Buddhist philosophy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Buddhist philosophy - Essay Example Another Buddhist element related to achieving the highest good is the belief that since suffering is a result of material longing and desire by eliminating material longing and desire, one can eliminate suffering and move towards achieving this highest good. While this is a simple formulation, the actual challenge of eliminating desire is extremely difficult. Craving can also be extended to include the gratification of the passions or the longing we have for an abstract sense of accomplishment of success in our earthly lives. The Second Noble Truth states that if we persist in allowing our lives to be dominated by desire and ignorance we will always be haunted by an unachievable longing and pervasive suffering. Therefore, the Buddha states that to achieve the highest good one must be guided by what is, not what is desired. One must fight against their preconditioned ways of longing and desire and accept the world and their place as it currently exists, as this is the only path to the highest good. In following these Noble Truths the individual is able to achieve the highest good or Nirvana. This is a spiritual state that transcends all traditional concerns with material existence. I recognize that I generally disagree with this ideal. To begin with, I disagree with the idea that all of life is suffering, as one might argue that such a characterization of the human condition is overly pessimistic. When Buddha developed the Four Noble Truths the Indian people faced considerable difficulties in life. Their subsistence was harder earned than we experience today, and I believe that this element of Buddhist philosophy can be seen to be a response to this challenge of existence, rather than an accurate reflection of the human condition. While all humans experience suffering, to claim that this is one

This great essay i found about life (not mine) Essay Example for Free

This great essay i found about life (not mine) Essay â€Å"Life is beautiful and yet life is not a bed of roses. Though it is full of ups and downs it has many facets of blessings and successes. To some people, life is hard, cruel and merciless. These set of people see life as punishment throughout their entire lives. They therefore resigned themselves to fate, believing all is finished. To them, nothing that they do can ever be good. They take delight in committing crimes and maiming others to avenge their ill-fortune. They lost every sense of direction and most times, some of them go as far as committing suicide, just to escape the injustice life has meted out to them. But there are those who see life as a challenge, a channel of discovery and innovation, a prospect for success and a gateway to wealth. To them life is sweet, colourful and kind. No matter the situation these people find themselves, they keep pressing on, believing in a cause, a cause to succeed and get the most out of life. No wonder an adage says, â€Å"Where there is life, there is hope.† The will to succeed or fail lies within an individual jurisdiction. You can live life to the fullest with utmost satisfaction and fulfillment if you determine with all your mind, body and soul to succeed. On the other hand, life can be miserable to you if you take everything for granted and wait on fate to play itself out. Setting of goals and strategic plans that will strive no matter the odds which may move against you is one of the basic things needed to get the best out of life. These goals which must be result oriented, should be followed up consistently even if things seem blurred or unyielding at first. Also, the mind is the centre of everything. It controls your thoughts and beliefs. A focused mind has never fail. A positive mind helps one to discover his talents and potentials. Great men and women, both living and dead, had their minds focused on something and nothing deterred them from achieving their dreams. Each of them had a belief, should I say faith, which they held onto, they nurture the belief, focused all their attention and live on it. And today, we have benefited in one way or the other from their inventions and great ideas. Life is a challenge. And for anyone to succeed in life, he must be ready to show the stuff he is made of. He must be ready to sacrifice his time and build up his mind frame toward success. What is happening in our environment should not influence or affect us in our daily quest for success in life. Instead, we should control the happenings around us.

Essay --

Linguistic profiling is the auditory form of racial discrimination by making judgment solely based on the way a person speaks and sounds. This type of racial discrimination has been detected in regards to housing, job opportunities and the criminal law. The effects of linguistic profiling is detrimental to individuals who are perceived as having an undesirable accent. These perceptions often lead to stereotypical misconceptions that society has created or attached to a certain race group. Dr. John Baugh, a professor of linguistics from Stanford University of California, was the inventor of this term. He conducted an experiment to examine the reaction of Americans to different accents. He calls properties that are advertised for rent and uses different accents. He uses an African American accent, a Latino accent and finally a neutral American accent. During these calls there was no mention of job history, qualifications, credit scores or educational background. His findings concluded that the minority dialects inquiries were often disregarded particularly in the affluent communities. Many times the researchers determined that those with the minority accent were often told by the property managers that there were no Ladesh 2 vacancies, but openings were available to those who spoke in a Standard English accent. â€Å"Those who sound white get the appointment,† Baugh says. â€Å"When challenged in lawsuits, many businesses deny that they can determine race or ethnicity over the phone. However, Baugh’s ongoing study shows that over the phone many Americans are able to accurately guess the age, race, sex, ethnicity, region of heritage and other social demographics based on a few sentences, even just a hello.† (†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.) Baugh ... ... confused and even shocked. That is when John realized that when he spoke to them on the phone he used his professional voice and often he was criticized for â€Å"sounding white†. That’s when he made the discovery that they were shocked because they expected him to be white. In fact, four agents told him the properties were no longer available. This whole idea of linguistic profiling encompasses steering, redlining, and overall racial discrimination towards individuals based on their personal characteristics. The assumptions and preconceived notions, the stereotypical associations are what is keeping racism alive. The way Ladesh 7 in which we talk shouldn’t be a negative, but in fact should be embraced by our cultural differences. The content of our words can be debated and questioned, but the way we sound when we speak these words should not.

Starbucks in 2009

STARBUCKS IN 2009 1 TABLE OF CONTENT Starbucks issues and causes†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ †¦. †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 2 Starbucks current strategies and evaluation†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. 4 Analysis and recommendations†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 10 SOAR analysis†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. 10 Competitive analysis†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 11 Value chain analysis†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦14 Recommendations†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦17 Appendix†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 18 References†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 19 STARBUCKS IN 2009 2STARBUCKS IN 2009 Starbucks issues and causes Starbucks share price went down from the peak of $4 0(October 2006) more than 75% over the next two years. The sale and operating profits decreased 73. 1 million dollars compared to the last year in 2008 (Table 1 in the Appendix). The growth rate of Starbucks store sales decreased 8% in 2008 (Starbucks Corporation, 2008). 60. 00% 50. 00% 40. 00% 30. 00% 20. 00% 10. 00% 0. 00% 2005 2006 2007 2008 ROA ROE The chart above shows the ROA (return on assets) and ROE (return on equity) ratio of Starbucks has generally gone down between 2005 and 2008.STARBUCKS IN 2009 3 Following are five main factors that caused Starbucks downturn in 2008: 1. Economic environment—Great Recession The global economic decline began in 2007 and took a sharp downward turn in September 2008. Due to this recession, each U. S. household lost an average of approximately $5,800 in income, and gross domestic product declined 6. 2 percent annualized (PEW, 2008). 2. Competitors Some independent coffee shops, such as Caribou Coffee (U. S. ), have imitated the opera ting model of Starbucks and have expanded and become national chains.In addition, fast food chains, including McDonald’s, Burger King, and Dunkin’ Donuts, started to provide coffee and get favorable comments. 3. Consumer performance Customers, especially coffee-lovers, became connoisseurs through the education process of coffee, which is a part of â€Å"Starbucks Experience†. Those educated customers would look for superior alternatives to satisfy the appetite. Another factor that affects sales is local preference. Customers could prefer different flavors and different types of coffee in different regions and areas.Ignoring the custom is the main aspect that leads to the failure of Starbucks in Australia. STARBUCKS IN 2009 4 4. Excessive store expansions One of Starbucks’ operating strategies is to increase its market share by continuing to open new stores in the existing market, and expanding stores in the new market to support its long-term strategy. Du ring the recession, Starbucks did not slow down the expansion which resulted in 300 store closures and 6700 job losses in 2009. In 2008, cost of sales increased from $3999 million to $4645 million from the previous year. The store operating expenses have increased $528. 0 million between 2006 and 2007; and the long-term debt has also increased from $2. 7 million in 2006 to $550. 9 million in 2007 (Table 1 in the Appendix). 5. â€Å"Starbucks Experience† brand dilution Although Starbucks has already created a distinguished mission and value for the last twenty years, consumers’ perception towards the â€Å"Starbucks Experience† has changed rapidly. Consumers are becoming too familiar with the brand and consider Starbucks’ product overpriced compared to other coffee stores in the market. Many questions arise to if consumers really value and recognized the â€Å"Starbucks Experience†.Starbucks current strategies and evaluation 1. Rediscover and Revita lize Starbucks Experience The â€Å"Starbucks Experience† includes the high quality coffee beans, employee involvement, community relations, social purpose, the layout and design of the stores, STARBUCKS IN 2009 5 and Starbucks location strategy. Howard Schultz’s strategy is to redefine the core brand value. Although the company has a well-established image in the market in the past twenty years, the same distinctiveness and concept might not have the same appeal to the consumers in the second decade of the twenty first century. . Revise mission statement and objectives: According to the Starbucks Corporation report for Fiscal Year 2008, Starbucks aims to establish itself as one of the most recognized and respected brands in the world through continuing expansion of its retail operations, growing its specialty operations, and pursuing other opportunities by introducing new products and developing new channels of distribution. This strategy shows that Starbucks place th eir attention on the scale and leading position of the company, and underestimate the importance of branding and differentiation.Both the fast expansion and over diversification would hurt the brand concept and cover the outstanding features, which could be proved by the decreased gross margin showed in the following graph. STARBUCKS IN 2009 6 Gross Margin of Starbucks 0. 53 0. 52 0. 51 0. 5 0. 49 0. 48 0. 47 0. 46 0. 45 0. 44 2006 2007 2008 Gross Margin 3. Re-emphasize core value Although one of the â€Å"Starbucks Experience† location strategies is to cluster 20 or more stores in each urban hub, Howard Schultz have re-emphasized the core value of the company and reduced store expansions in 2008.Under operating expenses, it shows the total of $266. 9 million in restructuring charges as the company is reducing retail stores that are not profitable. The total net stores opened in United States were only 445 in 2008 year ended, compared to 1065 net stores opened in 2009 year en ded. Starbucks also closed 64 stores in Australia due to the highly competitive environment of European culture influences. Instead of opening more retails in the city, the company has increased the drive-thru stores in the suburban locations in the U.S. and Canada, with approximately 35 percent and 31 percent of growth between 2007 and 2008. The decision of restructuring stores in 2008 cause a great lost in the company. However, the changes were necessary for the company to re-focus and re-define its core value of â€Å"Starbucks Experience† which leads the company to a fresh start in the following year. STARBUCKS IN 2009 7 4. Reconnect with customers through community projects and social responsibility â€Å"Perhaps we have the opportunity to be a different type of global company.One that makes a profit but at the same time demonstrates a social conscience†, this was Schultz’s vision for the company and showed his concern for re-establishing Starbucks social r esponsibility. In 2008 Starbucks held their annual meeting in New Orleans and used this as an opportunity to raise 10,000 volunteers to take part in various community projects to help rebuild this area. They have also created what they call Starbucks Shared Planet; which focuses on ethical sourcing, environmental stewardship and community involvement.Starbucks knows how important it is to their customers that they are socially responsible and offer something different and outstanding in comparison to their competitors. 5. Review operating practices Starbucks operates in both company-operated and licensed retail stores, and provides packaged coffee, tea and other branded products through a licensing relationship with partners. Starbucks installed new coffee making equipment, which cost millions of dollars, to emphasis the â€Å"hand-made† feature. They also revised the food menu and removed the non-core products to avoid the conflict among concepts.Around 84 percent of total n et revenues during fiscal 2008 came from the company-operated retail stores. By maintaining and developing company-operated retail stores, it could help keep the leading position and the experience provided by Starbucks STARBUCKS IN 2009 8 based on the superior customer service to reflect personality and build loyalty. On the other hand, the strategy of licensing rights to operate retail stores and produce branded products through partnership improves the awareness of Starbucks and reduces barriers to developing new markets through the local advantage of partners.Although it brought up the operating expenses both in U. S. and international markets, upgrading the coffee machine is a positive approach to keep consistency with the â€Å"Starbucks Experience† and Starbucks image. Once the coffee is made individually from freshly ground beans, the customers would notice the â€Å"hand-made† feature, which results in a different perception from other competitors. Since foods ervice sales accounted for 17 percent of all products and Starbucks gained about 5 percent of total revenues through providing food in the U. S. market, food is still a crucial element of the business.Therefore, it is necessary to seriously think about reinventing the food menu—distinguishing the conflicts and then removing the products that really affect atmosphere—rather than cancelling all the options. 6. Remain shareholder value Base on the annual report of Starbucks in 2007 and 2008, the company did not pay cash dividends to share holders, as well as in the near future (Starbucks, 2007&2008). The factors that influenced the stock price are comprised of company’s operational and financial performance, current and future industrial condition, and external economic situation. STARBUCKS IN 2009 9In 2008, investors were concerned about the current situation of Starbucks as many companies were facing bankruptcy, the stock price went down quickly due to selling st ocks to receive cash. In order to increase the confidence of shareholders, the CEO of Starbucks pronounced that company would keep forces on create long-term shareholder value. During the financial crisis, it was hard to let people believe in the future. Starbucks must make changes on their performance to satisfy the investors. However, the data shows that it was continuing deteriorated. The operating margin and net margin kept falling, which would disappoint shareholders. . 16 0. 14 0. 12 0. 1 0. 08 0. 06 0. 04 0. 02 0 2005 2006 2007 2008 Operating Margin Net Margin 7. Re-emphasize employee values to the company After Schultz returned as CEO, he was driven to reignite his commitment to his employees in which he referred to as partners. In the past the company has done many STARBUCKS IN 2009 10 things to insure a workplace that people would be proud to work for. Schultz offers full health care benefits to all employees including part time; by doing this the company has dramatically lowered their turnover rate compared to other companies in the industry.During the hard time of reduced revenues Schultz realized the importance of bringing the full â€Å"Starbucks Experience† to each and every customer, and to do that he needed to have dedicated employees. Losing a knowledgeable and trained barista meant losing their valuable customer relationships that they have created. Schultz took human resource very seriously and made sure to meet with all levels of the company to reconsider and realign their purpose and principles and re-establish their connection with their customers.From Schultz’s perspective focusing on and improving the â€Å"Starbucks Experience† was just as important, if not more important than number crunching. Analysis and recommendations It is important for Starbucks to utilize three main stream strategic tools to see the issues of the organization and make action orientated plan. 1. SOAR analysis Strengths †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ Strong business ethic Consistency within stores Many locations, equalling convenience Well known brand recognition STARBUCKS IN 2009 11 †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ Clear positioning Loyalty to customers Strong company culture Quality of product International presenceOpportunities †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ Continuous cooperation with local farmers Conducting more research before quickly penetrating area Recognize consumer behaviour regarding new trends in the coffee industry Focusing on potential competitors (McDonalds/Tim Hortons) Sponsorship of local community events Aspirations †¢ †¢ Recreate â€Å"Starbucks Experience† Implement third place, â€Å"Home – Work – Starbucks† Results †¢ †¢ Measure by re-establishing SOAR every 3, 6, and 9 months Measured by aspirations becoming strengths and opportunities becoming results 2.Competitive analysis Based on the Porter’s Five Force model, the compe titive environment that Starbucks faces could be considered in following five aspects: STARBUCKS IN 2009 12 Bargaining power of suppliers—low Starbucks purchases large amounts of coffee beans directly from farmers all over the world, and they have built a relative stable relationship with some high quality coffee providers. Under this circumstance, the suppliers are at a disadvantage in the bargaining. Bargaining power of buyers—low Individual customers who consist of the majority of the target market usually do not have bargaining power, compared with a large corporation.In addition, customers have gradually accepted the slightly higher price of Starbucks because of the increasing awareness that they are paying for not only the coffee and food, but also the service and experience. Threats of substitutes—medium The substitutes of coffee could be tea, juice, soft drinks, milk, and other kinds of drinks. Since the similarity among these groups is relatively low, e specially for coffee-lovers, and the distinct flavor and functions, coffee is a special category.However, considering the experience that Starbucks wants to provide to customers, some other retail stores, such as ice-cream stores, would also target on the same market, which is the substitute of the â€Å"Starbucks Experience†. STARBUCKS IN 2009 13 Threats of potential entrants—high Starbucks has a large amount of potential entrants, including ? New ventures that have plan to enter the market and become big corporations or national chains ? ? Local independent coffee shops that provide high quality imported coffee. Large national chains, such as Tim Hortons and Burger King, that start to serve gourment coffee and become high-end.Since the entry barrier of the specialty coffee industry is relatively low, new entrants could share the market and develop their loyal customers without high technology and heavy investment. Rivalry among existing firms—high Most coffee- shop chains that provide high-end coffee and relaxing experience would be considered as existing competitors of Starbucks. The competitive situation would vary enormously from country to country. The most typical and powerful competitors are Caribou Coffee, McDonald’s, and Dunkin’ Donuts. ? Caribou Coffee is the nearest competitor in the U. S. arket, which has 495 coffee shops in 15 states and ? In 2001, McDonald’s-run coffee counters were placed inside of McDonald’s stores, offering espresso drinks as well as teas and pastries. Consumer Reports magazine rated McDonald’s regular coffee as better tasting than Starbucks as well as other STARBUCKS IN 2009 14 national competitors 6 years later. In January 2008, McDonald’s announced it would begin installing coffee bars, called McCafe throughout its US stores, and priced , these drinks between $1. 99 and $3. 29. By comparison, Starbucks’ comparable drink versions were priced between $2. 65 and $4. 5, a premium of approximately one-third (Seaford & Culp & Brooks, 2008). ? Starbucks considered Dunkin Donuts as an indirect competitor that competed within the lower-end convenience-oriented fast-food market; however, Dunkin Donuts pursued an aggressive growth strategy that shifted its positioning to coffee, and reached the top selling retailer of coffee-by-the-cup in America at 2. 7 million cups a day by 2006 (Seaford & Culp & Brooks, 2008). Besides, Starbucks also needs to grab market share from Nescafe and Lavazza who introduced sophisticated easy-to-use coffee system that help customers make good coffee at home. . Value chain analysis Firm Infrastructure The â€Å"Starbucks Experience†, including the store design and layout, involves a unique experience that the consumers will not receive it anywhere else. Starbucks also incorporates local stories and culture when designing the store; this creates a community involvement and more personal experience for the cust omers. Customers who buy Starbucks product are not only purchasing a simple beverage, they STARBUCKS IN 2009 15 are purchasing an experience and bring back the value for the company.Human Resource Starbucks believes in a workplace where people are treated equally and respectfully; also to inspire them and to share in its success. The company offers extensive training for their employees, to involve them in the company culture. Starbucks creates value and company morals for their employees by providing them with great health benefits and empowering them in the decision making process. Employees then create value for the company in return by selling Starbucks product. Technology Development Starbucks is always trying to be innovated in the market by introducing new technologies and creative products.The POS system provides efficiency when placing customer orders and it also detects sales on specific products for managers to monitor certain sales patterns. Starbucks’ Verismo mac hine also plays an important part of the company’s technology development by providing fast production of high quality beverage to their customers. Procurement Starbucks has a huge buying power internationally and has a great long-term relationship STARBUCKS IN 2009 16 with the local coffee beans suppliers. This helps the company control costs, in turn being able to create greater value and profit for the organization.Operations From selecting and searching high quality coffee beans all over the globe to the cup of coffee prepared by certified Baristas; Starbucks’ operation process creates a standardized guideline all across the organization by the efficient service from all level of employees and management. Outbound logistics Starbucks’ distribution system is expansive, including the storefront retail stores, licensed products and brand, as well as airport terminals. The company also offers mobile apps, and loyalty cards for regular customers to provide effici ency and show appreciation of their business to the company.Marketing and Sales In order to provide greater consumer value, Starbucks has created many loyalty programs for return customers as well as frequent promotions and new flavored beverages to keep its product interesting. The company also focuses on holiday season products such as holiday flavor beverages and merchandises to add value for the existing products. STARBUCKS IN 2009 17 Recommendation: Considering the increasing average price of coffee beans resulted from the resource shortages, Starbucks would face a higher costs of material and more powerful suppliers.Planning vertical integration to unite or own the valuable farms and plants could effectively guarantee the supply and control costs. Maintaining a clear brand image and position and holding the principles and concepts that have long been implemented are effective approaches to survive Starbucks within the fierce competition. The unfavorable opinions of customers t owards VIA instant coffee make it clear that aggressive expanding and changing for competition would confuse consumers and lose market.Since in-store atmosphere, free Wi-Fi, and considerate customer service are no longer the unique features of Starbucks, it is necessary to create new ideas to develop â€Å"Starbucks Experience† that makes Starbucks different. Figuring out more ways that are consistent with the core value of the brand to integrate and re-launch the concept of â€Å"Starbucks Experience† to motivate customers by turning familiar things new. STARBUCKS IN 2009 18 Appendix Table 1. The table of figures showed in the graphs: 2008 ROA ROE Gross Margin Operating margin Net Margin 12. 67% 8. 88% 0. 470 0. 057 0. 036 2007 29. 45% 19. 72% 0. 00 0. 132 0. 084 2006 25. 32% 20. 19% 0. 517 0. 136 0. 086 0. 145 0. 092 2005 23. 65% 22. 21% STARBUCKS IN 2009 19 REFERENCES Grant, R. M. (2010). Contemporary Strategy Analysis (seven editions). Chichester: John Wiley & Sons . PEW. (2009). The Impact of the September 2008 Economic Collapse. Retrieved January 31, 2013, from http://www. pewtrusts. org/our_work_report_detail. aspx? id=58695 Seaford, B. C. & Culp, R. C. & Brooks, B. W. (2008). Starbucks: Maintaining A Clear Position. Journal of the International Academy for Case Studies, 18(3), 39-57. Starbucks Corporation. (2008). Fiscal 2008 Annual Report.

Coltrane’s Musical Influences in Michael S. Harper’s Poetry

Alabama – the love supreme: Coltrane’s Musical Influences in Michael S. Harper’s Poetry to Convey the Ability to Experience Racism Alabama – the love supreme: Coltrane’s Musical Influences in Michael S. Harper’s Poetry to Convey the Ability to Experience Racism In 1963, a K K K member blew up a church in Birmingham, Alabama. It wounded many people and killed four immature misss. Shortly after this tragic event, wind musician John Coltrane responded with his vocal â€Å"Alabama, † which incorporated similar beat to Martin Luther King, Jr’s addresss. He became a symbol of black patriotism. A little less than a decennary subsequently Michael S. Harper writes his verse form â€Å"Here Where Coltrane Is, † compiled in the bookHistory is Your Own Pulse. The verse form in this anthology are much like those in his old, and foremost, digest,Dear John, Dear Coltrane. Both aggregations of poesy show window Harper’s strengths as a author ; a strong narrative mixed in with redolent imagination. With â€Å"Here Where Coltrane Is, † Harper introduces us to a talker who is enduring of the cold conditions and get bying with the decease of a household member. But, through Coltrane’s music, he finds consolation, parti cularly in the vocal â€Å"Alabama† ( Michael S. Harper, L16 ) . H In his verse form â€Å"Here Where Coltrane Is, † Michael S. Harper uses the John Coltrane song â€Å"Alabama† as a agency of understanding what precisely it’s like to cognize racism first-hand. â€Å"Here Where Coltrane Is† is a lyrical verse form. The construction of the verse form evokes a sort of wind solo separated by two musical Bridgess. But the beat isn’t exact, and that’s the manner it’s meant to be. In lines 3 and 4, Harper describes â€Å"memories and average vocals, † ( Harper, L3-4 ) which in the universe of music means that a vocal doesn’t follow typical chord patterned advances. This can take easy into improvisations and solos. Coltrane was celebrated for making precisely that, giving his music a alone sound and feel. And average vocals, like memories, have a really liquid and free-forming construction, therefore the comparing. The rubric of the verse form is a apposition amongst itself, in respects to the word â€Å"Here† which acts as a dual significance homophone. It describes thatherein the verse form resides Coltrane, either in jet or merely by reference, but besideshearas in listen ; listen to what Coltran e was singing approximately and where he’s coming from. This sets up the verse form as a lyrical verse form as the reader is meant to listen to it beyond merely reading it. The first portion of the verse form chiefly focuses on the historical facet of racism, specifically the African Slave Triangle in the early phases of American development. The verse form opens with two ( three, technically ) words: â€Å"soul and race† ( Harper, L1 ) . A common belief back so was that the Europeans could enslave the Africans in order to salvage their psyche. This gap line truly roots the verse form historically and begins with the beginning of racism in America. This could associate the more metaphorical devastation of inkinesss in the American Slave Trade to the four misss killed in the Alabama bombardments that he mentions subsequently on in the verse form. This besides sheds visible radiation on the American thought of â€Å"freedom† that is more than accepting of the slaying and captivity of inkinesss throughout history. Subsequently, in line 7, Harper mentions a â€Å"Victorian house.† ( Harper, L7 ) . This could be in mention to Victorian Era ideals which deal chiefly in morality and rationalism. This is the exact antonym of what was go oning during the American Slave Trade. But this Victorian manner of place might merely be a wall to bury about the unfairnesss done in the yesteryear in an effort to concentrate on ethical motives and pureness. After the reference of the Victorian house, Harper talks about the rough conditions conditions environing the talker ; â€Å"zero degree weather and forty-mile-an-hour wind† ( Harper, L8-9 ) and â€Å"without oil† ( Harper, L8 ) to maintain warm. This could associate to the rough conditions typically sung about in blues and wind music, which was the genre Coltrane played. But the storm begins to ease up, represented by the image of â€Å"a well-set family† ( Harper, L10 ) one time the talker listens to â€Å"a love supreme† ( Harper, L11 ) . Coltrane wrote this album while he was get the better ofing dependence and self-suffering. At this point the verse form comes full halt with the period ; it is the first span of the vocal in this lyrical manner. The talker comes to footings with his agony in the cross-generational relatability in Coltrane’s work, as it non merely embodies life but the agony of the inkinesss. A few lines down he depict â€Å"clear white kids who love my children† ( Harper, L14-15 ) . This, I feel, is the large point that the verse form is seeking to turn to. The â€Å"clear† white kids are uncaring as to whether or non the speaker’s kids are black ( which I presumed due to the fact that the white kids are introduced by race, doing it an identifier ) . This is because they haven’t been introduced to racism yet. Racism is a historical ideal that older coevalss feel worse than the newer 1s, which is why they’re kids. The grownups might be racist, but their childs aren’t ( for now, at least ) . The â€Å"oak leaves pil [ ing ] up on [ the ] walkway† ( Harper, L12 ) invokes an image of autumn. Fall usually gives off the feel of decease, but besides metempsychosis. With the old oak leaves on the land, new 1s will turn. This relates back to the thought that people aren’t born racialist. Harper continues this thought of being born free and â€Å"clear† ( Harper, L14 ) continues in the following subdivision when he mentions the Coltrane vocal â€Å"Alabama† ( Harper, L16 ) . Before we had elements of racial harmoniousness, but now we get disharmony. The â€Å"warped record participant jumping the scratches† ( Harper, L17-18 ) might associate to the fact that most Americans like to gloss over our troubled and racialist yesteryear, similar to how a warped record will jump over sections of a vocal. The verse form flash-forwards an undetermined clip when the talker is going â€Å"from New York to Philly, † ( Harper, L22-23 ) . Even after the events in the first portion of the verse form occurred, the talker still remains affiliated to the vocal â€Å"Alabama, † specifically it’s â€Å"six notes† ( Harper, L23-24 ) that the vocal repetition. The talker begins to retrieve Coltrane specifically and categorizes him in the same division as two of the most powerful and of import talkers of the American Civil Rights Movement ; Martin Luther King, Jr. and Malcom X. Both of these influential work forces are mentioned a few lines down, with Coltrane shuting the three: For this ground Martin is dead ; for this ground Malcom is dead ; for this ground Coltrane is dead ; The repetitive construction makes it clear that Harper is chunking them together with the same importance. In this portion of the verse form, Harper changes the form suggested by the old two musical Bridgess earlier. He utilizes the same extremist alterations that Coltrane used in his music and that Martin Luther King, Jr. and Malcom X strived to accomplish. â€Å"Here Where Coltrane Is† brings to illume the importance that a person’s music, or in this instance a individual vocal, can hold on person. Harper incorporates Coltrane’s manner of music public presentations into his Hagiographas to raise a sense of alteration and relatability, allowing one in on the incident of racism in American civilization. It opened a window to the yesteryear in the hope that the hereafter may be changed.

Schizophrenia Research Paper

Schizophrenia Research Paper Schizophrenia is a mental illness that is categorized as a physhotic illness. I became interesting in Schizophrenia because of a non-fiction movie called â€Å"A Beautiful Mind† directed by Ron Howard. In this story, John Nash starts see three people who are not real during the time when he entered graduate school. He believed the visions that he sees were real, until his wife and doctor of psychology told him that it is not. John also believed that he is working for a U.S. mysterious conspiracy project in secret, and that made him to be persecuted and he was not able to have an ordinary life. Even though after treatment, he still sees non-real visions that never disappeared from his life. However, this movie expressed that Schizophrenia is a brain damaged disorder and some researchers were against this idea. Is schizophrenia really not brain disorder? Then how does it happened? In John’s case, his non-real visions did not disappeared even though he took medical treatme nt. Is there any other treatment for schizophrenia, or is not treatable? People who have schizophrenia cannot tell the difference between what is real and what is just an imagination. This happens to 1% of the population and usually starts in early adulthood around 15 to 25 years of age, and usually happens after having a particular stressful time. Some common symptoms are the following:   Strange beliefs or thoughts with little no basis in reality (called delusions). For example, you may think that you have special powers. Or you may think someone from the house next door is trying to control your thoughts or feelings (called paranoid delusions).   Hearing, seeing, feeling, or even smelling things that are not there (called hallucinations). For example you may hear voices talking about you.   Thoughts ‘jumping between completely unrelated topics (called disordered thinking). This can make conversations difficult.   Inappropriate behavior, for example taking your clothes off in public.   Lack of awareness of other people’s feelings. Or you may not show your own feelings or emotions, possibly having a blank facial expression.   Lack of pleasure or interest in activities. This could be social occasions you used to enjoy, like seeing friends, or going to the pub.   Difficulty in concentrating, making decisions or planning.   Feeling depressed or anxious. (emental-health.com) Schizophrenia patients usually have these symptoms after they are having a terrible emotional or psychological pain, and feel withdrawn from society. Some patients are usually interested in cults, and isolate themselves from society, such as being secluded in their room with minimum contact with people. Although the possibilities are only a small percentage, genetics plays a role in schizophrenia in their family or their close relatives. As I noted earlier that schizophrenia onset in early adulthood, but they often shows â€Å"soft-sign† in their childhood. Dr.B Green Hon, at University of Liver pool UK describes some symptoms that is shown in children around the age of 4 to 6 who associated with later schizophrenia is that late walk, speech problems, and preferring to play alone. Again, psychiatrists, biologists, and many other researchers say that schizophrenia is not a brain disease because only about 12% of patients, who had brain tests, showed some abnormalities, and resu lts showed that more than 80% were within normal ranges. (WeilertWeinberger,1998) Dr B Green says that â€Å"patients with schizophrenia were normal people driven insane by an insane world†. (#1) However, he also said that it is possible that some schizophrenia patients have â€Å"neurochemical imbalances, neurodevelopmental problems, genetic defects, viral infections, or perinatal damage amongst other cases†. There are other discoveries about schizophrenia that is noted by Adam Marcus, he says that the patients’ sensory switch boards, at their very earliest time of the disease, is too small and tells why they have such troubles in their life dealing with the situations around them. And also the thalamus is shrunken, thus neurogical hub have to help vast network of signals, and probably causes the patients’ â€Å"confusion and overload that characterizes the disorder†, said Marcus. (#2) Other than these discovery is that a study team from the Johns Hopkins school of Medicine in Baltimore that they found â€Å" an â€Å"unexpectedly† high level of the retroviral traces in cerebrospinal fluid taken from the schizophrenics, compared to very little in the other study subjects†. (#3) However, again, they say that this is not the complete answer to the genesis of schizophrenia. Scientists and psychiatrists have been focusing on and studied specifically on the thalamus, neuron, or genetic and other brain causation to schizophrenia, but still the cause of schizophrenia has not been found. Some major treatments for schizophrenia are medications called â€Å"antipsychotics†, and they are usually taken with therapy. The main target of medication is to reduce dopamine because there are too much of dopamine activity inside of the patients’ brain. Antipsychotics are a major treatment that is used for most patients, but it may not treat all the symptoms of schizophrenia. Delusions and hallucinations are often reduced, but difficulty of making decision and remembering tend to remain. There is another medication called Atypical antipsychotics which act in different ways for older patients. However the medications work in many ways and it works very differently for each person and usually has some unpleasant side-effects. To develop the medication without side-effects are encouraged in the future. Besides the medication, one very important treatment is the support of family and friends. Since the common symptoms of schizophrenia are that patient’s feeling o f withdraw or isolation from society, better family communication skills are needed. Family needs to be educated to be aware of the patient’s symptoms. Also, training for socialize skills and positive thought are helpful for patients to engage society. Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is one that has been successfully for patients to recover from symptoms of delusions, hallucinations, or depressions. CBT for schizophrenia is the training of patients for â€Å"understanding, challenging, and testing negative thought patterns and delusions†. (#4) Like I noted earlier, the completed answer for the causation of schizophrenia is unknown, but most of the patients with schizophrenia have shown significant improvement, though usually takes long-term treatments during their whole life. However, some patients still attempt suicides. As one of symptoms shows that it has hallucinations and delusions, the voice tells patient to kill themselves or order them to do a criminal act. That is the fear side of the schizophrenia affect. There are some criminal incidents by people shows these symptoms or typically cult group. An example of cult group called â€Å"Aum† in Japan, 1996. They strongly believed that they have voice from God and given a special powers to protect themselves from people who are causing to destroy this world. I really don’t know if Shoko Asahara, who was the founder of Aum cult group, was having schizophrenia, or he was simply just one of those cruel murderers. In fact, nobody mentioned about any serious mental disorder about him. But I heard that some believers in Aum said that they received special powers from God through their training under Asahara’s teachings, and they became able to catch the voice from God. Probably they were minded controlled at first, but as they belief become stronger, they will begin to be not able to tell the difference between what is real and what is just imagination. Many of those believers were typically well on some academic study knowledge when they were at school, but they had wither no friends or had poor relationships with their family, and are usually isolated from society since they were young. This applies to most of the common symptoms of schizophrenia. Mass suicide of cult group is a typical action for people who believe in cults. Another example is told by Dr B Green’s case history of Shakil. Shakil, at the age of 32, was founded by his brother after several years since Shakil was missing from his family home. When shakil’s brother found him, he was eating an uncooked pigeon in a room with no furniture. Shakil believed that he is protecting God, call Abu-Lafram, from the evils of western civilization that is coming through the wall by tin foil to line the walls of flats. Shakil was hearing voices that a third person can’t hear, and he was living in an abnormal condition. When his brother told Shakil about their mother’s death, which happened while Shakil was missing, he even lighted and said that his mother was â€Å"a white cloud in a darkening and prejudiced sky†. He didn’t even show sympathy for his mother’s death. People who has schizophrenia may turn violent to somebody else, or become harmful to themselves. The best thing is if their family or friends are able to find out the symptoms of the patients in their early stages, and early treatment is more effective for recovery in the short-term. However, at the present studies, nobody can tell who develop the schizophrenia or why, and its also difficult to tell what kind of treatment is the best for each person. In order to help patients who suffer from symptoms of schizophrenia significantly, much more studies into each case of schizophrenia is needed. Also the courage for patients to talk their problems to people and their participation in therapy is necessary, also being more educate about schizophrenia would be helpful.

Free Essays on God’s Existence In Modern American Schools

Everyone has a parent, someone from whom they were born. Most American’s have parental figures in their life whether it’s a mom and dad, two mommies, or two daddies. However since the beginning of time there has always been another figure in life, God. He has been a guiding light in dark times, an ear to talk to, and inspiration to many Americans. However as children grow, all fathers should come to realize that the children would grow apart and start a new life without him in their lives, or is this Holy Father different? America was founded on Christianity beliefs originally. Most people traveled here to be free and practice their religion without persecution. After hundred’s of years of keeping God involved in our American lifestyle, we have ‘thrown’ him away, and now we are trying to get him back. John Riley, staff correspondent for NEWSDAY, wrote an article about the issue of God in our American schools. The article is about what students should learn in school about the development and evolution of man in biology in Dover Pennsylvania. Some people believe that Darwin’s Theory of Evolution should continue to be taught as apposed to the Intellectual design. Darwin’s theory accounts for some of scientific theory based upon factual findings by Darwin himself. However there are gaps in Darwin’s theory that can’t be explained scientifically. That is where Intellectual design comes in. Intellectual design is the explanation of evolution and the creation of man from God himself from the Holy book. The Dover population would like to learn an alternative to Darwin’s theory; however the only choice they have is Intellectual design. â€Å"All the ‘alternatives’ to evolution are religion- or creation based,† (column 4, line 17) is w here one commenter stands. John Riley wrote a well written article based upon a heated subject. The context is easily understandable for most age groups, especially young readers. The use... Free Essays on God’s Existence In Modern American Schools Free Essays on God’s Existence In Modern American Schools Everyone has a parent, someone from whom they were born. Most American’s have parental figures in their life whether it’s a mom and dad, two mommies, or two daddies. However since the beginning of time there has always been another figure in life, God. He has been a guiding light in dark times, an ear to talk to, and inspiration to many Americans. However as children grow, all fathers should come to realize that the children would grow apart and start a new life without him in their lives, or is this Holy Father different? America was founded on Christianity beliefs originally. Most people traveled here to be free and practice their religion without persecution. After hundred’s of years of keeping God involved in our American lifestyle, we have ‘thrown’ him away, and now we are trying to get him back. John Riley, staff correspondent for NEWSDAY, wrote an article about the issue of God in our American schools. The article is about what students should learn in school about the development and evolution of man in biology in Dover Pennsylvania. Some people believe that Darwin’s Theory of Evolution should continue to be taught as apposed to the Intellectual design. Darwin’s theory accounts for some of scientific theory based upon factual findings by Darwin himself. However there are gaps in Darwin’s theory that can’t be explained scientifically. That is where Intellectual design comes in. Intellectual design is the explanation of evolution and the creation of man from God himself from the Holy book. The Dover population would like to learn an alternative to Darwin’s theory; however the only choice they have is Intellectual design. â€Å"All the ‘alternatives’ to evolution are religion- or creation based,† (column 4, line 17) is w here one commenter stands. John Riley wrote a well written article based upon a heated subject. The context is easily understandable for most age groups, especially young readers. The use...

5 visas para estudiar high school en Estados Unidos

5 visas para estudiar high school en Estados Unidos Muchos padres de otros paà ­ses desean que sus hijos cursen un aà ±o de high school en Estados Unidos. Si eres uno de ellos y te preguntas quà © visa se requiere, debes saber que hay varias opciones.  Tambià ©n es importante saber cul no se deberà ­a utilizar, ya que es una violacià ³n migratoria que puede dar lugar a problemas graves. En este artà ­culo se brinda informacià ³n sobre todas las visas americanas que permiten estudiar en Estados Unidos con anlisis detallado de cada una de ellas, con sus ventajas e inconvenientes y las visas que son derivadas de à ©sas. Adems, se explica los posibles problemas de estudiar con una visa de turista. Tipos de visas americanas que permiten estudiar high school en Estados Unidos Son las siguientes: J-1, que es una visa de intercambio con un programa que permite estudiar.  F-1, que es una visa de estudiante acadà ©mico.F-3, una visa exclusivamente para mexicanos y canadienses.  M-1,visa para estudios vocacionales y tà ©cnicos.M-3, visa para estudios vocacionales para mexicanos y canadienses. Cada visa tiene sus propias reglas, por lo que debe saberse cul es la que mejor se adapta a las necesidades de cada estudiante.   Visas J-1 para estudiar high school en Estados Unidos Bajo el nombre de visas J-1 de intercambio se encuentran programas muy diversos entre sà ­. Entre ellos, el que permite a los estudiantes internacionales realizar estudios de secundaria en los Estados Unidos. Sus principales caracterà ­sticas son: El dà ­a en que comienzan las clases el estudiante debe tener ms de 15 aà ±os de edad y menos de 18 aà ±os y seis meses. Adems, como mximo, el estudiante sà ³lo puede haber completado 11 grados (cursos) a contar desde el inicio de la educacià ³n obligatoria en su paà ­s. Mientras realiza sus estudios en Estados Unidos, el estudiante internacional no puede vivir en casa de familiares o de amigos de la familia. Obligatoriamente debe alojarse en un internado o con una familia estadounidense de acogida designada por los administradores del programa. Se puede estudiar en una escuela pà ºblica o en una privada, pero no se puede haber estudiado previamente en Estados Unidos ni con una visa J-1 ni con una F-1 en programas acadà ©micos por un aà ±o o en semestres de intercambio, pero sà ­ en programas de estudios de inglà ©s en verano o semejantes. Los estudiantes internacionales pueden, previa autorizacià ³n, participar en actividades extraescolares deportivas. Pero no pueden trabajar, salvo actividades espordicas como cuidar nià ±os, conocido en inglà ©s como baby-sitting. Por à ºltimo, es imprescindible para obtener la visa J-1 iniciar los trmites a travà ©s de una organizacià ³n autorizada por el gobierno de los Estados Unidos. Es frecuente que fuera de los Estados Unidos existan organizaciones que colaboran con las estadounidenses para reclutar alumnos o facilitar la tramitacià ³n de  todos los papeles necesarios. Pero los patrocinadores reales de esta visa son siempre los expresamente mencionados en el listado de Designated Sponsor Organizations. Para encontrar los que aplican especà ­ficamente a este programa, en la opcià ³n de Program, clickar en la flecha y buscar  la opcià ³n de Secondary School Students. Se inicia todo el proceso contactando con una de esas organizaciones. En otras palabras, no se puede solicitar la visa al consulado o a la embajada sin tener documentacià ³n previa que obligatoriamente deben dar una de las organizaciones patrocinadoras. La visa F-1 para estudiar high school en Estados Unidos La visa F-1 es utilizada frecuentemente por los estudiantes internacionales que desean residir con un familiar, por ejemplo, tà ­os o abuelos, mientras estn cursando sus estudios, pero la puede utilizar cualquier estudiante internacional de high school que no desee estar limitado por las reglas de la visa J-1, explicadas en el prrafo anterior.   Para estudiar la secundaria con este tipo de visa hay que conocer las reglas: En primer lugar, sà ³lo se puede estudiar la secundaria, es decir, grados 9 a 12. No se puede solicitar una visa F-1 para cursar estudios en primaria. En segundo lugar, sà ³lo se puede cursar un aà ±o acadà ©mico por un mximo de 12 meses. Este là ­mite sà ³lo aplica a escuelas pà ºblicas pero no a las privadas o a programas para estudio de inglà ©s. En tercer lugar, es  obligatorio pagar el costo de la educacià ³n a la escuela. Esto es asà ­ aà ºn cuando se trate de high schools pà ºblicas. Por ley no se puede ignorar este requerimiento. El costo varà ­a de escuela a escuela y puede ir de los $3,000 a los $10,000.   Y en cuarto lugar, antes de solicitar la visa es necesario contactar con la high school que debe emitir un documento que se conoce como I-20 para iniciarse asà ­ el proceso de la peticià ³n. Es decir, primero se es admitido y luego se solicita al consulado el otorgamiento de la visa. La visa F-3 para mexicanos y canadienses Los estudiantes mexicanos y canadienses  o los residentes legales que residen en Mà ©xico o Canad y que residen a lo largo de la frontera on Estados Unidos y que desean realizar estudios en una institucià ³n fronteriza pueden solicitar una visa F-3, que es muy similar pero distinta en sus requerimientos a una visa F-1. Uno de las limitaciones ms importantes a tener en cuenta es que no se puede elegir estudiar en cualquier high school sino que la escuela elegida debe estar como mximo a 75 millas de la frontera. Adems, es obligatorio que el estudiante conserve su residencia en su paà ­s de origen. Visas M-1 y M-3 La visa M-1 permite realizar en Estados Unidos estudios vocacionales y tà ©cnicos, es decir, no acadà ©micos, por ejemplo, relacionados con Mà ºsica, Arte, Cocina, etc. Sus reglas son similares a las de la F-1, aunque no iguales. Para solicitarla primero es necesario haber sido  admitido previamente en el programa que se desea cursar y obtener el documento que se conoce como I-20 que debe emitir la escuela. Sà ³lo a continuacià ³n se puede pedir la visa M-1 en el consulado correspondiente. La visa M-3 es un hà ­brido entre la M-1 y la F-3 y permite a los mexicanos y canadienses que residen en una ubicacià ³n cercana a la frontera con Estados Unidos cursar en este paà ­s estudios vocacionales o tà ©cnicos. Visas derivadas de las de estudiantes y quià ©n se puede beneficiar de ellas En Estados Unidos, las  visas temporales de trabajo, de estudios, de intercambio o de inversià ³n permiten que los cà ³nyuges y los  hijos menores de 21 aà ±os que estn solteros de las personas que tienen esas visas pueden acompaà ±arlos con lo que se conoce como una visa derivada. Por ejemplo, una investigadora con visa J-1 puede viajar a Estados Unidos con su cà ³nyuge, y à ©ste tendrà ­a una visa J-2. Sin embargo, en el caso que trata este artà ­culo, es decir, visas para estudiantes de high school, es altamente improbable que se solicite una visa derivada, por la edad del beneficiario de la visa.   Sin embargo, los padres del estudiante internacional no tiene derecho a una visa derivada. En otras palabras, no puede obtener una visa porque quiere estar en Estados Unidos acompaà ±ando a hijo o su hija mientras à ©ste est completando sus estudios. Error de estudiar en EEUU con estatus  de turista Por decisià ³n de la Corte Suprema todas las escuelas pà ºblicas estn obligadas a admitir estudiantes que viven en su distrito escolar. Esto es asà ­ para evitar que los nià ±os indocumentados se queden sin escolarizar. Pero esta regla es a veces abusada por estudiantes internacionales que estudian en escuelas pà ºblicas cuando se encuentran en los Estados Unidos en condicià ³n de turistas, ya porque tienen una visa B2 o porque son ciudadanos de paà ­ses que pueden ingresar a USA sin visa. Cuando se produce esta situacià ³n se est cometiendo una violacià ³n migratoria y, si es descubierta o se sospecha de esta situacià ³n los oficiales migratorios en la frontera estn autorizados para prohibirle el ingreso a Estados Unidos y a cancelarle la visa.   Asimismo se estn dando casos en los que cuando se detecta una de estas situaciones tambià ©n se cancela la visa americana a los padres del estudiante, si la tuvieran.   Y lo cierto es que una vez que se produce la cancelacià ³n de la visa por esta causa no es fcil que el consulado emita una nueva. Por esta razà ³n y porque es una ilegalidad migratoria, los estudiantes internacionales de high school deben ingresar a USA con la visa correcta. La à ºnica excepcià ³n es cuando se ingresa de vacaciones y se asiste a clases con carcter recreacional y siempre por menos de 19 horas a la semana. Convalidaciones, homologaciones y salto a college A la hora de estudiar en un paà ­s extranjero es importante conocer las reglas de homologacià ³n de estudios tanto de Estados Unidos como del propio paà ­s. Estas son las organizaciones que pueden convalidar para estudiar en USA. Por à ºltimo, si despuà ©s de estudiar la high school se desea continuar en un college o universidad, estos son los requisitos que se piden para tener à ©xito en la admisià ³n. Es un proceso complejo que conviene empezar con tiempo de antelacià ³n . Este artà ­culo es meramente informativo. No es asesorà ­a legal.

Sign language performance Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Sign language performance - Essay Example While conversing, I came to know that one of these ladies was a speech pathologist and therefore I let her know that I am studying this field also. Both of them were also very excited about the show like me. Upon getting inside, we eventually got seated while the deaf- blind actors were making dough on the stage and sometimes assistants provided directions to them in finding their spots but most of the time they used their sense of touch to detect the edges of the table. As the show began all lights were shut down and a background male voice started speaking in Hebrew. A translation screen was provided along with ASL interpreter. The actor started introducing himself and his fellows. He spoke for few dumb actors. Since they were lined up behind the cooking table, the mode utilized for transferring information was by tapping on the next person’s shoulder and used sign language by holding each others hand so they each of them know what they are signing. The piece of information was then transferred to the speak-able actor with finger spelling by tapping different part of the finger, and then the message was conveyed by the speak-able actor to the audience. One of the actor said he wants to run without help. Another actor said he wants to sing. The started by making bread and putting it in an onstage huge oven. Then while waiting for the bread to be ready, the actors and actresses presented different stories about their daily life, about how the y became deaf and mute, about how they feel about the world and how they perceive the world feels about them. I wish I could read their sign language right away during the show because I didn’t want to move my eyes to the translation screen instead of focusing on all the performance as it was inducing frustration. I was worried that I have missed the important part of their â€Å"speech†. By the end of the show, everyone sung a beautiful song using sign language and then actors invited audience to

Speed limit in texas going from 70 to 95 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Speed limit in texas going from 70 to 95 - Essay Example The speed limit of 80 is already too high, as too many people see it as an open door to go as fast as their cars will allow. According to Representative Joe Pickett of El Paso, Interstate 10 is â€Å"flat with a long line of sight and good shoulders. For people like us who travel that long distance, it could be good† to raise the speed limit even more (the_old_coach, 2011). Rightfully so, auto insurance providers are in an uproar over the bill, citing viable safety concerns. According to Jerry Johns, representative for the Southwestern Insurance Information Service, â€Å"†¦the two things that kill most people on our highways are speed and alcohol. Increasing it to 85, or even 75, will have a dramatic impact on the death and injury rate†¦ where it’s implemented† (the_old_coach, 2011). Drivers already exceed the 70 mph speed limits, and will continue to exceed the posted limits no matter how high they go. Allowing people to drive at 85 mph is simply too fast for any type of road. There is too much traffic, too many inexperienced drivers, and going at such blistering speeds is dangerous not only to the driver going the posted 80 mph, but to those who are interested in safety and economy going only 65 or 70 mph. granted, texas is the second largest state in the U.S., but that should not afford people the right to travel at any rate of speed that they so desire simply due to the size of the state in which they live. According to a recent research survey conducted by the Alberta Motor Association (2011), 88.6% of 2,394 total respondents failed to pass a basic driver knowledge test, which is based on the learner’s permit test. In order for respondents to pass this test, they had to answer 25 out of the 30 questions correctly, and the average score was 22. This is a stark reality, which most people choose not to face. Most people feel that they are the world’s best drivers, particularly those with over ten years driving exp erience. However, this does not prove that raising the speed limit from 70 to 85 will do texas any safe justice in traveling, because even the most experienced drivers have become so complacent that they can no longer pass a learner’s test. The idea of having a raised speed limit in texas is a bit grandiose, as it is unreasonable to pass such legislature. They need to consider not only the four-wheeled vehicles, but the semis as well. It is nearly impossible to fathom an 18-wheeler doing 85 mph, as their stopping distance, control and often inexperienced driver at the wheel in those cases as well are going to be a bane on texas society. The posted speed limit of 70 is rarely heeded, as most people take carte blanche with it wherever they go and cruise at a higher speed than is legal. By raising the speed limit to 85, texas is asking for more accidents, more casualties and more speeding tickets. Our law enforcement officers have a daunting job that they deal with every day, wh y would texas be silly enough to make it that much harder on them over an 85 mph speed limit? That is ridiculous. Texas is a phenomenal state, and I am proud to be a citizen. Nevertheless, it is simply foolishness to raise the speed

Planning Group Policy Software Deployments Assignment

Planning Group Policy Software Deployments - Assignment Example And as the systems advance, so do their working limits. 1. Efficient Installation of Software Using Each Phase of System Development Life Cycle A software installation for the security of Intellectual property is an uphill task in lieu of the complexities associated with the installation phase. System administrators are normally expected to be literate about the software and know what they are doing and thus most often no restrictions are imposed even by the most protected systems during software installs. To perform new software installations for several hundred users at a Californian firm as a junior network administrator, the problems and ambiguities faced during the installation phase cannot be over looked as they can stream in to extra costs. The threats imposed by the installation can be governed if certain strategies are employed at execution phase which includes assurance of no interference between the processing of un trusted/new software and existing packages, restriction o n the execution of new/un trusted software’s access to the operations other than that of the sand box and new/ un trusted software should be easily uninstall able if the need persists (Sun, Sekar, Liang, Venkatakrishnan, 2009 (Bender RBT Inc., 2003) (Eric Chien, 2005) (Ke Min Gu, 2009) (Russ Johnson, 2000) (Abbas Rajabifard, Ali Monsourian and Ian Williamson, 2004)). For the efficient installation of software at controlled costs and keeping in view the above requirements of maintaining a control on installation phase, System Development Life cycle (SDLC) has to be incorporated. It finally is a solution introduced by software engineering that has been evolved from the understanding of improvement needed in the development process of creating system. It basically is an abstract model that describes the stages involved in project management as it paves the methodology right from the beginning of suitability operations to the overhauling of complete performance. It is based upon the objectives of ensuring the delivery of high quality systems, strong management and control systems for projects and capitalizes on the system staff for productivity and efficient yield (Bender RBT Inc., 2003). It comes with guidance and instructions for how to install it, staying in line with its objectives of system security. It offers a very user friendly installation that can be of great help for the junior network administrator as it has the ability to support many different kinds and scopes of systems and projects, providing support to the incorporation of technical activities, providing support and coordination for all of the management activities and being user friendly and highly useable. In general, System Development Life Cycle (SDLC) has seven phases. As a Californian firm Administrator, I can incorporate them for the safe and low cost working of my systems. 1. Conceptual Planning: It is the first step to guarantee end state solutions for user’s requirements. I t assesses the expected cost and risks, project feasibility, needs for the enhancement of the system and different project planning advances s are discussed. Two major parties designated during this phase of SDLC are System Support Agent (SSA) and System Development Agent (SDA) which are updated through the system’s cycle. 2. Planning and Requirements Definitions: After the Californian firm’s Information Technology administrator has assessed the feasibility of the project

Political risk and living conditions in argentina Essay

Political risk and living conditions in argentina - Essay Example After the Spanish abandoned Argentina in the 19th century, it has been hard for any particular Argentine government to maintain stability. Since the Second World War many military regimes have risen and fallen in Argentina, something that leads to drastically changing positions towards business depending on who is in power. In the past ten years, however, the political situation in Argentina has stabilized significantly (NY Times Topic: Argentina). The same political party has maintained government for several years, and the presidency only changed when the former president stepped aside for his wife to run, and she won that election (NY Times Topic: Cristina Fernà ¡ndez de Kirchner). The government is also relatively pro-business. Argentina had a significant economic crisis around the year 2000 (NY Times Topic: Argentina), but since, however, has maintained one of the fastest growth rates of any Latin American country. SO long as the business is run profitably, and willing to pay taxes, then the business should be successful in Argentina. The living conditions of people in Argentina are relatively high. It has one of the best median incomes among Latin American countries, beaten only by Brazil, and, again, has shown to have one of the most robust economies (CIA World Factbook). The clothing is a mix between Latin clothing and other Western clothing, with very little traditional garb worn by the general population, especially in urban areas and along the coast. Diet and nutrition in Argentina is heavily focused on traditional foods and locally grown produce. Argentina has a massive agricultural industry, which is especially well known for producing some of the best Malbac wine in the world (Mendoza Wines). Likewise, a paucity of local pests and favorable growing conditions means that much of this can be grown without heavy use of pesticides. All of this is obviously very favorable to the

An insight into Japanese culture Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

An insight into Japanese culture - Essay Example The essay "An insight into Japanese culture" discusses the novel "Snow Country" as an insight into Japanese culture which talks about two people, Komako, who is a geisha in the small village and Shimamaru, a wealthy visitor man from Tokyo. Shikamaru is shown to be unacquainted with the place, and refers it to as a ‘distant land’. The story revolves around the both of them, trying to establish a relationship and connect with each other; but they are unable to do so, in the long run, and they fail to realize this. The novel changed my thoughts regarding the Japanese culture as I got to know more about the customs and rules of the people over there. The restrictions imposed by them over the people who are living there comes as a surprise in this environment. Previously I presumed that geishas were fictitious but as I read the novel I came to know the importance of geishas in the Japanese culture. The hospitality in the Japanese culture can be witnessed by the actions of the individuals that play a role in the novel. Komako, although tries very hard to maintain the traditional geisha image, she is unable to. Her feelings for Shikamaru were too strong and she could not ignore them. This differed with the traditional role of a geisha. But Komako’s aim of becoming a geisha to pay for that man’s treatment aligns with the customary role of a geisha. Geishas are normally said to accept their professions, in order to provide sustenance to their families and to help out with the bills and payments.

Political risk and living conditions in argentina Essay

Political risk and living conditions in argentina - Essay Example After the Spanish abandoned Argentina in the 19th century, it has been hard for any particular Argentine government to maintain stability. Since the Second World War many military regimes have risen and fallen in Argentina, something that leads to drastically changing positions towards business depending on who is in power. In the past ten years, however, the political situation in Argentina has stabilized significantly (NY Times Topic: Argentina). The same political party has maintained government for several years, and the presidency only changed when the former president stepped aside for his wife to run, and she won that election (NY Times Topic: Cristina Fernà ¡ndez de Kirchner). The government is also relatively pro-business. Argentina had a significant economic crisis around the year 2000 (NY Times Topic: Argentina), but since, however, has maintained one of the fastest growth rates of any Latin American country. SO long as the business is run profitably, and willing to pay taxes, then the business should be successful in Argentina. The living conditions of people in Argentina are relatively high. It has one of the best median incomes among Latin American countries, beaten only by Brazil, and, again, has shown to have one of the most robust economies (CIA World Factbook). The clothing is a mix between Latin clothing and other Western clothing, with very little traditional garb worn by the general population, especially in urban areas and along the coast. Diet and nutrition in Argentina is heavily focused on traditional foods and locally grown produce. Argentina has a massive agricultural industry, which is especially well known for producing some of the best Malbac wine in the world (Mendoza Wines). Likewise, a paucity of local pests and favorable growing conditions means that much of this can be grown without heavy use of pesticides. All of this is obviously very favorable to the

Nursing practice Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Nursing practice - Essay Example He therefore has to be educated on how the process of chemotherapy takes place and the importance of maintaining good oral hygiene. Even though John follows all the advice from the doctors, he still developed ulcers in his mouth due to chemotherapy. In response to these side effects, the nurses intervene to prevent the worsening of the side effects. Side effects of fluorouracil Fluorouracil is, a drug used in the treatment of cancer. It performs by making an irremediable reserve of thymidylate synthase. It interrupts the action of enzyme blocks hence hinders synthesis of pyrimidine thymidine which is a nucleoside for DNA replication (Winawer et al, 2003). Chemotherapy is generally used to kill any rapidly growing cells in the body thus killing the cancerous cells (De vita, 2001). Such rapidly multiplying cells are found in the mouth linings hence they fall victims to this chemicals. The reaction between the healthy cells in the mouth linings and the fluorouracil leads to formation of sores and ulcers. Since the occurrences of sores are hard to prevent, the extent of damage caused by the sores can be limited. In order to counter the side effects of chemotherapy, the patients need to be fully educated on the importance of good oral hygiene. They should be encouraged to regularly brush their teeth in order to prevent accumulation of germs in the mouth. In addition, the nurses should intervene so that the patient is given good medical care. They should ensure that the patient gets full nutritional supplements and he/she is free from pain. Discussed below are importance of maintaining good oral hygiene and the nursing interventions of preventing the side effects:- Oral hygiene education as a method of preventing side effects of chemotherapy Oral hygiene entails keeping both mouth and teeth clean as a way of preventing bad breath and tooth decay. It not only involves brushing the teeth but also maintaining the whole mouth including the tongue, gum and the inner skin of the mouth. In the case study, John was constantly advised to have a good oral hygiene before going for the chemotherapy sessions. This is because; the cancer drugs contain some reactive chemicals, which are designed to kill any rapidly growing cells (Bradbury, 2007). In the process of eliminating the rapidly growing cells, these drugs encounter mouth cells that are also multiplying rapidly. The healthy cells in the mouth react with the chemical substances in the drugs hence resulting into a chemical reaction, which damages the skin of the mouth. This chemicals cause sores in the mouth and in the throat, a condition referred to as mucositis. The chemical substances in the drugs make the tissues dry, soft and easily irritable hence it may result to bleeding gums (Lewis, 2007). If oral hygiene were not maintained, the mouth germs would infect the sores. Such germs would lead to further complications for the patient because mouth infections would result to administering of other drug s, which may affect the functioning of the cancer drugs (Drasdo, 2001). In the case study, John is advised to brush his teeth regularly; due to the softness of his gums, he is told to be gentle while brushing and use a toothbrush with soft brittles. He is also advised to ensure the whole mouth including the tongue and the gums are properly cleaned. By ensuring good oral hygiene, there will be minimum damage on John’s mouth hence the worsening of the mouth sores would be curbed.

Leaving a Legacy of Hope Essay Example for Free

Leaving a Legacy of Hope Essay So many people when asked what it was that drew them to this field would tell me, â€Å"I go home every night feeling good about the work I do.† Though this is a genuine and relevant answer to the question, it is not mine. I have always said that it is the people that make this work so special. What makes the population of people that we work with so incredible is that they are not caught up with the everyday way of life that you and I are. It is that freedom from conventions which sets them apart. They are not as worried about the latest fads, trends or fashions. They are people shaped through the years of their lives, filled with experience and wonder that is hard to imagine, let alone understand. They are individual’s not so much worried about â€Å"What do you think about me?† as much as, Do you love me? Their character and convictions are steadfast, and though they may be hardened to change, their hearts remain soft and tenable. The following essay has been written for these people, with hopes that it would inspire even a single person to take an earnest look at Oregon’s current service models for Seniors and People with Disabilities, and to keep Oregon as a premier model in which other states can continue to look to. What legacy will we leave? What hope will we inspire? My objective is to utilize this essay to answer these questions. In our state’s history, Oregon has been blessed with so many great advocates and has been a National leader with the Self-Directed Support model of services across the division of Seniors and People with Disabilities. So how will the new generation of college graduates continue this legacy? After an in depth inquiry into this subject and much self reflection, I submit the following. As we begin to take those choice words like â€Å"Independence, integration, productivity, choice and dignity†, and not just make sure our companies or non-profits mission statements included a few of them, not just check off the box on the service plan that says these are being implemented or accomplished, but actually look at the root meaning of the words. Are we really where we want to be? Or can we do better? We have a choice, we can take a rational and intellectual inquiry into our current and proposed service models to see if the services we are providing and more importantly plan to provide fall in line with these words. Or, we can set our sights on mediocrity, from which no legacy will be made. The choice lies with us. Do we remain stagnant and content with the progress made? Do we measure Oregon against the backdrop of other states and take solace in the fact that we may still be slightly ahead of the pack? I think the answer among fellow Oregonian’s would be a resounding â€Å"No†. The preservation of Oregon’s existing legacy as being a National leader in the legislative, economic and social advocacy for seniors and people with disabilities is important. It is something that I conclude can only be done by my previous statement of rational and intellectual inquiry into Oregon’s current and proposed service models. My personal response to this inquiry is based around the philosophy of person centered planning and person directed supports. With the heart and focus of this model remaining on individual choice. At the age of 25 years old, having spent 5 years in human services I have worked within all different areas of Oregon Seniors and People with Disabilities. Through this time, one theme that I have heard loud and clear from the people I have supported is the need for choice, more specifically is choice as it pertains to the location in which people live while receiving services. Which leads me to the following; If Oregon is going to continue to be a leader and innovator in providing the Self-Directed Support model of services, the legacy of hope that we need to focus on leaving would stem from successful implementation of what is known as the â€Å"Community Based Care† models of services. The emphasis of this model being on serving seniors and people with disabilities in ways to help them live and age comfortably in the place of their choice. Rather than emphasizing their diagnoses, medical condition or inabilities, we focus on the things in life that give them happiness, peace and strength. All things that can be accomplished through something many of us now take for granted, and that’s having the freedom and choice of where we live. As the medical field progresses people are living longer and healthier lives than ever before. The number of those over the age of 65 is growing dramatically. There are 10,000 new Medicare recipients added each day. In 2000 the number of seniors over the age of 85 was 4.2 million. By 2010 the number is estimated to be 6.1 million. Beginning in the years 2011 2012, the baby boomers will begin to turn 65 years old. More astonishing then that, by 2030, Americans 55 and older will account for 31% of the population and those 65 and older will account for 20%. From the fiscal standpoint, Community Based Care has been projected to cost as little as a few hundred dollars a month, comparatively to someone who has been displaced from their home and is living in a facility where the monthly cost to the tax payers now shoots as high as $5,000- $6,000 monthly. The SPD population overwhelmingly wants to age in place, to be able to remain living in their own homes. But they very concerned about their choice to do so. In the book, â€Å"Water for Elephants† Sara Gruen, writes from the perspective of a man named Jacob Janokowski a retired veterinarian who is 90 years old, (or 93 he can’t remember which). Below is an excerpt from the book I believe helps illustrate the discussion. â€Å"But Dad, they said, you broke your hip, as though maybe I hadn’t noticed. I dug my heels in. I threatened to cut them off without a cent, until I remembered they already had controlled my money. They didn’t remind me- they just let me rail on like an old fool until I remembered of my own accord, and that made me even angrier because if they had any respect for me at all they would have at least made sure I had the facts straight. I felt like a toddler whose tantrum was being allowed to run its course. As the enormity of my helplessness dawned on me, my position began to slip. You’re right, I conceded. I guess I could use some help. I suppose having someone come in during the day wouldn’t be so bad, just to help out with the cooking and cleaning. No? Well how about a live in? I know I’ve let things slip a little since your mother died†¦ But I thought you said†¦ Okay, then one of you can move in with me†¦ But I don’t understand†¦ Well, Simon, your house is large. Surely I could†¦? It was not to be. I remember leaving my house for the last time, bundled up like a cat on the way to the vet. As the car pulled away, my eyes were so clouded by tears I couldn’t look back. It’s not a nursing home, they said. Its assisted living- progressive, you see. You’ll only have help with the things you need, and then when you get older†¦ They always trailed off there, as though that would prevent me from following the thought to its logical conclusion.† I truthfully believe it is a realistic belief that Oregon can pioneer the cause of helping seniors and people with disabilities live confidently with independence, and the freedom to age with a positive sense of self-worth in their own homes. This is my vision of Community Based Care, and this is the legacy that I hope to leave behind.

A Marketing Strategy For Morrisons Marketing Essay

A Marketing Strategy For Morrisons Marketing Essay In recent years, several conceptual frameworks have been developed to better understand the processes of strategy formulation, and for such processes, the term strategic marketing is used to describe the decisions taken to develop long-run strategies for survival and growth About Morrisons We are the UKs fourth largest food retailer with  403 stores. Our business is mainly food and grocery the weekly shop. Uniquely we source and process most of the fresh food that we sell though our own manufacturing facilities, giving us close control over provenance and quality; and we have more people preparing more food in store than any other retailer. Every week nine million customers pass through our doors and 124,000 colleagues across the business work hard each day to deliver great service to them. With competitive prices and hundreds of special offers, we are proud to save our customers money every day. Definition of Strategic Marketing Marketing Strategy is a process that can allow an organization to concentrate its limited resources on the greatest opportunities to increase sales and achieve a sustainable competitive advantage. (Baker Michael 2008) Principles of marketing strategies People Oriented Marketing The purpose of marketing strategies is to create the added advantage of the company. The strategies that are supported to the customer orientation is the most important one because the customer is the king of market. The Cost Of Something Is What You Give Up To Get It. Marketing strategies are planned according to the pricing of their products. Company set their pricing that are supported their products and customer are likely to buy it. Reward System Strategies Strategies are prepared to satisfy the customer and employees. Bonus Cards, loyalty cards are the rewards that organisation gives to their customers just to retain them. Competitive Advantages Marketing strategies are prepared according to the competitive advantage of the competitor. Marker Base Assets Marketing strategies are supported to the brand name, brand image, company name and then cash them to gain advantage. Vision of Morrisons food specialist for everyone Food specialist We really understand food we know where it comes from; we pack it and make it in our factories; we make it in our stores; and we employ craft skills in every store. For everyone Great food which is also: great value; and for every day, not just special days. This vision is supported by our brand values and strategic objectives. Brand value Our brand values are important to delivering our strategy and underpin all our strategic objectives. Fresh, Value and Service are discussed in the right-hand box above. SMART Analysis: SMART is an acronym which tells us that when ever we set any companies objectives they should be ,S =Specific M= Measurable A = Actionable or Achievable R = Realistic T = Time Frame Morrisons strategy Keeping things simple: Our vision to be the Food Specialist for Everyone is now well advanced. Our constant focus on freshness, great value and outstanding service is appealing to more and more people. And were now closer to more customers, having opened 43 new stores last year. Morrisons share of UK grocery market For the financial year 2009/10 the grocery market was worth  £90.2bn, an increase of 4.7%. Morrisons market share continues to increase as we move from National to Nationwide. Morrisons market share(percentage %) 2007 2008 2009 2010 11.9 12.1 12.3 12.6 Morrisons share of grocers UK 2010 (percentage %) A. Morrisons 12.6% B. Tesco, Asda, Sainsburys (combined) 63.5% C. Premium (combined) 5.8% D. Discounters and others (combined) Morrisons market share growth was greater than the total market growth year-on-year and as a result we grew market share. The top four supermarkets combined accounted for around 76% of the market. (Source: Kantar Worldpanel) Market share growth in 2009/10 (Percentage %) SWOT Analysis SWOT analysis in the technique to understand the internal and external analysis of the company that tell companies strength, weaknesses, opportunities and threat of the company. STRENGTH Market share growth in 2009/10 Store estate development Acquisition of co-operative stores Opening of 34 new stores Food specialist Specialist in food Owen supply chain Own distribution channel Morrison form for food Owen packing factories Instore preparation of food Quickest turnaround time between order and delivery Employees education programme (MBA) WEEKNESSES Lack of the customers trust Very less number of stores Less Advertisement Little bit high pricing OPPORTUNITY Home Delivery extension of small stores to cover the more customers start the new business line as Morrisons pharmacy Move into non-food retailing in the UK. Entry into new retail segments, such as drugstores, department stores, speciality units Increase the number of stores to cover the more population areas THREAT Low pricing of competitors Communication is weak High competition Open market for entering new competitors Purchasing of co-operative store are not maintain Morrisons standard Uncertainty will affect the sale and profitability of the company Competitive Analysis Competitive analysis conducted for the comparison of company to the other different companies/ competitors. It tells the company that where their products are and where the other have, they are in the good position are their competitor. Competitive analysis is tells advantages and the weaknesses of the companies over the competitors. Morrisons have strong competition with Tesco, ASDA, and Sainsbury etc. Boston Consulting Group Matrix Star High growth business or products that competing the market where they have competitive advantage/ edge as compare to the competitor. Normally heavy investments are required to exist in the market. Morrison may not fall in this part of the matrix. Cash Cows Business growth is low or product having relative market share. There is normally low business and little investment is required to retain in the market. Good leadership and strategies are required for growth. Morrisons is in this area of matrix. Question mark Business or product have low market share but exist in the high growth market. Businesses in this area are required high investment but they have potential to grow high. Management have to make some growth strategies that Morrison have done and now in the growth position of the market. Dogs Businesses or products have low market share and unattractive market. Business fall in this area may generate profit to come on breakeven point. Pricing strategies There are number of pricing strategies that companies used in according to their purpose that are fit and matched with objectives and goals. The strategies are: Premium Pricing Economy Pricing Penetration Pricing Psychological Pricing Skimming Pricing Captive Product Pricing Product Bundle Pricing Promotional Pricing Geographical Pricing Morrisons are used various pricing strategies from the above mentioned strategies. Economy Pricing Morrisons are using this strategy in their products that are daily use items. All most all the grocery items are under economy pricing scheme. Psychological Pricing Morrisons are also adopting this pricing technique just for psychological impact on the customers. For example 99P Promotional Pricing Morrisons are using this strategy for promotional items. Example: buy 1 get one free or two item 2 pound etc. STP Strategies STP is another type of marketing strategies that companies kept in mind while formulating its marketing strategies. STP stands for S- Segmentation T- Target P- Positioning Segmentation Demographical Geographical Psychological Behavioural Geographical Company divided its area into different parts than these subareas are also divided into regions. Morrisons have divided its UK market into 4 parts that are the states then these are divided into cities and then cities are divided its sides like central, north, east, west, northwest etc. Distribution and channel strategies Morrisons have their own distribution channel that is use to deliver its products to the retail stores for the end use of customers. Fresh foods are taken from own forms than they distribute to the concern factory for packing and finally distribute to the retail stores effective and efficient use of the supply chain management.

Does a Violent Media create a Violent Society? Essay -- social issues

Does a Violent Media create a Violent Society? This issue is one of constant debate, with no real solution. There are many things society as a whole and individuals can do to appease or inflame the issue, however each argument has a counter argument and a counter argument will exist for that and so on. Because it is an issue of such heated debate with no answer or possibility of an answer should we just leave the issue be and choose not to address it further? Or should we make the issue widely known so society is more aware of the role the media can play. Or perhaps we should leave it to the media to publicise that. After all the media does have a strong influence. Take the late 1980's film Terminator, one of the highest grossing films of the 80's. This means millions of people worldwide have been to see it at the movies, and then most probably, rented it out on video. Have these millions of people gone out and killed their arch enemies? I think not. However the file Terminator may have inspired, planted the idea, or conceptualised the seed of an idea in someone's mind. And one or, possibly more murders can be associated with the movie Terminator, a certain method of killing perhaps mimicked in a psychos' rage. Yet isn't it more than likely that the ONLY aspect of the murder affected by Terminator and such films may have been just the technique used. I believe it is more than likely the killer/murderer/stalker would have performed his duties anyway. I s... Does a Violent Media create a Violent Society? Essay -- social issues Does a Violent Media create a Violent Society? This issue is one of constant debate, with no real solution. There are many things society as a whole and individuals can do to appease or inflame the issue, however each argument has a counter argument and a counter argument will exist for that and so on. Because it is an issue of such heated debate with no answer or possibility of an answer should we just leave the issue be and choose not to address it further? Or should we make the issue widely known so society is more aware of the role the media can play. Or perhaps we should leave it to the media to publicise that. After all the media does have a strong influence. Take the late 1980's film Terminator, one of the highest grossing films of the 80's. This means millions of people worldwide have been to see it at the movies, and then most probably, rented it out on video. Have these millions of people gone out and killed their arch enemies? I think not. However the file Terminator may have inspired, planted the idea, or conceptualised the seed of an idea in someone's mind. And one or, possibly more murders can be associated with the movie Terminator, a certain method of killing perhaps mimicked in a psychos' rage. Yet isn't it more than likely that the ONLY aspect of the murder affected by Terminator and such films may have been just the technique used. I believe it is more than likely the killer/murderer/stalker would have performed his duties anyway. I s...

Dbq Response Spread of Buddhism in China

Megan Cissell AP World-4 George October 14, 2012 Document Based Question After analyzing the documents I was given, I believe there is both a positive and negative response to the spread of Buddhism in China. Over time the response became more and more negative than positive. People were getting used to the spread of Buddhism because they knew that it wasn’t going away anytime soon. The background information I was given explains that since China was unstable at this time Confucianism was on the decline which made Buddhism easier to rise. Document one does not really state a response to the spread of Buddhism in China.This document is just three of the four noble truths that the Buddha preached. This document does not go into any grouping that I have because it does not explain anything about the spread of Buddhism. Certain documents had a positive response to the spread. One of the documents was summarizing the fourth noble truth that the Buddha preached, but it also explaine d the goal of Buddhism (Document 2). Another example of a positive response is the one that explains how Confucius, Laozi, and the Buddha are alike in what they wanted for their respective religions.They all three wanted the same, but it was the difference in time periods that set them apart (Document 5). The next document I am going to explain is both positive and negative. The answers that are used are more positive than the questions, but still have a negative side to them. This document explains how Confucian classics do not contain everything so they ask why there is suspicion that Buddhism is so bad. The person talks about Buddha as a unicorn compared to other sages as a white deer; however, white deer are rare and unicorns are unreal. This person is saying that the Buddha does not really exist so why should Buddhism.The questions in this document are more negative because it talks about how if Buddhism is so great then why didn’t Confucius practice it. The questions al so point out that monks do not marry or have families, they only care about goodness and wisdom, which is not part of Chinese culture (Document 3). However to the positives also bring some negatives. Although, one of the documents has a negative response by saying that the Buddha does not conform to the Chinese culture, the scholar took greatly to Buddhism because he knows it will continue to spread until later when China becomes more stable and Confucianism returns.He is basically saying that why should Buddhism be honored if it has not originated in China. I believe that there is some bias in this excerpt because the person writing it is a Confucian scholar. (Document 4). Document 4 and document 6 tie together because they were written about the same time. This document talks about how Buddhism is an infection to China and is spreading like a vine throughout the country. He also says the country will suffer because people will stop their jobs to follow the Buddha.Buddhism in his w ords are like weeds, they don’t stop growing even if you pull them they grow back again and again. This excerpt also states how scared China was of the spread and how it could change the Chinese culture (Document 6). Additional pieces that I could use are the reports and consultations of the general public. These would be helpful to see how it impacted the whole country of China through the eyes of the public not just people that have power in the courts.