Blackberry Smartphones and Other Competitors Term Paper

Blackberry Smartphones and Other Competitors - Term Paper Example Consumers are attracted to the features that a smartphone brand exhibits such as touch screen capability, music, fast internet speeds, camera and expansive storage. The opinions that consumers of smartphones provide reveal that there are psychographics that determine the smartphone they prefer such as its popularity among peers. It is therefore reflective that competitive advantage and improved market performance is achieved by mobile phone companies by providing features that meet the needs and preferences of consumers as well as effective marketing strategies. Introduction Advancement in information and communication technology has had a significant impact in the mobile industry. Developments in the mobile industry emanate from creativity, innovativeness and customer needs motivated design of phones (Parsons 2012). More notable is the introduction of the smartphone technologies and mobile applications. This has resulted from the changes in the preferences and needs of consumers. In return mobile companies have demonstrated increased competition which is driving the various strategies in marketing which are employed to achieve a competitive advantage within the market (Strategic Direction 2009). This paper presents an analytical report on the Blackberry smartphone versus Samsung, iPhone and HTC which comprise of its main competitors. ... Blackberry Smartphone versus Competitors When Blackberry was introduced to the market by the Research In Motion Ltd, many competitors sprouted within the smartphone market with an aim of grabbing a significant share of the mobile phone market (Shields 2010). Early brands of the Blackberry such as the 7000, 7100 and 8000 series attracted many consumers with a resultant advantageous positioning of these brands in the market (Woyke 2011). This is attributed to the customer value that was achieved by the innovativeness of the company and the provision of attractive features such as Wi-F, options for memory expansion and in-built cameras (Shepherd 2010). These brand elements as presented by the design of the blackberry is attributed to the strategic and better positioning of Blackberry within the market. More innovation was included within the Blackberry mobile as demonstrated by the mobile applications that are provided within its smartphone brands (Mobile Phones Industry Profile: Europe 2011). The mobile phone industry is characterized by rapid changes in the preferences and needs of consumers. This is attributed to the business competition that Blackberry received from other smartphone brands such as Samsung, iPhone and HTC Mobile (Boost Mobile 2012). The competitor companies provided more innovative features such as fast processing speeds, high megapixel cameras, full touch screen capabilities, android and thousands of mobile software applications for the diverse needs of the consumers (Segan and Jenn 2007). In this sense, the ability of Blackberry to maintain its position in the market would only be achieved through Customer Based Equity (CBE), brand advertising and marketing communication that was

Organizational Behavior Critical Thinking Essay Example for Free

Organizational Behavior Critical Thinking Essay I have chosen three theories to address the problem. The first theory is Schwartz’s Value Theory. According to the theory, everyone has each own set of personal values and the attainment of these personal values is crucial. Conflict of values or failure in attaining them might lead to employees’ turnover. From the article, the senior staffs claimed that the bonuses they received were below average. I infer that some of the staffs’ personal values were not attained, which in this case possibly power and achievement. Their personal values might also have conflicted with the company’s values, which lead to their departure. Herzberg’s Motivator-Hygiene Theory is also applicable in addressing this issue. According to the theory, there are some factors those lead to both work â€Å"satisfaction† (motivators) and â€Å"dissatisfaction† (hygiene). The absence of recognition which is one of the motivators leads to no satisfaction and the presence of hygiene factors such as poor salary and violation of company’s policies such as not paying bonuses that the executives deserved might lead to â€Å"dissatisfaction†. This  presence of â€Å"dissatisfaction† might be the major reason for the staffs to quit. Lastly, according to The Three-Component Model of Organizational Commitment there are three types of commitment that create a binding force, those may reduce the high turnover. They are namely Normative, Continuance and Affective commitment. Affective commitment is mainly influenced by personal characteristics and values and is closely related to the Schwartz’s Value Theory. This commitment also takes into consideration work experience, which might support the executives’ decision to quit. Violation of psychological contract is a factor that may cause Normative commitment to be ruptured. UBS has failed to meet the expectation of some of their executive and this can be seen as hygiene factors according to Herzberg’s Motivator-Hygiene Theory which leads to â€Å"dissatisfaction†. The model, so far, has covered the other two theories. Adding on to that, this model also includes the possibility of external factors that might lead someone to leave a company. In this case, availability of job alternatives in other companies, which compromise their Continuance commitments, might be another force that encouraged executives to leave their positions in the company. Therefore, I conclude that this model, in comparison with the others, is the most appropriate model to address the problem of high turnover in UBS as it covers more possibilities and gives us a more complete view of why the senior staffs may have left the company. UBS is very sensitive to the performance of the world’s economy as it runs in the area of financial service. Poor global economic performance or recession is a major factor that influences the problem of high turnover faced by UBS. Most of the decisions must be made carefully by the company as it involves very high risk level. Through these decisions, UBS has to maintain or even improve the job satisfaction level of its employee and at the same time, continue to give excellent performance. Wrong decisions might cause UBS to lose its employees even its key executives. In the time of financial crisis, it is more difficult for UBS to maintain both its employees’ job satisfaction and also its performance. This depends largely on the company’s policy and also the decisions made by the company. For instance, in Wall Street Meltdown in 2008 UBS made a US$32 billion loss and its stock value plunged by almost 70% (Gross, 2008). One of the decisions that the company made was to fire 8900 employees worldwide (Ubs lay off, 2008). The increased in the regulation  of financial industry such as tax on financial may also affect the performance of UBS negatively. Financial Analysts predicted that this increase in regulation will reduce the size of the industry (Adams, 2011) and this leaves UBS with no other option than cutting off the number of its employees. This decision made might negatively impact the rest of the employees as they would feel insecure in their positions. This factor can also be seen as one of the hygiene factors which lead to â€Å"dissatisfaction† and this result in the high turnover. Apart from that, the competitive nature of the industry itself intensifies the challenge faced by UBS. Due to lower bonuses that it paid to its executive in comparison to the rival companies might encourage the executives to switch company. For example, Edward Cook who has worked for UBS for 28 years decided to join Morgan Stanley very recently (Philbin, 2011) and Suneel Kamlani, who has worked for 21 years in UBS, decided to join RBS just last year (Muà ±oz, 2010). This shows that it is definitely a challenge for UBS to elicit higher levels of commitment of its employees and executives. Availability of position and better payment offered by rival companies will test the loyalty of the UBS’s employees. Hence, the high competition among banks also induces the high turnover in UBS. To reduce turnover, managers should cultivate the company’s value in the employees. This will reduce Individual-Organizational value conflict and it can be done through training sharing of the company’s vision. Managers also have to respect the psychological contract and should propose more-defined policies to company as it may reduce job dissatisfaction. In time of crisis, company may also maintain the Continuance Commitment of the employees by paying the bonuses by using the company’s share. However, all of the solutions I proposed may not be successful as they do not take into account the other external factors and the success also depends on the personal characteristics of the employees. References Shehan, Tom, S. ,. T. (n.d.). How to retain employees: a high turnover rate is costly in both direct and indirect costs. . Retrieved from http://www.allbusiness.com/management/447495-1.html Gross, D. (2008, July 07). Phil gramms ubs problem. http://www.slate.com/id/2194933/ Ubs lay off job cut: may fire 1900 employees. (2008, October 01). Retrieved from http://www.finance-trading-times.com/2008/10/ubs-lay-off-job-cut-may-fire-1900.html Adams, B. (2011, August 30). The big layoff: struggling financial giant fires thousands of employees. Retrieved from http://www.theblaze.com/stories/the-big-layoff-struggling-financial-giant-fires-thousands-of-employees/ Philbin, B. (2011, September 14). Street moves: morgan stanley hires rbc, ubs financial advisers. Retrieved from http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20110914-711796.html Muà ±oz, S. S. (2010, April 12). Rbs hires key executive from ubs. Retrieved from http://www.efinancialnews.com/story/2010-04-12/rbs-hires-kamlani-executive-ubs

Extraversion :: essays research papers

Cross Cultural Evidence for the Fundamental Features of Extraversion   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  There has yet to be any determining evidence defines the characteristics of extraversion. The experimenters in this particular experiment have hypothesized that the facets of extraversion are somehow linked by reward sensitivity. This hypothesis was also tested against a model in which they are linked by sociability. There has been much work on this topic in the past, beginning with the works of Jung and James in the early 20th century—to the work of Watson and Clark in 1997. And even after a century of study, they are still unable to truly define the characteristics of the extraversion dimension of personality. In the many attempts to define extraversion, Watson and Clark have defined six basic facets of the personality trait. These are: venturesome, affiliation, positive affectivity, energy, ascendance, and ambition. Researchers Depue and Collins, in 1999, also offered a more succinct depiction of the characteristics of extraversion, this only having thre e basic parts. The first being affiliation, the enjoyment and value of close interpersonal bonds, also being warm and affectionate. The second, agency, being socially dominant, enjoying leadership roles, being assertive and exhibitionistic, and having a sense of potency in accomplishing goals. The final facet being impuslivity, but this one has been argued upon whether it should be included at all in the characteristics of extraversion at all.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Their first study was composed of 443 college students from two large universities in the Midwest. The participants were offered credit in their introductory psychology classes in return for their participation. They completed a questionnaire as part of their participation. 52% of the participants were men, and 48% were women. 94% were between the ages of 18 and 25. Only the 404 students that had complete data were used to set up the model that the experimenters formed. The second study tried to show any coincidence between the findings of American students and international ones.

Report of Media Deception on children’s Education Essay

With a new technology develops and advances, the debate about their negative impact on society also increases simultaneously. Media has been changed rapidly in last few decades. Today, everyone can see the impact of media in everyone’s life be it home or outside. The role of the media has been changed and because of progress of media the world has become global village. However, the negative side of media, especially its negative influence on children’s education through Television, Internet, and Video games can not be ignored. Discussion According to a study â€Å"American Kids now spend 40% less time with their parents than kids did in the mid-sixties. † They spend more time in watching TV, surfing internet and playing video games. The reason is not just TV and internet. The complexities of life, family size and traditional values, priorities and lifestyle have changed. â€Å"Our kids are living in an entirely different, much more complex media environment than we ever could have imagined at their age. The rule and the risks have changed radically, and many of us have been slow to grasp the difference. † Points out Steyer (2002), the Founder and Chairman of the media production firm JP Kids. American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) strongly suggest that kids under two years old should not watch any TV and that those older than two should not watch more than an hour or two and that too quality programs The Initial days of childhood are very crucial for brain development of a child. In that period, a child wants to interact with his parents and play with his toys. A child can learn many things through his interaction with parents and physical activities. Physical activities are very necessary to make a child healthy. Interaction with family members and physical activities are always very important for everyone’s lives at any stage of our life. We can be mentally and physically fit by doing both of the above written activities. Gradually a child gets older, watching TV and using other electronic media will get part of his routine. Too much involvement with any mode of media can be disturbed his normal life and growth. Child would not be able to do his normal routine activities like playing outdoor games with his friends, reading, doing homework etc. even a child will not be interested in spending time with his family members. Research says that those children, who spend more time with TV, get violent and get suspicious about the world and people around. Their confidence level decreased and they imagine that something bad will happen to them. The consequence of involvement of children with media are coming gradually, children of today are more violent as compare to past. Shows and games related to crime are becoming very popular among children. Media violence is very harmful for the growing mind and has negative psychological implications. There is an on going debate on the mass-marketing of such games. Media is selling women as an object, it creates enormous impact on teenagers’ mind and they become sexually violent. Video games with violence and sexually explicit presentations are harmful for the mental growth of the child. According to an article of Kids Health, â€Å"The average American child will witness 200, 000 violent acts on television by age 18. † By seeing violent acts on TV, they get emotionless and gradually they become violent. TV makes children curious about women, sex etc. and internet provides them depth information on the same topic. The provided information makes the situation worst. TV violence, most of the times done by the HEROES, so children take violence as the act of heroism. At the various occasion young kids believed that the TV violence is real and frightened by scary and brutal images. They can not distinguish between real and reel images, as consequence, they can have behaviour problems, nightmare, sleeping disorders, be wetting and other. Older kids can also be affected by horrible programs; parents should not allow for watching those programs. Parental guidance is needed for any violent or mature subject programs. TV is a full of programs and commercials that show risking human behaviour as fun that can include petty crimes to heinous crimes like rape and murder. TV commercial shows children to their ideals (Heroes) are smoking, drinking alcohol on the screen and they try to follow their role models. They can lead to drinking, smoking, drugs or substance abuse after the motivation from screen. Studies have shown that TV programs also motivate children to participate in sexual activities too early. The other drawback of spending time with media is on children is, who watch TV more than four hours more likely to be overweight. Overweight Child becomes public shy and loses their confidence as compare to normal child. Obese child will trap in inferiority complex after that he can not able to do good in academics and the other activities. May be that child will get addicted to take alcohol because of his inferiority complex. The health complexity and risk for obese children are higher. Many psychologists agree on the bad effect of over exposure of media on children, but still there has been an on-going debate whether or not television influences a child’s behavior. Parents have no doubt about the impact of media on their child but they never imagined that how much it can be influence a child until they will not faced the crime done by their child. There is important evidence on link between repeated exposure to media violence and behavioral effect said Dr. Susan Villani (1999). â€Å"A total of 25 Pershing Elementary School students in the before and after school program, participated in this study. They were observed prior, during, and post a Tom & Jerry video clip. After observing their behaviors post the video clip, each child was asked two questions based on their everyday television watching habits. It was found that television does influence a child’s behavior. Although, the results indicate that there wasn’t a significant difference between the pre-video and during-video behaviors. Further implications and limitations of these results are to be found in the paper† Mowers (2003) find out. Media can be very helpful for getting new information, instead of blaming media if parents will make some rules and stick on that, media would be helpful for their children’s growth. Steyer (2002) makes a list of top10 tips for parents. According to Steyer (2002) this is responsibility of parents to limit the exposure of kids to the media and particularly to the negative exposure. Negative exposure should be completely controlled. One can help our the process and understanding of media message among their children Steyer’s (2002) top 10 tips for parents are as follow: Establish good media habits early: Parents should choose, which program child will watch and parents should give accompany to the child while he is watching TV. 2. Location, Location, Location: Location of the TV and Computer is very important. Parents should not install TV or computer in child room. In the past time a computer covered huge area and was visible to everyone but with advancement of technology, size of computer has reduced. Parents can not see what their child is surfing on internet. So location of TV and Computer does matter, if parents want to keep eye on their kids. Set a media diet and stick to it: As a parent, you should make a routine for your kids that how much time they would devote for TV, Internet and video games. And parent should be stick on that. Sometime we give liberty to our child but it is not good for long term. 4. Teach your child to ask permission to use media: Parents should teach to their child to ask before they use internet or watch TV programs. This rule will make a difference. 5. Watch and listen with your kids – then tell them what you like, don’t like, and why: First of all listening to the child is the most important thing for a parent. Listen to the child first; what he wants to say after that parent can instruct him what he wants from his child. Parent should explain to his child that why he has given this instruction. 6. Set clear rules regarding your child’s media use in other homes: Parents should make the clear rule on use of media out of home. Try to not to give permission to use the media out of home, if your child is using for some important reasons like combined study, then supervise your child or make a surprise visit at the place. Have pediatricians review your kids’ media use as part of their annual checkup: Get pediatricians review on your kids’ media use; lets take the action, if pediatricians suggest something serious like vision problem. 8. Teach media literacy in school and at home: Parents should teach their kids about what is happening in around in the world. Parents should not feel shy to educate their children about sex education, because your child will know from the other sources and may be in the negative sense. You can teach your child in a very positive manner. So lets start to talk to your child on every topic, it would boost up your child’s confidence as well as your relationship with him. 9. Read to your child and share positive media experiences. Share the positive media experiences with your child like what you have learnt from internet or TV when you were child. It will divert your child’s mind to learn something positive and creative from the modes of media. 10. Switch the dial to â€Å"OFF. â€Å": When you have spare time, talk to your child instead of watching TV or surfing internet. Conclusion TV and internet are the good things to new thing but over exposure is bad. We can control our TV â€Å"You can easily control habit of TV watching of your child† according to the national PTA, medical experts and child development experts, I to help your family to become â€Å"Media Literate† and also positive media a new â€Å"Children’s digital media culture† is gradually improving on internet. Through some web site children can get important information which would be helpful for their education. Many NGOs are making effort to make media helpful for children ‘Montgomery (2000) concluded in his article. Media has provided us an excellent platform that can support the child development like anything. Children can learn and have fun over the same. This requires proper parental guidance, support and control over the media usage among the children. Reference: â€Å"CIC And PTA partnership†, Control Your TV Its Easy! Retrieved on 14 May 2010 from http://www. controlyourtv. org/#Education. aspx Kids Health, How TV Affects Your Child retrieved on 14 May 2010 from http://kidshealth. org/parent/positive/family/tv_affects_child. html# â€Å"Montgomery K. C†, 2000. , Children’s Media Culture in the New Millennium: Mapping the Digital Landscape. retrieved on 14 May 2010 from < http://www. jstor. org/pss/1602693> â€Å"Mowers M. M. †, 2003. , Does Media Influence A Child’s Behavior? Retrieved on 14 May 2010 from http://clearinghouse. missouriwestern. edu/manuscripts/402. php â€Å"Stayer P. J. †, 2002. , The Other Parent: The Inside Story of the Media’s Effects on Our Children. Retrieved on 14 May 2010 from < http://www. amazon. com/Other-Parent-Inside-Medias-Children/dp/0743405838#reader_0743405838>

Effects of Violent TV Programming on Adolescent Behavior Essay

Violent behavior is a central theme in many kinds of media. Television and movies depict violent behaviors as acceptable ways of communicating and resolving problematic social situations (Strasburger & Donnerstein, 1999). During the twentieth century, Americans were introduced to a wide variety of media technology, including televisions, digital computers, video cassette players and handheld electronic machines (Anderson & Bushman, 2001). Although television is but one of the many media venues, it represents the predominant medium to which very young children are exposed. The 1972 report to the Surgeon General found that 96% of American homes have one or more television sets and the average home set is on more than six hours a day and frequent viewing usually begins at about age 3 and remains relatively high until about age 12 (1972, pp. 1-2). Kaiser’s study (1999) found that children spend up to 40 hours per week in front of the television. For children under the age of 7, Wright et al. (1994) found that media exposure averaged just over four hours per day. Other studies have concurred that the television has become a predominant medium of experience for the child. In a 1990 position paper, the NAEYC stated that the trend toward increased depiction of violence in the media jeopardizes the healthy development of significant numbers of our nation’s children (1990, p. 18). The viewing experience is highly complex, subjective, and dependent upon the child’s level of cognitive and emotional understanding (Wright et al. , 1994). Social scientists and policy makers have expressed concern about the potential negative impact of exposure of violence on children (Bushman & Geen, 1990). They have explored the negative impact longitudinally, both experimentally and observationally, and found that children as young as 2 and into adolescence are adversely affected by televised violence. Studies demonstrated that after viewing violent programs, the child behaved aggressively and imitated the scenes of the violent behavior in his play (Anderson & Bushman 2001). This paper explores the current state of research in this area and seeks for the relationship between television watching and childhood violence. Television and Violence The most recent large-scale longitudinal study was initiated in 1994 by researchers at the Universities of California, Texas, Wisconsin, and North Carolina. The National Television Violence Study (NTVS) was deemed the largest scientific study of television violence ever undertaken (Federman, 1998). NTVS involved a three-year effort (1994-1997) to review violence in televised programming. It examined three areas of concern: televised programming context, factors that either positively or negatively alter the risk of viewing violence, and the interactions between programming and the viewers. In this study, nearly 10,000 hours of televised cross-channel programming were examined using five major groupings: broadcast networks, independent broadcast, public broadcast, basic cable, and premium cable. The authors found that 61% of programs contain violence. By the third year of the study, there was more violent interaction observed across the programs analyzed. Specific to the younger child, the study found that children’s programs, as a genre, contained the greatest share (50%) of all high-risk violent interactions, as well as the highest ratio of interactions per hour (. 75) (Federman, Vol. 3, 1998, p. 175). Child-oriented cable programs such as those on Cartoon Network, Disney, or Nickelodeon contained the most high risk violent interactions (27%), compared to general-entertainment basic cable (24%), independent broadcast (19%), and premium cable (17%) (Federman, 1998). Early morning viewing, which is primarily child-focused cartoon programming, has at least one high-risk violent presentation every hour. In one week, a child is exposed to at least 20 violent behavior depictions, and in one year over 1,000, if he watches three hours of early morning television a day (Federman, 1997-1998). The authors also found that over the course of three years there was little change in the overall number of violent programs. However, there was a significant increase (8%) in the portrayals of violent incidents per program and children’s programs continued to depict violence in animated stories (Federman, Vol. 2, 1998). In many of these violent interactions, the main character did not experience any appropriate consequences for aggressive behavior. One of the goals of the NTVS was to encourage more responsible television programming and viewing. The study emphasized the message that understanding the impact of viewed televised violence offers an opportunity to significantly reduce the risks to society that are posed by exposure to televised violence. Young Child’s Experience of Violence The American media is rife with portrayals of justified violence (Federman, 1997-1998). The good guy beats up the bad guy, and laughter or expressions of glee follow hurtful acts. This conveys the message that aggression is an acceptable way to solve problems and express frustration. Children of all ages watch television and videos on a daily basis and are exposed to acts of violence that potentially shape their way of thinking and behaving (Minow & Lamay, 1995, p. 36) Cartoons feature patterns that are more likely to encourage aggression in children, especially if they are under the age of seven (Boyatzis et al. , 1987). Aggressive behaviors, often portrayed in the genre of animation aimed at children, are confusing for the young child. The stories presented as humorous, with laughter accompanying actions that are hostile and aggressive. This may lead to a decrease in his potential fear of danger and may also foster desensitization to harmful situations (Federman, 1997-1998). Significant results revealed that televised violence is changing the behavior of children (Federman, 1997-1998). Individuals of all ages learn through observation. Three important factors affect the impact of learning through modeling. First, the more engaging and attractive the model is, the more the viewer will stay attentive; the less appealing the character is, the more likely the viewer will be distracted or ignore the experience. The second compelling factor is the repeated exposure of the modeling stimuli. As a result of repeated exposure, modeling stimuli eventually produces enduring, retrievable images (Bandura, 1977, p. 25). The third factor, the complexity of the observed experience, affects the rate of observational learning. It is based on the observer’s capacity to process information. However, the young child may imitate without knowing what his behavior means. Bandura suggests that immediate imitation does not require much in the way of cognitive functioning because the behavioral reproduction is externally guided by the model’s action (Bandura, 1977, p. 27). Bandura’s research throughout the 1960s and 1970s with the inflatable Bobo doll demonstrated a relationship between viewing aggressive acts of behavior and performing them. He found that children would more often choose the Bobo doll to punch after viewing a televised violent program than reading a book or choosing a quiet game. Although Bandura’s work on modeling has been challenged over the years, there has been strong support. Later researchers have expanded Bandura’s initial studies, finding that the younger the child is, the more likely he will use imitation rather than rational thinking to choose an appropriate, non-violent way of relating. Eron et al. (1972) reported a strong relationship between viewed violence at age 8 and aggressive behavior. Canton and Sparks (1984) found that preschool children have a greater fear response than older children and react accordingly to what they see. Singer et al. (1999) concluded that there was a significant association linking violent exposure with children’s self-reported violent behaviors. Boyatzis et al. ‘s 1995 study of 52 elementary school children with a mean age 7 years, 9 months, showed how children reacted to watching an episode of The Power Rangers. They found that the child’s aggressive tendency and lack of fear was immediate and markedly greater following an exposure to but a single episode of The Power Rangers. (Boyatzis et al. , 1995, p. 53). Animated programming such as The Power Rangers, Ninja Turtles characterizes the hero as attractive, strong, and powerful. These characters use violence to solve problematic situations and rescue the helpless victim. The NTVS found that a preschooler who watches an average of 2 hours a day of such content will 43 be exposed to at least 10 hazardous portrayals a week, and over 500 in a year (Federman, Vol. 3, 1998, p. 163). Other studies have documented the relationship between exposure to violence and aggressive thought and action. For example, Josephson (1987) presented two television excerpts, one violent and one non-violent, to 396 third-grade boys from 13 schools. She hypothesized that there was a relationship between viewed violence and aggressive play behavior. Significance was found in increased aggressive behavior in boys who played a game of hockey after watching a violent program. Boys who scored high on characteristic levels of aggressiveness used more aggressive behaviors in their hockey game if they were in the groups that viewed violence. Furthermore, she found that the boys who watched the violent tape and were not given verbal cues about appropriateness of the behavior played more aggressively after the tape than either the boys who watched a non-violent tape, or boys who watched a violent tape but were given verbal cues that commented on appropriateness of behavior(Josephson, 1987). Children are being presented with messages that invite aggressive ways of relating to resolve situations and handle life events (Groves 2002). Current televised shows use cartoons, as well as live actors, to display forms of aggression as a means of relating to others and solving problems. A significant shift in televised programming, though, has occurred with the portrayal of aggressive behavior through more real life characterization, as illustrated in shows like The Power Rangers. The visual experience of aggressive behavior has become more like real life to the child because instead of viewing animated characters using aggressive behavior, the child can now watch individuals similar to himself transmogrify into violent machines (Boyatzis et al. , 1995). In this mechanical state, the portrayed behavior is violent and aggressive with the child’s intention of solving a problem. Witnessing these aggressive acts of behavior gives the child a script to construct his social interactions. Since young children create and store behavior that they see, viewing violence becomes a potential way of relating to an experience. Whether the televised programming is in the form of cartoons or real life, social scripts are constructed by the child and are then employed in day-to-day experiences (Groves 2002). Mitigating the Influence of Violent Television Even though there have been numerous studies documenting the impact of televised violence on the behavior of children, the television industry has been reluctant to change violent programming (Singer et al. , 1999). As a result, recent research has focused on how to mitigate the experience of what the child sees rather than waiting for the industry to change what is presented to the public. The child uses internal processes, relying on cognitive and emotional capacities, to actively understand what has been experienced. In his efforts to understand these experiences, the child will find a way to concretize the experience into either emotional or behavioral responses. Younger children need the assistance of another to understand what they experience because they are unable to adjust their viewing and comprehension activities in response to learning instructions (Field & Anderson, 1985, p. 91). Collins, Sobol, and Westby (1981) studied 47 children with a mean age of 7. 8 years. Children who watched a program in the presence of an adult who provided ongoing commentary showed improved comprehension of the plot and the witnessed experiences. Without adult participation, the younger children remembered only the aggressive behaviors without remembering the link to either the motive or the consequence. Huesmann et al. (1983) sampled 169 first- and third-grade children over a two-year period. The focus of the study was to mitigate the relation between aggression and television violence viewing in children through an intervention that altered the children’s attitudes about aggression and violent shows (Huesmann et al. , 1983, p. 899). They found a significant change in how the child responded to violence when the experimenter commented on the violent behavior. More children responded with appropriate answers when they were directly asked, â€Å"what are the bad things that could happen when a child imitates the aggressive behavior of a character? † St. Peters et al. (1991) found that the role of co-viewing by the parent with the child is beneficial. This study was conducted over a two-year period and involved the participation of 271 children, ages 3 to 5 years, and their parents. Parental comments about the televised material helped the children understand what they saw. The parents’ comments differentiated acceptable and non-acceptable behavior for the child. Young children need this clarification and guidance because they have relatively few internal structures to guide them in their behavior (St. Peters et al. , 1991). Kubey (1996) noted that network and cable programming are unsuitable for some children, especially the young child. No amount of adult commenting will completely mitigate what a child experiences. Monitoring and limiting a child’s choice of television shows to reduce the exposure to violent behaviors is similar to monitoring a child’s choice of foods to ensure health and nutrition. Children are victims to the effects of exposure to violence. Parents are critically important as a resource for the child in his attempt to understand the world. Grover (2002) noted that the child who has been exposed to violence responds more favorably to a nurturing, sensitive and caring adult relationship. The more parents know about their child’s changing capacities to understand the world, the better able they are to respond empathically and appropriately to the child (Garbarino, 1992). However, it is essential, as a parent is a primary resource to buffer, explain and clarify life experiences for the child that are beyond the child’s capacity to understand ((Minow & Lamay, 1995). The study by Singer et al. (1980) found that parents influenced their children’s perceptions of the importance of television by the type and amount of television viewing they had. Collins et al. (1981) found that parental commentary helped children understand the implicit program content. The longitudinal study by St. Peters et al. (1991) of 3- and 5-year-olds and their families’ viewing patterns found that parents’ viewing choices play a role in determining a child’s exposure to television programs. Conclusion Young children often copy the violent actions that they have witnessed. Bandura’s work on modeling in the field of social learning has been significant in conceptualizing the relationship between viewing violence and subsequent behaviors. The solution for ameliorating the impact of televised violence focuses on change in parental attitudes as well as profound changes in the entertainment industry. Changing parental attitudes and behavior toward media violence is more feasible than changing the way the entertainment industry portrays violence. Educating parents about the child’s cognitive and emotional developmental capacities has been recommended widely as one solution to lessen the potential impact of media violence. References Anderson, C, & Bushman, B. (2001). Effects of violent video games on aggressive behavior, aggressive cognition, aggressive affect, physiological arousal, and prosocial behavior: A meta-analytic review of the scientific literature. American Psychological Society, 12, pp. 353-359. Bandura, A. (1977). Social learning theory. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall. Boyatzis, C. J. , Matillo, G. M. , & Nesbitt, K. M. (1995). Effects of â€Å"The Mighty Morphin Power Rangers† on children’s aggression with peers. Child Study Journal, 25(1), pp. 45-55.

How to Give a Cat a Pill Essays

How to Give a Cat a Pill Essays How to Give a Cat a Pill Essay How to Give a Cat a Pill Essay Pick cat up and cradle it in the crook of your left arm as if holding a baby. Position right forefinger and thumb on either side of cats mouth and gently apply pressure to cheeks while holding pill in right hand. As cat opens mouth pop pill into mouth. Allow cat to close mouth and swallow. 2. Retrieve pill from floor and cat from behind sofa. Cradle cat in left arm and repeat process. 3. Retrieve cat from bedroom, and throw soggy pill away. 4. Take new pill from foil wrap, cradle cat in left arm holding rear paws tightly with eft hand. Force Jaws open and push pill to back of mouth with right forefinger. Hold mouth shut for a count often. 5. Retrieve pill from goldfish bowl and cat from top of wardrobe. Call spouse. 6. Kneel on floor with cat wedged firmly between knees, hold front and rear paws. Ignore low growls emitted by cat. Get spouse to hold head firmly with one hand while forcing wooden ruler into mouth. Drop pill down ruler and rub cats throat vigorously. 7. Retrieve cat from curtain rail, get another pill from foil wrap. Make note to buy new ruler and repair curtains. Carefully sweep shattered priceless fgurines from hearth and set to one side for gluing later. 8. Wrap cat in large towel and get spouse to lie on cat with head Just visible from below armpit. Put pill in end of drinking straw, force mouth open with pencil and blow down drinking straw. 9. Check label to make sure pill is not harmful to humans, drink glass of water to take taste away. Apply Band-Aid to spouses forearm and remove blood from carpet with cold water and soap. 0. Retrieve cat from neighbors shed. Get another pill. Place cat in cupboard and close door onto neck to leave head showing. Force mouth open with dessert spoon. Flick pill down throat with elastic band. 11. Fetch screwdriver from garage and put door back on hinges. Apply cold compress to cheek and check records for date of last tetanus shot. Throw tee-shirt away and fetch new one from bedroom. 12. Call fi re department to retrieve cat from tree across the road. Apologize to neighbor who crashed into fence while swerving to avoid cat. Take last pill from foil-wrap. 13. Tie cats front paws to rear paws with garden twine and bind ightly to leg of dining table, find heavy duty pruning glove from shed, force cats mouth open with small wrench. Push pill into mouth followed by large piece of filet mignon. Hold head vertically and pour pint of water down throat to wash pill down. 14. Get spouse to drive you to the emergency room, sit quietly while doctor stitches fingers and forearm and removes pill remnants from right eye. Call furniture store on way home to order new table. 15. Arrange for SPCA to collect cat and call pet shop to see if they have any hamsters.

Argument Euthanasia essays

Argument Euthanasia essays Public opinion for euthanasia and doctor assisted suicide has always been mixed. A poll that was taken by the Gallup Organization in Canada during July 1995 proves that people are starting to see the advantages of euthanasia. The first question that was asked was: "When a person has an incurable disease that is immediately life threatening and causes that person to experience great suffering, do you, or do you not think that competent doctors should be allowed by law to end the patient's life through mercy killing, if the patient has made a It is proven in this first question that the general public believes that cases of great pain and suffering deserve the right to choose euthanasia as an option to stop the pain. Three quarters of the people surveyed believed that the choice should be given to the patient. The second question was about non-immediate life threatening cases: "When a person has an incurable disease that is not immediately life-threatening but causes that person to experience great suffering, do you, or do you not think that competent doctors should be allowed by law to end the patient's life through mercy killing, if the patient has made a formal request in writing?" As you can see, when a case is not immediately life threatening, the general publics answer is mixed. The people who answered no may be thinking of treatment that has not been tried yet or treatment that may come in the future due to new technologies. Medical Advancements: During the last 20 years, technological advancement has increased more than the advancement of the whole time of man before that. People that have the no opinion on euthanasia may be thinking that the person may be saved by a sudden medical advancement. It would be terrible for a member of your family to take a lethal dose of drugs, given to them by a doctor, to find the next day ...

How to Conjugate Porter (to Wear, Carry) in French

How to Conjugate Porter (to Wear, Carry) in French In French, the verb  porter  means to wear or to carry. When you want to use it in the present, past, or future tense to say things such as I wore or he is carrying, youll need to conjugate the verb. The good news is that  porter  is a regular -er  verb, so its relatively easy and this lesson will show you how its done. The Basic Conjugations of  Porter The first step in any verb conjugation is identifying the verb stem. For porter, that is port-. Using that, youll add a variety of infinitive endings to form the proper conjugation. If youve studied similar -er words, such as acheter (to buy) and penser (to think), you can apply the same endings here. For this lesson, well concentrate on the most basic conjugations youll need. Using the chart, simply find the appropriate subject pronoun and tense for your sentence. For example, I am wearing is  je porte  while we will carry is  nous porterons. Practicing these in short sentences will help you commit them to memory. Present Future Imperfect je porte porterai portais tu portes porteras portais il porte portera portait nous portons porterons portions vous portez porterez portiez ils portent porteront portaient The Present Participle of Porter The  present participle  of  porter  is formed by adding -ant  to the verb stem. This creates the word  portant. Porter in the Past Tense The  passà © composà ©Ã‚  is another common way to use  porter  in the past tense. It requires a simple compound of the  auxiliary verb  avoir  as well as the  past participle  portà ©. The only conjugation needed is  avoir  into the present tense; the participle indicates the action took place in the past. The passà © composà © comes together quickly. For example, I carried is  jai portà ©Ã‚  and we carried is  nous avons portà ©. More Simple Conjugations of Porter Among the other simple conjugations, you might need are the subjunctive and the conditional. These two verb moods imply uncertainty, with the conditional saying that the action is dependent on something else. The  passà © simple  and  imperfect subjunctive  are not used often, but theyre good to know in case you encounter them. Subjunctive Conditional Passà © Simple Imperfect Subjunctive je porte porterais portai portasse tu portes porterais portas portasses il porte porterait porta portà ¢t nous portions porterions portà ¢mes portassions vous portiez porteriez portà ¢tes portassiez ils portent porteraient portà ¨rent portassent When you wish to say short commands and requests such as, Carry it! you can use the imperative. when doing so, the subject pronoun is not required, so you can simplify it to  porte. Imperative (tu) porte (nous) portons (vous) portez

Mindmapping Business Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Mindmapping Business - Essay Example This fact alone sheds light on the interconnected nature of the proceeding mind maps presented within this analysis. 2: Groups and Teams Of special interest to this author within the above mind map is the level to which collaboration is fostered and develops both institutionally and once the group or team has been established. As the mind map illustrates, teams themselves are not all created equal. Traditional teams, self managed teams, and virtual teams all have their unique drawbacks and strengths. However, the level of collaboration and strength of the process is especially compounded within the virtual team as team members do not have the same sense of combined mission/goal and are somehow less able to empathize with the shared sacrifice for a desired result. (Sarker, 2003). Because of this, not all teams and groups are created equal. Investor/shareholder buy-in and the realization of the group as a greater whole must be realized before positive action is likely to take place. 3: Motivation Stress and Decision Making What was of interest to this author was that after creating this mind map, it was plainly clear that the break down in conflict resolution alls stems from three salient points that are housed within the emotions, personal beliefs, and experience of the individual; specifically his/her needs, wants, and desires (Gagne/Deci, 2005). As such, even though the literature provided offered solid and reasoned approaches to diffusing conflict and working towards an amicable resolution in nearly every case, the unknown variable is again the individual. As each and every employee (or group) involved in a situation of conflict will necessarily have their own needs, wants, and desires, it becomes increasingly difficult to find a suitable resolution dependent upon this fact. In a sense, this has to be ignored in favor of instilling attributes organization-wide that work to prevent individuals towards reverting to selfish need gratification on a personal level and work to esteem the company/organization’s needs, wants, and desires first. 4: Organization What was most interesting in the mind map above was the level to which organizational culture can be the detriment of any positive growth. Products will remain unchanged; ways in which organizations handle stress will remain unchanged and the overall strength of the entity will come into question (Erickson/Gratton, 2007). 5: The Individual as Part of the Organization I chose to perform this mind map last as it is the heart of all of the mind maps and is best understood as the final product in the assignment. Because the individual lies at the very heart of each of the previous mind maps, understanding the functional motivations, psychology, beliefs, needs, and process management of the individual is of vital importance (Bernstein et al, 2008). Although not specifically discussed in the readings, the idea and the old dictum that states, â€Å"Perception is reality† is especia lly noteworthy in this mind map. As one can notice from a careful review, information gathering and decision making leads to sensing and feeling. Likewise, perceiving and judgment lead to thinking and intuition. What is of special interest concerning this is that within each of these components, an individual’

Human rights cannot be both universal and political. Discuss Essay - 1

Human rights cannot be both universal and political. Discuss - Essay Example The fact whether human rights can be both universal and political, or not has engendered lots of heated arguments so far. Most of these arguments spring from the concerns of individuals’ religious, cultural, social perspectives with what they consider to be rights of human beings. But in one age or place what was considered by the people to be a valid right of human beings, appeared to be invalid and oppressive in others; therefore they were amended and also changed. The concept of rights varied from place to place, age to age, culture to culture, by the geo-cultural variables. As a result the universality of human rights is questioned and often tried to be explained from a narrow political and culturally relativistic view (Cohen 1989, pp.1014-1017). But a holistic approach is made to address both the universal and the socio-political view of rights. In the context of human right movement of modern time, the universality of human right has been the most tried matter in order t o enhance its applicability in a global framework. Consequently an endeavor to procure a universalized view of human right is significantly remarkable in the definitions of the scholars at the forth part of modern human right movement. This paper will focus light on the reasonability of arguments and counter arguments on the topic whether human rights cannot be both universal and political and attempt to retrieve a conclusion on the possibility of drawing a mutual line between the two. The idea of universality of human right is prompted first by the prominent European philosophers such as Grotius, Hobbes and Locke (Rayner n.d.). But internationally it was introduced immediately after the Second World War. As Gà ¶rkem Birinci â€Å"Human rights were brought into the focus immediately after the Second World War with the establishment of the United Nations† (n.d., p. 1). This universality is asserted on the foundations

Non verbal communication Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Non verbal communication - Essay Example However others feel comfortable Eye contact alters the meaning of other nonverbal actions. For instance people tend to adjust their sense of personal space by limiting their eye contact according to Huber, Spatz and Balduzzivv (36). Eye contact is a very sensitive aspect of nonverbal behavior. Posture which is the way an individual position themselves is very sensitive as it communicates various messages. For instance kneeling, stiff and cringing, each of these communicate different messages. Locomotion is the way of physical movement in a given space also implies various meanings and also affects the feeling of those doing the movement. However this is less sensitive as people may make same movement but have different meaning for the movement. On the other hand, pacing this refers to the manner in which an action is carried out, for instance; walk, run, skip or climb. People may act in a similar way but imply different meanings in their action as suggested by Huber, Spatz and Balduzzivv (36). For instance one may run to lose weight while another may run due to urgency. The ability t express yourself nonverbally s very important for ever one whether we can talk or not. How you express yourself nonverbally and read other people’s nonverbal expressions is very important. Your body appearance at the time of communication is exchanged s depended on the intonation in which the message is conveyed. Nonverbal communication is one of the important aspects in as far as conveying confidence and sure assurance when meeting with other people as suggested by Blatner (1). Nonverbal communication usually complements the verbal communication although sometimes it may contradict. Using nonverbal communication may act as a substitute to verbal communication. The ability to use nonverbal cues also helps in accenting verbal communication as verbal tones show the real meaning of

The study of immigration Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

The study of immigration - Essay Example During this time, my family managed to establish successful business and partnerships with the local inhabitants of the region; a factor that contributed to the social and financial success of my family. My family maintains close ties with other family members residing in my country of origin. Due to the availability of multiple communication facilities, the tie has grown stronger with the passage of time. Culturally speaking, our family still uses Arabic as our primary means of communication among the family members but we are well versant in English language and this is essential for our survival and success in the American community. Although we are used to American foods now, my family still prepares foods that have their origin in the Arabian culture. My family still celebrates and performs the religious and cultural festivals and rituals that are in alignment with our Arabic tradition. Although my family has been living in the US for __ years now, our cultural attachment with our native country still survives and I am proud of being a

Business-Level and Corporate-Level Strategies Essay - 11

Business-Level and Corporate-Level Strategies - Essay Example Additionally, the merger and acquisition strategies that the company has adopted has made it to effectively meet the needs of its customers as well diversify its operations. Some of the notable companies that AT&T has acquired include America Movil and Direct TV among others. The company competitors are T-Mobile, Verizon, and Sprint. This paper seeks to discuss various levels and types of strategies adopted by AT&T as well as the comparison of its strategies with those of Verizon its main rival. For any company to succeed in a short-term and in the long-term, it must come up with unique business-level strategies. As a leader in the telecommunication sector, AT&T success has been achieved as the result of effective business level strategies. One of the notable strategies that the company has adopted is the master strategy. This implies that the company intends to be the only telecom provider that connects its small and large customers anywhere. Recently, the company management stated that AT&T plans to focus exhaustively on large customers. This will account for 75% of the company revenue an aspect that will save the $1 billion annually (Ausik, 2012). Another key strategy that AT&T embarks on is product differentiation. One of the major aspects that differentiate the company from its competitors is the exclusive agreement with Apple Corporation to sell iPhone. As a result, the company has benefited from strong customer loyalty based on the valuable products provided by Apple . The marketing strategies that AT&T adopts have a great impact on the profitability of the company. Geographically, the company is positioning itself as the leader in wireless coverage. Additionally, the company as noted earlier has embarked on diversification of its product line. Some of the wireless products that AT&T provides include PTT, video share, and voice-IP among others.

The study of immigration Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

The study of immigration - Essay Example During this time, my family managed to establish successful business and partnerships with the local inhabitants of the region; a factor that contributed to the social and financial success of my family. My family maintains close ties with other family members residing in my country of origin. Due to the availability of multiple communication facilities, the tie has grown stronger with the passage of time. Culturally speaking, our family still uses Arabic as our primary means of communication among the family members but we are well versant in English language and this is essential for our survival and success in the American community. Although we are used to American foods now, my family still prepares foods that have their origin in the Arabian culture. My family still celebrates and performs the religious and cultural festivals and rituals that are in alignment with our Arabic tradition. Although my family has been living in the US for __ years now, our cultural attachment with our native country still survives and I am proud of being a

Analyzing the Market Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Analyzing the Market - Research Paper Example The paper concentrates more on factors that influence demand and supply, discusses the price elasticity of demand that produces a kinked demand curve in the oligopolistic airline’s service competition, and the point of equilibrium. It also describes the benefits of the intellectual property (patents and trademarks), and how it protects the owning airlines in their operations. It finally includes the input factors used in generating airline services. Keywords: Passengers, Airline, Flight, Demand Supply, Price Elasticity, Oligopoly, Product Differentiation, Trademark, Patent, Pricing Strategy, Competition, Market Introduction The success or failure of airline services depends most critically, with the established efforts to attract and retain customers to their services. Several airlines have failed before, some able to rise up again, others still struggle to cover losses while most of them end up merging with other well performing airlines. The entry into the airlines business is not only difficult in a field considered to be an oligopoly market, but maintaining and thriving while in competition with large airlines is quite a challenge. Providing airline services require a keen and clear strategy in management and operational activities, to facilitate the services required by the passengers in time. It is therefore a core factor that any airline should build good relationships with their customers as a marketing strategy, so that their future long term profitability can be safeguarded, by retaining more customers and influencing the choice of most undecided passengers in the market. The airline’s reputation, ticket prices, safety record, possible delay times, and services provided (ranging from different travel classes and the associated beneficial facilities, services by the cabin crew) among others, influence the customer preference or satisfaction with an airline, and generally its performance in the market. Airline’s Services Market Comp etition Competition in the airline industry is very high and sensitive, such that with the high fixed costs in their operation, the profit margins are usually low. However, the competition and profit margins may vary with the small changes brought about by the sizes of the airlines, the capacity of the aircrafts, the routes served by airlines, means of customer attraction (such as the in flight services) and discounted fares, which make it possible for some airlines and their services to have a competitive advantage over the others. According to Papatheodorus, the modern airline services competition arises from the differentiation or the best cost provider strategy, while considering the marketing initiatives and the economic advantage, to ensure they consistently provide the service in the market place (2006). Airlines both large and small, whether providing long haul and short haul services struggle to retain and add a market share. Large airlines may compete against others throug h its popularity, and if it has a good safety record, or high quality services, it makes it worse for its smaller rival companies. Most of the times, competing airlines have used generic strategies to achieve their fair share in the market. Differentiation has been a major factor among airlines, as

The Function Enorbarbus Essay Example for Free

The Function Enorbarbus Essay Enorbarbus is Antonys lieutenant and friend and Shakespeare continually develops Enorbarbus character, role and functions within the plot throughout the first two acts. This cynically acclaimed character is one of the most remarkable in the play and contributes to the drama in many ways. From the very first time the audience sees Enorbarbus we can sense that one of his purposes to the play is that he is very sympathetic and supportive to his friend Antony. In Act I Scene 2 when Antony confesses he wished he had never met Cleopatra; I must from this enchanting queen break off. Instead of going along with what he said Enorbarbus suggests that if that did happen then Antony would have missed wonderful piece of work. Enorbarbus shows another service to the play, which is faithfulness, and comradeship that helps to show the kindness of his friend in the course of this action. Enorbarbus obviously does not agree with his fellow Roman comrades, Demetrius and Philo in the opening scene, where they call Cleopatra a gypsy. When Antony says Cleopatra is cunning past mans thought it is Enorbarbus that comes in and objects mentioning; Her passions are made of nothing but the finest part of pure love. In this discussion and the others in the first two acts Enorbarbus plays the role of a part Antonys ordinary self, like a reflection. Enorbarbus reaction to the death of Fulvia, Antonys wife, is nonchalant and light-hearted with a touch of humour. He speaks in pros and wittingly suggests that Antony should move on instantly and find a new lady; Your old smock brings forth a new petticoat. His witticism, another function, shows the audience that deep down he feels extremely sorry for Antonys loss but wants his friend to feel better as soon as possible. However it appears too much for Antony and he asks Enorbarbus to stop mocking him with, No more light answers. In Act II Scene 1, before the Triumvirs assemble, the tactful Lepidus attempts to influence Enorbarbus to keep Antony quiet and calm by entreating your captain. Enorbarbus once again sticks by Antony and uses a simile to tell Lepidus that he prefers his captain to speak his mind and will not have him silenced;

Poverty in Sudan: Trends and Causes

Poverty in Sudan: Trends and Causes To measure the trends of poverty in a systematic way one needs a continuous flow of household-level data pertaining to income and expenditure. The first household budget survey carried out in Sudan was in 1968 followed by the second one on 1978. In 1992 the ILO funded the migration and labor force survey. Also, in 1992 the Social Solidarity fund funded the poverty line survey. In 1994, Ali adopts a direct approach to assess the impact of the Structural Adjustment Programs (SAPs) (1978-1986) on poverty in Sudan. However, and before reviewing poverty in Sudan let us glimpse the factors behind poverty in Sudan. Causes of Poverty The causes of rural poverty in Sudan are to be found in the sustained urban bias of the development strategies adopted since independence. This tended to neglect the traditional agricultural sector where the vast majority of population lives and is the main source of rural livelihood. This has resulted in high rural to urban migration unaccompanied by either increased productivity in the sector or sufficient urban development to generate the necessary urban employment opportunities. Note that the development of the agricultural sector was completely ignored but it was dichotomous in nature in the sense that the Islands of modern irrigated agriculture coexisted side by side with the vast traditional rain –fed agriculture. While the former benefited from modern scale specific technologies and market access, the latter lagged behind in terms of production technologies, finance, management, research, extension, market access and rural roads. As a result of this unbalanced urban/ru ral development structure, the traditional agricultural sector continued to be the major source of limited supply of unskilled labor to urban centers thereby swelling the ranks of the informal labor markets where there is little employment at or near the subsistence wage level. This has also exerting additional pressures on the already limited and over stretched social services and facilities. These trends were further aggravated by those displaced by both natural (rainfall failures leading to famines) and manmade disasters. El Tahir M. Nur (1992). In addition and throughout the period since independence, there has been a clear pro- urban bias in policies adopted by successive governments. These manifested themselves in the provision of a reasonably adequate social and economic infrastructure not matched by similar facilities in the rural areas. These pro- urban biases were further strengthened by the long running policies of subsidizing a variety of goods consumed by urban population. However, such goods were out of reach of many of most of the urban poor particularly, the recent migrants from rural areas who represent the poorest of the urban poor who are manually employed in the marginal jobs in the informal sector. But, it must pointed out that most of these consumption subsidies have been abolished under the recent economic reform programs, though electricity and piped water are still subsidized such that piped water is cheaper in urban than in rural areas. The effects of urban bias were further aggravated by government ma rketing policies for some of the major export crops mostly grown in rural traditional sector, where export monopolies very much along the lines of the old marketing boards, were established for Gum Arabic, oilseeds (abolished in late 1980s) and more recently livestock. This marketing structure has adversely affected farmers’ incomes, their incentives to increase production and their chances to raise their living standards. In the context of poverty alleviation, the current marketing structure for those exports needs radical reform. As discussed above, causes of poverty are more complex. Part of the explanation is certainly the lack of rural focus in the various development efforts since independence. The other part of the explanation relates to the basic characteristics of the traditional sector. In other words, it is vulnerability that constitutes the major cause of impoverishment and deprivation in the traditional sector. The unstable climatic conditions of rural Sudan, with their characteristics of frequent rainfall variability, have from time immemorial altered rural producers to the periodic oscillation from feast to famine situations. A basic strategy of rural producers was and continues to be hoarding of surpluses in good years to transcend the hardships of lean years. Furthermore, conflict in Sudan, as in elsewhere; represent the most devastating factor to nation’s infrastructure and welfare. Therefore, the civil strife took place in various parts of the country since independence, represents one of the most ravaging factors and has a tremendous impact on poverty situation in the country. Thus, southern Sudan was the most severe conflict and has been counted as the most destructive elements of development in the whole country. The war has also resulted in numerous cases of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) and returnees whose situation become aggravated after they were but in zero stage of living. The problems of debt and the deterioration in donor community relations have also a tremendous effect on the poverty situation in Sudan. The International Institutions such World Bank and African Development Bank used to finance several sectoral developmental projects that have a direct impact on population welfare. However, the absence of those institutions has resulted in an un-bridged gap in terms of resources availability that reduces employment opportunities. Magnitude and poverty trends It is most important to note that the poverty trends differ very slightly and sometimes vary greatly between groups. In general terms, the number of the poor people in rural areas has increased with a rate nearly equal to the rate of population increase. And the number of the poor urban household has increased at a higher rate than the urban population growth rate. This situation was created due to immigration took place from the rural areas to urban centers responding to the economic incentives consistent with the objectives of maintaining industrial revolution centered in urban sector. However, as we mentioned earlier, the industrial sector was not able to absorb the rural migration. An elaboration of poverty situation will be presented in the sub-periods below depending mainly on studies made by Ali Abdel Gadir: â€Å"Poverty and Structural Adjustment Programs in Sudan†. The trend of head count index in Sudan over this period (1968-1978) had been increasing at an annual rate of 0.5% Annex 4. Over the same period, the number of rural households had been growing at a rate equal to the rural population growth rate while the number of poor urban households had been growing at a rate higher than the urban population growth rate. Over the same period, the poverty gap ratio in the whole country had been decreasing at an annual growth rate of 0.64%. This shows that although poverty had been spreading at an annual rate of 0.5 % over the period, the economic conditions of the poor had improved over the same period. The rural urban poverty structure emerged as a result of a hasty adoption of dual economy development modules that advocate development through the transfer of cheap labor from the rural traditional sector (agriculture) to the urban modern sector (industry). Urban modern wage sector failed to absorb the rural migrants and marginal urban jobs by the rural migrants (the informal sector) proved not to be a stepping stone to the formal wage sector. During the period (1978-1986) the headcount index increased from 54.3% in 1978 to 77.8% in 1986 at an annual rate of increase 4.6% and the rural urban poverty disparity was that the rural headcount index for urban increase from 20.5% in 1978 to 52.9% in 1986. However, the rural incidence of poverty (83.1) remained higher than the incidence of urban poverty (53%). However, the period had witnessed that the incidence of urban poverty had been growing at a higher annual rate 12.6% than the rural (3.3%). Meanwhile, the number of poor families in Sudan increased from 1.7 million in 1978 to 2.7 million in 1986 in an annual rate of 6.2% which is higher than the population growth rate. Up to 1986, the number of the poor rural families exceeded the number of the urban poor families by 2.33 million but growth rate of the poor urban families exceeded that of rural by 9.4% percentage points ( Nur, 2003:5). The observed high pace of the incidence of urban poverty (12.6%) over the period (1978-1986) was attributed to the structural adjustment programs (SAPs) and the urban bias development policies (i.e. the development that overlooks the rural areas without creating enough urban jobs) coupled with urban poverty growing faster than rural poverty. Sudan poverty gap index, over the period (1978-1986) increased from 23.1% in 1978 to 45.4% in 1986 at an annual rate of increase of 8.8%. This implies that, given the incidence of poverty, the income gap ratio increased from 42.6% in 1987 to 58.4% in 1986 at an annual rate of increase of 3.9%. By contrast, during the period (1968-1976) the incidence of poverty has been increasing at an annual rate of 0.5% but poverty and income gap ratio has been decreasing at an annual rates of 0.64% and both 1.2% respectively (improve economic conditions of the poor). Comparing the two periods, we notice that the poverty levels, both in urban and rural, have in creased sharply. Therefore, the situation has become more and more complicated and the existing social safety nets ( Zakat and other social funds) were unable to address the phenomena at that time. During this period, the incidence of poverty has also increasing. The national headcount index increased from 77.8% in 1986 to 91.4% in 1992. The rural and urban headcount indexes increased from 82.1% to 93.2% and from 52.9% to 84.4% respectively. In addition to, the number of poor households increased from 2.71 million, in 1986 to 3.43 million in 1992 at an annual rate of increase of 4% (Nur, 2003:7). The poverty trend is shown below in Annex 4.The national poverty gap index increased at an annual rate of 1.7% over the period (1986-1992). The rural and urban poverty indices increased at an annual rate of 1.4% and 2.9% respectively. The national urban mean income of the poor as a ratio of the poverty line decreased over this period from 0.42 to 0.33, from 0.54 to 0.43, and from 0.38 to 0.22 respectively. This indicates that poverty had been deepened all over the country, particularly in the rural areas. Generally, three main poverty indicators namely, the head count index, the income gap index and poverty gap index, had been increasing at an increasing rate all over the period. It is also revealed that structural rural and urban forms of poverty exist in Sudan since 1986 and continued to exist at higher rates. Again, the continued urban bias characterized development in Sudan, overlooked the agricultural sector, lead to reduction in rural livelihoods. The result is that high rates of rural migration took place without creating sufficient employment opportunities for immigrants, coupled with displacement resulting natural and manmade disasters has worsened the situation. The public spending on social services like health and education was reduced and the poor are obliged to pay for these essential services, putting more pressure on their earnings in the formal sector defected their coping efforts to catch up with the rising cost of living. During this period, there is a serious vacuum in the data about poverty and other human indicators that have direct or indirect relation with surveys. Therefore, this period depend very much on perceptions and nobody dared to come out with results on poverty since no recognized survey oriented research is conducted in this field. However, several attempts were undertaken to tackle the issue. These attempts were not able to cover that huge gap through time (i.e. time series data to cover the period 1994-2003), although, they were able to produce an acceptable results and arguments that could be used as a proxy for the poverty phenomena in Sudan. The most interesting attempt has conducted by Eltahir M. Nur â€Å"Human Poverty in Sudan (2000); Magnitude and Distribution† then updated in 2003. Human Poverty As poverty in the human development perspective manifests itself in the deprivation of lives that people can lead, Tahir Nur methodology identified three main areas of human deprivation that correspond to the three human choices. These areas of deprivation include deprivation in survival, deprivation in knowledge, and deprivation in economic provisioning. Size and distribution in deprivation in Survival Deprivation in survival is all over the country but particularly high in the rural areas. While the rural national averages of means or the probabilities that a person will die before age 40, a child will die before age 5, and an infant will die before his (her) first birthday are 20.2%, 10.5%, and 7.2%, the urban national means of the same poverty indicators are 19.4%, 9.95% and 6.89% respectively for North Sudan where data is available, are 22.77%, 11.73%, and 8.10% respectively. From this comparison, we conclude that in terms of South–North, urban deprivation in the South is higher than that in the North but the differences in poverty indicators are small. Within the North, the rural deprivation in survival is higher than the urban one and again the rural urban differences in poverty indicators are small. Looking at the state rural ranking of poverty, we note that the top five states in rural poverty are the Red Sea, the Blue Nile, Kassala, South Kurdufan, and North Darfur. Their group means of the three poverty indicators (29.66%, 15.52%, and 10.52%) are higher than the national means (23.59%, 12.3%, and 8.334%) of the same poverty indicators. We also note that the states with the least rural deprivation in survival are El Giezira, the northern, the River Nile, North Kordufan, West Kurdufan, and South Darfur– arranged by the order of being the least poor state. The probability that a person will die before age 40 is the largest component of the deprivation survival index throughout the States – a great loss of productive human capital. Size and distribution of the deprivation in knowledge The rural national deprivation is almost double the urban national deprivation in knowledge. While the rural national means of inaccessibility to media, adults illiteracy rate, basic education dropout rate, and secondary education dropout rate are 67.2%, 27.4%, 9.8%, and 53.6%, the urban national means of the same poverty indicators are 42.4%, 15.8%, 26.8%, and 27.4% respectively. Therefore, priority in the re-education of the deprivation in knowledge should go to rural areas. Provision of basic and secondary education service is vital for the reduction in the deprivation in knowledge because education dropout rate is the major component of the deprivation in knowledge index in all the States and across the board of rural and urban location. The rate of inaccessibility to media (radio and T.V) is the largest component of the rural deprivation in knowledge index. Upon raking the states by the basic education dropout rate, the States of the Blue Nile, North Kurdufan, West Darfur, North Darfur, and South Kurdufan come top in the state – level rural profile of the deprivation in knowledge. Their rural group means of inaccessibility to media (75%), adults illiteracy rate (29.3%), basic education dropout rate (69.6%), and secondary education dropout rate (71.1%) are higher than the national rural means (67.2%, 27.4%, 49.8%, and 53.6%) of the same poverty indicators respectively. For the national urban poverty ranking, while the blue Nile and west Darfur states retain their positions among, Wau, and Malakal replaced North Kurdufan north Darfur, as South Kurdufan as top poor urban areas in knowledge. While rural Khartoum is among the middle poor state in knowledge, urban Khartoum is among the least poor states in knowledge. In view of these results, basic, secondary, and adults education services should be extended to the rural areas with emp hasis on the top five poor states. Size and distribution of the deprivation in economic provisioning Rural national deprivation in economic provisioning is higher than the urban national one. The rural national means of the proportion of people with no access to electricity (75.5%), with no access to safe drinking water (46.7%), with poor sanitation (46.5%), dependent on the use of biomass energy (79.6%), below food poverty line (55.9%) are higher than the urban national means except for the head count index (80.9%) and the proportion of people dependent on the use of biomass energy (82.8%) which are higher in the urban areas. However, the rural national mean of the composite poverty index (59%) is higher than urban national mean of the composite poverty index (54%). Therefore, rural areas rank number one in the deprivation of economic provisioning. On average, while the proportion of people who have no access to electricity (75.5%) and that of those who depend on the use of biomass energy (79.6%) are the highest rural poverty indicators the latter (82.8%) and the proportion of thos e who are below food poverty line (80.9%) are the highest urban poverty indicator The experience of the Sudan, however, is unique. Some studies came out with, â€Å"despite the relatively high growth, evidence seems to suggest that its effect did not trickle down considerably to reduce poverty or expand formal employment opportunities†. Ibrahim A. Ibrahim et al (2001:11) While people expecting the poverty levels be reduced as the country’s GDP increased, there is strong allegation that poverty is increasing. In conclusion, while worldwide benefited from the global economic growth, Sudan did get to know that experience and the effect of economic growth on poverty is still very minute in general perception. Although, the prompt reason to think about is the mal-distribution of income, yet, the situation has many other interpretations and this area will further be elaborated in coming paper.

Creativity Essay -- Technology Art Papers

Creativity The walls of the Louvre are covered with artistic masterpieces, widely recognized as some of the most treasured, creative works known to man. The unique stroke of a brush or the layering of paint can distinguish these geniuses from the masses. Despite the ability to label these pieces of art as especially creative, it remains unclear how one can truly qualify the defining characteristics of creativity. This faculty is commonly viewed as intangible, as `a spark of creativity,' or, `a flash of creativity.' This phenomenon, which lies at the foundation of our artistic culture, eludes our current grasp of understanding. For some, creativity rests within our human nature as an integral part of our being, for others, it may emerge from the great mechanical complexity of our brains, or the randomness of the universe. In recent years there have also emerged visual and literary works by computers which some experts believe to have a creative nature. This controversial idea causes unease in ma ny that characteristics we commonly assume to be innately human could manifest in a machine. However, after viewing the works created by computers, it becomes necessary to consider the possibility of such creative ability whether or not the works themselves are creative. Though one can find examples of human creativity in nearly all aspects of life, perhaps it is most clearly evident in our literature. The thoughtful combination of words can express the gauntlet of human emotions and experiences aptly, and in the most talented of authors, can breathe life into the words and seemingly recreate the experiences in the mind of the reader. Notable and critically praised author James Joyce provides an example of this in his work Ulysses: .. ...uture computer which could paint like Monet, or have faith in a machine to effectively speak to the emotions of a human. However, technological innovations continually astound us, and it is no less plausible that a computer could function at this level of creativity, than one hundred years ago to imagine men landing on the moon. Works Cited Boden, Margaret. The Creative Mind: Myths and Mechanics. London; New York: Routledge, 2004. Faulkner, William. The Sound and the Fury. New York: Random House, 1984. Hofstadter, Douglas. Fluid Concepts and Creative Analogies. New York: Basic Books, 1995. Joyce, James. Ulysses. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1993. Picard, Rosalind. Affective Computing. Cambridge, Massachusetts: MIT Press, 1997. Singer, Irving. Feelings and Imagination: The Vibrant Flux of Our Existence. Maryland: Rowman and Littlefield, 2001

Food Lion-Case Analysis Essay

Food Lion LLC is an American grocery store company headquartered in Salisbury, NC, that operates approximately 1,300 supermarkets in 11 Mid-Atlantic and South Atlantic states as well as Tennessee, Kentucky and West Virginia under the Food Lion, Harvey’s Supermarket, Bloom, Bottom Dollar Food, and Reid’s banners. With approximately 73,000 employees, Food Lion LLC is the largest subsidiary of Delhaize Group. Delhaize Group is a food retailer headquartered in Belgium, which operates in seven countries. Delhaize Group was founded in Belgium in 1867. The principal activity of Delhaize Group is the operation of food supermarkets in North America, Europe and Southeast Asia. Supermarket News ranked Delhaize America No. 10 in the 2007 â€Å"Top 75 North American Food Retailers† based on 2006 fiscal year estimated sales of $17.3 billion. By cutting its overhead dramatically, Food Lion has been able to offer â€Å"everyday low prices† to consumers and still manage to reap some of the highest profits in the supermarket industry. Faced with a struggling economy and increased competition in the form of supercenter outlets, Food Lion has responded with some store closures and work force reductions, but has also sought to revitalize the grocery shopping experience through the introduction of a store concept called Bloom, intended to provide a uniquely convenient layout and competitive prices. Key Dates in the companies History 1957-Food Town is established in Salisbury, North Carolina. 1974:Belgian grocer Delhaize acquires Food Town. 1982:Company changes its name to Food Lion. 1986:Tom Smith, who started at the company in the 1950s as a grocery bagger, becomes CEO of Food Lion. 1999:A new management team seeks to revitalize Food Lion. 2001:Food Lion becomes part of Delhaize’s umbrella company for its American holdings. Case Analysis The faced many challenges such as information technology (IT) in the managing financial records recently, with system audits and continuous failures. They broken many rules within the Sarabanes oxley act. The sarabanes Act which is also known as the ‘Public Company Accounting Reform and Investor Protection Act’ (in the Senate) and ‘Corporate and Auditing Accountability and Responsibility Act’ (in the House) and more commonly called Sarbanes–Oxley, Sarbox or SOX, is a Unites States federal Law that set new or enhanced standards for all U.S. Public company boards i.e. food lion, management and public accounting firms. The problems latter proved to be linked to inadequate timing in planning activates, and inconsistent level changes with corporate management. Outside of the above Food Lion faces many staying afloat in the technological advanced completion such as Wal-Mart. Struggling against many influcuations in the prices and bundling package deals. Food lions attempts to offers things that others don’t to set their standards apart with a recipe area and automated shopping list that can be sent to local providing retailers. Additionally, food lion offers retailers many different purchase options with the MVP card, which also, allows them; maintain records of the customers shopping habits and budget. Creating coupons suit the needs of certain individual shoppers has revolutionized the food retail industry. These marketing strategies are not original but nonetheless quintessential for their success. One of the most innovative situations that food-lion is the vendor diversity clause which is n ot only an anti-discrimination minorities but offers specials contracts with minorities. Additionally, joining forces with exterior company guiding star, which a rating corporation for the products, services, and treatment proved by and for Food Lion. Along with Animal welfare survey and verification with produce and poultry products. They are known for deals and bonuses in the food industry. Food lion is known for sales and promotions, which as allegedly breaking the competition down to the lower deals to even remain marketable. Providing weekly sales on curtains products for a limited time only. Furthermore, offering Shoppers’ Companion online, which is where shoppers can offers suggestions and comments and concerns, i.e. management tips and unsanitary employees. The new and improved MVP card issuing not only saving, but also saving star credits which generates real money on rebate and giveaway options. The MVP card also, has Tally register where the online system keeps account on how much you have saved with the card printable coupons from home. The company will re-open over 269 stores which all are going to include free grocery giveaways. Also, large charity donations and contributions to groups such as: boy and girl scouts of America, YMCA, Feed the children, Harvest Hope, and large donations of free food to may shelters and orphanages much of the public views the company as not just a supermarket but a savior. Currently the company has plans of expanding thought the central, and western regions of the United States, but first wish to stabilize their current stations and locations. Some recent news and talks of merging with some of the completion on the level Conclusion I conclude that even though the margin for change increasing along with customer demand shifting, Food Lion has done a great job to cope with inconsistent data recorded and observed. By offering more customer demand based products instead of consumer retail they has improved on revenue. They has stood by their actions scandalous and praiseworthy, from branch closing and violating of SOX act codes to donated billions and saving many small third world countries to hunger. Moreover, their strategy is a good one lower the prices give them fresher produce and improve the overall shopping experience, and they certainly have lived up to their promises and expectations. Many of these issues have been fixed by great change in management process for hardware, software database, and application groups. The company received a dully-awaited makeover in the past few years, which will surly; sustain them for decades to come. Food Lion has many pitfalls such as competitors, and technology, however o verall with studious work ethics they will prevail and maintain.

Recommendation for the Location for Maigue-Pascua’s RTW’s Expansion Essay

Introduction This document is to suggest the appropriate property to hold the expansion of Maigue-Pascua’s RTW. After their second bi-monthly meeting for this year, owners decided to pursue the building of a new branch to cater the needs of their growing number of customers. Other preparations, such as the budget allocation and manpower, are already taken care of except for the location. This recommendation report proposes several spots that would suffice the needs of the company. Background Maigue-Pascua’s RTW has been established since 2009 owned by Ms Jinky Maigue and Mr James Pascua. It offers fair-priced yet high-quality and trendsetting garments that’s suitable for their target demographic: students/teenagers. Due to the increasing demands for their products, the business partners opt to have a business expansion and to make a new image of being a top-line clothing store. Financial and marketing strategies are already made for this project but their main problem is the location. They currently have one branch, which is conveniently placed in the heart of the market. Now, they are looking for a place wherein they could offer the same convenience and is also low-priced. The partners also want to venture on broadening their market scope. Options/Proposals †¢ A stall on a mini-bazaar outside a high-end village. Located on its right side is another clothing shop and on the left are a few more vacant stalls. It costs P60000 per month. †¢ A P72000-worth of monthly rent for a stand between a bank and a drugstore near a public market. †¢ An establishment on lease for P61000 on an upscale shopping centre. It is placed near a coffee shop/bookstore and in front of the centre’s leisure park. †¢ A kiosk beside a food stall built on a public park. Its monthly rent is P50000. The expanses of all the proposed locations are all approved by the business partners. Criteria/Requirements The location should be customer-friendly, convenient, marketable, and reasonably-priced and should offer a wider market scope. Other matters, such as the expanse and the interior, were already taken into consideration on the first phase of planning. The aforementioned considerations should be followed in deciding for the location of the company’s expansion. Comparisons The points of comparisons are the following: ambience, competitions, price and demographics. Ambiance. The stall is favourable to the residents of the nearby village due to its close proximity but the atmosphere of the mini-bazaar is not fitting to the new image that the company wishes to build. The stand, on the other hand, is misplaced. The location is not suitable for an apparel store. Consequently, the air in the establishment portrays the exact change that the owners want for their business. And lastly, the kiosk sets a good mood for it is placed on a recreational area. Competitions. All of them don’t have a nearby shop that offers the same product except for the stall. Price. The prices of the four locations range from P50000-P72000. The kiosk is the cheapest and the stand is the most expensive. Demographics. The stand and the kiosk don’t meet the entity’s customer target because their locations are too public while the establishment and the stall are in line with their goal of widening their scope from the student/teenager to the upperclassmen. The latter are more likely to bring in the desired customer due to its location. Conclusion Based on the comparisons aforementioned, these conclusions were drawn: 1. The most suitable ambience is from the establishment on the shopping centre. 2. The monthly rent of the kiosk is the lowest. 3. The stall’s location is more likely to have competition. 4. The  establishment and the stall best suit the new target market of the entity. 5. The establishment gives off a good atmosphere, is reasonably-priced, has less competition and matches the new demographic of the entity. Recommendation Maigue-Pascua RTW should consider using the establishment on the shopping centre for several reasons. First, it is in sync with the new image that the entity wanted to build up. Second, it is relatively cheap for a store in a fancy centre. Third, it would help in bringing in a new demographic in the entity’s customer. Having a branch in a shopping centre is quite a huge risk but with the projected sales of the company and future influx of customers, the company will pick up in the long run.

Assignment: The Darby Company Manufactures and Distributors

BA561 –winter 2006 LP Case Notes: 1. This is an individual assignment. As stated in the syllabus you must do your own work or you will fail the class. 2. You can use any software you wish to perform the analysis, but the assignment was designed under the assumption that you would be using the LINDO software used for LP in BA555. 3. The project is due at the beginning of class in week four (February 1). The Case: The Darby Company manufactures and distributes meters used to measure electric power consumption. The company started with a small production plant in El Paso, Texas and gradually built a customer base throughout Texas.A distribution center (DC) was established in Ft. Worth, Texas and later as business expanded to the North, a second distribution center was established in Santa Fe, New Mexico. The El Paso plant was expanded when the company began marketing its meters in Arizona, California, Nevada and Utah. With the growth of the West Coast business, the Darby Company opened a third distribution center in Las Vegas, Nevada and just two years ago opened a second manufacturing plant in San Bernardino, California. Manufacturing costs differ between the company’s two production facilities.The cost of each meter produced at the El Paso plant is $10. 50. The San Bernardino plant is more efficient and produces meters at $10. 00 a unit. Due to the company’s rapid growth, not much attention has been paid to the efficiency of the distribution system, but Darby’s management has decided that it is time to address this issue. The costs of shipping a meter from each of the plants to each of the three distribution centers is shown in Table 1. Yearly production capacity is 30,000 units at the El Paso plant and 20,000 units at the San Bernardino plant.Note that no shipments are allowed from the San Bernardino plant to the Ft. Worth distribution center. The company serves nine customer zones from the three distribution centers. The forecast of the number of meters needed in each customer zone for the following year is given in Table 2. The Unit costs of shipping from each distribution center to each customer zone is given in Table 3. Note that some of the distribution centers can not serve certain customer zones. In the current distribution strategy demand at the Dallas, San Antonio, Wichita and Kansas City customer zones is satisfied by shipments from the Ft.Worth DC. In a similar manner the Denver, Salt Lake City and Phoenix customer zones are served by the Santa Fe DC. And the Los Angles and San Diego customer zones are satisfied by the Las Vegas DC. To determine how many units to make at each plant, the customer demand forecasts are aggregated at the distribution centers and a transportation model is used to minimize the costs of shipping from the production plants to the distribution centers. Issues the company wants you to address 1. If the company does not change its distribution strategy what will its manufacturi ng and distribution costs be for the following quarter? . Suppose the company is willing to change its distribution strategy so that customer zones could be served from any distribution center for which costs are available. Would this reduce total costs? If so by how much? Would you make this change? Please be sure to examine all supply chain implications beyond just direct dollars saved. 3. The company wants to explore the potential of direct shipping from the plants to certain customer zones. Specifically the shipping cost is $. 30 per unit from San Bernardino to Los Angeles and $. 70 from San Bernardino to San Diego.The cost for direct shipments from El Paso to San Antonio is $3. 50 per unit. Should the company do direct shipping? If so on which routes? 4. In 3 years demand is expected to have increased 30% on average across all customers. At that time the company expects to have saturated the markets they presently serve (in other words additional growth will have to come from n ew markets). It will cost 3 dollars a unit to increase capacity at the El Paso plant and 4 dollars a unit at the San Bernardino plant. How much capacity, if any, would you add to each plant to satisfy future demand?Instructions: 1. When answering the questions it is expected that you address the following: a. What is the mathematically optimal way to meet all demands and constraints at the minimal cost? You must use LP to answer this question. b. The LP model gives you the minimum cost solution. What assumptions are you making if you implement the optimal solution from the model? At a minimum pleases be sure to consider: i. Quality ii. Delivery reliability and speed iii. Managing logistics iv. Optimizing the supply chain v.Customer satisfaction 2. You must turn in a disk (floppy, cd or dvd) that contains all models you used to write the paper. The disk should contain the models and the solutions. Assignments that are not accompanied by a disk with the models and solutions will lose 30%. You can not turn your models and solutions in late. 3. You may use any software supported by the COB you wish- but Dr. Pagell will be using LINDO. 4. Your assignment will have an appendix where the models are explained, Please use typical LP nomenclature (let statements and the like).If the professor can not figure out what the variables in your models represent you will lose points. 5. You will have a second appendix with a print out of your results. If you run multiple models you will need to print out results from all of the runs. 6. When it comes to format you do what you think is best to answer the questions with the following expectations / limitations: a. You will turn in a well written, grammatically correct, logically consistent paper. b. Presentation will be professional. Everything should be typed, easy to read, laid out in a logical manner, and so on. . Make sure you tell the reader where to find information. For instance if you are using a dual price to answer a qu estion say so. And tell the reader where to find this information in the paper. I am not going to guess where information comes from. d. This is a paper not a 4 questions test. I expect you to write a paper that integrates all four questions. Papers where each question is in its own stand alone section with no linkages to other sections of the paper will get lower grades than papers that integrate the information.Grades: Your grade will be based on the proper formulation, solution and interpretation of the models. Formulation and solutions will be worth 70% of your grade and interpretation will be 30% of your grade. The instructor reserves the right to give bonus points to students who come up with very elegant formulations. Table 1 Shipping cost per unit from production facilities to distribution centers | |Ft. Worth DC |Santa Fe DC |Las Vegas DC | |El Paso Plant |$ 3. 0 |$ 2. 20 |$ 4. 20 | |San Bernardino Plant |- |$ 3. 90 |$ 1. 20 | Table 2 Yearly demand forecast |Customer Zone |Demand in meters | |Dallas |6300 | |San Antonio |4880 |Wichita |2130 | |Kansas City |1210 | |Denver |6120 | |Salt Lake City |4830 | |Phoenix |2750 | |Los Angles |8580 | |San Diego |4460 | Table 3 Shipping costs from DC’s to customer zones in dollars ($) |Customer Zone | DC |Dallas |San Antonio |Wichita |Kansas City |Denver |Salt Lake City |Phoenix |Los Angles |San Diego | |Ft. Worth |. 3 |2. 1 |3. 1 |4. 4 |6. 0 |- |- |- |- | |Santa Fe |5. 2 |5. 4 |4. 5 |6. 0 |2. 7 |4. 7 |3. 4 |3. 3 |2. 7 | |Las Vegas |- |- |- |- |5. 4 |3. 3 |2. 4 |2. 1 |2. 5 | |