, Valerie. â€Å"Historical Differences: Misogyny and Othello.† The Matter of Difference: Materialist Feminist Criticism of Shakespeare. Ed Valerie Wayne. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press, 1991.    Wright, Louis B. and Virginia A. LaMar. â€Å"The Engaging Qualities of Othello.† Readings on The Tragedies. Ed. Clarice Swisher. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 1996. Reprint from Introduction to The Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice by William Shakespeare. N. p.: Simon and Schuster, Inc., 1957.

no sugar :: essays research papers

Throughout Australian history a racist attitude towards Aboriginals has been a significant issue. From the moment the early settlers arrived on our shores and colonised, the Aboriginals have been fighting for the survival of their culture. The Aboriginals haven been take in and dominated to bring them in line with an idealistic European society. These themes have been put forward by Jack Davis in his stage play, No Sugar, the story of an Aboriginal family’s fight for survival during the Great Depression years. Admittedly Davis utilises his characters to confront the audience and take them out of their comfort zone, showing them the reality of Aboriginal treatment. This is an element of the marginalisation that Jack Davis uses through out the play this starts from the beginning where he discomforts the audience by using an open stage. One character that Davis uses through out the play is A.O. Neville, Davis uses him to portray the issue of power, this is a very important issue that is carried through out the play. Through out the play aboriginals are marginalised they are told where to go what to do and how to go about life. The play was staged on a perambulate model, meaning that the action of the play shifts between many locations. There is the town of Northam with the Police Station and two Cells, the Main Street and the Government Well Aboriginal Reserve. Then there is The Moore River Native Settlement with the Superintendent’s office, the Millimurra family’s tent and the Aboriginal camp at Long Pool. There is also the Chief Protectors Office and the Western Australian Historical Society in Perth and an area by the railway line. This allows for marginalisation between the audience and the play. This can be perceived as some what payback by Jack Davis for the marginalisation that the Europeans forced upon the aboriginals. Contrasting dialogue is also found within the play’s Aboriginal cast. It is not uncommon for a character to begin a sentence in English, only to lead in to Nyoongah words as they proceed: GRAN: I’m warrah, gnuny tjenna minditj, and I got no gnummarri. (Act Two Scene Two) This provokes a reaction from white audiences where we rely on hand gesture to comprehend the play, while also begging the question as to why they speak in such a way. Language is used as a symbol for their culture, a culture that is split between white and blacks; this is just one more tactics that Jack Davis uses to marginalise.

Conformity Vs. Individuality Essay -- essays research papers

"People don't talk about anything...and nobody says anything different from anyone else" This quote, from Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury, demonstrates how this fictional society had no individuality, yet they expressed no disprovement of the conformity. To be so simple minded as this civilization was would have eventually lead to self-destruction. To support my theory, recall in the novel when the old lady chose to commit suicide because she did not have freedom. She felt that even though she was "free" she was "enslaved" by the enforcement of limited knowledge. Without individuality in today's society, the world would be filled with a population of large amounts of followers as opposed to leaders. Do you know where and what this society would be like if we didn't have leaders like Rosa Parks, Susan B. Anthony, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr, etc.? I presume that we wouldn't be as strong of a nation as we are now. We wouldn't have any freedoms or rights that these leaders fought so hard to achieve. We wouldn't be able to experience historical periods such as the Industrial Revolution, the Harlem Renaissance, Civil Rights Movement, etc. for all of these eras express different ideas, inventions, and opinions and gradually erased some people's ignorance towards these changes. As an African-American, I take great pride in the Harlem Renaissance because this was a time when we got to prove the "ignorant" people wrong as we demonstrated our arti...

Deutsche Brewery Question and Answer

1. What accounts for Deutsche Brauerei’s (DB) rapid growth in recent years? What strategic choices were made? The Ukraine account grow rapidly in the recent years. The strategic is just expanding, more focus on the sale/volume, not on how to turn the order to money. It can be understood that the local distributors need some policy support from DB, because they just start, still at the beginning of capitalization period. The current credit policy is applicable for the starting phase, but long term it needs to be adapted (e. g annual bounce on the pay on time accounts).Meanwhile because of fast expansion, more investments on the Assets in Ukraine is needed. The financial plan includes a 7 million euro investment in new plant and equipment for the Ukrainian operations in 2001, followed by a 6. 8 million euro investment in 2002 for a new Ukranian warehouse and distribution center. Which is reasonable, but need more detail plan/business case before make the decision. I would say, h alf of the amount should be financed by Ukraine team itself, if they are able to turn the account receivable to cash. 2.What is the credit policy for DB for distributors in the Ukraine? Why is it different from other sales? Is it appropriate (examine the business models in both instances). The credit policy for Ukranian distributors from 2 percent 10, net 40 to 2 percent 10, net 80 (clients could take a 2% discount if payment was made within 10 days of the invoice, otherwise payment was due in full within 80 days). The credit policy for Ukranian distributors differed because Ukrainian entrepreneurs, who are ambitious to grow but without support from the bank as in Germany.The credit policy for the Ukranian distributors is applicable, which can support the distributor to expand, buy new equipment, and required more time than usual to pay. Also is a good investment for DB to build up the relationship with the distributor and meanwhile invest for the futurn. But on the other hand, long payment turn cost bad cash flow. In Ex1, the account receivable increase a lot, which 3. Why does this profitable firm need increasing amounts of debt? If the company wants to expand, they need cash.It seems that DB is profitable, but because of the big account receivable, which cause actually cash tie-up. In order to still keep expanding, DB have to increasing amount of debt for investing. 4. Something about dividends: The quarterly dividend proposed is 698,000 euro, an amount equal to 25% of the projected 2001 dividends (2,793 k). However, this dividend increase is based on projected earnings, and several factors affect whether those earnings. Better to reserve a part of money till end of the year. . What should Greta do with respect to: the proposed raise for Pinchuk, the quarterly dividend and the financial plan for 2001? Regarding the credit policy for Ukranian distributors, Oleg argues that this process is profitable for the company. Actually, Ex1 in the base case shows accou nts receivables in the Ukraine increased 30% from 1999 to 2000, and is projected to increase for the next 2 years (50% then 30% based on the previous year). Having a large amount of money tied up in receivables is risky.My idea will be short the payment to 40 days, pay in 10 days will have even bigger discount 3-4%, meanwhile, if the account can pay all the bill on time (40 days), can get annul bounce (tbd). For the investment, I will be more careful, Although the data should the growth of sale and assent is not hand in hand. But because of the high debt/equity ratio, I will be more careful on the investment, avoid to have too high debt. We can try to work together with one or two local disctributors (e. g. Kiev, Odessa) to have JV project.About the dividends, I will maybe go for 60% of earning, which mean 15% of the projected annual dividends for the quarterly pay. Just in case, if the actual data is not as good as predicted data, we still have enough cash to run the business. 6. S ome observation of Ex4. Profitability: low return Leverage: high risk (high debt) Asset utilization: receiveables growth rate high longer payment. Difference between sale growth and asset growth. Sale Growth is much higher than assent growth, need to consider investment. Liquidity: short term financial commitment. Quick ratio is too high.

If I Had Power to Change 3 Things in World

Synapse:| 1. Introduction| 2. Poverty| 3. Terrorism| 4. Accidents and Natural Disasters| 5. Conclusion| INTRODUCTION: â€Å"Nothing is permanent in this world Other than the Change† -is a famous proverb. In this mechanical world all of us are moving towards the pursuit of money having not even single second to spare, to think of world. So I would like to bring to spotlight 3 most prickling things in my mind, which I think, given a power I will surely change, to make the world a better place to live in†¦. 1. POVERTY: Poverty according to my view is a thorn in flesh of the world. Society in India is very sharply divided between ‘Haves’ and ‘Have Nots’. With all the wealth of the country getting so accumulated in a few hands the rest of the population find it difficult to even make 2 ends meet. So obvious reason for poverty is ‘distribution of wealth’ which is too uneven. On one side India is leading gold importer in the world, whereas on other side India has most number of population that cannot even afford for a single meal as stated as follows†¦ â€Å"Rich continues to become richer-and Poor continues to become poorer† Recent news coverage in media focusses fully on Indians and their illegal blackmoney deposited in Swiss and Morocco banks, and a pitiful fact is that most of them having account are politicians of our very own country. Isn’t it a big shame for our nation? Harmful effect of poverty include mitigation of crime activities like theft, robbery, smuggling, kidnapping, cheating which have become a menace to society. Poor people in a pursuit of living, indulge in these kind of activities. All thieves who were caught redhanded state poverty as major reason for their act. If this is situation in India, situation across world is far more worse. Many countries in Africa and Asia are dying because of poverty. A shocking fact is that their total country’s income is not even equal to per capita income of a citizen in a developed country. So basis for all illegal activities is poverty. Owing to greed of wealth recent trend of â€Å"string of kidnapping incidents† happened. Smuggling drugs and other goods were also carried out by poor youth as depicted by Tamil film ‘Ayan’. Hence by solving this poverty problem, world would be a safer place to live upon. So if I had power to change 3 things in world, I would first eliminate poverty so as to make each and every common man feel as if ‘He is the king’. 2. Terrorism: Modern world has become a hotbed of hatred , violence and terrorism. Civilization has not made many people different from brute animals. The law of the jungle is, â€Å"might is right† In these days when nations and men swear by principles of peace and co- existence there are still elements who indulge in violent activities and who feel that solutions to problems can be got only through violence. The worst form of violence is terrorism. In my opinion, terrorism is something which is much worse than a regular war, for, against war all preparations are always ready at hands but these terrorist attacks being unexpected and unwarranted can just not be secured against. What can be done when people are travelling by train, getting ready to board a bus, or watching a cinema, and the terrorists strike. How can any prevention against this be arranged? It is this very uncertainty of time and place that makes terrorist attacks more dangerous than even a regular warfare. Another point that makes these attacks worse than war to some extent is that, these attacks are always against poor innocent people of the public. In a war also no doubt, the public suffers but, they are not the targets, they are given protection till it is possible. With these terrorist activities, today there is a continuous fear of attack and so, danger is always looming large on the horizon. Today terrorism has become a world wide phenomena, it is rampant in the Middle-East, most of the European countries. Some countries help in the development of terrorism in other countries and, since their boys are trained, their level of performance is flawless and absolutely superb. As we have seen in India, in the process of the last one decade or more, our neighbour Pakistan is training, providing sophisticated weapons to spread Terrorism in India. A series of bomb blasts off and on, murders of prominent personalities, all go to show that this process being a continuous and silent war, is very difficult to curb. The killing, maiming and kidnapping of innocent and unconcerned persons in terrorist act, such as recent bomb blasts in Delhi, is just plain crime. United Nations has also now given its seal of authorization to this view. The bomb blasts are in addition to terrorists killing by gunfire and destruction of places of worship. There is no reason for the killings other than, apparently, to create panic and instability in the local administration. Innumerable killings by gunfire or bomb explosions have taken place in Assam, Jammu & Kashmir and in other parts of the north-east, and various other cities. Our whole educational system also needs to be restructured and streamlined. It should use each ounce of energy of youth for constructive purposes so that they may not be induced to adopt violence as their creed and dead. 3. ACCIDENTS AND NATURAL DISASTERS: A life undergoes nearly 10 months of struggle to evolve and enter our beautiful world. But within a blink of eyelashes it gets vanished. So I am going to finally depict the mayhems of accidents and natural disasters with the reason to eliminate them from our world. Many factors can play into accident. Road accident is a global tragedy. Air accident is worst nightmare of every pilot or passenger. We all are aware of the tragic end to ‘Titanic ship’ and to its crew members & passengers. No form of transportation is completely safe and no machine is completely fool-proof. Murphy’s law states that , â€Å"Anything that can go wrong will go wrong† In everyday newspapers we come across numerous incidents of accidents many of which may not be the fault of victim itself, such as a drunken driver vehicle running through a pedestrian or other stationary vehicles along the roadside. Thus road condition, mechanical failure, driver error or simply act of god! may lead to these tragedies. As we all know, our college witnessed a sorrowful incident a week ago, when a 2nd year EEE guy fell prey to jaws of accident, although fault was on his side. Natural disaster is a painful memory for victims that can be caused by nature, such as floods, volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, tsunamis, avalanches, lahars, landslides, sinkholes, blizzards, tropical storms, typhoons, tornadoes, wildfire, epidemics caused by bacteria or a biological threat by toxic fungi or locusts. Various disasters like earthquake, landslides, volcanic eruption, flood and cyclones are natural hazards that kill thousands of people and destroys crores of rupees of properties. Everyone knows about flood, but did you ever have been in that situation? Can you imagine how painful the victims feel? Do we think what is the thing we can do to help them or just sitting at home and watching victims suffering from flood? At first natural disasters cause physical damage. Secondly it causes contamination of water. Finally it causes economical hardship by food shortage. CONCLUSION: Just as a coin has 2 sides, our mother earth also has the above mentioned curses at her ugly side. Frankly speaking most of them are created by God’s wonderful creation â€Å"Humans† only! As stated by one of my poem, â€Å"America ambushed by Katrina, Indonesia illtreated by Tsunami, Europe saw eruption of volcanoes, India incurred loss of lives in earthquakes, Acid rains across the earth! World warned by lethal landslides! ‘Aren’t these an awakening call for us to stop Acting against nature? † So if I had power to change these 3 things, I am sure that my changes will benefit entire mankind and start a new chapter in human history. Afterall as we all know, â€Å"Nothing is Impossible Even the word IMPOSSIBLE says, I’m possible† ‘SO OFCOURSE I CAN BRING THESE CHANGES AND MAKE IT HAPPEN! ’

Huntington Theory †Military Professional Essay

Scholars like Kaplan, Friedman, Huntington and Barnett have postulated various theories on military service. Samuel P Huntington is one of the scholars who have postulated theories of military service. His theory is also referred to as the normal theory. This paper seeks to show how Huntington’s theory impacts on one’s future in military service. Discussion Owen M (2010) gives credit to Samuel Huntington for his role in developing the normal theory. Owen points out that through this theory Huntington endeavored to solve the dilemma of â€Å"how to guarantee civilian control of the military while still ensuring the ability of the uniformed military to provide security. † Huntington cited in Owen (2010) says the solution to this dilemma lies in â€Å"a mechanism for creating and maintaining a professional, apolitical military establishment, which he called â€Å"objective control. In this regard, Huntington cited in Williams (1995), says the community should have control over the military and army professionals should be denied some of the privileges enjoyed by civilians like political affiliations. Politics is a game of numbers, in my view, this may disadvantage military officers who harbour ambitious of venturing in politics because they are denied involvement in political parties affairs. This impacts negatively on their popularity with the voters. However, there are those candidates such as 2008 republican candidate John McCain who used their experience in the military as a campaign tool to endear themselves to the voters. In my view, professional and experienced military officers make better commander in chief of the armed forces. Additionally, Idsa (2010) concurs with Huntington that one way of achieving civilian control of the military is by ensuring that the funding of the military is left in the hands of the civilian institutions. Idsa points out that civilian institutions should allow the military to advise them on military matters but ultimately the military should only executive those decisions approved by the civilian institutions. In my view this may endanger the lives of military officers. Due to high budgetary needs of a country, military equipment needed in times of war may be sacrificed to meet other needs in another sector of the economy. Huntington theory goes along way in developing responsible and knowledgeable persons. As Idsa (2010) points out military professionals should present their considerations within the appropriate â€Å"channel of authority and communication. † To effectively carry out his/her duties, Huntington as cited in Williams (1995) states that an army officer must be highly expertise, cooperative and responsible in his profession. He meant that an officer must be well knowledgeable in combating violence. Williams (1995) while says that after training the officers should only work with three words â€Å"duty, honor, country. † As a result, Huntington envisaged a military force free of corruption. The officer is expected to be different from other skilled workers in that money should not play any part enticing one to join the forces. However, the army professional should be well rewarded so as to promote hiring, maintain the officers in the force and boost their morale. Williams (1995) says that Huntington argued that a well skilled army professional should be willing to observe the legal requirements made by citizen organizations recognized by law. In addition, the officers should accept to act as subordinates to individuals as required by legalized community organizations. The military officers are expected to hold a high opinion of their career and should not cause civil unrest or run the government. Since the army professionals are recruited with certain levels of qualification, and by the virtue that they belong in the same profession and hold same competencies, the officers tend to exhibit cooperativeness. This supports the statement of Huntington as quoted by Williams (1995) that â€Å"the members of a profession share a sense of organic unity and consciousness of themselves as a group apart from laymen. . This attribute is fostered by their common training which take quite a long duration, collective discipline and sharing of their societal tasks (Williams, 1995). Conclusion In view of the above statements, Huntington theory helps in creating and maintaining cordial relations between the civilians and the military officers. A professional force envisaged in this theory will go along in ensuring peaceful co-existence helps fight vices such as cor ruption and military coups.

Mental Freedom

Definition Essay- Mental Freedom It has been said that the mind is a powerful instrument and whatever the mind perceives, the body can achieve. Although these statements are used very often, the power that the mind holds is still underestimated in my opinion. Mental freedom means being able to express the constructive qualities of the mind easily and more understandably. These qualities include self-expression, analysis, responsibility, patience, etc. Though physical freedom is important, one should also remember that this physical liberty is almost insignificant without being mentally free.It is through this mental freedom that one can be able to have an open mind and be able to reach their highest potential. Also, being able to enlighten others and move forward as a community. However, this freedom is often overlooked because of the mindset of an individual, community or society on a whole. It is also not easily seen unless being contrasted by the term ‘mental slavery’ which is more commonly spoken about in society. The word mental means ‘of or relating to the mind’ and slavery means to be in a state of subjection.Slavery is also synonymous to the word bondage and emphasizes the idea of being controlled. Therefore, the phrase ‘mental slavery’ implies one’s thoughts being controlled by someone else and being forced to think the way that person does and not being able to express one’s personal train of thought. Being mentally enslaved is dangerous because it leads a person to eventually having a lack of individuality and readily accepting and believing what is told to them. In extreme cases, it may even lead to self-hate.When a person has this state of mind, it proposes many problems because it gives way to this person letting go of their culture, traditions, or heritage, and these are the qualities that allow society to be as diverse as it should be. One can almost say that mental bondage destroys a person p sychologically because they begin to lack, or no longer possess, originality. Having that lack of originality may be self-restricting as this is a quality that helps one to reach their highest potential.As the prolific and popular American writer, James F. Cooper, once said, â€Å"All greatness of character is dependent on individuality. The man who has no other existence than that, which he partakes in common with all around him, will never have any other than an existence of mediocrity. † Therefore, being mentally enslaved, or lacking that mental freedom, inhibits growth and causes one to create a mental prison for themselves, thus leaving no room for independence.Having that lack of independence may cause a person to be subjected to any kind of power from a majority, not necessarily because they hold the most legitimate viewpoints, but because they seem to be the strongest group. Henry David Thoreau, an American writer and philosopher best known for his attacks on American social institutions, believed firmly in the importance of independence, individuality and self-reliance.Thoreau spent a night in jail refusing to pay taxes in protestant of the Mexican War and disconnected himself from the American government ideologically to indicate his refusal of participation in their institutions. This was Thoreau’s mental freedom from the government’s view of slavery during the 1800’s and he was able to state this on paper when he wrote his essay Civil Disobedience which showed his objections against the actions of the government. Thoreau’s essay spoke about transcendentalism, a philosophy that shows the importance of mental freedom.This philosophy rejects the idea that knowledge can be fully derived from observations of the physical world or through the experiences of others, but rather through the individual examining how they came to know things. This idea targets the individual analyzing their own thought-process and focusing o n their own connections and experiences which can only exist through intuition and feeling, and not through the information or thoughts others try to feed them.According to this philosophy, through mental freedom, one should be able to gain self-reliance and individuality which is critical for people to find truths within themselves and live their lives through reason and not based solely on the opinions of others. Another famous writer whose work demonstrates the importance of mental freedom is Fredrick Douglass. However, in this case, Douglass was not only mentally enslaved but also physically a slave. In his autobiography, Narrative of the Life of Fredrick Douglass, An American Slave, he tells his story of being born a slave and the struggle it took to really know what hat meant. As he gets older, he is taught an important lesson, the power of literacy, after his master forces his wife to stop teaching a young Douglass how to read. Fredrick Douglass then determines to continue hi s education by befriending white children and learning how to read and write from them. This is the point in his life where he realizes one can only be kept in slavery as long as they are in ignorance. Douglass then becomes mentally emancipated from the idea of him having to be someone’s slave and destines that he would no longer have someone control him.In the future, he is able to buy his physical freedom from his slave master and become a famous antislavery writer that tells his story about how he broke away from bondage and helps others still caught in its trap. From the story of Fredrick Douglass, one can see that just his refusal to accept himself as a slave and not be limited to what his masters wanted of him, he was able to reach his full potential and also enrich the lives of others who need to gain mental liberty. Also, his mental freedom led to his physical freedom.Through the experiences of Thoreau, Douglass and other daily examples in society, such as inner city teens limiting themselves by not going to college because they see it pointless if they are not as privileged as other children with well-paying jobs and careers, one can see how important it is to be mentally free and not create psychological prisons for oneself. Mental freedom means showcasing and expressing individuality and building up motivation and confidence within that individual.It also means exhausting the possibilities of restricting oneself to a point that someone else thought they should not pass and enlightening others on their way to exceeding those restrictions. An enslaved mind is like a blind person; they only know the world through the opinions of others around them, but unless that blind person decides to help themselves, or that person decided to be mentally free, then can they have their personal experiences that give way to a higher potential in life.