Southern Scandinavian Hunters And Gatherers Essays - Foraging

Southern Scandinavian Hunters And Gatherers To discuss how the environment may have affected the subsistence and social organization of the late Hunter-Gatherer communities of Southern Scandinavian you must take in affect the Basic Evidence. This form of Basic Evidence consists of such topics, as were the hunters and gatherers were settled, also what was the type of environment around them. You also have to take in effect were the resources where in their environment and finally what was the number of hunter and gatherers that, that environment and those resources had to support. All this will be briefly answered and briefly explained. When you talk about the settlement of a hunter-gatherer group or a type of tribe you could be talking about many settlements with in the same area because of the need of certain resources in an environment full of growth and prosperity. A settlement of a hunter-gatherer would most likely at that time of Erteb?lle Culture around 4,000 B.C. and would be consisted of some type resourceful sources of freshwater, like lakes or streams. Also that settlement of area would have to accommodate many types of animals in many different types of seasons, due to the fact that not many if any types or methods of storage of food over a long period of time were known during this time. This settlement of area would also have to accommodate many types of nuts, berries, fruit and birds. The problem of storing food does fluctuate from settlement to settlement; so different groups of hunter-gatherers may have had different advantages over their neighbors. Freshwater sources would also have to have abundan t sources of fish and that the hunter-gatherer would have to have the knowledge of many than one type of fishing during many seasons. An example is if there were to be an ice patch over the source of water during certain winter months. Still the prize of many hunters and gatherers were the large game, such as deer, elk and roe, which would bring meat for food, skins for clothes and warmth and bones and antlers for tools and weapons. Hunters and gatherers would stay in a certain or specific area for as long as that areas resources could sustain their number of people for many seasons. With this type of settlement in staying in one area comes few to many problem of, if that environments resources can stand up to demands of a hunter-gatherer society of growth, possible war, and seasonal changes in needs. For example if an hunter-gatherer group grows in numbers in a short time, the question arises will their be enough food for the whole group to survive over possible changes season to season and if another settlement of hunter-gatherer moves in close to the previous group. And if so will that settlement be able to keep providing for that group of expanding population. If that area cannot with hold the expansion of population than the hunter-gatherer has one other option. First they can expand their boundaries of their settlement area. This may cause war against their neighbors if there are any. Or second that hunter-gatherer can maybe split their numbers to survive, with one group leaving and the other stay. Another problem that could happen today and definitely back than was the possibility of one or more types of diseases or any other natural problem the big game, fish, or vegetation starts to reduce in population and plentiful ness. Than this also could cause war within maybe the same group of hunter-gatherer or between neighboring tribes. Another positive thought is if the hunter-gatherer finds any way to store food for the future than this can play a huge effect in the preserving a growing population and also maybe the possible war not a curing. Also what could be on the good side of the hunter-gatherer is that if they learn to develop methods and ways and also types of tools to grow any type of vegetation. These two are huge advantages for any population of people anywhere at this time in history. This also could cause problems of just being limited to one area and that means than the men of the tribe may have to go

The eNotes Blog 7 Famous Authors and their DayJobs

7 Famous Authors and their DayJobs As summer winds down and a new school year starts up again, it seems like only yesterday when we celebrated the completion of our many school projects and exams. It’s hard not to wonder, â€Å"Where did the time go?† It may feel like we have trouble accomplishing everything that we want to do, but despair not! Some of our favorite authors in the classical canon pushed through their own daily grind just like the rest of us, and they still managed to write literary masterpieces. Let’s take a look at a brief history of the behind-the-scenes work of seven renowned writers and their day jobs. 1. Willa Cather, Powerhouse Magazine Editor Best known texts: Her â€Å"Great Plains Trilogy†- O, Pioneers!, The Song of the Lark, and My ntonia, which portray life on the rugged American frontier at the time of westward expansion. Willa Cather left the Midwest for the comparatively bustling Northeast shortly after graduating from the University of Nebraska, Lincoln, in order to pursue a career in journalism. In time, she made her way to New York City to become an editor of fiction and poetry at McClure Magazine, a popular periodical now famous for its role in shaping American investigative journalism. A hardworking, successful, cosmopolitan figure in the realm of literary journalism, Cather left her position at McClure’s at the start of her middle age to fully devote her attention to novel writing. It was after this that she wrote the famous â€Å"Great Plains Trilogy† for which she is so acclaimed. 2. Joseph Conrad, Man of the Sea Best known texts: Lord Jim and Heart of Darkness, which illustrate the effects of European colonialism in the late 19th century. As a young man, Joseph Conrad left Poland to work as a marine merchant across Europe, mostly on British ships. Since voyages were long and toilsome, reading was a principal recourse for the sailor. After two decades of work, Conrad left the mariner’s life to take up a career in writing. He went on to write several works colored with the sights and experiences of his life at sea. 3. T. S. Eliot, Pencil-Pushing Banker Best known texts: â€Å"The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock† and The Waste Land, which draw heavily on allusions to Western and Eastern cultures and serve as hallmarks of modernist poetry. While Eliot’s works are thought of as a pinnacle in English literary culture, the poet wrote some of his most famous works between grinding away at desk jobs to make ends meet for himself and his wife, Vivienne. Eliot lectured at various colleges in England for a short period before he took a clerical position at Lloyd’s Bank in London. It was during his years at Lloyd’s that he wrote his seminal work â€Å"The Waste Land.† This poem’s themes include feelings of social discomfort and isolation of the modern world, and we can only assume that his time at desk jobs helped to inform this feeling. Though written before his stint as a banker, his famous poem â€Å"The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufock† is similar in tone, the poem’s themes and images of existential malaise and social discomfort likely informed by his personal experiences at the time. 4. H. D., Actress and Film Critic Best known texts: Her imagist poems, such as â€Å"The Garden† and â€Å"The Orchard†, which illustrate the resilience of nature and powerful feminist themes. A modern renaissance woman, the American Imagist poet H. D. was also involved in the world of cinema. In the late 1920s and early 1930s, H. D. wrote reviews for a film journal jointly founded by her and her colleagues. During this period, she also acted in three silent films directed by close friend Kenneth Macpherson. One of these films, Borderline (1930), takes up the subject of interracial relationships from a fairly progressive point of view. 5. Franz Kafka, Insurance-Company Suit Best known texts: The Trial and The Metamorphosis, which capture themes of absurdism and isolation and also serve as a heavy critique of bureaucracy. Iconic in the corpus of 20th-century European literature, Kafka’s prose is acclaimed for a strain of absurdity so distinct that it won the author his very own adjective: Kafkaesque.† Though the term is quite literally synonymous with the strange and absurd, Kafka led a professional life that was as straight-laced as they come. A degree-holder in law, for most of his adult life Kafka earned his living as an insurance officer at a workers’ compensation institute in Prague. 6. Edith Wharton- Architect, Landscape Artist, and Interior Designer Best known texts:  The Age of Innocence and Ethan Frome, which deal with societal pressures, expectations, and tragedies in, respectively, the urban and rural United States. Wharton was comfortable in American high society, and she had a keen eye for architectural design and decorative taste. It’s not widely known that she wrote The Decoration of Houses, a guide on interior design often held as a cornerstone in American architectural history. Both the grounds and manor of her magnificent Massachusetts estate, The Mount (now a US National Historic Landmark) are of her own design.

Discover Study Habits That Support Your Learning Style

Discover Study Habits That Support Your Learning Style All students learn through a combination of seeing, hearing, and experiencing. However, for most students, one learning style stands out. Research has shown that students who study in a way that supports their learning style can perform better on tests and  improve their grades. For example, visual learners sometimes struggle during essay exams because they cant recall test material that was presented orally during class. However, if the visual learner uses a visual aid when studying, like a colorful outline of test materials, he or she may retain more information. Read on to discover the characteristics of and ideal learning strategies for each learning style. Visual Learner Characteristics Visual learners are those who learn through seeing. Visual learners typically share the following characteristics: Good at spelling, but forgets first namesFind quiet study time beneficialEnjoy colors and fashionDream in colorUnderstand visual elements and chartsAble to learn sign language easily Learning Suggestions for Visual Learners Draw a map of events in history or draw scientific process.Make outlines of reading assignments.Copy whats on the board.Diagram sentences.Use flashcards.Take notes and make lists.Watch videos.Mark up your notes with highlighters, underlines, and color coding. Test Types for Visual Learners Best test type: Diagram activities, map reading, essay tests, demonstrating a process.Worst test type: Listening tests Auditory Learner Characteristics Auditory learners are those who learn best through hearing. They typically share the following characteristics: Like to read out loudUnafraid to speak up in classGood at giving explanations and oral reportsRemember namesNotice sound effects in moviesEnjoy musicAble to follow spoken directionsStruggle to stay quiet for long periods of timeFocused in study groups Learning Suggestions for Auditory Learners Use word association to remember factsRecord lecturesWatch videosRepeat facts with eyes closedParticipate in group discussionsUse audio for language practiceRead your notes out loud after writing them Test Types for Auditory Learners Best test type: Oral exams and writing responses to lectures.Worst test type: Reading passages and writing answers in a timed test. Kinesthetic Learner Characteristics Kinesthetic learners are those who learn through hands-on experience. Kinesthetic learners typically share the following characteristics: Good at sportsCant sit still for longMay have sloppy handwriting.Learn well through lab and modeling activitiesStudy with loud musicEnjoy adventure books and moviesFidgety during lectures Learning Suggestions for Kinesthetic Learners Study in short blocksTake lab-based classesAct out your study notesTake field trips to reinforce knowledgeStudy in groupsUse flashcards and memory games Test Types for Auditory Learners Best test type: Short definitions, fill-in-the-blank questions, and multiple choice.Worst test type: Essay tests and any overly long tests.

Is Wikipedia a Credible Source or Not Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Is Wikipedia a Credible Source or Not - Essay Example According to the essay findings, it can, therefore, be said that a lot of information from the Internet is not trustworthy. Someone, even an elementary student, who is not knowledgeable in a subject can contribute to the Internet information databases. Students often go to Wikipedia to get the majority of information for their essays or research papers; however, this site especially is not trusted. An experiment that I did on Wikipedia has proven this statement. I wrote â€Å"My article was published in 2002† on Nature (journal) on Wikipedia on May 27, 2007. What I wrote was obviously worthless information; however, it stayed on the website for six hours. According to Wikipedia article traffic statistics, there were 867 hits on May 27, 2010. Even though there were a lot of hits on the same day, it needed to be caught for six hours. If I wrote something sound, for instance, â€Å"Professor John McGuire at Harvard University published his biology article, a Novel Substrate of m TOR, Negatively Regulates Autophagy, in Nature on May 20, 2009,† someone would have believed this information, or someone would have used this in their essay as a resource. Getting accurate sources from the Internet involves time to think about whether it is reliable or not. We should closely look at an author’s expertise, the title of the website, and the date of publication or latest update. As I set out to prove, Wikipedia is definitely not a credible source.

Memo Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 12

Memo - Essay Example It is during this time that the company was confirmed to have increased its earnings in a profit margin of 50% as compared to 25% in the previous years. As a result, the CEO rewarded me for the contribution I had made for the two years through my hard work and diligence while working with the company, affirming that the company had a tremendous increase in profit during my tenure. Needless to say, this is one of the achievements I am still proud of to date. Moreover, before I came to the U.S from Saudi Arabia I used work with one of the biggest Oil Companies (Saudi Aramco) in the country. My job description was a manager, with the responsibility of overseeing 65 employees out of the total 300 working under my supervision. Consequently, I would like to retaliate that the responsibility of supervising 65 employees particularly in the production department of an Oil company is not easy but requires patience, understanding and motivation of the employees in order to increase productivity and maximize on profit. Finally, I have engaged myself in a number of community services in the last few years since I completed grade school. To begin with, I am a member of ‘Keep it Clean’ initiative which has over a hundred volunteering members who clean recreation parks and public amenities around busy cities in San Diego three or four times a week depending on the weather. Secondly, I belong to a very young youth initiative known as ‘Clear the road and save time’ that began three months ago with the aim of assisting the few traffic personnel present on the roads in easing traffic jams on major roads in Washington D.C. Since it is volunteer work, I ensure that I dedicate two hours of my day to the initiative. Similarly, I have strictly dedicated my free time to assisting lost people and locating their intended destinations. This idea came up after I realized that

The Seven Habits Of Highly Effective People Essay Example for Free

The Seven Habits Of Highly Effective People Essay Some people call The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, by Stephen Covey, one of the most important self-help books written in the past twenty years. Others say it is one of the best business books written recent history. Regardless of whether it is called a self-help book or a business book, it has been a wildly popular and profitable publication. Seven Habits has sold over fifteen million copies and has been on various bestseller lists almost continuously since its publication in 1989. Indeed, Coveys blockbuster book spent five consecutive years, 1991-1995, as Americas top nonfiction bestseller. Covey has deeply held religious beliefs. He is a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, more commonly known as the Mormons, which is reflected in his writings. There is a strong Judeo-Christian work ethic espoused and the concept of an individual taking personal responsibility for his or her own personal development, and the seven habits he refers to in this book bear a strong connection to the Mormon Churchs thirteen fundamental beliefs. Covey believes these seven habits of highly effective people can be learned and, conversely, old habits that promote ineffectiveness can be unlearned. A major issue in learning and adopting the seven habits of highly effective people, Covey opines in Seven Habits, is one of paradigm shifting. A paradigm is defined as a basic mental framework that strongly influences a persons ideas, beliefs and, therefore, actions. A person has paradigms about everything in life: what makes a good marriage, what is a good college, what is acceptable social behavior, and on infinitum. Until a person can shift from one way of looking at a problem, or situation, to another, he or she will be locked into old paradigms that can restrict new understandings and growth. Moving the United States Coast Guard from the Department of Transportation to the newly formed Department of Homeland Security will require certain federal authorities to perform a paradigm shift from how they previously viewed the role and function of the USCG to a new way of thinking. Habitual ways of looking at paradigms create inflexibility in attempts at problem solving, management, an d leadership. Covey divides his seven habits of highly effective people into three interrelated categories; the first are habits of character, the second are habits of outward expression that lead to interdependence with others, and the last habit focusing on sustaining the growth process. This division becomes clear when he lists his habits. Habits of Independence: * Habit #1. Be proactive. Covey writes it is up to the individual to seize the initiative to use his or her resources to work toward goals. He speaks of a circle of influence and a circle of concern and postulates that worrying about things beyond your circle of influence is not productive, but working within your circle of influence is the best way to maximize your effectiveness. * Habit #2. Begin With The End In Mind. Covey illustrates this habit with a rather chilling question: What do you want people to say about you at your funeral? He then adds that you can aid your progress toward achieving your goals if you practice visualization, so when you finally attempt a task, you will have already done it countless times in your imagination. This is a method coaches have taught free throw shooters to practice for decades; visualize your stance, your pre-shot rituals and finally visualize the ball going cleanly through the net. Covey writes, We may be very busy, we may be very efficient, but we will also be truly effective when we begin with the end in mind. * Habit #3. Put First Things First. This is a time management habit and Covey summarizes what he means by writing, Organize and execute around priorities. He develops a matrix where he divides all activities in four categories: In Quadrant I are things that are important and urgent. In Quadrant II are things that are important, but not urgent. In Quadrant III are items that are urgent, but not important. And finally, In Quadrant IV are things that at not important and not urgent. Habit #3, including Coveys matrix about time management, is the Golden Nugget of this book. Covey states that successful people keep most of their activities in Quadrant II because they can plan and prepare for future activities. Those people who constantly find their activities in Quadrant I will eventually burn out with excessive stress and strain because they are in a continuous crisis mode. Those individuals who find most of their activities in Quadrants III and IV are often out of control and dependant on others or institutions to help them live their lives. Covey believes that the term time management is actually a misnomer; that is, the challenge is not how to manage time, but rather how to manage ourselves. One of the central themes of the book is finding the correct P/PC balance. If we cannot manage ourselves, and our time, we will never be able to maintain proper Production. The P refers to production and the PC refers to production capability. He illustrates this P/PC dichotomy by using a machine as an illustration. If you ruin a machine twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, fifty-two weeks a year you will get great production initially, but eventually that machine will break down and be ruined or need repair. If, however, you run the machine on a regularly scheduled maintenance basis, you may not achieve the same production numbers as a machine being continuously used, but it will not suffer major breakdowns and over the long run the production will be greater. Habits of Interdependence. * Habit #4. Think Win-Win. This is a habit that encourages you to seek solutions of mutual benefit to all parties concerned, as opposed to win-lose situations where one person wins and the other person loses. Covey illustrates this habit by asserting that a powerful programming agent early in life is athletic competition where students develop a basic paradigm that life is a zero sum game; that is, if someone wins, someone must lose. To be truly successful, Covey writes, a person needs to know how to leverage the strengths of others and that is done not by creating win/lose situations, but rather seeking to create win/win situations. Indeed, he feels no deal is better than a non-win-win deal. * Habit #5. Seek First To Understand, Then To Be Understood. This is a communication habit that focuses on empathic listening skills. He asks how can you create win/win situations if you do not listen to the other person? Physicians diagnose before they prescribe. Top salespeople discover the clients needs before they offer a solution. Likewise, individuals need to exercise empathy; they must seek to first understand the other persons point of view before offering their own solutions * Habit #6. Synergize. Covey defines synergy as meaning the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. He believes we need to value the differences between people and how they view the world and realize their paradigms might not be our paradigms, but they are equally valid for them. Once a person accepts the validity of seeking win-win solution, the habit of synergize or seeking cooperative teamwork becomes apparent. Synergy results from valuing differences and by bringing those differences together in the spirit of mutual respect. * Habit #7. Sharpen The Saw. In self-renewal, Covey cites four areas of our life that require constant attention: physical, mental, emotional-social and spiritual. He wrote that people get too busy producing or sawing and rarely take the time to stop and sharpen their saw or those four aspects of their lives. If they would take the time to stop and sharpen, the time they lost sharpening would be more than compensated by increased production. The example cited to illustrate this point is one of machinery. If a machine runs full throttle 24 hours a day for seven days a week, fifty two weeks a year, without time being set aside for maintenance, it will soon break under the stress and strain. If however, that same machine has a regular maintenance schedule, it could work indefinitely. Covey distinguishes something he calls the Character Ethic from the Personality Ethic. He believes Americans have moved away from embracing character ethics, or broad enduring permanent values such as honesty, loyalty and even the Ten Commandments, and turned towards Personality Ethics, where the emphasis is now on such items as how to dress for success, one-minute solutions and quick fixes. He feels the newer emphasis on personality focuses attention on short-term solutions whereas the attribute associated with the Character Ethic promotes healthier moral long-term solutions. This was my favorite part of the book because America truly has moved away from a Kantian moral absolutism thought process and has fostered more of a moral relativism approach. Seven Habits Of Highly Effective People is a book that cannot be read one time and be fully understood. Each habit contains so much information and wisdom that it is virtually impossible to internalize what Covey is saying without reading and rereading each section. It is impossible to cite one item as the most important as related to leadership because they are inter-related. The one concept explained in this book that had the greatest impact on my life, to date, was Coveys discussion of time management. In high school, when my father first introduced me to this book, I was rather disorganized and somewhat chaotic in ordering my priorities. Although I had never read it, my father explained parts of the book well enough so that I could benefit from some of its knowledge. I distinctly remember filling out the time matrix chart introduced in Habit 3 and discovering most of my activities fell into Quadrant I. It was obvious I was not planning my activities, but rather reacting to events as they occurred to me. Subsequently, I have tried to keep my activities in Quadrant II, with varying degrees of success. As I move from the Academy into the non-academic world I believe Coveys admonition in Habit 5 to seek first to understand and then be understood will gain greater importance in my life. Realizing that my paradigms may not be someone elses paradigms, or my paradigms might have been right at one time, but the passage of time requires me to re-examine the conclusions I have reached, will be a prime requisite to effective leadership. I believe that Seven Habits of Highly Effective Leaders will be one of those books that will stay on my bookshelf for years to come and I will revisit it countless times to reread selected passages, not just to reinforce what I remember Covey saying, but to apply his timeless wisdom to new situations I encounter in whatever career I choose.

Selfishness in Ywain the Knight of the Lion Essay -- Ywain the Knight

Selfishness in Ywain the Knight of the Lion In Chretien de Troyes' Ywain the Knight of the Lion, there appears a substantial amount of writing about noble men and women, and noble deeds. These noble acts consist of knights coming to a maiden's aid, regardless of the circumstances, and pravailing in battles in which they are either hopelessly outnumbered, or seemingly outstrengthed. Chretien's romance about Ywain also stresses a love that takes a man prisoner, a love for which man or woman would surely die for, and in which one loves another more than himself. The ep itomes of these characteristics seem to be Ywain and Laudine. However, Ywain and Laudine are both driven by selfishness. Selfishness in love is evident in both Laudine, and Ywain. However it is more prominent with L audine, simply because much of what is written about her in the story has to do with love, and although love is emphasized a great deal with regard to Ywain, more is written about his fighting evil, and assisting those in need of his strengt h an d courage. Saying that Laudine is selfish in love means, at its root, that she uses it to enhance her own welfare. This is first evident, when she finally realizes that she must find someone to protect her people, her spring, and herself. Lu nette convinces her to take the knight who killed her husband as her new groom, and right away Laudine wants to know about the "name, the rank, and the family of the knight"(30). Then when she finds out that he is actually the distinguished Ywain, she becomes incredibly excited, and wishes him there as fast as humanly possible, or faster. Laudine has no idea of what he is like, but because he is so well-known and strong she will love him. This "love" f... ...ined in "love." Chretien writes about them that, "he was loved and held dear by his lady, and she was loved by him" (113). It is impossible to believe this statement, but that is what Chretien wants. It is also written in the conclusion that Ywain will never "visit any wrong" on his wife again (113). This is just one more statement that insults the intelligence of the reader, because as we have already learned, a man is of no use if he is not repeatedly proven in battle. Chances are Ywain will run off again as soon as Gawain puts pressure on him to do so. This ends the story with two fallacies that Chretien expects to be believed in spite of all the evidence he gives otherwise. Works Cited: Troyes, Chretien de. Ywain: The Knight of the Lion. Trans. Robert W. Ackerman, Frederick W. Locke and Carleton W. Carrol. [City,] Illinois: Waveland Press, 1992. Selfishness in Ywain the Knight of the Lion Essay -- Ywain the Knight Selfishness in Ywain the Knight of the Lion In Chretien de Troyes' Ywain the Knight of the Lion, there appears a substantial amount of writing about noble men and women, and noble deeds. These noble acts consist of knights coming to a maiden's aid, regardless of the circumstances, and pravailing in battles in which they are either hopelessly outnumbered, or seemingly outstrengthed. Chretien's romance about Ywain also stresses a love that takes a man prisoner, a love for which man or woman would surely die for, and in which one loves another more than himself. The ep itomes of these characteristics seem to be Ywain and Laudine. However, Ywain and Laudine are both driven by selfishness. Selfishness in love is evident in both Laudine, and Ywain. However it is more prominent with L audine, simply because much of what is written about her in the story has to do with love, and although love is emphasized a great deal with regard to Ywain, more is written about his fighting evil, and assisting those in need of his strengt h an d courage. Saying that Laudine is selfish in love means, at its root, that she uses it to enhance her own welfare. This is first evident, when she finally realizes that she must find someone to protect her people, her spring, and herself. Lu nette convinces her to take the knight who killed her husband as her new groom, and right away Laudine wants to know about the "name, the rank, and the family of the knight"(30). Then when she finds out that he is actually the distinguished Ywain, she becomes incredibly excited, and wishes him there as fast as humanly possible, or faster. Laudine has no idea of what he is like, but because he is so well-known and strong she will love him. This "love" f... ...ined in "love." Chretien writes about them that, "he was loved and held dear by his lady, and she was loved by him" (113). It is impossible to believe this statement, but that is what Chretien wants. It is also written in the conclusion that Ywain will never "visit any wrong" on his wife again (113). This is just one more statement that insults the intelligence of the reader, because as we have already learned, a man is of no use if he is not repeatedly proven in battle. Chances are Ywain will run off again as soon as Gawain puts pressure on him to do so. This ends the story with two fallacies that Chretien expects to be believed in spite of all the evidence he gives otherwise. Works Cited: Troyes, Chretien de. Ywain: The Knight of the Lion. Trans. Robert W. Ackerman, Frederick W. Locke and Carleton W. Carrol. [City,] Illinois: Waveland Press, 1992.

Analysis of Hemmingway Quote Essay

The fictional novel by Mark Twain titled, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, is credited by many well-respected authors as one of, if not, the best books ever written. One of these prestigious authors, Ernest Hemingway says â€Å"All modern American literature comes from one book by Mark Twain called Huckleberry Finn. All American writing comes from that. There was nothing before. There has been nothing as good since† (Lombardi 1). Hemmingway is right and agreeable in what he means by this statement. He makes it known that any literature that shares the same theme or style is modern and a descendant from The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Hemmingway makes it evident that he believes Mark Twain’s book to be great and incomparable. The language used in the book at the time was a shock to culture. Many were not prepared for the common speech element illustrated throughout the novel. When Hemmingway says â€Å"All modern American literature comes from one book by Mark Twain called Huckleberry Finn†, he means just that. He is essentially saying that no book or author reached such heights before and that any author after the publishing received their courage by the book The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. The central themes throughout The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn focus on the hypocrisy and racism present in society at the time. In the twentieth century, more American novels, fiction and nonfiction, began focusing more on these themes and exposing what everyone already knew but very seldom wrote about. Authors broke away from the traditional aesthetic styles of writing and began sharing similar styles of Novels such as The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Illustrative and informal styles of writing seemed to be more popular amongst authors and readers alike. Through this, it is evident that American novels in the twentieth century descend from The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn through the styles of which written and themes throughout. After the publication of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Modernist literature began to be seen more. Modern literature is the style of writing, breaking away or modifying traditional beliefs in conformity with modern ideas. Novels that were once written about moving from one piece of land to another were eventually evolving into stories written about the realities of slavery and harshness of society, ultimately leading to modern war novels. In Hemmingway’s quote, it is his strong belief that any and every modern American novel, written with modernist ideas, stems from The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Ernest Hemmingway said it best when he said â€Å"All modern American literature comes from one book by Mark Twain called Huckleberry Finn. All American writing comes from that. There was nothing before. There has been nothing as good since† (Lombardi 1). He emphasized that there was no literature at the level of The Adventures of Hucklberry Finn and that any literature nearing, was a descendant of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. After many readers and authors read the book, other modern books began sharing similar themes and styles of writing. Themes that focused on hypocrisy and racism in society were now not taboo subject’s to write about. Informal and illustrative styles of writing were now being used in the modern American novels. A modern American novel, like The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, is literature that breaks away from traditional styles, in accordance with modern ideas. Hemmingway was easy to agree with in what he believed and given the effect that the book had on society, he was right.

Educational Technology Essay

With the passage of time, the advances of technology are making their presence felt in every walk of life from space exploration to clean a room. The central though behind these technological advances is to make life more comfortable, efficient, and safe. As such technology is an integral part of daily workaday life. Newer forms of technology are being introduced with improved rates of efficiency, safety, and comfort. In this regard, inclusion of technology in education has also become the hard norm of the present educational system of such a country as the United States of America with the same focus as quoted above. Henceforth, all important areas of educational development have been hinged with the inclusion of technology. One such area of focus today, with regard to the inclusion of technology in education, is the educational development of the disabled and other disadvantage students’ enhanced learning. The present paper examines in detail the inclusion of technology in education with relation to the learning of disabled and disadvantaged students. The paper first of all discusses the present literature on the present state of educational technology and disabled learners; furthermore, the present paper specifically examines studies conducted in the same area to investigate the legitimacy on educational technology inclusion to teach the disabled students, say, English language, and see what difference the technology inclusion makes upon the learning of the students. Literature Review In the past several decades, changing perspectives on the use of technology inclusion in education for the disabled students has caused the curricular guidance to undergo changes that are significant on their own. It was in the time of the 1970s and the 1980s that parents and teachers came to realize the vision that graduating students with disabilities could now go on living and working in the general community environment with some support that differed according to individual. This vision, then, bypassed the shelters of workshops, centers for day treatment, and other massive settings for residential purposes which were indispensable for the previous students. This revolutionary vision then gave birth to â€Å"the development of curricula that were relevant to students’ functioning to everyday life† (Davern, et.al, 2001). In addition to the above, the Individual with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA, 1997) also paved the way for the educators to look for technology inclusion that can boost up learning in the disabled students; hence the premise of this act is that: A free and appropriate public education will be provided for all children with special needs. IDEA 97 emphasizes the participation of students with disabilities in the general curriculum and requires that Individualized Education Program (IEP) teams make many decisions that support and encourage student performance in the general curriculum and general education classroom (Robinson, et.al, 2002). However, when it comes to the participation of the disabled students in the learning of more complex cognitive content (say reading comprehension or learning vocabulary, and so on) with the mainstream education, with their peers, it is seen as an obstacle that these students show a difference of learning from their peers. Hence there are various involvements made by researchers. These interventions focus on overcoming these differences among the two types of learners. â€Å"Curriculum-based assessment†, â€Å"Direct instruction curriculum design†, and â€Å"learning strategies Deshier† are some of them (Carnine, 1989). Today, as such, technology is fast becoming the norm of the area of educating the learners with disabilities. The times of the twenty first century has given rapid rise to technology integration in education. Henceforward, as Dr. Frank B. Withrow, Director of Development Able Company Washington D.C. (2000) notes that â€Å"Technology predictions for the 21st century include sensory prosthetic devices for disabled people. This may be one of the most significant factors in providing all children an equal and appropriate education.† He further points out that â€Å"Cochlear implants are already providing many hard of hearing youngsters with functional hearing.† Moreover, â€Å"Speech synthesizers give voice to mute individuals. New developments in microelectronic lenses may enable a large number of visually disabled people to read printed books† (Frank, 2000) However, it is another thing to investigate the integration of technology and its feasibility with the production: effectiveness of technology with regard to the learning rate of the students with disabilities. In the later part of the paper I would examine the role of technology in relation to this very theme. I would discuss the role of the educational software for the special education. Educational Software and Special Students Today, like all other areas of education, special education is also influenced by the introduction of newer and newer software that provide the educators the opportunities to better teach the disabled students so that their learning can be worth it. Since commercial software for education usually shapes the center of instruction which is technology-based in special education (also for general classroom education), there is a very rapid race among the educational authorities to obtain the most effective and result-oriented software. However, with the advances made in this area, there are certain concerns raised by the educators and researchers about the feasibility of these software packages with regard to effective learning among the disabled students. In this connection, the most common practice found among the educators is that they â€Å"rely on experts in commercial businesses to produce quality educational software for classroom use, with the assumption that the software has been designed to meet the unique learning needs of the population of students for whom it is targeted† (Boone, et.al, 2000). In other words, the consumers of the software assume that the software was properly designed and developed with a population being the focus of that software, for example, students with disabilities, junior school students, students learning English as a second language, and so forth. The net result that these consumers anticipate from the software obtained, as such, is that it will help them improve the learning capabilities of their students – in our case students with learning disabilities and disadvantaged students. On the contrary, Boone et al. (p. 109, 2000) observe that though many of the software developers are aware of the fact that consulting educational experts and researchers is way important in order to develop a result-oriented, population-targeted software, â€Å"some companies still develop software without taking into account education factors that may affect learning† (Boone, et.al, 2000). They point out three major areas regarding such software development for the disabled students, which were major concerns of the educators: 1) The developed software did not have a theoretical base for its formation; 2) There is an overemphasis on such technical aspects of the software as high graphic designs and audio add-ons; and 3) The software development manifested an improper approach toward educational concerns. With these three major concerns, Boone et al. (2000) also list three major areas – investigated in a Delphi research study – which, according to educators, the educational software for the disabled students was proved to be lacking. These areas are: 1) The investigation revealed that software lacked an incorporation or association of higher-level of thinking; 2) The software also lacked a grounding in the educational research and pedagogical investigation of the related teaching content to the disabled students; 3) The last major area of lacking of the educational software for the disabled students was that the software lacked the inclusion of a number of different level skills which can be used to effectively meet an individual’s specific needs. Therefore, Forcier, 1999 (as cited in Boone et al. p. 01, 2000) notes that because of these so complex issues with regard to the educational software, it seems unclear as to which degree such educational improvisation is actually meeting the needs of the educators/teachers and their students. (Boone, et.al, 2000) Evaluation of Software Boone et al. (2000) point out the importance of the educational for the disabled students so that their feasibility can be put to a check. For the evaluation of an educational software, the authors state that many of the educational software developers and publishers are not providing enough information to the educators. This is a practical problem for the educators who opt for a specific software program available in the market suiting the needs of their educational context; however: (Boone, et.al, 2000) â€Å"Educators often find that software they have purchased is not adaptable, does not teach what it purports to teach, or does not support what is occurring in the classroom. For these reasons, educators must independently evaluate software by taking into consideration the following†. (Boone, et.al, 2000) 1) The educators must look for the software’s intended use by monitoring the help that the software lends to achieve their objectives; 2) Content which accompanies the software must be scrutinized; it is also seen whether or not the software has a teacher’s supplement for implementation; 3) â€Å"the instructional presentation and whether the software meets the principles of universal design (i.e., multiple representations of content, multiple means of expression and control, and multiple forms of engagement)† (Boone, et.al, 2000); 4) they should also go for software that is user-friendly: that is easy to use both by the teacher(s) and students; 5) the software should also provide considerable amount of documents and other support; 6) The software should also contain user inputs. With these areas in mind, the authors further come up with the evaluation criteria of the two kinds of evaluation of the software: formative and summative evaluation through the use of the software to make sure of its compatibility with the learning of the disabled students. I discuss both these steps of the evaluations separately so that a thorough understanding of the issue can be grasped. Formative Evaluation and Learning Software for Disabled Students To evaluate the efficiency of software for students with disabilities Boone et al (2000) state that the first and the foremost focus of the educators should be to take into account an area of the students’ learning and/ or other aspects of their life; this are can be the learning characteristics of those students; or their learning goals; or it can be the area of their social skills and goals, and so on. After this specification, the educators should put the software to test on a across-student level, that is to say: Software evaluation by students should involve a high-achieving student, a middle-achieving student, and a low-achieving student who all have a particular disability. This allows the educator to determine the software’s usability across students with a particular disability and, beforehand, to identify specific areas in the software with which particular students may need help (Boone, et.al, 2000). They also give a precaution to the educators that they should not count on the opinions of the parents of the students because it is possible that some software is not efficient to adults; however, the same is greatly enjoyed by the students.

BAA Strategic Management Issues Essay Example

BAA Strategic Management Issues Essay Example BAA Strategic Management Issues Essay BAA Strategic Management Issues Essay BAA Strategic Management Issues BY Elodte7788 1. Introduction The following report has been undertaken to evaluate the strategic management issues concerned with the British Airport Authority (BAA). Strategic management is concerned with the overall direction of the whole organization. (Finlay, 2000). With the aid of a provided case study the strategies which are currently in place have been recognized and evaluated and the evidence has been used along with research carried out in textbooks and online Journals and the internet. The models provided by strategic management theorists have enabled possible future strategies to be valuated by showing a range of strategic options and how they will be best suited to a large organization in their industry. The report has been split into subsections due to the complex nature of BAAS operations and because of the many different internal and external factors which can affect the organization. The first section of this report gives a general introduction to the BAA company with an evaluation of their mission statement and the various stakeholders involved. The second section concentrates on an internal evaluation of the environment and identifies the strengths and eaknesses of the organization. The corporate culture is outlined and the resources are analysed by evaluating the company against models such as Porters Value Chain and the Cultural Web. Once an internal analysis has been carried out it is necessary to undertake an external analysis which constitutes the next section of this report. An external analysis is concerned with the environment in which BAA is operating, and therefore it is inevitable that the airline industry as a whole is evaluated. Porters five forces are used to analyse the competitive environment and the industry life cycle is valuated in order to help suggest possible strategies to keep the organization from going stagnant. The final section of the report looks at developing strategies and the problems associated with implementing these strategies. SAF analysis is used and proven to be a vital way of developing effective strategies. Issues of control are also examined. 2. Purpose of the organization 2. 1. Mission evaluation A majority 0T Duslnesses essentlally use an organlsatlonal vlslon ana mlsslon to establish the general direction of the firm with organizational objectives focused to define more specific targets. It seems that it may be too complicated for BAA to draw up a mission statement as need get all their stakeholders together, besides they also do not know what the future holds. The fact that there is no mission statement enables things to be more flexible and also can be changed. The downside however would be critical. Ferrovial the key major stakeholders could be considered as the highest players in this organization, yet BAA tends to be moving on regardless not it cannot be static. BAAS values are considered in terms of how the organization is run and include: To assess environmental impact on surrounding communities To provide a health and safety environment To achieve excellent value for their stakeholders and passengers To assess economic benefits and create employment for the local communities To inspire their team, encourage teamwork, sharing learning and open communication BAA continue to state that the way in which the organization run is much more than Just simply hitting targets and profit margins and it has certain responsibilities to society that they take very seriously suggesting each our their directors, employees and suppliers strive to meet its core commitments. . 2. Stakeholder analysis Stakeholders are those individuals or groups who depend on an organization to fulfil their own goals and on whom, in turn, the organization depends. Oohnson, etc. , 2006) It is important to understand expectation of all groups in detail, and how they are likely to seek influence over an organizations mission and strategies. Oohnson, etc. , 2006) Stakeholder mapping could be used to identify stakeh older expectations and power. It underlines the importance of two issues: how interested each stakeholder group is to impress its expectations on the organizations purpose and choice of pecific strategies, whether stakeholders have the power to do so. Oohnson, etc. , 2006) Figure 2. 1 The power/interest matrix The figure 2. 1 power/interest matrix shows managers and major shareholders are key players, have both high power and high level of interest. Employees, local communities, minor shareholders are keep informed groups, suppliers, media and aircraft manufacturers are keep satisfied. 2. 3. Corporate Social Responsibility Corporate social responsibility is identified as a concept whereby companies iintegrate social and environmental concerns in their business operations and in their nteraction with their stakeholders on a voluntary basis by Green Paper presented by European Commission in July 2001. (Cited in Hooley, etc. 2008) Strength in corporate social responsibility may bring competitive advantage. ( Branco Rodrigues, 2006, cited in Hooley, etc. ,2008) Questions of social responsibility are increasingly significant, posing both risks and opportunities. 3. Internal envlronment analysis 3. 1 . Resource Analysis When assessing BAAS overall situation, the identification of the strengths and weaknesses its internal environment was an important element. The functional area f the organization was considered when auditing the resources, as this is where resources become deployable. In terms of its Physical resources BAA currently own and operate seven I-JK airports and also have stakes in eleven airports outside the I-JK. With air travel demand now forecast to double, the company plan to invest E8 billion in South-east airports, E500 million in Scottish airports and include a fifth terminal for Heathrow, yet owe E7. billion in debt and are facing a credit crunch, so in terms of Financial resources they have none. The Intangible resources could nclude reputation through brands such as popular airports, established relationships with travellers as are surveying 70,000 passengers to get views each year and also the local community. BAA also has a reputation of its products and serv ices the firm own, for example retailers, world duty-free, and other luxury brands they own. Ferrovial is one of the worlds leading construction groups who specialise in four strategic lines of business, Airport, Construction, Transport infrastructure and Services. Through its subsidiary Cintra, Ferrovial also specialise in the construction nd construction of 20 toll road concessions around the world and are also experience to manage around 250000 car parking spaces. The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) control all flight paths and aircraft routes at UK airports, regulates airlines, airports and National Air Traffic Service whereby it could be considered BAA has established relationships with these organizations. BAA also has an established relationship with the government and a good reputation as the year 1986 saw the Airports Act being passed, authority dissolve as all its property rights and liabilities were passed to them. In terms of assessing Human resources BAA has specialist knowledge of the unique airport environment that allows them to successfully iintegrate retailing in an balanced, yet BAA has no established culture and with a current clash of culture between Ferrovial and BAA could be the result of the its recent departures. As result human capital may be affected such as the assessment of skills, knowledge, and decision making abilities, training and expertise of employees, adaptability of employees therefore could affect the level of commitment and loyalty. The revenues from commercial activities in retailing account for a ignificant proportion of its total revenue, helping BAA maintain some of the competitive charges faced with. The intangible resources over time may become more important than the tangible as they can be the main source for competitive advantage an example of this may be ensuring a good reputation of its products and services are maintained. . 2. Porters Value Chain When examining the internal environment of BAA it is useful to use Porters Generic Value Chain (1985). When Porter uses the term Value its meaning can be defined as follows; Value is measured by the total revenue, a reflection of the price a firms product ommands and the units it can sell. A firm is profitable if the value it commands exceeds the costs involved in creating the product. (Cole, 1997). Figure (3. 1) below shows Porters Generic Value Chain taken from Cole, 1997 and as can be seen it shows that it splits the organization into five different operations, which are categorised as primary activities. In terms of an organization such as BAA inbound logistics will be the receiving of goods for sale in their retail outlets, bars and restaurants within the airports owned by BAA, and it is possible to count the input of assengers into the airports, as the airports are where these activities take place. Operations are the activities which occur within the airports and for BAA this will include check in, security, retail, and passport control. The best way to regard outbound logistics for BAA is the successful movement of passengers through the airport and onto their designated flights with the minimum of delays. Marketing and sales concerns the different operations and services provided by BAA and the different ways in which the products and services can be purchased and inducing the customer to do so. Cole, 1997). The service section can be described as, the activities associated with providing service to enhance or maintain the value of the product. ( Porter, 1985). There are linkages between the activities and they are not isolated from one another. One aactivity often affects the cost or performance of other ones. (Lecture notes, lecture 4). The support activities which are shown going vertically on the top part of the model are self explanatory, except for the term procurement, which in this model can be regarded as the purchasing function. Figure 3. 1 Porters Generic Value Chain The BAA case study reveals that; BAA is a complex company and much of our work is done in partnership with other businesses and organizations. This has to be taken into consideration when assessing the company using Porters Value Chain. A list of services to be iincluded under BAAS control include: Airlines. These are other organizations and would probably be best categorised in both the inbound and outbound logistics sections as they are inputs into the organization and also help carry passengers out of the airports once they have experienced the services on offer. Civil Aviation Authority. A ital part of the operation including safety measures which are a primary concern in every organization within the aviation industry, especially in todays climate. Commercial services. Such as catering, shopping, car hire and banking services. These are operations which are not outsourced and are therefore profitable and add value to the organization. A customer can prepare for his travel within the airport allowing convenience and this adds value to the customers perception of the experience. Immigration National Air Traffic services. Public transport operator. These are extremely beneficial partnerships as they rovide customers with easy access into BAAS airports and help produce the infrastructure, thus creating great value to the organization. For BAA, the primary activities are well coordinated between them (infrastructure, operation, outbound, marketing ana sales, servlces) ana contrlDute to tne Important actlvlty 0T Its airports However the new security measures causing flight delays and long waiting time queues can represent an obstacle for the outbound. Another cause of flight delays and waiting time can also be accredited to the size of infrastructure too small for handling an increasing number of passengers. The infrastructure has been affected by the management of Ferrovial. English managers left since the takeover of Ferrovial. Also the debt of Ferrovial has lead to reduce the effective of its employees touching the human resources management. However value can be added in technology development and procurement. The procurement of extra security equipment can help to overcome the problems of delays and waiting time, and therefore improve the operations of BAA. 3. 3. cultural web The cultural web identifies 6 inter related elements that help to make up what Johnson and Scholes call the paradigm of the work environment. BAA has no established culture. However BAA should be also confronted with Ferrovial since this last one can have influence on the company. Since the takeover, BAA is under a strict control. This has provoked some clash and English managers dissatisfied with the new rules of Ferrovial, left. Also the debt of the company has lead to redundancies within the company and Ferrovial is accused to be only cost driven. The group is not popular with the media either. There is evidence that BAA is reluctant to the new management of Ferrovial and in the paradigm we can therefore mention a clash of cultures. Figure 3. 2 Culture Web Figure 3. 2 Culture Web helps to identify the strengths and weaknesses of a company. It can make realise that sometimes corporate culture can be elusive: the intentions of a company are different from the reality. The cultural web can be used to correct this gap by taking each element aside and compare after the reality with what the company wants as for its culture. Henceforth, the company knows more precisely what aspects need to be changed. For BAA, there is some evidence showing a gap between strategic intent and reality. For example in the statement, BAA says it is ital that we engage our stakeholders in open and honest discussion implying that they have good relations with them. However, more recently the relations with stakeholders have been affected especially with the media, politicians and regulators. Most of companys statements are too idealised. It is not really about what people (employees or customers) experience daily and does not really consider the real values and practices of the company. What can be questioned in the cultural web is the control. Ferrovial imposed its rules without adapting to the English market. This ffected the relations with shareholders and the management structure of BAA as English managers left. It was in the interest of Ferrovial to keep these managers as they had more experience of running a company like BAA and knew the English market better. A strategy more appropriate for the company would have been to adopt a participative leadership (Likert, 1961). It mearns for the company working in cooperation with its employees by taking account of their ideas and suggestions. Even if at the end the company makes the decisions, they remain open to new ideas. 34 cultural lypes Another important and useful way of analysing the internal sectors of the organization is to look at the cultural types that exist within BAA as an organization. In order to do this the report looks at three different models. Firstly, BAAS strategies will be compared against the Miesling and Wolfe model (1989), and this is shown below in figure (3. 2). Figure 3. 2. The Miesling and Wolfe Model. On the model above two crosses have been plotted. The first cross at the bottom of the model marked BAA indicates what the authors believe where BAA would put themselves with known cause and effect relationships and a dynamic approach to nvironmental change. However, it is thought that the environmental change will be more stable than BAA would portray themselves. This is because any reduction in carbon dioxide emissions will easily be outweighed by the annual increase in air travel through their airports. It is also going to have to expand into green environments for their expansions such as terminal 5 at Heathrow. Therefore, the second cross, which lies in the computational planning style/analytical decision making indicates a more realistic position for them to lie. Greenley (1989), describes a computational style as; based on an ideal model of planning using a rational pproach, where perfect knowledge of the environment leads to an analysis which can result in decision making which is devoid of irrational behavior. It assumes a long-term rationale of profit maximisation and assumes that the personal aims of managers coincide with company objectives. Greenley, 1989). The second model to be used is a more simplistic approach to cultural types within an organization and is illustrated below in figure (3. 3). Figure 3. 3. Classification of generic cultures, Deal and Kennedy (1982). Once again the same principal has been used where two crosses have been plotted onto the chart. This model is done by analysing the degree of risk the organization is willing to take against the speed of feedback give n to the company. The cross labelled BAA is where the authors believe BAA would put themselves, but the cross in the process culture is the more likely position with a slower speed of feedback and a lower degree of risk taken than BAA would make out. The result of this model, the process culture seems to be ssimilar to the results of the Miesling and Wolfe model, which showed analytical decision making. The last model to be used is the Miles and Snow (1978) who identify hree dominant organizational cultures; The defender culture which view change as threatening, this is not possible in the airline industry as changes happen rapidly. BAA has also shown evidence that they are prepared for change with the implementation of new technology and the expansions in progress. Therefore, the defender culture can be discounted. Prospector cultures thrive on change with flexibility in management. BAA does not show much evidence of flexible management and therefore leaves the last culture, which is the analyser culure, which matches the results of the other two models used. Miles and Snow (1978) describe the analyser culture as those that seek steady growth in the market through very detailed planning and control systems. (Lecture 3) 4 External Environment Analysis Analysis of the operating environment helps to identify current and potential strategic position. The macro-environment analysis consists of broad environment factors that impact on all organizations, which provided by the PEST framework to identify. Then the five forces framework would be used to understand how the competitive dynamics within and around an industr y are changing. 4. 1 . PEST Model It is important to build up an understanding of how changes in the macro- environment are likely to impact on individual organization. Oohnson, etc. 2006) The PEST framework would be used to identify how future trends in the political, economic, social and technological environments might impinge on BAA. It helps managers consider how strategies might need to change depending on the different ways in which the business environment might change. There is PEST analysis as following which show some of the main factors influence the organization. These factors are not independent of each other, may are linked. Political Air Transport white paper in December 2003 and Follow-up report in 2006 by the government set out the UKs ppolicy for sustainable aviation industry. Air transport portal of the European Commission adopted a communication in September 2005 setting a strategy for reducing the climate change impact of aviation. EIJ Emissions Trading Scheme introduces the policies across Europe to tackle emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases. The new ELI-US Air Transport Agreement takes effect on 30 March 2008. European airlines can fly without restrictions from any point in the EIJ to any point in the US. This ppolicy will bring more competition, but also security and environment issues. Economic factors In 2001, aviation contributed ‚Â ¬13 billion to I-JK GDP which is 2% of total GDP. The UK aviation industry directly employs about 200,000 people. Aviations provision of transport infrastructure on which many other parts of the economy depend. Airlines and airports invest around ‚Â ¬2. 5 billion a year. Socio-cultural factors There is more travelling by flight nowadays on both leisure and business purpose. Aviation has now replace shipping as the primary mearns of transport for high-value, nternationally competitive goods and services. Technological factors Governments Transport White Paper in July 1998 clears out the future technology will take-up in the I-JK. Technologies predicted to enter service before 2030 with developments in the 5 to 10 years time period and potential to substantially enhance capacity and mitigate environmental impact. Technological advance will be fundamental to introducing substantial capacity improvements, such as Wake Vortex technologies, sophisticated management systems and data link technologies Training of Aircraft Maintenance Engineers trained aircraft maintenance engineers to meet he needs. New aircraft A-380 reduces noise, only as 25% of 747 competltlve envlronment o e P rt rs Hve Forces This tool was created by Harvard Business School professor, Michael Porter, to analyze the attractiveness and likely-profitability of an industry. Since publication, it has become one of the most important business strategy tools. Buyers Buyers are the customers of BAA, including passengers, airlines, retailers and other tenants. As BAA is dominant in the I-JK market, Buyers have limited choice for other supply sources. Also BAA is an international company meaning that they are dealing ith passengers from all over the world. Therefore Buyers are not Just located on one place, they are not concentrated. This aspect limits the power of Buyers. Substitutes Substitutes for BAA are the other airport companies in I-JK, Manchester Airport Group, Abertis, Peel Airports. Substitutes are not a real threat for BAA. BAA deals with 147,6 million passengers and the second bigger group coming after BAA, which is Manchester Airport Group deals only with 28,3 million of passengers. These figures show the dominance of BAA. Suppliers Suppliers include retail suppliers, equipment suppliers and construction suppliers. Not enough information was provided on the suppliers. Services from suppliers should be really in demand from BAA, as they have an important aactivity and they generally invest huge amounts in construction but also in security. Threats of entrants To enter this market, an industry needs huge capital requirements. Therefore economies of scale are extremely important as a company needs to spread the cost over the market. As well, government policies do not facilitate the entrance to the market as they already restrict airports expansion for existing companies. This market is subject to strict regulations. Competitive rivalry This can be a synthesis of the previous aspects seen before. There are high barriers to entry the market. As well the power of buyers, suppliers and substitutes are limited. Competition between carriers will intensify across the Atlantic as US and European airlines open now, unrestricted, routes. BAA is not subject of real competition as they dominate the market and their dominance in the market is now being questioned by the OFT (Office of Fair Trade) as passengers will not benefit from lower charges and the potential benefits of the Open Skies agreement will be iminished. . 3. Industry Life Cycles Industry life cycles comprising four phases of an industry, which are introduction, growth, maturity and decline. (Haberberg Rieple, 2001) The authors point out the industry life cycle is a simplification of reality that glosses over a lot of exceptions. Figure 4. 3 Industry life cycles Figure 4. 3 shows the aviation industry is in the growth phase, when the industry becomes established and the number of firms and sales of the product grow rapidly. There may be some improvements in the industry and in the process technology used. In the growth phase, there are still enough customers to go around, so competition is unlikely to be fierce. 4. 4. Evaluation of opportunities and threats Evaluation of opportunities and threats is the final stage of external audit. The key opportunltles Include: Growth of aviation industry and growth of airport capacity provide development capacity. New technologies, such as new aircraft could reduce noise. Potential new market outside the UK The key treats include: Capacity However, expedition of Heathrow airport also is a treat, more capacity mearns more difficult on operation, required experiences staff. Security issue is still one of major problems for BAA in the future. Environment issue is another threat for BAA, limit environment effect is the )Â ¤flrms social responsibility. Figure 4. 4 below shows classifying the opportunities using measures of probability and internal capability. New technology in quadrant Exploit with maximum interest, both potential international market and growth of industry are in quadrant Investigate, with great potential for BAA, but low internal capability, which mearns further investigation. Figure 4. Evaluation of opportunities Figure 4. 5 shows the evaluation of threats. Two major threats in quadrant Prepared, BAA has greater capability to deal with such probable threats, thus are prepared. Environment issues is in quadrant Monitor, that is more uncertain, although this threat are currently unlikely, it may became so in future and thus BAA must monitor it. Figure 4. 5 Evaluation of threats The aviation industry is facing significant technical and pr actical capacity constraints and due to long-term nature has been slow to address these. Environmental and security issues are exerting sthrong pressures on the industry and its ability to grow. 5. Developing and implementing strategy 5. 1 . Recommend future strategies and evaluation of strategies The Anoff product/ market growth matrix (figure 5. 1) provides a simple way of generating four basic alternative directions for strategic development. It explicitly considers growth options. Product development and market development could be the two better way for BAA future strategy. Figure 5. Anoff product/market growth matrix BAAS existing strategy of airport development may now well be broken. The plans over the next 10 years airport expansion, however The Competition commission are ow deciding whether their dominance of the market translates into distortion of the market, or wnetner proper long-term planning can De aellverea Dy a large, staDle, well regulated group. Britains Office of Fair Trading (OFT) argues that the competition between airports is much more critical at the moment, as they believe the barriers to entry that hamper the market. There were factors taken into account when selecting a strategic route forward for BAA in terms of its Suitability, Acceptability and Feasibility and tools and approaches were also used to help select the correct strategic group. 5. 1 . 1. Development of Airports Suitability Suitability is concerned with whether a strategy addresses the key issue relating to the strategic position of the organization. BAAS plan for airport expansion over the next ten years is appropriate to the product life cycle and the relative position of the firm within its competitive environment. Reasons for this include the fact that their in a dominant competitive position and are in in an industry that is in the growth stage. BAA is also sthrong in terms of its competitive position as are able to attain cost leadership and are able to be defended. The proposed strategy of airport expansion ill eventually generate more passengers that will allow an increase consumer spending, for example, retail accommodation. The organization is prepared to handle capacity in terms of no. of passengers, therefore service quality should improve, which in turn may create a demand for airport usage by airline companies. The reinforced linkages in the (internal) value chain from the strategy of airport expansion will create an oopportunity to improve its competitive position and boosts the linkages in the value chain, so could allow them to increase prices in its products as overall passenger service should provide value for money. Acceptability Airport expansion is likely to satisfy key stakeholders, for example, shareholders, employees, managers, customers, however may have an effect on local communities, pressure groups. The fact that there is a credit crunch is not going to eliminate any financial risk to the company and due to such developments there is no guarantee of their being service quality as reasons for this may include BAAS human capital not being used to its full advantage to enable retailing to be iintegrated in a balanced way that supports efficient airport operations, enhances the travellers experience and ake the most of the commercial opportunities available. Feasibility BAA has an experienced security and fire service yet there is no established culture which may affect its human capital as may not be able to enable iintegrated retailing in a balanced way that supports efficient airport operations. As a result it could affect the assessment of skills, knowledge, and decision making abilities, training and expertise of its employees, adaptability of employees therefore could affect the level of commitment and loyalty therefore may not have the resources required to sustain n competitive advantage.

Anthology Poems

It is just filled with 5 poetic lines which we had to either do a free verse poem, poems without rhyming or patterns and that don‘t follow any rules, or a blank verse which is a poem that uses no rhyming but has iambic pentameters (patterns). Or you can do a rhyme verse which is a poem that uses rhyming. My poem is blank verse because even though I have no rhyming I have a pattern. You see I repeat the word â€Å"reason† a few times and it follow a pattern. Read ona The Room No matter how many times I tell him, He never cleans his room! On how dirty it is! His underwear is under the ____ Bed. His papers are on the __f_lo__o_r__. Last weeks sandwich is a M O L D Y Mess! Theirs something called â€Å"Clean up your room! † I say to him everyday! At last I punished him with a ban on T. V. That’s when the stink went away. Description This poem is a poem with a speaker. A speaker poem is a person that is talking in the poem. Sometimes the speaker can be the author itself talking in the poem. Other times it is a made up character. In this case, you can figure out that the speaker is the kids mother because she â€Å"banned him with no T. V. † until his room is cleaned up. (Now mothers will do that, just ask my mother. ) Read ona My Cat My cat is dumb! Let me tell you that! He’s the opposite of what a cat Should be! He hates mice, But loves dogs. He doesn’t like milk, But prefers meat. Now tell me, Is that how a cat should be? Description This poem by yours truly is a irony poem. Ever heard of that word? Irony in poetic terms means when a result of something is the complete opposite of what you would expect. For example, in my poem you wouldn’t expect a cat to be friends with dogs. I mean dogs and cats hate each other. Well at least that’s what we would expect. And for a cat to not like milk! Unbelievable, right? (Yea I know, I have a dumb cat. But it is ironic that my cat behaves the opposite of what cats should behave like. That is why this poem is a irony poem. Read ona I Love You Do you remember? All the fun times we had. Oh how you would laugh at my jokes. Oh I’d do anything To hear your lovely voice. Your voice makes me smile Even when I’m mad. So I wrote this poem, To tell you, That I love you! Description This poem is a theme poem. Yes you heard right. Theme. Theme is the main idea in a poem or the authors feelings/thoughts. In this poem the theme is love. This is easy to figure out because the poem just says right there that the person loves another person. Some times these poems can be in a shape. Like my poem is shaped kind of like a heart and the theme of it is love. Isn’t it sweet? Read ona Just A Kiss Silence walks upon the stone halls. As you sleep for a hundred years. Fall, Winter, Spring, and Summer Visited you every year. Hoping to find you up and about. But just as they feared, Everything is weird- Sleeping Beauty has just premiered. But not before your sleep is evoked, Before you stands Charming himself. Thus, a kiss on the lips, Was all that was needed, To arouse you from your ancient sleep. Description This is another poem by me that is an allusion poem. Allusion in poetry terms means when a poem makes a reference to another poem. For example in my poem Just A Kiss the allusion is Sleeping Beauty sleeping for a hundred years until Prince Charming came to wake her from her deep sleep. I am alluding the story of Sleeping Beauty to my poem. Read ona I Wish I wish to drift into the darkness. Into the shadows of death. Slowly my grip loosens. I am trapped in an avalanche. This pain-its too much! I’m like snow trapped in the suns rays. Slowly and silently, I’ll rise, From this nightmare. Description This poem is a chance poem. Nothing big but we just had to pick 5 words from this list and use those words to make a poem. Read ona Moment Of Freedom The monsters in my head, They tell me I’m crazy. Maybe I am. These monsters, they yell and scream, Until I let them out. But they come back, they always do. These monsters they bring me crimson delight. Fresh crimson pleasure, trickling down my arm As the blade digs deeper, I find a moment of freedom. A moment where everything stops. Everything is peaceful. Everything is fine. But soon the monsters will come back. Then, no longer will I feel the pain. No longer will I feel crimson joy. Everything will be back to normal, With the monsters screaming, Until I let them out again. Description This poem is a poem with figurative language poem. Figurative language is a term in poetry when you compare two unlike things to make something clear. For example if I say the soap bubbles in the bath tub are like clouds in the sky, I am comparing the soap bubbles to the clouds, but the soap bubbles aren’t really clouds, right? In this poem I am comparing the suicide thoughts of the speaker to monsters. Read ona Nothing But The Best You’re my summer sun, And I’m your winter wind. No matter what mistakes I make, All the times I’ve yelled at you, You’re always there. Even when I’m fierce like the winter wind; Howling all the time, My nerves are calmed by your sunshine smile. You’re a treasure chest, Full of priceless gems. To me you’re nothing but the best. Description This poem is a poem of assonance/alliteration. Assonance is when you use repetition of the sound of a vowel. I don’t think I have tat but I do have alliteration. Alliteration is the repetition of 2 or more words that end with the same sound or start with the same letter. For example in the poem I said â€Å"winter wind† both words have a â€Å"w† in the beginning. I also used â€Å"sunshine smile† which has a â€Å"s† in the beginning of each word. This is how my poem uses assonance/alliteration. Read ona The Monster Mama always said she loved me. But then why do I cry every time she came home? Why do I hide under the bed, Praying she didn’t come looking for me? Before daddy left, She told me I was her sweet little angel. So why does she tell me that she hates me? Why is it the she says I’m a nuisance? What did I do, To get black and blue, Bruises all over my body. Mama always told me, That the monster always haunts kids, Who lie and cheat and hit people. Then why did she lie to me when she told me, That daddy ran away, When she kicked him out of the house? And why did she cheat on daddy before he Went to another place? And why does she hit me with her whiskey bottle? Why does she love to see me cry When the glass cuts my skin? Mama knew what she did to me, But what she didn’t know was that the monster was, The only one that said it loved me. Description This poem is a poem on symbolism. Symbolism is the idea or topic of the poem. For example, the night is a symbol of death. Or in the poem I made the monster symbolizes the thoughts one would have after abuse. Read ona The End My past is finished, It’s all filled with pain. My past is killing me, ‘Cause I’m trapped in this lane. My mind is at war with me, I can’t control the thoughts deep inside me. I’m bent out of shape with all this pain, I think it’s time I’ve played life’s game. Before it’s time I ask myself, ‘Is this the end? Will there ever be a tomorrow? ’ Almost turning away, I turn right back, I decide there is nothing more for me, Only the end can set me†¦ Free†¦ Description This last poem is a free verse poem. Like I explained in the other poem called â€Å"Reason† I said that free verse poems are poems without rhyming or patterns and that don‘t follow any rules. And just like in this poem I did not follow any patterns. aSTOP? *NO MORE POEMS*

Red bull Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

Red bull - Assignment Example The energy drink was inspired by a popular Thai drink named Krafting Daeng that was suggested for jet lag remedy. The owner of Krafting Daeng was requested to manufacture and market a new energy drink with completely new flavor. The main objective of Red Bull was to sell energy drink with a unique taste that appealed to the people living in the western countries. It sold more than one million cans in its first year and decided to expand into UK, USA, Hungary and Germany during the tenure 1992 to 1997. The company’s slogan â€Å"Red Bull gives you wings† defined the drink appropriately. However, there has been certain health risks associated with the drinks. The reason was that the ingredients of the drink contained high levels of caffeine which led to the cardiovascular diseases. However, the popularity of the company had soared and it began to promote a series of flagship events in the sports world. Situation Analysis Market Analysis of Energy Drinks Presently, the ene rgy and sports drink market is increasing steadily and has been gaining popularity among the teenagers and young adults. The sports and energy drink market saw a major increase in the sales growth of 13 percent in the year 2011 compared to an industry growth of 11 percent in the year 2010 (EuroMonitor International, 2012). There has been a rapid increase in the demand of branded and local energy drinks. In the UK Lucozade, GlaxoSmithKline was a leader in the sports and nutritional drink market and accounted for a 40 percent market share (EuroMonitor International, 2012). The sales of Lucozade were ?498 million in the year 2011 (EuroMonitor International, 2012). It is estimated that the sports and energy drink market would further grow at 5 percent in the UK (EuroMonitor International, 2012).It has been observed that in spite of the economic slowdown the beverage market has been growing steadily. Among the beverages there has been a tremendous increase in the sales of soft drinks and energy drinks especially in United Kingdom. In the year 2011 there was an increase of sales of carbonated drinks by 24 percent from 2010. In spite of health risks associated with these beverages and increase in the demand and sales of the energy drinks have been commendable especially among the youth and teenagers. The industry is dominated by established and popular companies like Coca Cola, Pepsi Co ltd, Red Bull etc (Polis, 2013). Penetration of the established companies into energy and nutritional drink segment has helped the companies in diversification of risk amidst this economic slowdown (Key Note, 2012). Figure 1: Market Share of Energy Drink Brands Source: (Energy Fiend, 2013) 5C of Red Bull The 5C analysis will helps us in understanding the macro, micro environmental and internal factors that affects the beverage market. It is one of the most instrumental tools used for identifying the important issues that require immediate attention and is also regarded as a checklist for managerial decision making. Customer: The drink is available at 8 oz, 12 oz, 16 oz and 20 oz can sizes and