Make own topic Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Make own topic - Essay Example Recycling has been used by many modern environmentalists as a tool of waste management (Short, 2004, 21). However despite all the benefits that are associated with recycling I would wish to say that this is not the best idea to end the problem of garbage disposal. Understand the behavior of human beings we can not only rely on recycling as the measure to manage garbage disposal. People will keep consuming from time to time which has the implication the garbage disposal will continue to be there so long as what to be consumed is available (Short, 2004, 22). The reason as to why am saying this is because; recycling has lowered the cost of production in many manufacturing plants. This has on the other hand resulted to low cost of consumer products which are packed with non-degradable materials. The outcome of this is that, more and more garbage continues to be disposed instead of getting reduced (Rogers, 2002, 60). Every economy in the world is singing the music of sustainable development. I feel that having sustainable development will not only be achieved by recycling the waste materials. We need to use the already available raw materials in a manner that will ensure their existence without getting exhausted. Many business enterprises have taken the advantage of recycling as it is a cheap way of making consumer goods (Pellow, 2000, 230). The cheaper products which are made through recycling are lasting for short time before they lose their value. This has increased the rate of consumption since for an individual satisfy his needs or wants must use plenty of that product. This in turn has led to increased garbage disposal as the waste from recycled products is also increasing. As the garbage disposal increase most county councils are reluctant to transport these materials to the respective places for recycling. Therefore, for economies to achieve sustainable development, the stakeholders shou ld change their mind

John Donne Essay Example for Free

John Donne Essay A text is essentially a product of its context, as its prevailing values are inherently derived by the author from society. However, the emergence of post-modern theories allows for audience interpretation, thus it must be recognised that meaning in texts can be shaped and reshaped. Significantly, this may occur as connections between texts are explored. These notions are reflected in the compostion of Edson’s W;t and Donne’s poetry as their relationship is established through intertextual references, corresponding values and ideas and the use of language features. Edson particularly portrays key values surrounding the notions of the importance of loved based relationships, and death and resurrection: central themes of Donne’s Holy Sonnets and Divine Poems. The purpose of these authors distinctly correlate as each has attempted to provide fresh insight into the human condition by challenging prevalent ideals. Thus, Edson incorporates Donne’s work to illuminate both explicit and implicit themes, creating an undeniable condition. Prior to John Donnes Judeo Christian conversion he believed that life was only fulfilling if shared with another individual. He conveyed in his pre-conversion poems and stressed the power and importance of love to a persons well being and existence. Donne contrives the idea that love must not be a Dull Sublunary lovers love, rather a relationship where two souls are one, a love, he explores his conceit, so strong it can stretch like gold to aery thinness. His geometrical conceit explains that relationships Shine here to us, and thou art everywhere; This bed thy centre is, these walls, thy sphere. During the 17th century everything revolved around the sun, saying that lovers went against it was seen as going against the, thus showing how vital relationships are to human existence. The medium of a play allows us to a different view on how important love is one lifes, and what is to be lost with its absence Donnes values according to lifes meaning and relationships are reworked by Margaret Edson within W;t. Vivian Bearing is constructed to reflect the secular view point, preferring research to humanity, the motif Edson creates in Bearing as she misses the point Donne makes about relationships, seeking instead to be making a significant contribution to knowledge. Bearing does not mind the lack of relationship she has, correcting Susie she has none, to be precise, distinctively juxtaposing Donnes views on relationships and their importance. Bearing reflect the individualism of the estern culture when she is distinguishing the [herself] in illness facing the world alone. However Bearing reflects how after many years with being uncomfortable with kindness she wishes her doctor would take more interest in personal contact. The implicit connections Edison portrays between an orange two stick Popsicle shared between Bearing and Susie, and Donnes twin compass displays Bearings recognition of the importance relationships should play in life. Edison challenges secular humanists through her textual construction of dialogue and motifs to question the importance relationships play in order for a meaningful life to be attained. The existential question of what lies after death is one that writes have pondered for years. Donne explicitly demonstrates his battle with this concept and his beliefs about theology, death and afterlife after he is converted to his Judeo Christian faith. Death was not easy to ignore in the 17th century as executions and daily mortuary carts attributed to the fear and awareness of death. His compliant tone throughout his poetry clearly indicates that he feels that he feels some degree of confidence that God will accept his soul into heaven, evident when he apostrophises death to be not proud, though some have called thee mighty and dreadful, that death should not be feared as it is a rest and sleep till the forgiven wake eternally. A possible passage through the American continent to the indies was earnestly being explored just as the poets body was probably being probed and prodded to seek enlightenment or a successful path. This analogy is made clear by the clever extended pun on straits as both a trade route and a personal dilemma. They are itemised so that the link is not missed for the Western Sea, to which all the straits led, also represents death and entry into the next life: So death doth touch the Resurrection Likewise to John Donne, Edison engages with the concept of death and what, if anything comes after it. While Bearing does not openly ponder what comes after death in the play, she is tangibly struggling with the fear of death. Her own feelings are mirrored by Donnes If poisnous minerals is shown through her analysis. In her analysis she says, Donne finds Gods forgiveness hard to believe, so he crawls under a rock to hide. Rather than trust Gods mercy I want to hide. I just want to curl up into a little ball. Donnes poem If Poisonous Minerals has a direction relationship to the The Runaway Bunny read by Bearing in her childhood. It provides for her an allegory for Gods mercy allowing her to find solace, No matter where it hides, God will find it. Where Donne presents this same allegory in a complex manner, the book is simple. Bearing is redeemed and able to die peacefully with this understanding of compassion. It is in the final scene that Edson reshapes Donnes ideas on eternity and resurrection of the play with bearings humanistic post-modern sight. Donne, in his Judeo Christian context, prepares himself for God to take his soul into heaven, whereas the humanistic post-modern understanding of the resurre ction that Bearing obtains brings an end to her suffering an pain when the lights out.

How to Write a Personal Narrative Essay :: Personal Narrative Writing

How to Write a Personal Narrative Essay There is very little mystery to writing the personal narrative essay. There is no proper topic for such an essay. An essay can be about a variety of personal experiences. You, the writer, have the right to say what you want about your personal experience. You can write about anything -- Aunt Sally, the funky necklace you bought at a garage sale, the harrowing experience of being stuck in an elevator, the best Christmas you ever had, the worst day of your life. No topic or subject is off-limits; therefore there are endless opportunities to write an essay about your personal, point-of-view of what happened. Often the reason behind wanting to write a personal essay is unclear. Once the writing begins and the events are recorded and recounted it becomes clear that the writer is searching to find the meaning, the universal truth, the lesson learned from the experience. When writing, rewriting and good editing coalesce, a personal narrative essay becomes a beautiful thing. It shows how the past or a memory’s significance affects the present or even the future. We all have stories to tell. But facing a blank page is intimidating. Knowing where to begin becomes a real dilemma. A good place to start is with the word I. Write I was, I saw, I did, I went, I cried, I screamed, I took for granted. I is an empowering word. Once you write it on the page it empowers you to tell your story. That’s exactly what you are going to do next. Tell the story. Get it all out. Don’t worry about how many times I appears in the text. Don’t worry how scattered and unfocused thoughts are. Write however your mind tells you to write. This style is often called freewheeling writing or stream of consciousness. Once the story is all down on paper you will go back and begin to shape the essay into a form that says exactly what you want it to say about your experience. If you’re discouraged over what you’ve written, back away from it. Let it rest. Take a walk. Do something that distracts your mind from writing the essay. Many writers fi nd that even while doing something other than writing, their writing mind continues to work out what needs to be said and continues to uncover the multi-layered associations and voices of what they’re writing about.

The Reluctant Fundamentalist

How does Hamid employ symbolism throughout the novel? Is his use of symbolism effective? What is lost and gained through the use of symbolism? The Reluctant Fundamentalist is a novel in which an American immigrant Changez is living a dream with a great job, money, and the â€Å"regal† Erica by his side. However after the 9/11 attacks Changez’s perception on America shifted, he was forced to question where his allegence lies and this developed into contempt for America.If you read The Reluctant Fundamentalist by Mohsin Hamid, and fail to dig below to the surface of the text then the novel will hold an entirely different meaning to you. Hamid used heavy sybolism to convey meanings and themes that are better not said outright, and overall altered the impression the novel leaft. While reading The Reluctant Fundamentalist it became apperant that Changez’s love interest Erica symbolized America. Besides the obvious that Erica is the last five letters of America, there were multiple parallels in the story Hamid built for Erica and the way he portrayed America.When Changez first met Erica he says, â€Å"She had a presence †¦a naturalist would likely have compared her to a lioness: strong, sleek, and invariably surrounded by her pride†(22). Changez also comments of the pride America shows with, â€Å"stickers of flags adorned windshields and windows; large flags fluttered from buildings. They all seemed to proclaim: We are America†¦the mightiest civilization the world has ever known. †(79). Akin to America after 9/11, Erica seemed to be, â€Å"utterly detached, lost in a world of her own†¦ she was struggling against a current that pulled her within herself†(86).Similarly after 9/11 Changez felt that America, â€Å"retreated into myths of your own difference, assumptions of your own superiority†(168). The grief that Erica felt over the loss of Chris was representative of the grief America felt after 9/11 and how that prevented both Erica and America from moving on and accepting Changez. When Changez goes to see Erica at her clinic he is told by a nurse that, â€Å"It did not matter that the person Erica was in love with was deceased; for Erica he was alive enough, and that was the problem. †(133) America, too, was increasingly giving itself over to a dangerous nostalgia,† he claimed that he, â€Å"had always thought of America as a nation that looked forward; for the first time I was stuck by its determination to look back. †(115) The grief that Erica felt over the loss of Chris was representative of the grief America felt after 9/11 and how that prevented both Erica and America from moving on and accepting Changez. When Changez goes to see Erica at her clinic he is told by a nurse that, â€Å"It did not matter that the person Erica was in love with was deceased; for Erica he was alive enough, and that was the problem. (133) If Erica represents America and their in ability to move on from their grief, then Chris is a symbol for 9/11. When Changez goes to visit Erica in the clinic,the nurse he meets when he first enters tells him that, â€Å"It did not matter that the person Erica was in love with was This was included to show Cahngez’s changing relationship with America and an alternative way to show how America is broken and how because of America’s tendency to look back, and hold on to the past prevented America fro building relationships with outher countriesIf you did not connect that Erica was America you might hink that this was about a Pakistany that came to American and wound up hating and criticisming it until he left. In reality it was about a man, or boy rather, that had big dreams of his life in America, ones that seemed to be coming true. But just as Erica could not let go of the past, America couldn’t let go of the hatred and fear they held for those who seemed un-American.

Motivational Theories and Factors Essay

According to DuBrin, â€Å"†¦motivation is an energizing force that stimulates arousal, direction, and persistence of behavior† (2004, p. 121). It is the force inside the individual and process which allows us to get others to put forth effort. There are many motivational theories that can be used to motivate others (DuBrin, 2004). In the workplace, managers may need to find ways to motivate their employees. Three ways a manager might motivate their employees are: Setting goals, using operant conditioning to change behaviors, and using monetary incentives. These may all be used to motivate employees (DuBrin, 2004). Goals are what motivate us and others to strive to achieve accomplishments either set by ourselves or others. Goals create a self-dissatisfaction within us which gives us an incentive to reduce this dissatisfaction by achieving our goal. By setting goals, employees can improve performance and increase productivity (DuBrin, 2004). Another way to motivate employees is to use operant conditioning as used by B. F. Skinner. By providing rewards and punishments for behaviors, an employer can motivate employees to modify behaviors by providing consequences. An employee can use an incentive for positive behaviors such as increasing sales and receiving a commission or promotion. For negative behaviors such as not meeting goals set, an employer might demote the employee or even take away commissions or the promise of a promotion (DuBrin, 2004). Monetary rewards can be used to motivate an employee to improve performance and production. By offering commission or a raise, an employee will be motivated to achieve. By setting clear expectations, an employee can strive to attain or exceed expectations, knowing what they will be eligible to receive the incentive. (DuBrin, 2004). I believe that the three ways of motivating others, can also help me motivate myself. By setting personal goals for myself, I can motivate myself to accomplish those goals. After achieving the original goals, I will set higher goals to challenge me. Monetary or recognition rewards will also motivate me to be more productive. When given a choice between being rewarded or punished for behaviors, I will always avoid the negative behavior and opt for achieving rewards (DuBrin, 2004). Vroom’s Expectancy theory and Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs theory are two popular motivational theories. The Expectancy theory and Hierarchy of Needs theory have similar and contrasting ways of motivation. The Expectancy theory focuses on personal choices that an individual must make when faced with the possibility of working hard to achieve rewards and are affected by individual perceptions. Expectancy is how a person perceives the subject probability that one thing will lead to another. How a person’s perception of expectancy for effort will lead to performance and how performance will lead to reward probabilities (valance) increase, so does a person’s motivation force increase. (Scholl, 2002). The Hierarchy of Needs theory is based on satisfying our innate physiological needs first (food, shelter, water), then safety (job security, earning an income), then moving up the hierarchy ladder to satisfy our need for growth (love and belongingness needs, esteem needs, and self-actualization needs. Maslow states that until our basic needs are met first, we cannot move up the hierarchy ladder (Olson & Hergenhahn, 2011). The two theories are similar because they both have forces that drive our motivation. However, Maslow generalizes about our motivation whereas Vroom shows that ‘the same people are motivated by different things at different times and that different people are motivated by different things at the same time’ (Motivation Types, 2009). Vroom does not attempt to explain a person’s motivation like Maslow. Instead, he explains how people arrive at decisions to achieve the end they value. Both can be motivated by needs and self-esteem (Scholl, 2002). While financial incentives can be a good motivational tool, it can also have drawbacks. By offering monetary, promotions, or employee benefits to employees, it can increase an employee’s performance and production. However, the drawbacks to this are: a decrease in teamwork and inequitable rewards. If a person is working toward a goal to receive a monetary reward, he will most likely be less of a team player due to competition with coworkers. If monetary rewards go by income, a person who makes less will receive less monetary rewards than someone who receives a higher salary. An example of this is profit sharing (Ehow Money, 2012). Sometimes it may be better to have monetary rewards given as a team effort or equitable financial rewards for the same job performance.

When three worlds mee essays

When three worlds mee essays At the end of the 15th century, Christopher Columbus began a journey. His journey would set in motion, the cultural collision, of a new world. This new world would now be the new home for Europeans, Africans, and a changed home for Native Americans. The residents of this new world would find comfort in their similarities and difficulty in their differences. But it is in these similarities and differences that will shape and make their new land. The similarities and differences, of these very diverse people, were many. We will focus on their societies, labor practices, religions, cultures, politics, and the relationship of men and women within these topics. These topics themselves are diverse and as we will find the collision of these diverse people helped shape the America we know today. The cultures we recognize today of European, African, and Native American are quite different in comparison from them in the 15th century. The Europeans of that time lived in a patriarchal society, in this society men where the dominant force. The amount of control or power each man had was simply based on their bloodlines. This was a patrilineal way. Your status in society was based on who your father was and the higher your father was on the political ladder, the higher the status, his family would receive. For example, the younger sons of an English noble, who were lacking property at home, were given new land to lord over in the new world. (www.pbs.org) This English nobility feeling of superiority spilled over into their labor practices as well. The labor practices of the Europeans were sexually diverse and often rigid. The men played the dominant role at home. The men were husband, father, farmer, handyman, protector, and provider. While the women were left with mother, wife, entertainer, field hand, maid, and cook. There was a great divide between the sexes. Women did not own property and had few rights...

7 Military Ranks Common in Popular Culture

7 Military Ranks Common in Popular Culture 7 Military Ranks Common in Popular Culture 7 Military Ranks Common in Popular Culture By Mark Nichol 1. Captain This all-purpose title, originally identifying the leader of any band of warriors but later formalized to refer to someone holding a specific military rank, is used in civilian contexts to refer to a sports team’s most prominent member, a successful businessperson (â€Å"captain of industry†), or any leader. The rank originated with land-based forces but was carried over in naval contexts when military leaders took nominal command of ships for naval operations or ferrying of troops from one place to another, though the master of the ship the owner or owner’s representative, who unlike the captain had nautical skills actually supervised the ship’s operations. Now, any boat owner or operator is called a captain, and the commander of a naval vessel is referred to as the captain (or, less formally, the skipper) regardless of actual rank. 2. Colonel Was Colonel Sanders, founder of the fast-food chain KFC, a military veteran? He did serve briefly in the US Army, but as a lowly private. So, where did he get his title? From the Commonwealth of Kentucky, it turns out; the Bluegrass State awards the honorific â€Å"Kentucky colonel† to selected individuals who in some way contribute to the state’s well-being. But why â€Å"Kentucky colonel†? After the Revolutionary War, aristocratic landowners who had been commissioned as colonels in the Continental Army and authorized to form regiments were thereafter referred to as â€Å"Colonel† to honor their participation in that glorious conflict. Because such men were community leaders, by extension, the honorific, and in Kentucky the more specific phrase, was later bestowed on wealthy gentlemen in general, whether they had actually held a colonel’s commission or not. This tradition intensified after the American Civil War, when, as before, it was a point of honor to be able to identify oneself as a veteran especially one who had been a senior officer. The title became a routine honorific for wealthy Southern men, even those born in succeeding generations. Colonel Sanders, though of humble origins, adopted this persona after the governor of Kentucky awarded him the title. (A similar, tongue-in-cheek designation is â€Å"Nebraska admiral† a jocular nod to the fact that the Cornhusker State is landlocked.) 3. Drill Sergeant Noncommissioned officers assigned to train recruits, depending on the particular branch of the military in which they serve, have different designations, but this title, for US Army trainers, is the one most familiar to civilians, and it is often used in nonmilitary contexts to denote a harsh taskmaster. This characterization comes from the formidable personalities drill sergeants and their ilk display, because their job is to break their recruits so that their individuality is subsumed to develop unquestioning obedience and unit cohesion, two necessities for group survival in combat. 4. Ensign Originally, ensign referred to a flag, and sometimes the rank of the junior officer assigned to carry a military unit’s flag in battle was given the same name. By extension, though ensign is no longer a rank in land-based military forces, it became the entry-level officer rank in navies, though that officer’s duties have nothing to do with flags. 5. Lieutenant This term, from the French words meaning â€Å"in place of,† originally referred to the deputy of a military leader and later came to be formalized as a military rank (with variations). Like captain, it was then extended into nonmilitary contexts to refer to any immediate subordinate. A similar word is subaltern, an obsolete junior rank corresponding to a lieutenant; the term, though rare, has the same nonmilitary connotation. 6. Major Why is the leader of a marching band called a drum major? Such ensembles are descended in concept from military marching bands, which evolved from the use of bugles, fifes, and drums to sound signals to military units because shouted orders, hand gestures, signal flags, and other forms of communication might be difficult to hear or see in the noise and confusion of battle. Civilian marching bands, whose uniforms are a carryover from military dress, originally were primarily seen in parades, but performances at sporting events, stand-alone events, and band competitions began to predominate. The title of drum major an appointment, not a rank in the military hierarchy carried over to civilian usage; as with military ensembles, the person in that position, who may serve as a conductor, a marching coordinator, or both, wears a distinctive uniform to be easily recognizable. 7. Marshal This word sometimes used in place of or in addition to general in the military hierarchies of some countries, referring to a very high-ranking officer, has lowly origins: It is from a Germanic term meaning â€Å"stable boy† or â€Å"stable servant.† (The first syllable is a cognate with mare, meaning â€Å"female horse†). In medieval society, the humble stable keeper’s status steadily rose until the title referred to the commander of a feudal lord’s cavalry. Ultimately, the term â€Å"field marshal† referred to the leader of an army or a large division of it. The law enforcement term derived from association with a military marshal’s role in keeping the peace, and the use of â€Å"grand marshal† to designate an honorary parade leader stems from the military officer’s duties in ceremonial traditions. (Similarly, constable, which developed from a Latin term meaning â€Å"count of the stable,† was used throughout history from the later days of the Eastern Roman Empire as a title for various high-ranking officials, but constable now usually refers to a low rank in law enforcement.) Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Vocabulary category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Coordinating vs. Subordinating ConjunctionsCapitalization Rules for Names of Historical Periods and MovementsTrooper or Trouper?

What is Ghostwriting The Master Guide to Succeeding in the Industry

What is Ghostwriting The Master Guide to Succeeding in the Industry What is Ghostwriting? All Your Questions Answered Ghostwriting is when someone is hired to write a project that is credited to another person. A ghostwriter may be the main or partial writer behind a book, but they are not the author. They are hired to carry out the vision of their client, and their main concern is with satisfying that client.While ghostwriting is a profession often associated with celebrity memoirs, some may be surprised to learn that there are many other types of ghostwriting, including:Business booksLifestyles booksBook proposalsSpeechesBlog postsSocial media postsNewslettersAnd more! But before we dive into the meat of the question "what is ghostwriting," we'll answer a question that those in the profession always get asked†¦How is ghostwriting different from co-authoring?A co-author will also - presumably - do some of the writing, but is credited as a partial author. Therefore, the book is also at least partially created under their direction, and a large part of their focus is on their readers.But the t itle "ghostwriter" doesn't just apply to people who write books. Let's take a closer look at the different projects that might require a ghost. What is ghostwriting? And why might someone turn to a ghostwriter? All your questions answered. Types of ghostwriting: long-formNon-fictionIn long-form non-fiction, a ghostwriter can be involved in any number of capacities, from leading and outlining the whole project, to filling in gaps left by the author.Memoirs and autobiographies: We always hear about the importance of taking a step back to see the bigger picture. Well, this is all the more important for memoirs. No one is closer to your own life than you, and to turn your story into a compelling narrative often requires a more impartial contributor. Step right up, ghostwriters! And, of course, there is no ghostwritten memoir more popular than the celebrity kind - in fact, most celebrity memoir are actually written by a ghostwriter commissioned by publishers who know the marketing power of a recognizable name. How to Hire a Ghostwriter – By Andrew Crofts Read post If you’re considering working with a ghostwriter, you should always determine your own budget, consider the above questions, and then be prepared to negotiate. You can learn more about ghostwriting fees in this guest post, How Much Does it Cost to Hire a Ghostwriter? by Andrew Crofts - a ghost and author with more than eighty books (including Sunday Times number one bestsellers) under his belt.Whether you’re considering working with a ghost or you were just curious to hear more about what is ghostwriting, you might have a lingering question: how ethical is this all?Well, let’s discuss.Is ghostwriting ethical?If someone bought your book under the impression that you wrote all the words - not knowing that it has been penned by a ghost -   then have you misled that reader? Have you been deceitful? It really depends, but answering this question often depends on two aspects:the intent of the credited author;and the effect on the readers/audience.Say that a life-l ong birdwatcher who struggles to string coherent paragraphs together wants to publish a bird-watcher’s travel guide. They hire a ghostwriter to help them produce this book. In this case, the author’s intent is to share their years of acquired wisdom with others. And if readers of this book are receiving well-researched and sound knowledge, then they are getting what they paid for - and nobody will really complain.Now here’s an example of when ghostwriting wades into murky territory: A person is venturing into a new business which they believe could be very fruitful, but which they know next to nothing about. They use a ghostwritten book to establish themself as an â€Å"authority† under false pretenses in order to attract clients. The â€Å"author’s† intent here - to take advantage of readers - is indeed unethical. Is ghostwriting ethical? Join the discussion here! When Dorothy discovers that the Great and Powerful Oz is actually a man behind a curtain, does this revelation diminish her personal journey and undermine her personal growth? We would say no. But if the Wonderful Wizard tried to sell her on a great investment opportunity, that would be another matter.Have you ever worked with a ghostwriter or tried your hand at ghostwriting? Tell us about your experiences - or leave any questions in the comments below!

The role of Production department in the organization Essay

The role of Production department in the organization - Essay Example The intention of this study is a Joint venture as an effort to form an entity, jointly together by any two entities, to undertake any economic activity for lawful purposes. Forming joint ventures is therefore one of the most prominent methods of entering into new markets as it provides an opportunity to tap into the local knowledge as well as skills to make a successful entry. Legally, a joint venture is a partnership which takes place for the short period of time by more than one party for any mutually beneficial purposes. As a general rule, each party to the joint venture contribute its assets towards the formation of the joint venture and also at the same time share the risks involved in forming such partnership. One of the benefits of forming a joint venture therefore is to gain access to the new markets as two entities; one foreign and one domestic and as such foreign entity often bring in new technologies which can benefit the domestic entities due to technology transfer. In US , Joint ventures are mostly regulated by Partnership laws, Contract Act as well as commercial transaction laws. In an increasingly complex business environment, the overall role of the organization and its top management is one of the most critical jobs that have to be performed. It is argued that the role of leadership is always to provide the vision for the future therefore the overall purpose and direction of strategic management is relatively different from that of the lower level of management.

Immigration Reform Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words - 2

Immigration Reform - Essay Example I support this debate since it will work to bridge the gap between generations as well as helping the government in its policies and planning in terms of budget and human capital usability. Through the reform, boarder security measures will be enhanced. This reform will create a support system to the immigrants who have been forced to immigrate due to hard economic times, lack of opportunities, and lack of proper social guarantees in their home country (Rosenblum and Brick 1). The future care of the immigrants in the US will be handled by the reform, which will ensure they get included in the health care proposals and taxpayer-funded public benefits. To handle the matter on immigration reform and the ongoing debate, I will do a comparative analysis of the debate through thoughtful discussion on the policy realignment and enlightenment within the US. My major point of focus will be on the achievements and the recommendations on the reforms while seeking solutions on the upcoming differences between the federalists and the anti-federalist. Among many reforms focused on immigration, representative governance is one way to ensure that needs of immigrants are met. A successful integration of immigrants and the locals in terms of governance is related to US realignment of its policies on social contracts. Providing leadership opportunities within them could create opportunities for successful integration (Jimenez 18). However, this has not been the case since federal government’s steps towards creating such opportunities have been so micro. There are youths in the third generation that are still considered unauthorized hence calling for tough enforcements for legalization (Rosenblum 2). Though they have ensured that immigrants are civically engaged, federal leadership policy needs a major realignment if a successful integration will be achieved. As human beings, immigrants have their rights. With the

Economical Analysis of Worldbiotechcom, Inc Essay

Economical Analysis of Worldbiotechcom, Inc - Essay Example The former was driven by the introduction of cars, television, radio and electric power while the latter resulted from the use of Internet and emergence of e-commerce. NASDAQ index spiked then abruptly went into a steep decline after the dot-com bubble burst leading many investors to bankruptcy. There was so much hype in the new technologies as the forecasted prospects were very promising only to be dismayed by modest results and dismal returns. For example, so many people invested in the Internet because they thought that they could easily gain an easy buck given the increasing availability, accessibility and minimal investments it requires. Instead, they were driven to bankruptcy by websites offering free services. (Smith et al 2002 ; Topol 2003) The most pressing problem with regards to the new transport system is not so much in the entry of other players or the saturation of the market but in the inherent risk in using it. While other means of transportation such as automobiles, ships and airplanes have their own death statistics, they offer a relatively higher degree of confidence because these modes can be maneuvered and abandoned to prevent the loss of life and limbs. Even if we insist that the transport mode is safe and use simulation runs as evidence, we can never discount the possibility of an accident. A single accident could send tremors across the whole industry and send it tumbling down because people would be scared of the prospect of being atomized to nothingness and being unable to do something about it. It is expected that exceptional mandatory quality standards will be implemented by the government in light of the risks involved in the use of the technology. The worst case scenario would include the disclosure on the hazard of using the technology which can dissuade potential buyers or users. Controls on employment or production such as exhaustive testing could prove to be very

Walt Disney Company Context Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Walt Disney Company Context Analysis - Essay Example His success was not instant; many film distributors laughed at his ideas. He met with constant criticisms and was judged as being an average cartoonist. The actual design of Mickey Mouse was attributed to Iwerks. However, Disney did get credit for his ability to visualize characters and stories. Disney’s earlier films were funded with his own money. Mickey Mouse brought in enough money to allow him to develop other projects. (Walt Disney Company, 2003). His first full-length film, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, opened in 1937 and was a hit. This move produced a line of successful movies. When the 1950s rolled around Americans began to spend more time at home, therefore, he advanced into television. He was seen as an icon after World War II as his innovation brought mouse ears into the homes and lives of children all over the world. He is well known as a visionary of sound animation but also an innovator of the American business model as well. (Kao, 2010). Historical and Geog raphical Elements: Disney has been a very influential force in the entertainment industry, especially for children and families. Walt Disney was born of humble beginnings in 1901 in Chicago. His upbringing has said to of been a great influence on his later middle-class family status. His father, Elias, moved the family throughout the Midwest looking for work. In those days hard work to support a household of five children was prized. However, there was little money left for entertainment. The children were forced to go to work at an early age, and Walt began work at age nine as a newspaper delivery boy. He and his brothers and sisters were given social and religious values from an early age. (The Walt Disney Company, 2003. P.2). He found that he was very talented in art at age 14 so he enrolled at the Kansas City Art Institute. From ages 14 to 16 he signed up to serve as an ambulance driver during World War I. Shortly after the war had ended he found employment as a commercial artis t, and was able to form an animated cartoon company in Kansas City. From there he teamed up with his brother Roy who lived in Hollywood. (The Walt Disney Company, 2003, p.3). Word reached the West Coast shortly after Disney arrived from a company wanting to gain the rights to Disney live action cartoon reels. He took advantage of the business opportunity and joined with M. J. Winkler who offered $1.500 per reel. (The Walt Disney Company, 2003, p.3). From there his career took off. â€Å"Disney studios took full advantage of the small screen revolution of television.† (The Walt Disney Company, 2003, p.3). In 1955 Disneyland opened in Anaheim, California and The Mickey Mouse Club debuted on ABC television. Every kid in American had Mickey Mouse ears. This brought on such movies as The Shaggy Dog and Mary Poppins in 1964, which was a box office hit. The Wonderful World of Disney started in 1955 as well and ran for 20 years. He always demanded professionalism of his employees as well as the highest quality technology available. Walt Disney died in 1966 of cancer, however, his brother vowed to make sure his employees carried on the standards of his work. (The Walt Disney Company, 2003, p.4). Geographically the Walt Disney Parks and Resorts began in California, however, the second one, Walt Disney World Resort founded in Orlando, Florida became the model for the others. The Tokyo Disney Resort was the first to open in another country in 1983 and further expanded in

Visual Arts Experimental Drawing Research Paper - 1

Visual Arts Experimental Drawing - Research Paper Example Poor for most of his life, he worked as a wholesale fabric salesman, door to door salesman, in a plant nursery and for a short while at a defense plant before launching into a full time artistic career (Waldman 21). Cornell found his inspiration in remnants of beautiful and precious objects that he came upon during his frequent trips to thrift stores and book shops. He could create magic from mundane objects and his work has elements of constructivism and installation art that influence the onlooker to touch and interact with the creation (Solomon 36). Famous among his works was his penny arcade portrait of Lauren Bacall, his Hotel Series and his Pink Palace Series. He kept a dossier of over 150 visual themes that interested and inspired him. His film montage Rose Hobart from the film East of Borneo is considered one of the earliest fanvids and has been preserved for cultural significance (Frye 1). Works Cited Frye, Brian. Rose Hobart. 2000. Print. Solomon, Deborah. Utopia Parkway: T he Life and Times of Joseph Cornell. Farrar, Strauss and Giroux, 1997. Print. Waldman, Diane. Master of Dreams. 2002. Print. Margaret Olley (250 words) Margaret Olley (1923-2011) was an Australian painter known for her still life paintings. She had more than 90 solo exhibitions in her career. Olley was born in Lismore, New South Wales and did her training in art at Somerville High School and East Sydney Technical College, where she graduated in 1945. She spent some time at Hill end area of New South Wales. Her first exhibition was held at the Macquarie Gallery in 1948. Olley also travelled to France, London, Spain and Lisbon in 1949. She stayed in France till her father’s death in 1953, whereupon she returned to Brisbane. She traveled through North Queensland in the 1950s and followed this up with a trip to Papua New Guinea (France 12). Olley painted what she saw around her. She was critical of all sorts of pretense and deliberate characterization – like following fash ion, gender stereotyping of women and Australia’s isolation in the world. She adopted truthfulness in all that she saw and did. The quality of her work greatly improved after she gave up consuming alcohol in 1959. The colors in her work were deeper and her drawings more confident and three dimensional in structure, form and weight (Stewart 22). She was honored with the Order of Australia in 1991 and also won the Mosman Art Prize in 1947. Amazingly, two of her portraits – one by William Dobell in 1948 and another by Ben Quilty in 2011 – both won an Archibald Prize. One can easily see the deep vibrant colors in Poppies and Checked Cloth while Turkish Pots and Lemons hold a touch of intrigue behind the hazy look. Marigolds and Fruit once again reminds us of days gone by like the Victorian era (Pearce 19). Poppies and Checked Cloth Turkish Pots and Lemons Marigolds and Fruit Works Cited France, Christine. Margaret Olley. Craftsman House, Sydney, 2002. Print. Pearce, Barry. Margaret Olley. The Art Gallery of NSW, 1996. Print. Stewart, Margaret. Margaret Olley – Far From a Still Life, 2005. Print. Grace Cossington Smith Grace Cossington Smith (1892-1984) has been hailed as the first of Australia’s Post Impressionist painters. She was born in Neutral Bay Sydney but lived most of her life at her mother’s home in Turramurra. She studied art under the tutelage of Albert Collins and Alfred

Walt Disney Company Context Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Walt Disney Company Context Analysis - Essay Example His success was not instant; many film distributors laughed at his ideas. He met with constant criticisms and was judged as being an average cartoonist. The actual design of Mickey Mouse was attributed to Iwerks. However, Disney did get credit for his ability to visualize characters and stories. Disney’s earlier films were funded with his own money. Mickey Mouse brought in enough money to allow him to develop other projects. (Walt Disney Company, 2003). His first full-length film, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, opened in 1937 and was a hit. This move produced a line of successful movies. When the 1950s rolled around Americans began to spend more time at home, therefore, he advanced into television. He was seen as an icon after World War II as his innovation brought mouse ears into the homes and lives of children all over the world. He is well known as a visionary of sound animation but also an innovator of the American business model as well. (Kao, 2010). Historical and Geog raphical Elements: Disney has been a very influential force in the entertainment industry, especially for children and families. Walt Disney was born of humble beginnings in 1901 in Chicago. His upbringing has said to of been a great influence on his later middle-class family status. His father, Elias, moved the family throughout the Midwest looking for work. In those days hard work to support a household of five children was prized. However, there was little money left for entertainment. The children were forced to go to work at an early age, and Walt began work at age nine as a newspaper delivery boy. He and his brothers and sisters were given social and religious values from an early age. (The Walt Disney Company, 2003. P.2). He found that he was very talented in art at age 14 so he enrolled at the Kansas City Art Institute. From ages 14 to 16 he signed up to serve as an ambulance driver during World War I. Shortly after the war had ended he found employment as a commercial artis t, and was able to form an animated cartoon company in Kansas City. From there he teamed up with his brother Roy who lived in Hollywood. (The Walt Disney Company, 2003, p.3). Word reached the West Coast shortly after Disney arrived from a company wanting to gain the rights to Disney live action cartoon reels. He took advantage of the business opportunity and joined with M. J. Winkler who offered $1.500 per reel. (The Walt Disney Company, 2003, p.3). From there his career took off. â€Å"Disney studios took full advantage of the small screen revolution of television.† (The Walt Disney Company, 2003, p.3). In 1955 Disneyland opened in Anaheim, California and The Mickey Mouse Club debuted on ABC television. Every kid in American had Mickey Mouse ears. This brought on such movies as The Shaggy Dog and Mary Poppins in 1964, which was a box office hit. The Wonderful World of Disney started in 1955 as well and ran for 20 years. He always demanded professionalism of his employees as well as the highest quality technology available. Walt Disney died in 1966 of cancer, however, his brother vowed to make sure his employees carried on the standards of his work. (The Walt Disney Company, 2003, p.4). Geographically the Walt Disney Parks and Resorts began in California, however, the second one, Walt Disney World Resort founded in Orlando, Florida became the model for the others. The Tokyo Disney Resort was the first to open in another country in 1983 and further expanded in

Refugees Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Refugees - Research Paper Example This process can be dated back 3 500 years ago to the times of the Hittites, ancient Egyptians, Assyrians and Babylonians (The UN Refugee Agency, n.p). Presently the UN refugee agency’s sole purpose is to protect refugees in the midst of a war in their motherland. The 1951 Geneva Convention is the main international agreement concerning the protection of refugees. It illustrates the definition of a refugee and the rights he is entitled to whilst in the guardianship of the country which signed the Geneva Convention agreement (The UN Refugee Agency, n.p). Refugees are people who are under threat for reasons such as, political opinion, religion, race, membership of a certain movement or nationality. These individuals can not return to their home country in fear of losing their lives. In the year 2005, Palestine, Somalia, Afghanistan, South Sudan, Iraq and Sierra Leone were among the leading sources of refugees (Rosenburg, n.p). Most refugees are accommodated in camps, which are usually highly concentrated with people. These camps are either built by the state or Non government organizations. These camps supply the refugees with food and the appropriate medical aid until it is safe for them to return to their own country. This can last for years and in a situation where the host country feels it will never be safe for these individuals to return home, they are resettled to another country known as the ‘third country’, which is different from their country of origin. However, refugees are rarely resettled and usually remain in their camps. As previously mentioned, the camps which refugees are settled are highly concentrated. They are also not sanitation friendly as the large number of people makes it difficult to maintain a hygienic environment. Whilst in these camps, refugees are prone to contracting many diseases. These include cholera, dysentery, tuberculosis and HIV Aids. Contagious diseases are likely to spread very fast in a refugee camp (The UN Refugee Agency, n.p). Refugees are also prone to sexual and physical violence from the guards in their camps or from individuals amongst them. This also enhances the spread of sexually transmitted diseases (Seagul, n.p). The also face problems with adjusting to the culture of the places they are relocated. In addition, it is also very difficult for them to find employment as many locals have a negative opinion about refugees. Due to the fact that they have no employment options to sustain themselves, they are prone to joining terrorist groups or other rec ruitment programs because they have no other choice. Many refugees are often put under the pressure from migrating form rural areas into urban centers of developed countries. In addition, they might not be familiar with the language and have difficulty in communication and expressing themselves. This can also lead to depression and suicide. Refugees are assisted by the government of the country which they are given asylum. They provide them with the basic necessities they require. They are also assisted by Non Governmental Organizations which are created by different charities and receive funds from donations. Volunteers also help the refugees, by bring food to the camps, teaching them the local language, giving them emotional support or giving monetary donations. Refugees can also be closely related to as homeless individuals. They have unstable housing and may require relocation at any time. They own no personal property in their place of residence. According to Hollister et al., refuges face many barriers when they are seeking for housing and are at great risk of homelessness (n.p). Most refugees are sett

To Kill a Mocking Bird Comparison Essay Example for Free

To Kill a Mocking Bird Comparison Essay It is interesting how two family members can share many differences and many similarities. In the novel To kill a mockingbird by Harper Lee, Atticus and Aunt Alexandra demonstrate their care and love for Jem and Scout, yet differ when it comes to parenting and views on society. Atticus and Aunt Alexandra both express their love and care for Jem and Scout. Firstly Atticus has more of a relaxed and compassionate love for Jem and Scout. For instance, after the attack of Jem and Scout, Jem was frightened and Atticus was there for him, Scout said â€Å"He guided me to the bed and sat me down. He lifted my legs and put me under the cover†¦ he turned out the light and went into Jems room. He would be there all night, and he would be there when Jem woked up in the morning† (Lee, 387)Although Atticus Is a busy and tired man, he shows that he cares by tucking Scout in and watching over Jem after an eventful night. Similarly, Aunt Alexandra moves into Atticus’ house due to her concern for Scouts lack of proper etiquette. For instance, Aunt Alexandra was in the kitchen, explaining her presence to Scout â€Å"We decided that it would be best for you if you had some feminine influence. It won’t be many years, Jean Louise, before you become interested in cloths and boys.† (Lee, 170) Although Aunt Alexandra moved in with Atticus, she expresses to scout her worries and motivation to correct them. It is evident that, both Atticus and Aunt Alexandra demonstrate their love for their family in many ways throughout the book. Atticus and Aunt Alexandra show many different parenting methods throughout the novel. Firstly, Atticus treats Jem and Scout as equals. He allows them to make their own decisions. For example, Jem and Scout wanted to hear the verdict on Tom Robinson’s case: â€Å"Tell you what, you can all come back when you’ve eaten supper†¦ and if the jury is still out you can wait with us†¦ Atticus opened his mouth to answer but shut it and left us.† (Lee, 277) As a result Atticus lets Jem and Scout make their own decisions by allowing them to stay later. On the other hand, Aunt Alexandra makes decisions for Jem and Scout; she treats them like children. For example, when Jem asks Atticus if he can go to church with Calpurnia Aunt Alexandra tells him that he cannot. â€Å"Atticus, I’ll go next Sunday if it’s alright, can i? Cal said she’d come get me if you were off in the car† Jem asked. â€Å"You may not† Aunt Alexandra answered. (Lee, 181) Therefore, Aunt Alexandra makes decisions for Jem. Clearly one can see Atticus and Aunt Alexandra’s parenting methods greatly differ. In addition, Aunt Alexandra and Atticus’ views on society greatly differ. For instance, Aunt Alexandra believes that certain people should be treated differently. For example Aunt Alexandra tells Atticus that she feel that Calpurnia is not doing her job efficiently, and should let her go. â€Å"And don’t try and get around it you’ve got to face it sooner or later and it might as well be tonight. We don’t need her now† (Lee, 182) for this reason, Aunt Alexandra demonstrates the she is prejudice and racist, she wants Calpurnia fired only because of the colour of her skin. On the other hand Atticus believes that people should be treated fairly and as equals. For instance, Alexandra complains to Atticus that she feels that Calpurnia being a person of colour should be fired because she is not doing her job correctly. Atticus disagrees and says â€Å"Alexandra, Calpurnia’s not leaving this house until she wants t. you may think otherwise, but I couldn’t have got along without her all these years† (Lee,182) Thus, Atticus expresses that Calpurnia is part of the family, and deserves to be treated fairly. As a result, Alexandra and Atticus’ views on society contrast because of the way they treat people. In the novel, To kill a mockingbird written by Harper Lee, Atticus and Aunt Alexandra show strong love for their family and yet they differ when it comes to their parenting methods and views on society. In conclusion although Alexandra and Atticus are family they are more different then the same.

Human behaviour and Lifespan Development in Social Care

Human behaviour and Lifespan Development in Social Care Suzanna Pickering Social Workers are increasingly referring to theories of the life cycle, life span development and human behaviours these theories indicate the relationship of particular biological ages of life to psychological, social and development changes. From a theoretical perspective key theories of human growth and development will be discussed focusing on infants, highlighting the importance of professionals observing a child and making a judgment on their development and needs. Therefore, the theories will be applied to social work, discussing the advantages and disadvantages of taking a life span perspective, taking into account gender, culture and individuality. Attachment and the different theories associated with attachment will enable us to understand people in a more thorough manner and in particular the circumstances that service users may be faced with considering diversity, their individual cultural needs and beliefs. Whilst staying within the boundaries, values and Ethics set down by the GSCC. It is widely accepted that parent and child relationship plays a central role in the psychological development. (Pg1 Attachment and Development) Goldburg, S. (2000) Attachment and Development, London: Arnold. The term development refers to the process by which a child, or more generally an organism (human or animal) grows and changes through its lifespan. In humans the most dramatic developmental changes occur in infancy and childhood, as the newborn develops into a young adult capable of becoming a parent himself or herself. From its origins much of developmental psychology has thus been concerned with child psychology, and with the changes from infancy through to adolescence. Smith, P.K. and Cowie, H. (1996) Understanding Childrens Development (2nd ed.), Oxford: Blackwell. The term attachment is described in Collins Dictionary of Social Work (Thomas, M. and Pierson, J. (1995), London: Harper Collins) as a long lasting emotional bond between two individuals, involving their seeking proximity to each other and having pleasure in each others company. Typically attachment is developed by infants towards their principal care-givers, but it may also characterize feelings between other people, or between a person and some object. Attachment is a strong emotional bond that develops between infant and caregiver, providing the infant with emotional security. By the second half of the first year, infants are said to become attached to familiar people who have responded to their need for physical care and stimulation. (Bowlby, J 1998) How these attachments develop and whether attachment theory provides a sound basis for advice on how to raise children have been intense topics of theoretical debate. Attachment refers to the interactive reciprocal relationship that infants and young children experience and develop with their primary caregiver(Bowlby, 1982). Many times this caregiver is the infants biological mother. In recent times the population of working mothers has increased dramatically. Due to this demographic change, the primary caregiver for a child is sometimes the biological father and other relatives such as aunts, uncles, grandparents, older siblings, nannies or day care providers.There are also Children in our country who for various reasons find themselves in the care of foster or adoptive parents. Following birth is a rapid area of learning for the child. A new born baby can see approximately 20 cm and follow a moving object, smell, hear and recognise voices. Checks are preformed on the newborn to ensure nothing obvious is wrong, these checks include Reflexes, Moro response (toes curling), Babinski (grasps fingers and hangs), ensuring that infant is rooting for the breast, sucking swallowing, step and stepping. The new born is totally reliant on the caregiver as it is not equipped to survive without it. The caregiver provides food, warmth and protection, for example when a baby cries it is for a reason this is a form of communication. Babies know that when they cry somebody will come and will ensure to satisfy the babies needs. Chronologically, this is the period of infancy through the first one or two years of life. The child, well-handled, nurtured and loved, develops trust and security and a basic optimism. Badly handled, he becomes insecure and mistrustful.(Erikson E Trus t Vs Mistrust 8 Stages of Development) cited Child Development Information (2009) Children develop and grow from the moment they are conceived until early adulthood, showing many changes within their abilities. Whilst no two children will develop at exactly the same time, as Social Workers we use benchmarks to observe behaviours and development. Understanding the stage and process of development can help a Social Worker identify the achievement of developmental milestones such as a Childs first step or first words and to acknowledge the child is developing normally within the benchmarks we work. Attachment theory is a psychological, evolutionary and ethological theory that forms relationships. One important principle of attachment theory is that a young child needs to develop a relationship with at least one primary caregiver for social and emotional development to occur normally. The theory was formulated by psychiatrist and psychoanalyst John Bowlby. The area of the infant is considered by Bowlby as sensitivity period. Within attachment theory, infant behaviour associated with attachment is primarily the seeking of familiarity of an attachment figure in stressful situations. Infants become attached to adults who are sensitive and responsive to their needs and who remain as consistent caregivers for some months during the period from about six months to two years of age. During the latter part of this period, children begin to use attachment figures as a secure base to explore from and return to with the knowledge that a parent will be where they left them in the case of a secure attachment. Separation anxiety or grief following the loss of an attachment figure is considered to be a normal and adaptive response for an attached infant. The child will show a clear preference for the primary caregiver on their return; this will help guide the individuals feelings, thoughts and expectations in later relationships. Attachment theorists point to data that favour the caregiver responsiveness hypothesis. For example, it has been found that an infants crying changes over the first year much more than the mothers responsiveness to the crying does. Moreover, the mothers responsiveness over a 3-month period predicts the infants over the 3 months significantly better than the infants crying predicts the mothers subsequent responsiveness to crying. In short, the mother appears to influence the infants crying more than the infant influences the mothers responsiveness to crying (Bell Ainsworth, 1972). As a social worker we need to gain an understanding of the whole child, their development and their life course. It is important to take a range of theories and perspectives into account that support us in understanding childrens growth and development and individual experience, the role and the impact of their families and the influence of processes and systems in their lives. Through this you should be able to see beyond the description of the child, to give meaning to their lives and experiences. Thus we are recognising the child as an individual. We need to acknowledge there are children with unique and specific needs that may impact on their individual development and behaviour, certainly on their experiences and how others view and respond to them, a good example would be the experience and views of a child with a disability. Pg 31 SW humanÂÂ   deve. We need to recognise that communities raise children in diverse ways with each culture encouraging the kinds of habits and traits that help them to integrate and function within that culture, (pg 33 Social work and human development) however we need to be mindful of the laws and human rights that we have within the United Kingdom whilst being aware of cultural diversities and preferences. Recognising the importance of culture within the childs development is important for a number of reasons. Firstly we need to identify those aspects of development that impact on all children ,not just through theories and studies based on white, middle class children living with a western culture. Secondly we need to have an understanding of the childs family culture and how that impacts on the child; we need to understand the impact of cultural beliefs as part of that environment. We need to consider how different cultural beliefs impact on how people experience their lives. Attachment process for the parents seems to begin with the development of an initial emotional bond and then extends to more and more skilful attachment behaviours. For the infant, the process is said to begin with attachment behaviours and then progresses to the full characteristics of attachment somewhat later (Atkinson et al 2000). Sigmund Freud however, also offered a view on the area of attachment and his view was later known as the The Cupboard Theory. This theory stated that the absence of the mother would frighten the baby into believing that it would not be nourished. This theory offered by Freud has received a great deal of criticism on the basis that there is no evidence to suggest that the infant associates the mother entirely with nourishment. Bowlbys view supplemented these criticisms as he believed that babies have inborn tendencies towards the mother and are not attached by food or warmth. Another key development which was argued disproved Freuds theory and offered support towards the view of Bowlby was an experiment which was conducted by Harlow and Harlow in 1977. This experiment consisted of Rhesus monkeys been raised without their mothers. The Monkeys were housed is isolated cages with a model mother either made from wire or terry-towel cloth. The terry-towel cloth had no provision in which to feed the monkeys whereas the wire mother figure did in the form of milk yielding nipples. The study concluded that every time the monkeys were frightened they would seek support and comfort from the warm non-food providing terry-towel cloth model as opposed to the cold food providing wire model. These findings clearly disputed the view of Freuds Cupboard theory. And it indicated, as Bowlby would argue, that a mothers love is not for nourishing but for comforting and children, like the rhesus monkeys, use teddy bears for comfort if they feel in anyway threatened (Gleightman, H . et al 1999).ÂÂ   Later criticisms of attachment theory relate to temperament, the complexity of social relationships, and the limitations of discrete patterns for classifications. Attachment theory has been significantly modified as a result of empirical research, but the concepts have become generally accepted, although we are no longer working with just a Euro centric base, we use these theories as a benchmark within Social Work taking into account individual cultures and beliefs. Another disadvantage for a child is having a good attachment with a poor parent; this could cause lack of trust, mistrust and the child then as having to care for themselves and possibly siblings. Although criticisms have been made of the Theory of Attachment and certain aspects of the work of Bowlby, Ainsworth etc I feel that the theory of attachment has developed immensely through their work. It can certainly be argued that their work will and will continue to contributed to our understanding of how parent and child attachments develop and I feel that their work provides us with reasoning as to why children may develop in different ways. Although there are criticisms which exist of the theories, I feel that it can be clearly argued that they give us a solid information base as to why attachment is important in the development of infants and children. The overall consensus surrounding attachment and the associated debates have in past suffered criticism from feminist groups too. For example, criticisms surrounding Bowlbys work have been made highlighting that he maintains that the mother should be the main carer of the infant and that her continuous care should be present while the child is growing and developing (Gross, R. 1999). This has been argued to be sexist as the implication is that the mother will not work and will automatically undertake child rearing roles. It can be argued once again that this presumption is not only sexist but as highlighted previously, culturally unethical too. One major argument which has been offered by Gross R. in 1999 to support the feminist view is that a stable network of adults offers adequate care and in some cases can have advantages over a system where the mother has the meet all the infants needs (Gross, R. 1999).

IT Security Essay -- Cyber-security, Enterprise Security

Denial of service (DoS)- This type of attack occurs when a hacker overloads a server or network device with numerous IMCP (Internet Control Message Protocol) ping requests, such that it is unable to respond to valid requests. By updating to the latest service pack and applying security patches, you can minimize the threat of DoS attacks by reducing the vulnerabilities in the TCP/IP network protocol. Although disabling ICMP can remove valuable troubleshooting tools, it can effectively remove the possibility of DoS attacks. Also, any firewall or security software should be configured to recognize and block these attempts if possible. Back door- In a back door attack, a hacker exploits a coded â€Å"opening† in an application that allows them access to the user’s computer. By educating users to be wary of unknown email sources, attachments, and pirated software and multimedia, you can minimize the possibility of incidents of Trojan Back Door software being installed. Closing unused ports, maintaining updated anti-virus definitions, and running personal firewall software can also reduce the threat of back door software. Null sessions- A NULL session is an attack that exploits weaknesses in the NetBIOS networking protocol. By utilizing Windows XP version or later on PC’s (or switching to Mac! Haha!) and making registry changes to require authenticated users, you can effectively remove the possibility of null sessions. Spoofing- Since spoofing refers to devices that are external to your network mimicking an internal address, configuring your firewall to deny external packets from sending from internal network addresses will prevent this type of attack. Smurf attack- By disabling broadcast addressing on the router, you can eli... ..., 4th ed. Indianapolis, IN: Wiley Publishing, Inc. Ryu, C., Sharman, R., Rao, H.R., Upadhaya, S. (2013). Security protection design for deception and real system regimes: a model and analysis. European Journal of Operational Research, 201(2), 545-556. Retrieved from Science Direct Database on 20 October 2014. Samuelle, T. (2009). Mike Meyers' CompTia Security+ Certification Passport. New York, NY: McGraw Hill. Shim, S., Chae, M, Lee, B. (2013). Empirical analysis of risk-taking behavior in IT platform migration decisions. Computers in Human Behavior,25(6), 1290-1305. Retrieved from Science Direct Database on 20 October 2014. Sullivan, J., Beach, R. (2012), Improving project outcomes through operational reliability: A conceptual model. International Journal of Project Management, 27(8), 765-775. Retrieved from Science Direct database on 20 October 2014.

The athletic apparel industry of Nike

The athletic apparel industry in which Nike is involved is a major money maker in the United States, but the fact that none of the factories are located in North America has brought some heat to the company. Nike controls more than 40 percent of the U.S. Market for sports related goods, but doesn†t have a single sneaker factory in this country (Miller 1). Nike continues to make millions of dollars yet exploits workers overseas by paying them very little, while requiring long hours without overtime pay in factories that are not up to â€Å"American† standard. Nike subcontractors employ nearly 500,000 workers in plants in Indonesia, China and Vietnam (Saporito 1). The exploitation of workers in Third World counties, where the majority of Nike†s labor is done sparks a controversial issue. People question why is it that Nike continues these practices. According to â€Å"Just do it, Nike,† Nike seems especially fond of doing business in undemocratic countries like China and Indonesia, where the military can be relied upon to â€Å"crack heads† if workers get out of line (Miller 2). The military monitoring has been a large controversy due to the fact that these are often Chinese working against other Chinese workers, or Vietnamese against their own people also. For Nike there are two benefits: it it†s a cheap way to monitor in an overseas factory and it creates a sheaper labor workforce. In turn making the labor cheaper for Nike. This makes it possible for Nike workers from the states to work on other things and only tour the factories when nessecary. While still assuming a stable workforce without good pay. The critics of Nikes labor practices have taken tours and witnessed the mistreatment firsthand. Time magazine reported saying,† The plants were found to be modern and clean, well lighted and ventilated and paying a decent wage by local standards-although by no means are they trouble free. Make no mistake: these are factories not amusement parks, and even in developing Asia, where jobs are scarce and getting scarcer, this is not the job of choice.† (Saporito 1) The wages that the workers overseas are paid is nothing when compared to how much we pay for a pair of shoes or the profit that CEO Phil Knight is making off his sportswear giant he once operated out of the back of his car as a college student. â€Å"A big issue that surrounds sweatshops is wage. The minimum wage often does not reflect the cost of living.† (Hepner Online) Is the wage fair? There are many people who feel the wage is fair and the cost of living is taken into account when the wage is looked at, but studies show otherwise in many factories. Just recently, CNN reported a raise to entry level workers in Indonesia, Nike officials said â€Å"the increase will raise the minimum monthly compensation package-which includes bonuses, housing, healthcare, transportation and meal allowances to approximately $37.14 a month.†(Nike Establishes Labor† Online) To many people living in the U.S., that package may sound good however the compensation package doesn†t do away with the long hours, the poor conditions or the low rate of pay. Many of these workers are young children working to help support their families. The benefits do not make up for the low pay rates that keep them in the work force. The pay is only enough to get by where these children want to be saving in order to leave the factories and return home. In â€Å"Taking a Look inside Nike†s Factories†, part of Bill Saporito†s, â€Å"Can Nike Get Unstuck?† this is what was found. â€Å"Americans pay $100 for a pair of shoes that a worker gets less than $3 a day to make. They pay Michael Jordan $40 million to endorse them. Can†t they find more money to pay the workers? The short answer is no, because corporations pay the going rate for labor whereever they are.† (Saporito 1) If this statement is true Nike pays the wage for the country the factory is in, then what is the controversy about? Much of it stems from the overtime that these workers are forced to work without over time compensation. Here in the United States there are regulations placed on businesses that require then to compensate their workers with a higher wage for over time hours. So since Nike is an U.S. based company should Nike have to pay overtime? The answer is no. Nike doesn†t have to pay overtime like here in the U.S. so they don†t. In Vietnam â€Å"Workers so want a reduction in overtime, the length of annual leave for the Indonesian workers making Nike shoes is more than 30 days though dozens of workers interviewed in November, said the actual amount is 10 days.† (Ballinger 2) There has been evidence of Nike breaking at least nine labor laws in China according to AMRC; a Hong Kong based human rights group that has been monitoring the abuse of human rights in China for the last 20 years. â€Å"Children as young as 13, were found employed in Nike factories, working from 144-192 overtime hours per month to make ends meet.† (Designer 1) Ernest and Young, an accounting firm, hired by Nike, to do research and the issue reported conditions in Vietnam â€Å"where young women toil sixty-five hour weeks for $10, in air so bad that 78 percent of the employees have respiratory problems.† (Miller1) Factory workers endure abuse on the job lacking a voice or ablility to do anything about it. Since Nike contracts out for their factory managers, it has been hard for Nike to regulate what goes on when they are not on their tour or walk through. â€Å"A Korean supervisor in a Vietnam factory was found guilty of beating 15 Vietnamese about the head with a shoe â€Å"upper†, and another Korean supervisor was charged with sexual molestation.† (Saporito 3) In this instance it was not an U.S. supervisor, nor was it a military officer but someone of a different nationality. The hard part is that there are no independent unions and meaningful corporate codes of conduct to discipline management. So workers must turn to the courts for help which is a long fought battle that no one wants to attempt. In one case that made it to, a Vietnamese court recently found a Korean supervisor guilty of beating workers and extradition may be sought for the accused sexual molester who fled. In Indonesia 24 discharged Nike workers are challenging the legality of their dismissal before the country†s Supreme Court (Saporito 3). These are major breakthroughs in the court systems to have someone tried and convicted in these distant countries whose courts are often corrupted. Factory conditions are consistently getting press here in the U.S., as many are angry with Nike for not providing for their overseas employees. The following account is of the conditions in a Chiniese factory: Twelve hour shifts several days a week; wages as low as 16 cents and hour; 16 workers to a dorm room; pregnant women fired. Workers are not allowed to talk. There is constant pressure to produce-workers are yelled at. If you don†t meet your high production quota you must stay until you do-without pay. The factory is noisy, filled with dust and fumes. Workers have fainted, overcome by the long hours and the glue fumes. One worker died; another lost an arm; other has had their fingers broken by the equipment. Most workers have never heard of the Nike code of conduct. There is no union and workers are afraid that if they complain, they will be fired. When a group of workers stopped working in March to protest had not been paid, they were fired. The supervisor warns workers in advance of any inspection, the factory is cleaned and if workers are interviewed it is in the presence of factory management. (â€Å"The Neediest and the Greediest† 4) This is only one description of the factory conditions and the requirements that are put on the workers of these factories, on contract with Nike. In order to deal with the criticism Nike gets about working conditions and pay, â€Å"Nike Inc recently established a new department with a mandate to continue to evolve it†s monitoring of subcontracted manufacturing facilities and to continue to upgrade conditions for workers in subcontracted facilities around the world.† (â€Å"Nike establishes† 1) This department will monitor, compensation issues, benefits, the work environments, recruiting and hiring policies, overtime policies, worker management, environmental issues and supervision of independent monitoring systems. All these are large steps by Nike to improve it†s factories and to repair the relations with people here in the U.S. who are appalled by the reports of poor work environment workers are forced to endure. â€Å"The company has been tarred by an image as a sweatshop operator that exploits Asian workers who make shoes and apparel for Nike subcontractors. Nike†s efforts to be a good corporate citizen, and they have been considerable, have yet to sway the public forum. Basically, our culture, and our style, is to be a rebel, and we sort of enjoy doing that,† says Knight, who created a jock empire based on hero worship backed up with good product and great advertising. â€Å"Now that we reached a certain size there†s a fine line between being rebel and being a bully, and yeah, we have to walk that line.†Ã¢â‚¬  (Saporito 6) According to Knight he will continue to make the sport-wear giant successful any way he can. â€Å"The estimated net worth of co founder and current CEO Phil Knight is $5.4 billion, one of the wealthiest people in America.† (Miller 1) The issue remains whether the sports wear giant, Nike, will continue to do work in other countries, where labor is cheap and regulations are few, and not monitored on a normal basis. Nike will continue to exploit workers in these countries as long as America continues to buy the products. Nike, who recently spent $978 million in one year on advertising worldwide, depends upon Americans and their children to purchase its sneakers. Yet it locates 150 factories and some 350,000 jobs in Asia. Knight recently made the absurd and arrogant statement that, â€Å"Americans don†t want to make shoes.†Ã¢â‚¬  (Sanders 2) Is CEO Phil Knight right? Are American workers not willing to make the shoes that are so popular in stores and classrooms across the nation. If so, the exploitation will continue and Nike workers will remain underpaid and over worked in poor working conditions.

Five Forces Framework Essay

Porter’s Five Forces Model is a model that analyzes an industry to help develop a business strategy. The model uses five forces that have been identified to categorize an industry as intensely competitive or not competitive at all and this will then determine the attractiveness of the market.There are many features of an industry in which a company competes that determines the level of competition it will face and the profits it will get. The most famous classification was done by Michael Porter, known as Porters Five Forces framework which can help a company determine its potential profits by looking at five sources of competitive pressure. The five sources of competition are: 1. Threat of new entrant 2. Threat of substitutes 3. Rivalry among existing competitors 4. Bargaining power of suppliers 5. Bargaining power of buyers. Porter’s Five Forces In particular, we will focus on three different industries; We will start analyzing the five forces in the smartphone industry and then we will continue dealing with the personal computer industry and finally we will present digital music portable industry. SMARTPHONE Industry: In general the smartphone market is rapidly changing, with constant product introductions. It is characterized by quickly evolving technology and designs, short product life cycles, aggressive pricing, rapid imitation of product and technological advancements, and highly price sensitive consumers. Self-elasticity and cross-elasticity are high. No one firm in the market has sufficient market share to control prices, resulting is strong rivalry and competitive pricing. 1. Threat of new entrant: The barriers to entry are high due to the existence of patents, high fixed costs and economies of scale, regulation, and brand loyalty. The individual market participants engage in attempts at product differentiation, some being more  successful than others. The standout is Apple, which has successfully differentiated its iPhone, and stands a good chance of maintaining that differentiation due to its closed and all-inclusive model or development and use.Barriers to entry in the smartphone market are relatively high, but the rapid growth of the market is providing opportunities despite this. There are significant fixed costs associated with smartphone manufacturing. While most firms have the hardware of the phones manufactured overseas by foreign companies, the costs of developing the research and engineering personnel to design and test the smartphone and software can be prohibitively expensive for an entering firm. These fixed costs include not just the cost of the manpower, intellectual knowhow, intellectual property, computers, test equipment, prototyping devices and supplier and manufacturer contracts, but also the time necessary to develop all of these. Because the industry moves so quickly, an entering firm would either have to enter with existing resources targeting the smartphone market, or it would have to have another significant competitive. Moreover consumer will face an high switching costs if they decide to change their products, as a result of the fidelity every brand put on its product. Because all these reasons smartphone industry is extremely difficult to enter. As a result the threat of new competition is low. Smartphone production needs huge number of money and high technology. Even if established the company, it is impossible for new brand to compete with big company like Apple and Samsung. 2. Threat of substitutes : As a result of the high barrier to entry, to build and launch a substitute product is a hard work. Thus Threat of substitute is low. It’s extremely difficult to enter Smartphone production; because this industry base on high technology. As a result, it’s very hard to invent the substitute to replace smartphone with low price and more power function. 3. Rivalry among existing competitors:With rapid innovation necessary for a rapidly changing market, where customers are very price conscious, rivalry among firms in the smartphone market is fierce. Firms in the smartphone market actively work to adopt the successful ideas and technology of their competitors. This has been the trend with large touch screens, touch friendly operating systems, embedded cameras, and availability of an easy to  use app store, among other things. As consumers are more and more driven to purchase by the features that are available on the smartphone, there is a constant rivalry among firms to match each other on features. There is also an effort to stifle each other’s efforts to develop those technologies through obtaining of patents and filing lawsuits seeking injunctions and trade restrictions. No particular firm in the market has a significant amount of market power; every firm is vying for a greater piece of the pie. This has resulted in drivin g down of smartphone prices and relative price parity for flagship smartphones from each major firm. Firms are heavily involved in price discrimination, pricing their phones differently based on the sale outlet. Smartphones sold through retailers are frequently cheaper than those sold through network service providers. The one exception to this is Apple. Apple maintains price equivalency no matter the outlet, and the prices it charges for its smartphones is in many cases much higher than its competitors. Because Apple has been able to do this, its smartphone sales are reportedly highly profitable, while smartphone sales for Motorola have not been profitable at all. Rivalry also comes from outside the manufacturers’ market as other firms try to cash in on the smartphone profits. Google open sourced the Android OS so that it could find revenue from sales of apps and ads through the smartphones that run the OS. This cuts directly into Apple’s effort to become the dominant player in the smartphone manufacturer market, changing the nature of the market significantly. Such changes are likely to continue as other firms attempt to enter the market. Therefore, threat of substitute might have two factors (price and performance) which allows customer to switch the product as well as willingness of buyers to switch. Threat of substitute can be reduced as much as buyers become loyal to the products. To give an example, Apple has been able to create an â€Å"ecosystem†. People buy iPhone for standard, apps and other Apple’s product for upgradeability and stability which gives customer the ability to transfer knowledge and apps among devices 4. Bargaining power of suppliers: Bargaining is very high; Smartphones’ producers have to deal with two different categories of supplier: the hardware producers and the software. Because smartphone production market is not easy to enter , also supplier are limited. If the smartphone company  changes their supplier of components or CPU, the performance of smartphone will change a lot. So the company have to stay under their suppliers’ rule and they have to accept their price, that will be reflected in the price of the final product inevitably. The smartphone company are not willing and will be not willing to take the risk to change their suppliers, in order to maintain the quality of their products. 5. Bargaining power of buyers: customers are not concentrating on price; when they decide to buy a new smartphone they will take into consideration the design and the prestige the product will give them. Sometimes they choose basing on the advertising they receive. So they do not have a strong influence on this industry. Firms get the power to influence their customer and their ability is to make them trust in their own brand, providing for some value added. Take iPhone for example, the function of iPhone is just as good as some that other smartphone could have; However, the price of iPhone is one of the highest in the entire variety of smartphone present in the market, just because the prestige of iPhone is very high. This example shows that the bargaining power of customer is quite low. PC INDUSTRY The computer hardware industry consists of companies that manufacture and assemble personal computers, computer hardware, and computer peripherals. This industry is highly competitive, which means that companies must continuously be innovative in order to sustain a competitive advantage. The major companies of this industry include Oracle, IBM, HP, Dell, Apple, and Toshiba. This analysis will focus on computer manufacturing since it is the largest component of the industry, containing 43.7% of the market’s total value. The computer industry has been rapidly growing and shows no signs of slowing despite the recent economic downturn. 1. Threat of New Entrants :PC market is dominated by some major competitors as Hp, Dell, Acer, Apple, and others who currently have nearly the entire market share; this will likely discourage any potential new companies from entering the market. So we can state that the personal computer industry is characterized by a very weak threat of new entrants. A huge problem that  has to be faced in order to entry this market is that the market requires significant investments to be made in research and development to continually develop innovative products as well as large fixed start-up costs for manufacturing and employees and customer service.Existing firms can benefit from their capabilities of manufacturing at lower prices because of the advantage of economies of scale, where the will have fewer per unit costs as a result of their large scale production. Companies trying to enter the market will initially have smaller production and will consequently have higher prices. In the personal computer industry there is currently much emphasis put on price because consumers have become more price sensitive as personal computers have become more or less a commodity. New entrants will not only have higher prices but they will likely have a less innovative product as well because they do not have equal funding for research and development as other established brands and they will also have to deal with the brand loyal customers that have trusted the existing players in the industry for years. By attempting to join the market without any market share it will also be important for a new entrant to focus its investments more heavily on advertising and marketing then existing brands. A new entrant to the personal computer market will likely not fare well and is almost guaranteed to always be a second mover as the larger companies will develop more innovative products more rapidly because of their many competitive advantages. 2. Bargaining Power of Suppliers: It is possible to identify three different groups of suppliers in the personal computer industry including hardware suppliers, software suppliers and service suppliers. The first group is not able to exert a significant power. The core of their products are generally standardized and they compete by focusing on creating better, more advanced products at a better price and not through their attempts to differentiate them. As a result, firms within the industry are able to switch between this kind of suppliers relatively easily. It is really in the hands of the firm and which strategy they are committed to that will determine whether or not they will utilize a high or low end supplier. On the other hand, suppliers of hardware and software within the industry play a critical role in the pricing of products. With the quality of a computer being largely  determined by their microprocessors and application system installed within them. If a firm is following a high quality strategy then it can be expected that their prices will generally be higher to reflect the higher prices they are paying their suppliers.In terms of service suppliers, the service that can be offered within the personal PC industry include internet, tech support and repair services. These suppliers focus highly on operational performance and relational performance in order to increase customer satisfaction. They also offer a variety of customer loyalty programs in attempts to lock in and expand their customer base while trying to gain the competitive edge over competitors within the service industry of personal computers. While the PC industry changes regularly, it can be observed that only the central processing unit (CPU) is a key input. All other items are commodity in nature and so don’t command a bargaining power. Intel has a significant market power as it is a single major supplier of microprocessor and has an 80% of market share.Thus, Dell as computer manufacturer holds a power over the suppliers as opposed to the suppliers holding a power over the manufacturers. It is the suppliers that are in direct competition with each other. The suppliers are often forced to slash prices or merge with larger companies in order to survive. Hence, the bargaining power of suppliers is moderate. 3. Bargaining Power of Buyers: The personal computer industry is somewhat vulnerable against the bargaining power of buyers. Personal computer buyers are price-sensitive. Buyers are interested in quality and specifications thus making consumer loyalty low. Should one company not offer a product a product to suit the customer’s needs, they will find one that will. Buyer power is reduced slightly as computers are increasingly seen as a necessity due to the importance of online communication and information processing. Moreover, in the last recent years, some new technologies came on the market providing customers with the possibility to have more and more alternative options to the personal computer as smartphones, tablet computers, and other handheld devices like Ipods have most of the same capabilities as a personal computer. Because of the availability, sleekness, and trendiness of these alternatives, personal computers are becoming more and more obsolete. Personal computer must differentiate itself  in order to regain market share and compete with these newer alternative options. Large businesses, governments and schools which buy computers in large volumes have the power to bargain on price, quality and service. PC manufacturers can reduce a threat of buyer power by differentiating their product.DELL has introduced a new way of selling (direct model concept); buyers can directly buy computers with DELL without a so called middle man. By using this concept, computers cost per unit can be reduced. Furthermore, buyers are able to customize the PC based on their needs. The basis of this model, the direct model concept is to improve efficiency by effectively eliminating the intermediaries thereby allowing the company to speak directly to the customer. Dealing directly with customers allows Dell to customize their orders according to the customers’ needs. But, despite several ways in which manufacturers have differentiated their products and found ways to increase switching costs, customers still see units as very similar and thus choose primarily on price.To conclude we can consider a strong bargaining power of buyers. 4. Rivalry among Existing Firms: There is fierce competition between the top manufacturers in the personal computer industry. As the PC has increasingly become a commodity in a household, the fight to keep costs low while bringing the best product to the market has become a never ending battle. Thus competitors are trying to produce a low cost, powerful machine with the most efficient operating system. Firms specialize in different areas in order to compete amongst their rivals. Some focus on innovation and attempt to bring the newest technology to their customers first. Nevertheless, others may focus on their distribution channel and services throughout their firm. For example, DELL is focusing on distribution channel and high quality service while others such IBM and Apple focus more on innovation. All these create differentiation to some extent. Low-cost production at DELL contributes its positive growth rate, while other major manufacturers are experiencing negative growth rates. However, one of the fiercest areas is the price competition throughout the industry. It is to underline that the determinants of a pc’s quality are the microprocessor and application systems installed. As a result, there is a direct correlation between the firm’s profitability and the profitability of the firm’s suppliers.The major  manufacturers as DELL, IBM, HP, Acer and Apple are in competition to produce the least expensive and most efficient machine. Japanese companies such as Fujitsu, Toshiba, Sony and NEC also have large market shares.This intense competition are beginning to be felt its effect.Some companies exit via selling to other companies or simply exiting the industry altogether. For example, Compact Computers was acquired by Hewlett-Packet in 2002 while Xerox exi ted the computer business and concentrate on printers. Today, regardless of the number of companies present, the computer industry will continue to expand and remain competitive for a number of years to come, although threat to industry rivalry will continue to be strong. 5. Threat of Substitutes and Complements: Although it is very hard and challenging for a new entrant to join the personal computer industry there are currently other growing industries such as the smartphone, tablet, TV set/top boxes industries which are predicted to affect the sales of personal computers. All those alternatives started to encroach on functionality that was once the sole purview of the PC. Also if those products have different major players, their offers similar benefits to consumers that a personal computer also has. Moreover the technology advances are improving those products day by day. Thus they continue to increase in popularity and in performance, leading the sales of personal computers to a decline. The internet can now be accessed through phones and tablets and they are more portable than a laptop. Currently laptops and personal computers offer many unique applications and are compatible with much more software than smartphones and tablets. If smartphones and tablets can attain greater memory space, processing speeds, and compatibility with similar software, smartphones and tablets may be an all-in-one alternative to personal computers. Not only smartphone and tablet, but also some advanced game device like Sony PS3 allowed consumers to watch DVDs, surf the web, and play the game directly online in addition to play traditional video games. As technology continues to increase these separate industries may merge into one, or at least drastically affect each other.Hence we can conclude that threat from substitutes is strong in the PC industry. Digital Music Portable Industry 1. Threat of new entrant: In this industry, threat of entry is medium because the production cost is quite low. For example, the cost of material, packaging, assembly of iRiver (H320) only costs  £69 and the company can sell it in retail shop at  £153 (Skee G., 2005) Therefore, it may attract new competitors to enter into the market due to the low cost of material and the high product margin. Furthermore, the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) reports that the demand for music on the internet and mobile phones is booming and it may replace physical formats such as tape, CD, and DVD in the future; hence, it can be predicted that the market is still growing gradually (The Computer & Internet Lawyer, 2005). As a result, many companies come into the market and pose new threat to existing companies. For example, Microsoft has recently entered to this industry and launched â€Å"Zune† into the market. Many experts believe that Zune might be a competitive rival with iPod; however, it is not easy for new entrants to gain market share in this industry. It is obvious that Apple is still the market leader because Apple has economies of scale in its production that Apple produces and sells iPod more than 10 million with the high margin cost in each year. Next, Apple’s product is highly differentiated from other brands that customers still buy iPod due to its differentiation. For instance, iPod Nano, the latest model from Apple, has attractive features such as full color screen and the copyright-click wheel button, and iTune system which customers can use it easily to buy and download songs into iPod from internet. As a result, it is difficult for new entrants which have recently entered into the market to develop product to overcome existing companies in the industry. 2. Threat of substitutes : he threat of substitute product in the industry is medium because digital portable music products are quite unique which could not be easily replaced by other products. Products have many advantages for customers. For example, it is cheaper to download songs from internet into iPod than buy CD audio. Next, the quality of sound is equal to an original CD after encoding into audio file format. Customers can enjoy listening music as the same as they enjoy listening music from original CD but cheaper price. Therefore, these are reasons why a MP3 player is still popular today. However, in this last recent years we can see the birth of new product which perhaps can replace MP3 player. They are the new mobile phone and smartphone that are provided with an integrated music players ( previously Nokia N91 with a built-in 4GB hard drive or Motorola E398 with removable memory card and now iPhone, Galaxy and so on). Music phone can download songs via WAP or GPRS and store it in a built-in or removable memory. Importantly, many experts believe that the music phone will be the most serious threat to the industry in the near future because it is all-in-one functions that customers can use it for both communication and entertainment. According to some recent research, the benefit of music phone will make some consumers may hesitate to spend  £149 on MP3 Player when they could buy music phone with  £169 or  £189. 3. Rivalry among existing competitors: In this industry, the intensity of competition is high because there are many players in the industry and each company try to complete with each other by developing new products in the market all the time. For example, Microsoft has recently launched their new product which is MP3 player â€Å"Zune†. It has many features which is different from other products in the market such as an integrated FM tuner, bigger screen, and WiFi connection. Microsoft reports that Zune can penetrate into the market and gain the market share from dominant companies. Two weeks after launching, it took the second place of the market from SanDisk and grabbed 9% of the U.S.A. market but following Apple whose its product (iPod) still dominated the market (Martell, D., 2006) Moreover, â€Å"Cut Price† is popular business strategies in the industry. Most companies use it to overcome with other competitors and it can drive the industry to be more competitive. For example, Creative is a MP3 Player manufacturer that lost the market position to Apple two years ago. In 2005, Sim Wong Hoo, the founder of Creative, declared war on Apple’s iPod by launching new and modern product (Creative Zen Neeon) which Apple tried to counter by cutting price on its product that it forced Creative to do the same thing in its product; therefore, the intensity of rivalry was increasing gradually from this situation. (Sudhaman A., 2005) Besides, the market is growing very fast in the industry that it could also make the industry to be more competitive as well. For instance, iRiver anticipates that MP3 player market in Thailand  will continue to grow increasingly and consumer’s demand will double in the near future; therefore, iRiver has launched new product in the market which it hopes to gain more market share from 13.7% up to 20%. (Veerasak, 2005) When the market is growing very fast; it tends to stimulate many companies to enter and launch their product in the market to gain profit in the industry. 4. Bargaining power of suppliers: In this industry, the bargaining power of supplier is medium because, firstly, there are a lot of suppliers which provide materials for companies such as flash memory, hard disk, semiconductor, and so forth. These suppliers mostly come from Asia region especially in China which is a major source for many companies due to the low price of material. Secondly, according to a supplier in the industry, iSuppli anticipates that the shipment of MP3 players with Hard Disk Drive (HDD) – based product is growing up to 42.6% in 2009 from 26.6% in 2004. Consequently, it made many suppliers come to produce material for MP3 Player market. (Electronic News, 2005) Thirdly, most companies in the industry have power to negotiate with suppliers regarding the price of material. Nowadays, the demand of digital music player is growing dramatically; therefore, the growth of the market made many companies have to produce their product in high volume in order to serve market’s need and it made suppliers lost bargaining power because the large production gives company to be able to order material in high volume from suppliers. Furthermore, some companies that need lots of material in their production tend to have a long-term agreement with supplier to supply them material. For example, Apple need to have lots of material such as flash memory and hard disk memory for its product; therefore, Apple decided to make a long-term supply agreement with flash memory manufacturers such as Samsung, Toshiba in order to get good deal of price and ensure to have material for their product up until 2010. 5. Bargaining power of buyers. The bargaining power of buyer in the industry is low. Although, there are a lot of competitors in the market, products in some companies made a great success in sales volume because of their specific characteristics, such as iPod for example. It is not product’s price but it is product’s differentiation and the brand of the product.  Firms have the power to address customers to choose their specific product focusing on marketing tools. As a result, Apple can set price for its product and it can push high switching cost to customers if they want to change to other products in the market. Importantly, customers buy iPod because it also contains good features and attractive appearance. For instance, although, the price of iPod Nano is higher than other competitors in the market, the excellent features and functions of the product such as it can be played movies and it has higher storage capacity compared to previous model (iPod Mini) made Apple to get lots of profit from iPod Nano in 2005 which iPod Nano is not only just Apple’s best-selling iPod, but also the best – selling digital music player model worldwide.