Monday, September 30, 2019

Study Plan

All world’s population is 7 billion, 1. 3 billion people spoken Chinese in worldwide, approximately worldwide 1 in every 6-7 person can speak chinese. If you believe Chinese to be one language, rather than a grouping, it is the single most commonly spoken language on the planet. It is spoken in countries like China, Taiwan Singapore. For people interested in becoming fluent in Chinese, it can be intimidating and challenging. As Mongolia and China have been neighbors, many Mongolians are interested in China and its language and culture as well as Mongolians are more familiar about China than any other nation in the world.First reason of choosing China is it I’m familiar with country, secondly Chinese is getting more and more influential learning it gives me more advantage in the future. The international communication and trade program interests me because it gives me good intellectual. In today’s globalizing society, studying in foreign high developed country to be very significant to bring development to own business and individual’s development. I have information about Chinese education system which is excellent at trying theoretical knowledge to the practice work thus it affected me to choose it.Studying with people from various countries ;learning selected experience of such countries thus sharing information to be very important to the human development. Due to my studies, I am aware that my Chinese Language skills are still to increase. I have studied Chinese a little, but it’s not perfect yet. But I constantly try to improve myself by doing personal work. Besides it is one of the reasons I want to live and study in China. For my point of view, it’s the best way to acquire good accent and talk â€Å"true† Chinese, not only based on readings.As for a citizen, I would like to give my contribution to the development of my country as possible as I can on studying well in the China. I have many advantages to st udy successfully and keep studying with majoring on my profession without any difficulties further. I have shown some of my study plan as follows. – Study successfully majoring on my own qualification at the University; Attentively learn all subjects in accordance with appropriate term and planned hours; Get acquainted with the students who have the same purposes as well learn from Chinese history, culture, and life.I hope that you will look favorably on my application. Therefore accepting this scholarship is a big opportunity of good life and chance to become intelligent knowledge person that I dreamed of and it will be opening door to the my future. As for me, I have full confidence in myself that I am able to study Chinese as faster as I can. I have many advantages to study successfully and keep studying with majoring on my profession without any difficulties further.

Sunday, September 29, 2019

D. Forecast for Next 12-18 months Essay

The world economic outlook is bright. World GDP growth is forecast to average slightly more than 4 percent per annum during 2006-2007. Asia will continue to act as the primary engine of global growth, though activity will also be supported by continued U. S. economic expansion of almost 3 percent annually. China will continue to register robust growth of slightly more than 9 percent per annum, and output will continue to increase rapidly also in India. Japan also appears to be entering a longer phase of stable growth. The positive global environment will be reinforced by the Euro Area, where economic growth is forecast to accelerate in response to a recovery in domestic demand (The Research Institute of the Finnish Economy). The National Institute of Economic and Social Research has recently released a set of forecasts regarding the state of world economy in 2007. Below are listed some of the key points: Global growth will quicken to 5. 1 per cent this year falling back only a bit in 2007 to a still rapid 4. 7 per cent. Inflationary pressures are rising, mainly owing to higher oil prices, but the impact of rising oil prices on inflation and output is now more muted than in the past. Global imbalances remain marked and the dollar may have to fall by a further 30 per cent in order to halve the US current-account deficit. The US economy will grow by over 3 per cent a year in both 2006 and 2007, but inflationary pressures are mounting. The Japanese economic recovery has become self-sustaining and GDP will rise by 3. 1 per cent in 2006 and by 2. 6 per cent in 2007. The Euro Area will expand by around 2 per cent a year in both 2006 and 2007, and consumer price inflation will average about 2. 5 per cent in both years. The NIESR report goes on to elaborate upon the aforementioned points: Advanced countries in the OECD bloc are participating in the upswing but the main reason for the current period of exceptionally strong global growth is the long boom in China. In 2005, China represented 15. 4 per cent of global GDP on a purchasing-power parity basis, up from 3. 4 per cent in 1980. Global inflation is rising in response to higher oil prices, but much less so than in the past. New estimates suggest that a $10 permanent rise in oil prices will add 0. 2 to 0. 4 percentage points to inflation in the United States in the four years to 2009, with a somewhat smaller impact in the Euro Area, and a still smaller effect in the UK. The global upswing continues to be accompanied by major imbalances, notably the scale of the US current account deficit, which widened by 4. 5 percentage points of GDP between 1997 and 2005. Since this deterioration has mainly financed increased consumer spending rather than productive investment, financial markets may conclude that the deficit is not sustainable. It is estimated that the dollar’s value against a basket of currencies needs to fall by a further 30 per cent in order to reduce the current account deficit by 3 percentage points of GDP. The US economy will grow by 3. 6 per cent in 2006 and by 3. 1 per cent in 2007. The economy continues to be driven mainly by consumption, which will increase by 3. 3 per cent in 2006 and by 2. 9 per cent in 2007. Housing investment is slackening but business investment, stimulated by high corporate profits, will buoy growth this year and next. Inflation is picking up and the private consumption deflator will rise by 3. 0 per cent in 2006 and by 3. 3 per cent in 2007. There now appears little doubt that the Japanese recovery from the bleak period of deflation and stagnation has become self-sustaining. The economy grew by 3. 5 per cent in the year to the first quarter of 2006 . Business investment is expanding strongly and consumer spending is expected to grow by 1. 9 per cent a year in 2006 and 2007. Average earnings, which had been falling earlier in the decade, will grow by 0. 8 per cent in 2006 and by 2. 8 per cent in 2007. The outlook for the Euro Area is for higher inflation despite a fairly modest recovery. Consumer prices will rise by 2. 6 per cent in 2006 compared with 2. 2 per cent in 2005. Tighter monetary conditions together with measures in Germany to cut the budget deficit will hold back growth in consumption and GDP in the Euro Area. Consumer spending will also be restrained by sluggish growth in average earnings as the corporate sector manages to retain its increased profitability (Barrell et al, 8-31).

Saturday, September 28, 2019

Floodgates of litigation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Floodgates of litigation - Essay Example Thus, there is some eminent fear that giving certain ruling in some cases has the likelihood of opening floodgates of litigation, which may overwhelm the courts and thus affects their efficiency, owing to the fact that there are still many cases and issues pending in courts, which have not been resolved yet1. However, this issue is controversial, since there is a feeling that; considering the aspect of opening floodgates of litigation while making legal determinations is unjustifiable. This is because, such a consideration is not part of the interpretation of the law, which is the prime function of the courts that separates them from the other arms of the government, so that they can act independently in interpreting the law2. Therefore, this discussion seeks to investigate why courts are concerned about floodgates of litigation, with a view to assessing where within the tort of Negligence, an evidence of this concern can be identified. The advocates of the concept of the floodgates of litigation argues that if a court takes certain course of action, it is likely to lead to a dramatic increase in legal litigations, which may affect the courts ability to discharge its duties. This is because; the court may not even be able to address other cases effectively due to the unmanageable number of litigations3. On the other hand, the critics of the concept of floodgates of litigation observes that making such a consideration while giving a legal determination is against the mandate of the courts, since there is no evident principle that provides for the courts to consider workload as a factor, while making a legal determination2. ... There are certain clauses of the law that seem to be so much ambiguous, so that their truthful interpretation becomes impossible4. Such clauses are vivid in their definition of terms, or provision of remedies, that the judges cannot apply them with certainty while determining cases. In the cases of such confusing rules, there are chances that giving a certain interpretation of such clauses would pave a way for further parallel interpretations, which would see many cases introduced to the courts, based on the same or the parallel interpretations made5. In this respect, it becomes necessary to invoke the concept of floodgates of litigation by the judges, so that they can prevent the occurrence of parallel interpretations and the consequent dramatic increase in the number of cases filed with the courts, based on such interpretations. It is upon this observation that a judge can look into the effect of giving a certain legal determination, and thus decide to forfeit it, based on the fact that it may lead to the introduction of an overwhelming number of cases to the courts. The second circumstance, under which the courts may be compelled to invoke the concept of floodgates of litigation, is under situation s where the provisions of the law are overly broad6. There are certain clauses of the law that can be interpreted so widely, that the interpretation will encompass some elements that contrasts previous interpretations, or gives new interpretations of the law that had not been applied previously. In case of an overly broad clause which leads to a contrasted interpretation with preceding legal interpretations, chances are high that the parties involved in such

Friday, September 27, 2019

Inequality for women in the workplace Research Paper

Inequality for women in the workplace - Research Paper Example 565) and yet just over thirty-years later, The Glass Ceiling Commission reported that equity was far from being achieved. The report noted that women continued to earn proportionately less than men for the same work or that there was a wage-gap, and that they made up only a very small fraction of the upper-level positions in U.S. Organizations (Russell, 1995, p. 8). Hence, where there are no visible or concrete (legal) barriers for advancement, the barriers are invisible or made of glass. The following will examine the barriers faced by women in the workplace, and this essay will try and make the transparent visible. It will be argued that inequality can only be explained by how the dominant class in society legitimates and perpetuates power, and how the distinction between gender and sex is important to understanding the actual barriers to equality. In order to arrive at understanding the invisible or glass barriers for women in the workplace, a brief overview of some of the legal o bstacles will first be presented. While it is true that many barriers remain for women in the workplace, it can also be held that the twentieth-century was marked by a significant amount of progress. At the turn of the twentieth century, many obstacles existed for women in the workforce. ... 154). However, as science progressed this form of legitimation proved untenable. Likewise, attitudes changed significantly, and access to higher education meant access to better positions in the workforce. As with progress in education, likewise with the the percentage of women in the workforce in the twentieth century. One of the main contributing causes for this change, are the two World Wars (1914-1918 and 1939-1945) where women were needed to work in the place of men who were participating military action. For example, in 1900 only 5.6 % of all women worked outside of the home, and following the First World War this percentage rose to 23.6 % (Webb, 2010, pp. 1-2). During the era of the Great Depression after the stock market crash of 1929, there was a public sentiment that maintained that the few jobs that existed ought to be given to men, but again, the Second World War changed the workforce demographics again and between 1942 and 1945 over 6.5 million women entered the workforc e in the U.S. (Webb, 2010, p. 2). And, while attitudes were still negative about women in the workforce, there were many public campaigns that promoted it because of the necessity of the War. This had a significant impact on changing attitudes toward women in the workforce, and as with the period following the First World War, the period following the Second was marked by a higher percentage of women who remained employed outside of the home (Webb, 2010, p. 2). Along with the barrier's of access to education and the workforce, a number of legal or legislative changes improved egalitarian conditions in the twentieth-century. The right to vote for women largely came about through the lobbying and

Thursday, September 26, 2019

Letter of Motivation for Master of Laws in Advanced Studies in Public Essay

Letter of Motivation for Master of Laws in Advanced Studies in Public International Law - Essay Example Throughout my student career, and also in my working life, the particular focus on global politics and the consequent legal frameworks supporting international systems have sharpened in my mind. I am at present completing a Master’s program in Global Politics and International Relations at Bahà §eÅŸehir University in Istanbul (begun in 2007) and am currently employed as a Research Assistant at Okan University Faculty of Law in the department of Public International Law. Previous to this I achieved the Master of European Union Law at Istanbul University, where I studied from 2006 to 2009, after completion of my under-graduate courses at the Marmara University Faculty of Law (2000-2005). Evident from both my thesis topics within the courses mentioned above, and my employment history, is the committed interest I have in International Law. For the LLM Program at the Istanbul University Faculty of Law, I submitted the thesis The German Practice within the Scope of the EU Counter-Terrorism Policies; my current thesis topic is titled Migration and Citizenship in Turkey. I have also sought out work, short-course, and seminar opportunities related to my field of interest. I was a trainee at the Center for Eurasian Strategic Studies in 2007. I also worked in organizational and co-ordination capacities at the NATO Summit in Istanbul (2004); the World News Agencies Summit (2003); and the ECO Heads of State Summit Meeting in 2002. Additionally, I have attended seminars on topics as diverse as the Enlargement Process of the European Union and Turkey, The Effects of Globalization on the Law – the Role of the WTO, and Violence against Women and Sexual Crimes during the last few years. As a student, too, I was involved in this area – as President of the European Law Students’ Association (2003-2004) and as Vice-President of Seminars and Conferences for ELSA Istanbul (2002). I was also awarded the DAAD Scholarship to enter the â€Å"Program for International

Wednesday, September 25, 2019

The Value of SWOT in General and Regarding Planning Case Study

The Value of SWOT in General and Regarding Planning - Case Study Example SWOT is essential in the planning stage of any management or marketing implement because it defines the internal and external environment of which the plan will be based. The efficacy of a plan depends on the accuracy of the assessment of the environment of which it will be applied as defined in the SWOT. SWOT provides a reality check in the execution stage of any management or marketing implement. It fine tunes the execution as SWOT considers the new realities in the internal and external factor of the organization. a) The extent to which the foregoing listed strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats are generic, ie. insofar as product and service providers are concerned? SWOT can be generic in terms of the internal assessment (strength and weakness) in terms of assessing the competency of its people. It is usually expressed in general terms such as â€Å"we have very talented people to execute the task†. In the weakness aspect, factors such as ailing equipment that ca n no longer perform the task adequately are expressed in general terms. With regard to external factors, competition is typically expressed in general terms in the threat aspect of SWOT. Assessment of opportunity in SWOT can be expressed in general in terms of growth of companies if they will be successful in the identified market. b)What SWOT considerations would you delete, change categorically, or add, if you were in the sports shoe industry and wished to be known as a socially responsible producer? The threat factor would be removed in the SWOT in order to be known as a socially responsible producer of shoes. It is because the competition must be ruled out in the consciousness of the business that compels it to compromise social responsibility in exchange for competitiveness.

Tuesday, September 24, 2019

Nuclear Weapons and Terrorism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Nuclear Weapons and Terrorism - Essay Example Although it may be the case that some terrorists (Or terrorist sympathizers) might be able to build an implosion assembly method (Using a plutonium core) or gun-type assembly method (Uranium tip) thermonuclear weapon from scratch, this approach would be unlikely. Firstly, it would be difficult to gather all of the raw nuclear materials and assemble them into a working weapon. Although it was postulated by Nuclear Control Institute (2011) that in theory terrorists could steal nuclear power plant fuel and convert that into a working nuclear weapon. However it is my belief that it is far more likely that the theft of completed nuclear weapon sub-components from various sources and then bring them together. The next major issue for consideration is the idea that a completed nuclear weapon could be stolen by terrorist groups. Although it may be the case that nations with nuclear weapons state that they have strict controls over the storage and transport it is the case that the Internation al Atomic Energy Commission only places physical security standards on international shipments of nuclear materials and not the internal transportation of these weapons. As such one could postulate that there may exist inadequate protection of several nations nuclear weapon arsenals.

Monday, September 23, 2019

Information Technology- Information Retrieval Annotated Bibliography

Information Technology- Information Retrieval - Annotated Bibliography Example In this article, Chowdhury, Gibb and Landoni assess the ease at which a group of users is able to access information from a given source. This article is supported by a quantitative analysis conducted on users to support the necessity of considering uncertainties in the design of an information system. This article is useful in my case since it justifies the need for conducting studies on information retrieval and the possible risks involved. This article is a documentation of the development in the computing industry and the strategies implemented in adapting to changes in the field. Liu, McMahon and Culley describe the processes that led to the development of SDR technology. In the article, the authors explain the reasons behind development of the information retrieval (IR) technologies, such as incompatibility of files between the traditional and modern systems. This paper justifies the existence of the SDR in the engineering filed and its purpose in information retrieval. This article provides information on the challenges that led to the development of a better-structured information retrieval system. According to Tu and Seng, works involving IT technologies in the education sector is one of the fastest growing ventures. The article in question represents a collection of ideas from comprehensive studies in the information technology filed. The article by Tu and Seng is an attempt to congregate information on the information retrieval subject with considerations to current operational systems. The intelligence gathered exposes the need for continued studies in the information retrieval field. This article is useful in my study for it shows that perfection in the information retrieval subject has not yet been attained, there exists challenges. The article presents an exhaustive tutorial on the basics of applying information retrieval techniques to acquire useful information on a

Sunday, September 22, 2019

Job - Specific Orientation Plan (Care Giver) Essay

Job - Specific Orientation Plan (Care Giver) - Essay Example The Plan The first step during the orientation shall involve provision of the employees with a handout; this document shall include all the fundamental knowledge that shall guide the new employees during the orientation. The handout shall cover specifically; basic instructions that the new employee shall be required to acquaint her/him with. Additionally, within the handout there shall be information concerning time schedule of the orientation: That is, time allocated for each activity of the orientation process. Consequently, the handout shall provide the employee with the knowledge on who is responsible for provision of guidance during the orientation. Informative notes on a variety of pertinent topics relating to the job shall be included in the handout in order to facilitate the orientation process. The information contained in the handout shall be arranged I respect to each orientation activity and shall be followed strictly. This will ensure that time is not wasted due to confu sions on which program should be covered. In order to ensure that the employees are equipped with all the necessary knowledge concerning the job, they shall be provided with reference documents. This shall act as the employee handbook. It shall contain information concerning the definition as well as description of the employment status of the new job. Additionally, this document shall contain information concerning the employee’s code of conduct: Service and patient’s concerns, how to handle confidential data, integrity of records and reporting mechanisms. The reference document shall also provide the employee with data related to benefits (workers compensation). Further information shall be provided on the reference document concerning hours of work such as; reporting time and leaving time, absenteeism and specific time to conduct a particular duty. Other information that shall be included in the reference document is: Dress code, punctuality,

Saturday, September 21, 2019

One team around the world Essay Example for Free

One team around the world Essay It is a report for Tesco. It is meant for showing an adult audience of investors how many stores Tesco has around the world. It tells the reader how Tesco is expanding world-wide. This document uses a number of presentation features. It is very formal and factual. There are two different types of charts used, firstly a stacked bar chart to show improvements over a number of years stacked bar chart shows the different areas of the world that Tesco has stores at the same time. Secondly, pie charts show the current situation of different aspects such as the number of employees in the UK, Asia and Europe. The line spacing changes a number of times through out the document. In the introductory paragraph the lines are on at least double spacing, whereas on the table the line spacing is single. To produce this high quality document you would have to use a spread sheet program such as Microsoft Excel to produce the graphs, charts and tables. Also a desktop publisher for the smart layout may have been used. The makers of this document would have use large monitors so they could see the whole thing at once. A colour laser printer would have been used so to produce high quality colour print outs quickly. A mouse, keyboard and processor would have also been used. The document uses tables charts and graphs to show information easily. Design guides have been used to make it satisfying to the eye and easy to make sense of the information. To frame the text large margins have been used. For what it is trying to say, it is very good at it. To improve it I would suggest putting a logo on it some where to make it clearer that it is from Tesco. Gloucestershire Governor Newsletter The document is called The Gloucestershire Governor Newsletter. It is designed for school governors this means it will be angled towards the older generation. It is designed to inform them about current affairs involving members of the Gloucestershire education council. On the front page of the newsletter, the writers have used two quite big pictures of the people featured in the main article; this helps support the text in the article. Bullet points are used to make the information easier to read and take in. Big, bold headings have been used to make it clear what the articles are about. To produce a document like this newsletter, a desktop publishing program would probably have been used so the writer could lay the text, photos and headings out easily. The text would have been drafted in a word processing program. E-mail may have been used to gather the articalls. Also, a program such as Paint Shop Pro might have been used to resize the images. To get the images on to the computer, a digital camera or scanner would have been. As well as a mouse, keyboard and processor an A4 monitor may have been used to allow the document to be viewed a whole page at a time. At the top of the page, there is a large heading saying The Gloucestershire Governor; next to this is the County Councils education logo to tell the reader who produced it. Under this is a text box with the date and issue number in. Then there are two articles, the first of which has two quite big photos with a caption thanking The Citizen. Both articles have a few sentences in bold out lining the contents of the piece. At the bottom of the page, there is a box with a thick border telling the reader whats inside the issue. The document does what it sets out to quite well. The document is easy to read and is very informative. The diction is angled towards the older generation. To improve it, I would standardise all the text to one font and align all of the heading to the centre. To improve it I would put both articles into columns. Year of the Teacher Review The document is a PowerPoint Presentation about the Year of the Teacher. It is aimed at school pupils aged between 11 and 16 year olds. It is designed to tell the pupils how some of the teachers at Deer Park got into teaching. It is meant to promote the Year of the Teacher scheme. On each slide of the presentation there is a photo of the teacher as a child as well as a recent photo of them teaching and a quotation in a speech bubble. The colour scheme is aimed to catch teenagers attention. All the slides have the same format; this is good as it makes it clearer to read and less confusing. To produce this presentation a word processor, such as Microsoft word, may have been used to draft the text content. An image editing program like Paint Shop Pro might have been used to edit and re-size the photos. PowerPoint was used to put all the information together. An Internet browser like Microsoft Internet Explorer may have been used to e-mail ideas around staff and to ask them to bring photos of themselves to him. A scanner and a digital camera would have been used to get the pictures onto the computer. A monitor, mouse and processor would also been used. As it is designed as a presentation you would not need a printer The document does what it is designed for very well. The photos of the teacher when they were teenagers and the music keeps the pupils interested and amused. Maplins: Despatch note to Mr Ling The document is a despatch note to Mr Ling for Maplins. The document is aimed to show customers the items they have ordered and should be in the package from Maplin Electronics. It also includes contact details of the company. The different types of presentation features used are contrasting colours to make it easy to tell the difference between the sections. Because the blue represents the headings, the pink represents the set information like the companys address. And the white has the information that changes for each customer such as what items they have ordered and how much they cost. They have also used A big logo in the corner of the document to distinguish what the company is called. They have used to different fonts to represent the information that appears on everyones bill and the information that changes depending on the persons whos bill it is so this is in a more clearer type. The software that may have been used to produce this document may have included a Desktop Publishing or a word processing package to draft the text and lay out the template. They may also have used a graphical editing program to design the logo. A spread sheet program would have been used to store the customers names and addresses that needed to be merged. The hardware that may have been used to produce a document like this one would have been a monitor, processor, mouse keyboard and, judging by the font and the perforated paper, a dot matrix printer. Dot matrix printers are very fast, cheap and reliable so they are good for printing letters such as this despatch note. However, they are very noisy. The document is clearly laid out so you can see each section. For example the amount to pay has a different colour around it. And it puts each part into a different box to keep every thing separate, so its easy to see the part you want to look at. The document shows what it needs to show without looking to complicate and confusing. To improve it, Maplins could put the total price in a larger font so it is easier to see.

Friday, September 20, 2019

Negative Effects Of Peer Rejection Psychology Essay

Negative Effects Of Peer Rejection Psychology Essay This paper researches the effects of peer rejection on children, from the beginning of elementary school and transitioning into middle school, and the adverse effects that peer rejection can have. The paper also examines if there are certain factors, such as race, sex, parental care, or societal deviance, that correlate to or can be used as predictors of peer rejection. Looking at peer rejection shows multiple adverse effects, varying from psychological damage, increase in aggression, disinterest in academic life, increase in risk taking behavior, and negative academic performance, with all being related in turn to the duration and intensity of the rejection. This paper examines how peer rejection is correlated to these factors and outcomes, and if they can be used to predict adjustment in adult life. Peer Rejection: An Examination of the Negative Effects of Peer Rejection on Multiple Aspects of a Childs Life Merriam-Webster defines reject as to refuse to accept, consider, submit to, take for some purpose, or use, and peer as one that is of equal standing with another : especially : one belonging to the same societal group especially based on age, grade, or status. From these two definitions we get peer rejection, which can be stated as refusal to accept someone of a similar age, grade or status into a social group. Anyone who has ever been part of a social group in their life, from a school associated club, to a sports team, to a playground group, has dealt with not fitting in. Whether it be due to their race, age, sex, or play preferences, children of all types deal with not being accepted by their classmates. Asking anyone will get you a tale of a time in which they experienced rejection by friends or fellow students, and how they felt when it occurred. But what many people never think about is how this rejection can affect a child, if it continues for a long amount of time, or is more intense then merely an exclusion from one days worth of activity. If this occurs there can be a risk for problems to begin developing. First, we will be discussing the immediately recognizable effects of peer rejection on a child, such as disinterest in school work, drop in grade point average, increase in aggression and overall lack of interest in education. Secondly, we will discuss the long term effects of peer rejection, like increase in risk taking behavior, likelihood of continued low scores in GPA and continued lack of interest in school. Lastly, we will discuss how peer rejection can also be a predictor of other negative things in a childs life, such as deviance, whether it be physical, mental, or social, or even maltreatment by their parents. In 2008, Ladd, Herald-Brown Reiser conducted a study on whether chronic peer rejection would affect and predict a childs class room participation during grade school. It was hypothesized that (a) peer rejection creates constraints that inhibit childrens classroom participation and (b) the cessation of rejection enables children to become more active and cooperative participants in classroom activities. To test the hypothesis, Ladd et al. (2008) took a sample of 398 children, 199 girls and 199 boys, with a largely Caucasian sample, 77.5%, and followed them from age 5 through age 12. The largely Caucasian sample makes the group seem somewhat biased, due to its lack of representing any other race, however, it can be said that it is representative of the population of the United States. According to the 2011 Census, Caucasians make up 78.1% of the United States population, so while it may appear biased, it would seem that instead the sampling is quite accurate if we want to apply the sa mples results to the population. The results of the study, which are shown through a slope format, found that the early chronic rejected (ECR) group of children, or kids who were rejected from kindergarten to third or fourth grade showed little or no increase in participation of class, as well as this downward or stable trajectory continuing well into the other grades. It also found that children who experienced late chronic rejection (LCR), which was from grades four to six, experienced an immediate decline in participation and a continued decline in what was otherwise a normal upward growth of participation. What this show is that the effects of peer rejection are fast in being detrimental to a child, as well as being able to build up to the point that it lasts for periods of time longer then the original period in which peer rejection was experienced. Of note is that fact that, for the ECR group, once rejection ceased in fourth grade, if peer acceptance begins, then an immediate growth of participation, as would be expected in a non-chronic rejected child, will also begin(Ladd et al., 2008). Following this connection between peer rejection and decrease in classroom participation, we can look at a study by VÃ ©ronneau, Vitaro, Brendgen, Dishion Tremblay, 2010, which attempted to find out whether there was a link between peer rejection and academic achievement from middle age children into teenaged children. They hypothesized that academic achievement would decrease with peer rejection, due to an inability to integrate with the other children. VÃ ©ronneau et al. used a sample of 198 girls and 254 boys, almost all of European descent, that were selected from French speaking schools in Quebec. This reveals a bias in the sample, meaning the majority of the children chosen were Caucasians, as well as them being from Canada, which in turn means that the studies results cannot be generalized for all children, which could cause some serious problems if generalized. The lack of knowledge as to whether Hispanics, Asians or African Americans would show similar connections between their academic achievement and peer rejection would be something that a similar study could identify. The study found that academic achievement was a predictor in whether children were accepted by peers or rejected by them. This connection was shown by negative correlations ranging from -.12to a -.20, with the scores gradually decreasing towards middle school and adolescence. This not only shows that peer rejection decreases academic achievement, but that it affects it less as children grow older. An explanation could be seen in that as a child grows older, he will not be influenced by teachers and parents negative opinions of children who do badly in school, or that as children reach middle school, student bodies tend to increase in size, meaning they are less likely to know about fellow classmates academic scores and achievements. Now to tie those two studies together we can examine a study done Amy Bellmore in 2011, that looked at associations of Grade Point Average (GPA) and peer rejection and unpopularity. The study chose 901 students, 477 boys and 424 girls, from a school system in a middle sized town in the northeastern United States, with an ethnicity similar to that of the united states, with 65% being Caucasian, 20% African American, 12% Latino, and 3% Asian or other, and followed them from grades four to eighth(Bellmore, 2011). The study found that as peer rejection increased in a semester, GPA would decrease, and that peer rejection in a semester would also predict GPA decrease in the following semester. Bellmore also found that peer rejection and unpopularity function differently from each other, with unpopularity not affecting GPA at all during elementary years, but instead, increasing GPA during middle school! This distinction between actual rejection by peers and a lack of acceptance by peers bri ngs up an interesting thought. While being refused by friends and classmates in elementary school makes a child less likely to participate in class, and less likely to achieve academically, by middle school a general sense of difference and lack of acceptance seems to almost fuel a childs need to prove himself in a purely academic way. While this in no means says that being an outcast from the social norm makes a student better academically, it does seem to validate VÃ ©ronneau et al.s (2010) findings that peer acceptance increases with academic achievement. It also seems to suggest that Ladd et al.s 2008 findings of peer rejection hindering classroom participation could possibly be correlated with a drop in GPA as well. When a child feels like they cannot participate in class, they may learn less due to not asking questions due to fear of classmates reactions, perform less then normal in class projects that require group participation in which they could experience rejection, and overall experience a drop in GPA and academic achievement because of their lack of group work finished and class participation points earned. While the studies seem to have a firm amount of findings from children in elementary and middle school, the lack of research into high school peer rejection and its detriments on academic life, shows that peer rejection still has many opportunities for research. This lack of research leads to another study which examined the effects of peer rejection and its influence on girls risk taking behavior. Conducted in 2004 by Prinstein and La Greca, it aimed to find out if there was a link between peer rejection and aggression and if they could be used as predictors of risk taking behaviors, such as marijuana use and risky sexual behaviors. Prinstein La Greca took a sample of 148 girls from fourth to sixth grade, and then examined them again when the girls had reached tenth to twelfth grade. The samples ethnicity consisted of over half being Caucasian, two sixths being Hispanic one sixth being African American and the remainder of the sample being Asian or other. Also of note is the fact that the sample was composed of mainly girls from middle class families. The conclusions drawn from the sample cannot then be applied to general population, and leave open the question of whether socioeconomic status could predispose girls to peer rejection, or if their socioeconomic status itself leaves predisposition to risk taking behavior. In recent studies, such as that by Shields, Ryan and Cicchetti (2001) and Juvonen (1991), peer rejection was found to be linked to maltreatment by parents and shown to be related to deviance from norms. Beginning with maltreatment by caregivers, Shields et al. 2001 hypothesized that: Maltreated children would evidence maladaptive representations, maladaptive representations would be associated with emotion dysregulation and peer rejection on entry into new social groups, maladaptive representations would foster emotion dysregulation among maltreated children, such that they would be more likely to be rejected by peers. This was done by using a narrative representation by 76 maltreated and 45 non-maltreated girls and boys at a summer camp, of varying race and ethnicity, from ages eight to twelve, all from an inner city environment. While the sample size isnt large enough to accurately predict for the entire population, it is still diverse enough to give us a clear enough picture of ho w maltreatment can affect all types of children, and show up in social groups through peer rejection. The determination of maltreatment versus non-maltreatment was found using Child Protective and Preventative Services records, ensuring that maltreated children came from homes where maltreatment had occurred and would most likely continue due to dysfunctional family, which guards against any bias that could have come from using opinions alone to determine maltreatment. In an effort to keep the samples unbiased, even the types of maltreatment varied from child to child, with sexual abuse, physical abuse and neglect all being types of maltreatment included. After choosing the children, an exercise in which each child was asked to elaborate upon a series of story stems, representing emotional and physical situations involving either a mother or father, was recorded and then transcribed for comparison. After comparing the findings, it was shown that

Thursday, September 19, 2019

relationships in Ordinary People :: essays research papers

Beth and Calvin   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The relationship between the husband and wife seems initially to be perfect. They both show each other expressions of love. There is understanding, harmony, financial security, and good communication between them. The couple spends a lot of time together, discussing future plans, and talking about the good moments they had in the past. However, behind all of this positive interaction between the two of them is something they are both not able to face. The tragic loss of their son, Buck has caused a great amount of pain and anger they are not expressing.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The wife lived in denial, trying to live the life of a perfect person unaffected by what had happened to her son Buck. A certain image had to be upheld and everything else was secondary. Even the love for her husband was not as perfect as it was shown..She tries to keep these feelings and memories of her lost son buried deep inside her. She finds it very difficult to show any emotion concerning the fact that one of her sons is never coming back. She tried to portray an image of things being just perfect. Her portrayal includes not wanting to discuss anything that may upset her, she is always walking away from the conversation. It seems as though she does it in every scene. The scene that caught my attention the most was at the end, when she walked away from Calvin after he said he wasn’t sure if he still loved her. That is a pretty powerful statement, and you would think she would want to know why. I’m sure she did, she just didn’t know how to discuss it. So par for the course, she walked away, with something else she will have to tuck away for the rest of her life. Conrad and Calvin   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Conrad and his father, Calvin, had a very good and strong trusting relationship. Although Conrad was stubborn and didn't want to speak of his troubles, Calvin would keep trying and didn't give up. Calvin really cared for Conrad and wanted him to share his feelings and emotions. For example, there was a scene when Calvin would walk into Conrad's room just to make sure he was doing fine. Calvin not only showed his affections nonverbally, he showed them verbally also. He wanted to see his son back to life, back to who he was.

Wednesday, September 18, 2019

The Most Important Event of World War Two Essay -- World War Two Japan

The Most Important Event of World War Two   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   It was quite probably the most important event of World War II. Its consequences were greater than those of any other event of the war. On the morning of August 6, 1945, a B-29 bomber named Enola Gay flew over the Japanese industrial city of Hiroshima and dropped the first atomic bomb through its hatches. The city went up in a fireball, causing destruction unlike anything the world had ever seen. The fact that it killed one hundred thousand people instantly made the atomic bomb known as an instrument of terrible destruction, the fact that it helped bring about the Japanese surrender and thus ended the Pacific war made the bomb an effective deterrent of war. Even now, after almost fifty years since the â€Å"nightmare,† one only remembers the devastation after the A-bomb exploded, forgetting all the hard work it took to bring the remarkable weapon to life.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The story began when on August 2, 1939, a month before World War II began in Europe, Albert Einstein signed a letter addressed to President Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Concede in careful terms, the letter stated that recent nuclear research indicated extremely powerful bombs of a new type, based on Uranium, might soon be possible. Einstein warned that the secret work with Uranium was going on in Nazi Germany. He urged that similar American research be accelerated. Roosevelt filled with fear that Nazi Germany would develop the bomb first, marked Einstein’s letter for action. Eleven days after President Roosevelt authorized the go-ahead for the Manhattan project, the Japanese, too, without American knowledge, entered the race to develop an atomic bomb.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  As the research for the first atomic bomb started, the military began its own preparation to use the atomic bomb. On Tuesday, August 29, 1944, General Barney Giles, assistant Chief of Air staff, decided that a well-respected Lieutenant Colonel Paul Tibbet should be awarded the honor of flying the first atomic mission. General Ent formally assigned the 393rd Heavy Bombardment Squadron, based in Nebraska, to Colonel Tibbet. Its fifteen bomber crews would provide the world’s first atomic strike force capable of delivering nuclear bombs on Germany and Japan. Their training base was at Wendover, Utah and the code name this project was named â€Å"Silverplate.† Tibbet was warned to commit as little as possible on pape... ...ing in its path. Hiroshima along with the crew of 509th composite group at that historic point guaranteed a page for themselves in the history books.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  On August 9, another nuclear bomb was dropped, but this time on the port city of Nagasaki. Many more bombs were being readied, but President Truman gave orders to halt the attacks, saying he didn’t like the killings of â€Å"all those kids.† In the face of die-hard military opposition at home, Emperor Hirohita forced the issue of surrender and acceptance of the terms of the Potsdam Declaration. â€Å"I cannot bear to see my innocent people suffer any longer,† he said, â€Å"ending the war is the only way to relieve the nation from the terrible distress with which it is burdened†¦The time has come when we must bear the unbearable.† (Thomas 323) The war was over. American celebrated August 14 as Victory over Japan day (VJ-Day), church bells rang, jubilant crowds danced in the streets, fireworks filled the skies, and war weary citizens from New York to San Francisco greeted the peace with flourish of uncorked energy. As Americans celebrated, the Japanese grieved for a nation defeated in war and for two cities sacrificed for the cause of peace.

Tuesday, September 17, 2019

Hidden Fraud in Trollope’s The Way We Live Now :: Literature Fortune Papers

Hidden Fraud in Trollope’s The Way We Live Now Hamilton K. Fisker supplies â€Å"the impetus for rolling Augustus Melmotte onwards into almost unprecedented commercial greatness† (Trollope 1.324). While his character occupies very little narrative space, Fisker functions as the catalyst which sets the novel’s financial ventures in motion; Melmotte rolls because Fisker has pushed. Not only does Fisker bring the Great South Central Pacific and Mexican Railway (or at least the prospectus) to England, but he also delimits the board members’ role in the venture. He places Melmotte, the novel’s â€Å"great financier,† in charge and repels Paul Montague’s desire to involve himself as an active director in the railroad’s daily operations (1.217). Fisker rejects Paul’s attempt to oversee the Mexican Railroad’s actualization by arguing that building railway lines does not concern an investor such as Paul: But Fisker got the better of him and put him down. â€Å"Fortune! what fortune had either of us? A few beggarly thousands of dollars not worth talking of, and barely sufficient to enable a man to look at an enterprise. And now where are you? look here, sir; — there’s more to be got out of the smashing up of such an affair as this, if it should smash up, than could be made by years of hard work out of such fortunes as yours and mine in the regular way of trade.† Paul Montague certainly did not love Mr Fisker personally, nor did he relish his commercial doctrines; but he allowed himself to be carried away by them. (1.85) If Fisker’s momentum rolls Melmotte, it carries away Paul, and the force of Fisker’s rhetoric subjugates Paul to his â€Å"commercial doctrines†: Fisker â€Å"put him down.† Fisker gets the â€Å"better† of Paul by making speech subservient to lucrative economic principles. He does not want Paul to enforce honest practices in the railroad’s financial transactions. Fisker’s first commercial doctrine, then, declares that we should consider small investors â€Å"not worth talking of.† Since small, individual investments financed the majority of English railway ventures in Victorian England (Robb 36), Fisker essentially declares that the Mexican Railway’s investors should not receive any narrative attention. Even though Paul does not love Fisker or respect him personally, Fisker’s dominant narrative carries him away. Similarly, even though The Way We Live Now cynically satirizes fraudulent business practices, T rollope takes Fisker’s declaration that a few thousand dollars are â€Å"not worth talking of† to heart.

Monday, September 16, 2019

American Airlines Strategy Paper Essay

Currently the airline industry as a whole seems to be on the road of recovery. We, American Airlines, the fourth largest carrier recently avoided bankruptcy, but had a summer full of pressure due to ongoing union struggles and questionable executive compensation packages. After having incurred such big losses, this recovery has come about because of the government bailout and many of our large competitors’ abilities to survive the turbulence in the industry. So far, the prospects look promising. Revenue has improved across all regions of the business. Domestic unit revenue was up almost 10 percent and Latin American revenue has increased by close to 11 percent in the last quarter of 2012 compared to the same period the prior year. We are performing better than other airlines that have filed for protection and have done so without slashing capacity. In short, American is doing the right things to return to business efficiency and customer effectiveness. In order to establish a sustainable position for the future, American Airlines must adopt a three-pronged strategy moving forward. First, we should focus on low priced operations and increased marketing strategies to improve customer demand. We have to enhance customer experience and our volume of loyal customers to build a stronger presence in Airline Industry. Second, we must focus on increasing and improving the routes to cater to large customer base. Lastly, we must address the difficulties our company might face in integrating with the culture of US Airlines. Our future success is highly dependent on these two entities efficiently operating as a single organization. Industry Analysis Current Position US Airline industry today is dominated by five major domestic carriers. United, Delta and Southwest each has more than 15 percent market share. American is fourth, with around 12 percent and US Airways is fifth with around 10 percent. Four of these five are profitable — all but American. We lost $2 billion in 2011 and $1.7 billion in the first quarter of 2012. Future Strategy Our emphasis in 2013 is on operational flexibility, international growth through alliance and selective network expansion, and domestic partnerships to reduce operational and balance sheet risks. American’s market differentiation is based on emphasizing and meeting the needs and expectations of high value customers (particularly large global corporates) and better alignment with the one world airline network and value proposition. Also, being the lead carrier between not only the United States and Latin America but, increasingly, the world and Latin America—connecting through Dallas, Los Angeles, or Miami. This strategy makes sense; if they can get all labor work groups on board, they should be able to make it happen. That is still the main challenge, as is competitor contestation, particularly from larger traditional rivals like Delta and United. Improve Customer Demand Lower Operational Costs American passenger division which already has 57 fewer planes in service than an year ago, should further shrink by another 57 planes this summer. This would improve operational efficiency. Current service levels include 275 cities with a fleet of over 1000 aircraft. American carries about 80 million passengers daily and receives more than 329,000 reservation calls, handles more than 293,000 pieces of luggage and flies more than 4300 flights in one typical day. In order to reduce costs further over 27000 jobs will have to be eliminated. Because of high competition in the industry, substantial price fluctuations occur related to fares. Enhance Customer Base Increase value added services offered through our interactive website, AA.com. Any differentiation that convenience added capabilities offer is the center of focus. Busy hiub systems and schedule patterns need to be looked at to improve efficiency and routing effectiveness, thereby enhancing customer experience. We need to do rigorous marketing to attract more customers. Our marketing is currently focused on seasonal and business travelers and much analysis is taken in order to optimize peak travel seasons as well as frequent flier miles programs and pints systems. The Making More Room in coach program is the original marketing ploy of American to project a perception of higher passenger comfort levels. As increased advertising and intense market share is gained, we will continue to remain a key player assuming passenger demand goes up as projected. We will focus on upgraded in-flight entertainment systems, football game special fares, and buy-on board meal options to further enhance customer experience. Improve Network American Airlines’ new network strategy is designed to improve profitability by offering the routes and schedules that attract and retain not only their own high value customers but also those of alliance partners, an important source of revenue through codeshare agreements and closely aligned loyalty programs. The network is the core product that works in concert with lie-flat seats, onboard amenities, and customer service. Latin America is a prominent focus, due in part to our strong presence in key hubs to Latin America such as Dallas and Miami. This is where the profits are. Passenger growth forecasts for Latin America for 2013-17 are 6 percent for Latin America North (Central America and the northern rim of South America) and 8 percent for Latin America South (southern cone countries such as Brazil and Argentina). This compares with 3.6 percent for Europe and 4.4 percent for Asia. Increase International Routes To follow the growth markets, we must change our portfolio mix to focus more on international rather than domestic routes. This is a gradual process, moving from 38 percent international and 62 percent domestic capacity in 2013 towards a 44/56 percent balance by 2017. As we refocus more of our flying towards international opportunities, it is likely to look towards increased code-sharing with domestic carriers like Alaska Airlines, jetBlue, and others to further enhance our network in places like Los Angeles and New York City. This is likely to have initial teething problems, due to terminal colocation and product disparity issues. For instance, the business passengers that we are pursuing may be disgruntled by jetBlue’s more restrictive carry-on baggage policies or by extra time and added security checks if they are required to change terminals. Refurbish domestic feed Our plan is also to diversify our domestic feed by increasing the number of regional carriers with which we do business to reduce operational and balance sheet risk. Today, we primarily get a feed from our wholly-owned subsidiary, American Eagle, which has higher costs than some other regional carriers. American Eagle is going through its own restructuring to lower its costs, and it may ultimately be spun off. Synergies with US Airlines Merger with US Airways will result in the largest carrier in US. It would create roughly $1.2 billion in financial benefits.

Sunday, September 15, 2019

Branches of Philosophy

Branches of Philosophy Professor John Wise American Intercontinental University Thesis This essay project with answer different questions to the six branches of Philosophy. The branches are Metaphysics-is something real? Epistemology-How do we know? Ethics-What is right or wrong? Aesthetics- Is something beautiful? Political- What government is best? And Social- How should we act in in society. Six Branches of Philosophy There are six branches of philosophy. There is Metaphysics, Epistemology, Ethics, Aesthetics, Political, and Social. Each branch asks us all specific types of questions that we ask ourselves each and every day.Some of these questions we ask without even realizing that we have done so. Metaphysics is the first branch of Philosophy in this discussion. This asks the question of what is real. At an early age we are taught that there is a heaven and earth. At different times we ask ourselves is there really a heaven. Based on what we are taught I believe there is a heaven and that there will come a time in our life that we will be in the place created by God called heaven. According to the bible, God created man from the dust of the earth. We live in the physical world and the spiritual world depends on each person’s spiritual belief.I believe each one of us has a soul. I believe the soul stays around loved ones until the day of reckoning. I believe all people have free will but different circumstances determine what happens to us thru fate. The psychological world I believe consists of our mind and the world that we chose to create for ourselves to live in. The Epistemology branch asks us the question of how is anything known. Things that are known are taught to us from our parents and by teachers in school. We are taught different things thru text books and by experience.Thru different experiences we learn how to conduct ourselves around other people and we gain knowledge by studying the different works of scientists and scholars. There are not any limits to human understanding. Each person’s understanding depends on them. Some people understand things differently than others and each person’s limits differ from others. I don’t believe there is a relationship between faith and reason. Faith goes along with ethics and morals. I don’t fully understand what artificial intelligence is. The next branch of philosophy is the Ethics branch.We are taught from an early age the difference of right and wrong. Laws tell us what is or isn’t right and as humans if we break these laws we are punished. To me being a good person means to follow the golden rule â€Å"Do unto others as you would have them do unto you†. I believe that virtue does lead to happiness. If you do what is right by others then others will have the tendency to follow your lead. I believe society affects morality. This all depends on the circumstances in which you live. If you live in an area that has a lot of crime and ha tred then you have the tendency to follow others in that area.If you set high moral standards for yourself then no matter where you live or the types of people you are surrounded with won't affect you. I think that morality is more culture based. Each person has to choose how they apply the morals they are taught at an early age to their adult lives. Each person has different morals that they live by and have to decide how these will be applied. The next branch of philosophy we are going to discuss is the Aesthetics branch. This brings up the question of what is beautiful. In my opinion beauty is in the eye of the beholder and each culture has what they regard as to what is beautiful.Art depicts the creator’s feelings or ideas as to what they believe beauty is. Art can be successful and valuable to the creator and also to the person that enjoys different art forms. To one person a piece of art might have beauty to it and to another person it might be just horrendous. So there fore beauty in art may or may not matter to all people. The next topic is the political branch of philosophy. I believe the best type of government is the democratic government. This form of government, people do have a small voice in different matters.I think the government should have limited power and that the government should listen to the common people as to what the needs of the population are. I believe that if the common person had the ability to be more involved in the government of today then the needs of the common person would be made possible thru a vast majority voice. The last branch of discussion is the Social branch. I believe this branch is determined thru the ethics branch of philosophy. People shouldn’t have to give up rights just to live in a specific society. We should be able to live our lives the way we now and by the morals and ethics we have built for ourselves.I think some people act according to the surroundings they are in at different times. Wit h many different cultures of society today, I believe there is a large language barrier. With all the different cultures communications has become a big issue. Each culture believes that their language should be the language spoken. I believe that there needs to be one universal language spoken and then different societies of people wouldn’t feel as if they were being mistreated or neglected.Reference: Baird, F. E. , ;amp; Kaufmann, W. E. (2000). Ancient philosophy. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. M. U. S. E. My Unique Student Expeience

My Favorite Time of Year Essay

My favorite time of the year is naturally the time when I have the most fun. To me, that time of the year falls during the December holidays, or rather, it starts during the last term of school. It may sound strange of me to include the period of examinations. But I like the way teachers leave us, students, by ourselves to do our own revision. There is hardly any homework to be done but there is a lot of studying to take up our time. Finally, when the examinations are over, we can all heave a joyful sigh of relief and look forward to the seemingly eternal holidays stretching out before us. Just before school breaks up for the holidays, there are a host of post-examination activities, among which is mass dancing in the school hall. This is something I enjoy very much as I get to dance to the newest pop music with all my friends. The opportunity to â€Å"break-free† from serious activities of school and to sing and dance there is a truly welcome event. The last day of school comes and goes and the holidays start. The first thing I do is to go to the library and borrow as many books as possible to fill my holidays. I simply love reading book after book without having to worry about putting aside time for schoolwork. I make it a habit to read books of a particular author each holiday. Within the second week of the holidays my birthday arrives, I enjoy helping my mother prepare my favorite food for my birthday. I do not have big birthday parties. My birthday is celebrated within the family and I eat all my favorite food, with several helpings. Of course, I enjoy receiving presents and birthday cards from family members and friends. December is cool in Singapore and that is one reason why I appreciate the month so much. I do not like hot sunny. Christmas also makes the season all the more exciting. It would be impossible for me to sit at home and just read when so much is going on outside. Therefore, my friends and I take trips to Orchard Road, adding to the hustle and bustle of Christmas shopping. We do not buy anything but just window shop leisurely and watch the excitement of Christmas shoppers. Orchard Road is illuminated with colorful lights for Christmas. I usually view these lights twice; once before Christmas and once after, sometimes cruising along Orchard Road with my neighbor’s family in a rented van, alongside an ordered mass of other slow-moving vehicles. We usually have a good time on these trips, joking and laughing. Programs based on Christmas are also shown on television to add more joy to the season. I never tire of watching the animated cartoons or motion pictures of classics like â€Å"A Christmas Carol† by Charles Dickens. Finally, after Christmas, I have to start buying my school-books for the new academic year. These books have â€Å"off the press† smell which makes me feel that I have to work hard the following year and make good use of these brand new and precious books which no one has ever used before. The last day of the holidays is the end of my favorite time of the year and school starts the following day. I fell excited, but I also know that once school starts I would be caught up with work. However, I do know that the days will fly by so fast that I shall experience my favorite time of the year all over again.

Saturday, September 14, 2019

New Strongly Robust DWT Based Watermarking Algorithm Computer Science Essay

Abstract- In this paper we have presented two watermarking algorithms. First one is a new strongly robust strategy for right of first publication protection. This strategy is based on ‘Discrete Wavelet Transform ‘ , by implanting scrambled water line in HL subband at degree 3. Direct burdening factor is used in water line embedding and extraction procedure. This scheme consequences in exact recovery of water line with standard database images of size 512Ãâ€"512, giving Correlation Factor peers to 1. The Correlation Factor for different onslaughts like Noise add-on, Filtering, Rotation and Compression ranges from 0.90 to 0.95. The PSNR with burdening factor 0.02 is up to 48.53 dubnium. This is nonblind and embeds binary water line of 64Ãâ€"64 size. The 2nd technique is traditional method of watermarking. We besides tried to compare advanced strategy of first type with traditional method and recommended our advanced strategy. Keywords-DWT, Scrambling, Arnold Transform, Copyright.IntroductionIt has become a day-to-day demand to make transcript, transmit and distribute digital informations as a portion of widespread usage of multimedia engineering in cyberspace epoch. Hence right of first publication protection has become indispensable to avoid unauthorised reproduction job. Digital image watermarking provides right of first publication protection to image by concealing appropriate information in original image to declare rightful ownership [ 1 ] . Robustness, Perceptual transparence, capacity and Blind watermarking are four indispensable factors to find quality of watermarking strategy [ 4 ] [ 5 ] . Watermarking algorithms are loosely categorized as Spatial Domain Watermarking and Transformed domain watermarking. In spacial sphere, water line is embedded by straight modifying pel values of screen image. Least Significant Bit interpolation is illustration of spacial sphere watermarking. In Transform sphere, water line is inserted into transformed coefficients of image giving more information concealment capacity and more hardiness against watermarking onslaughts because information can be spread out to full image [ 1 ] . Watermarking utilizing Discrete Wavelet Transform, Discrete Cosine Transform, CDMA based Spread Spectrum Watermarking are illustrations of Transform Domain Watermarking. The remainder of the paper is organized as follows: Section II focuses on study of bing digital image watermarking algorithms. Section III focuses on importance of Discrete Wavelet Transform. In subdivision IV, we have presented two watermarking strategies: In first strategy a new strongly robust DWT based algorithm is presented and 2nd strategy is traditional technique. Section V shows Experimental consequences after execution and Testing for both strategies. In subdivision VI, we have concluded and urge our foremost DWT based strategy.SurveyIn traditional watermarking attack some LSB based every bit good as watermarking methods with pseudo random generator are proposed [ 3 ] . In transform sphere methods, watermarking utilizing CWT, merely DWT, merely DCT or combined attack of DWT-DCT are proposed. In CWT, Calculating ripple coefficients at every possible graduated table is immense sum of work, and it generates a batch of informations. There is extremely excess information every bit per as the Reconstruction of the signal is concerned. Due to the attractive characteristics of Discrete Wavelet Transform, researches have been focused on DWT [ 15 ] . Wang Hongjun, Li Na have proposed a DWT based method [ 14 ] in which water line was embedded in in-between frequence coefficient utilizing I ± as flexing factor with I ± =I? |m| , where m is average value of all coefficients watermarking embedded. But this method does n't supply adequate security. The method proposed in [ 14 ] utilizing DWT was extended in [ 15 ] to heighten security of algorithm by utilizing Arnold ‘s Tran sform pretreatment for water line. But this method can be extended to better PSNR and security degrees. As given in [ 16 ] , two stage water line implanting procedure was carried out utilizing DWT. Phase 1: Visible water line logo embedding, Phase 2: Feature extracted water line logo implanting. The algorithm was based on Texture Based Watermarking. A Integer Wavelet Transform with Bit Plane complexness Segmentation is used with more informations concealment capacity. [ 2 ] . But this method needs separate processing for R, G and B constituents of colour image. As given in [ 17 ] utilizing DWT, host image is decomposed into 3 degrees recursively. In flat one we get 4 sub sets. In degree 2, each subband of degree 1 is divided to 4 bomber sets to give entire 16 bomber sets. Finally, each subband of degree 2 is once more divided into 4 sub sets each to give entire 64 bomber sets. Then ‘ Generic algorithm ‘ was applied to happen the best subband for water line implanting to supply perceptual transparence and hardiness. But the procedure is excessively drawn-out and clip consuming. The common job with DCT watermarking is block based grading of water line image alterations scaling factors block by block and consequences in ocular discontinuity. [ 1 ] [ 6 ] . As given in [ 13 ] , J. Cox et. Al had presented ‘Spread spectrum based watermarking strategies ‘ , Chris Shoemaker has developed.DISCRETE WAVELET TRANSFORMDWT has become research workers focus for watermarking as DWT is really similar to theoretical theoretical account of Human Visual System ( HVS ) . ISO has developed and generalized still image compaction criterion JPEG2000 which substitutes DWT for DCT. DWT offers mutiresolution representation of a image and DWT gives perfect Reconstruction of decomposed image. Discrete ripple can be represented as ( 1 ) For dyadic ripples a0 =2 and b0 =1, Hence we have, J, K ( 2 ) Image itself is considered as two dimensional signal. When image is passed through series of low base on balls and high base on balls filters, DWT decomposes the image into sub sets of different declarations [ 11 ] [ 12 ] . Decompositions can be done at different DWT degrees. Fig 1: Three Level Image Decomposition At degree 1, DWT decomposes image into four nonoverlapping multiresolution bomber sets: LLx ( Approximate sub set ) , HLx ( Horizontal subband ) , LHx ( Vertical subband ) and HHx ( Diagonal Subband ) . Here, LLx is low frequence constituent whereas HLx, LHx and HHx are high frequence ( item ) constituents [ 7 ] [ 8 ] [ 9 ] .To obtain following coarser graduated table of ripple coefficients after degree 1, the subband LL1 is further processed until concluding N graduated table reached. When N is reached, we have 3N+1 subbands with LLx ( Approximate Components. ) and HLx, LHx, HHx ( Detail constituents ) where ten scopes from 1 to N. Three degree image decomposition is shown in Fig:1. Implanting water line in low frequence coefficients can increase hardiness significantly but maximal energy of most of the natural images is concentrated in approximate ( LLx ) subband. Hence alteration in this low frequence subband will do terrible and unacceptable image debasement. Hence water line is non be embedded in LLx subband. The good countries for water line embedding are high frequence subbands ( HLx, LHx and HHx ) , because human bare eyes are non sensitive to these subbands. They yield effectual watermarking without being perceived by human eyes. But HHx subband includes borders and textures of the image. Hence HHx is besides excluded. Most of the watermarking algorithms have been failed to accomplish perceptual transparence and hardiness at the same time because these two demands are conflicting to each other. The remainder options are HLx and LHx. But Human Visual System ( HVS ) is more sensitive in horizontal than perpendicular. Hence Watermarking done in HLxOUR WATERMARKING METHODOLOGIESScheme-1This strategy is betterment of algorithm presented in 2008 by Na Li et. Al, given in [ 15 ] utilizing Discrete Wavelet Transform with Arnold Transform. The betterment is made in following facets: The security degree is increased by presenting â€Å" PN Sequence ‘ depe nding on Arnold cyclicity and depending on threshold value absolute difference of Arnold Transformed-Watermark-images is embedded. Alternatively of ciphering flexing factor related to intend value of coefficients of water line image, here straight appropriate weighting factor is selected. The Image decomposition is done with ‘Haar ‘ which is simple, symmetric and extraneous ripple. Watermark Scrambling: Watermark Scrambling is carried out through many stairss to better security degrees. Different methods can be used for image scrambling such as Fass Curve, Gray Code, Arnold Transform, Magic square etc. Here Arnold Transform is used. The particular belongings of Arnold Transform is that image comes to it ‘s original province after certain figure of loops. These ‘number of loops ‘ are called ‘Arnold Period ‘ or ‘Periodicity of Arnold Transform ‘ . The Arnold Transform of image is ( 3 ) Where, ( x, y ) = { 0,1, †¦ ..N } are pixel co-ordinates from original image. ( , ) : corresponding consequences after Arnold Transform. Cyclicity of Arnold Transform: The cyclicity of Arnold Transform ( P ) , is dependent on size of given image. From equation: 3 we have, ( 4 ) ( 5 ) If ( mod ( , N ) ==1 & A ; & A ; mod ( , N ) ==1 ) so P=N ( 6 ) Implanting Algorithm: Measure 1: Decompose the screen image utilizing simple ‘Haar ‘ Wavelet into four nonoverlapping multiresolution coefficient sets: LL1, HL1, LH1 and HH1. Measure 2: Perform 2nd degree DWT on LL1 to give 4 coefficients: LL2, HL2, LH2 and HH2. Measure 3: Repeat decomposition for LL2 to give following degree constituents: LL3, HL3, LH3 and HH3 as shown in fig 1. Measure 4: Find Arnold cyclicity ‘P ‘ of water line utilizing equation 6. Measure 5: Determine ‘KEY ‘ where. Then bring forth PN Sequence depending on ‘KEY ‘ and happen the amount of random sequence say SUM. Measure 6: If SUM & gt ; T where, T is some predefined Threshold value, so happen two scrambled images using Arnold Transform with KEY1 and KEY2, where, ,, .Now, Take absolute difference of two scrambled images to give ‘Final Scrambled image ‘ . Measure 7: If SUM & lt ; T, so use Arnold Transform straight to watermark image with ‘KEY ‘ to acquire ‘Final Scrambled image ‘ . Measure 8: Add ‘Final Scrambled image ‘ to HL3 coefficients of screen image as follows: ( 7 ) Where, K1 is burdening factor, New_HL3 ( I, J ) is freshly calculated coefficients of level3, Watermark ( I, J ) is ‘Final Scrambled image ‘ . Measure 9: Take IDWT at Level3, Level2 and Level1 consecutive to acquire ‘Watermarked Image. Extraction Algorithm: The proposed method is nonblind. Hence the original image is required for extraction procedure. The simple algorithmic stairss are applied are given below. Measure 1: Decompose Cover image utilizing ‘Haar ‘ ripple up to 3 degrees to acquire HL3 Coefficients. Measure 2: Decompose ‘Watermarked Image ‘ utilizing ‘Haar ‘ ripple up to 3 degrees to acquire HL3 ‘ . Measure 3: Apply Extraction expression as follows: ( 8 ) If Otherwise Measure 4: Perform ‘Image Scrambling ‘ utilizing ‘Arnold Transform ‘ with ‘ KEY ‘ that we had used in implanting procedure to retrieve the Watermark. Figure: 2 Watermark Embedding Figure: 3 Watermark ExtractionScheme-2This spacial sphere, watermarking is traditional strategy of watermarking. Here water line is embedded by straight modifying pel values of screen image as given below. Watermark Embedding Measure 1. Read grey scale Cover Image and Watermark. Step2.Consider double star of pel values of Cover Image and do it ‘s n Least Significant Bits 0 e.g. For n=4, Binary of 143= & gt ; 10001111 and Making 4 LSB 0 = & gt ; 10000000= & gt ; 128 is denary equivalent. Measure: 3 Consider double star of pel values of Watermark and right displacement by K spots where k=8-n. For n=4, K will be 4. Binary of 36= & gt ; 100100 and after right displacement by 4: 000010= & gt ; 2 is denary equivalent Measure 4: Add consequence of measure 1 and step 2 to give watermarked image. E.g. Add 128+2= & gt ; 130. This gives pixel value of watermarked image= & gt ; 10000010 Figure: 4 Pixel of Cover image ( Original Image ) , Watermark, Watermarked Image and Extracted Watermark Watermark Extraction: Take pels of watermarked Image and left displacement by K spots where k=8-n. e.g. Left displacement by 4= & gt ; 00100000 = & gt ; 32. This gives pels of Extracted Watermark. The sample values of Pixel of Cover image, Watermark, Watermarked_Image and Extracted Watermark are shown in fig.4.EXPERIMENTAL RESULTS AFTER IMPLEMENTATION AND TESTINGConsequences of Scheme- 1: The undertaking is implemented in Matlab and standard database images with 512Ãâ€"512 sizes as screen image and 64Ãâ€"64 size binary water line images are used for proving. The public presentation Evaluation is done by two public presentation rating prosodies: Perceptual transparence and Robustness. Perceptual transparence means sensed quality of image should non be destroyed by presence of water line. The quality of watermarked image is measured by PSNR. Bigger is PSNR, better is quality of watermarked image. PSNR for image with size M x N is given by: ( 9 ) Where, degree Fahrenheit ( one, J ) is pixel grey values of original image. degree Fahrenheit ‘ ( I, J ) is pixel grey values of watermarked image. MaxI is the maximal pixel value of image which is equal to 255 for grey graduated table image where pels are represented with 8 spots. Robustness is step of unsusceptibility of water line against efforts to take or destruct it by image alteration and use like compaction, filtering, rotary motion, grading, hit onslaughts, resizing, cropping etc. It is measured in footings of correlativity factor. The correlativity factor measures the similarity and difference between original ‘watermark and extracted water line. It ‘ value is by and large 0 to 1. Ideally it should be 1 but the value 0.75 is acceptable. Robustness is given by: ( 10 ) Where, N is figure of pels in water line, wi is original water line, Wisconsin ‘ is extracted water line. Fig 5 ( a ) Cover Image ( B ) Watermarked Image ( degree Celsius ) Recovered Watermark Here, we are acquiring PSNR 48.53 dubnium and =1, for burdening factor K1=0.02. The PSNR and for ‘standard database images ‘ with coeresponding trial image and recovered water lines are shown in Table 1. The grey scale ‘lena ‘ image is tested for assorted onslaughts given in Table 2. Here, we are acquiring within scope of 0.90-0.95 for assorted onslaughts. This shows that ‘watermark recovery ‘ is satisfactory under different onslaughts. Table 1: Experimental consequences for standard database images with size 512Ãâ€"512 Table 2: Experimental consequences for assorted onslaughts with K1=0.07, ‘Lena ‘ image, size 512Ãâ€"512 Consequences of Scheme- 2: This algorithm has simple execution logic. We have tested with PSNR less than 23 for different onslaughts as shown in figure 6. Figure: 6: Experimental consequences with PSNR for Noise Attacks with assorted strengths.CONCLUSION.First strategy presented here is a new strongly robust ‘Digital Image Watermarking ‘ with increased security degrees and bring forthing exact recovery of original water line for standard image database, giving correlativity factor peers to 1 and PSNR up to 48.53 dubnium. Experimental consequences have demonstrated that, this technique is really effectual back uping more security. As per ISO ‘s norms, the still Image Compression criterion JPEG2000 has replaced Discrete Cosine Transform by Discrete Wavelet Transform. This is the ground why more research workers are concentrating on DWT, which we have used for execution. The presented ‘Digital Image Watermarking ‘ methodological analysis can be extended for ‘color images and pictures ‘ for hallmark and right of first publication protection. Hence we are strongly urging our DWT based strategy which is presented here.RecognitionWe are grateful to BCUD, Un iversity of Pune for supplying ‘Research Grant ‘ for the undertaking â€Å" Transformed based strongly Robust Digital Image Watermarking † in academic twelvemonth 2010-2011.

Friday, September 13, 2019

Preliminary Research Design Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Preliminary Research Design - Assignment Example However, once a business has been operating for an amount of time, they begin to rely on their customers to help their business continue to strive. Of course, customers are only a small part of the business, but the way that customers are treated will have a direct impact on the way that the business grows. Many businesses understand the relationship of customers to loyalty, but many do not see that it makes much difference in the way they do business. In the old days, there was a phrase that everyone seemed to use: "The customer is always right." But today, this may not be the case for every business. Customer satisfaction will automatically lead to customer loyalty if customers are treated well. Theoretical Framework Most business people understand that the relationship that they build with their customers will either bring them back to the business or make them go to someone else. The most important factor for them to remember is that there is a relationship between customer satis faction and loyalty. The idea of customer satisfaction can be defined in many different ways. ... Some researchers suggest that defining customer satisfaction means that quality of the product is important to customer satisfaction. Although this is one component that points to customer satisfaction, it is not the only one that can be seen in developing this concept. In order to define customer satisfaction, a research must look a several issues that create good customer service. Roethlein and Wicks (2009) suggest that one of those components is quality. Whether it is a product or a service, there are certain elements of quality service that most customers will expect. Customers satisfaction connects to customer loyalty which in turn connects to costumer retention. In each situation, customers are the major part of why a business or service works well and continues to thrive, especially in difficult economic times. According to Dubrovski (as cited in Roethlein and Wicks, 2009), consumer satisfaction is the most important aspect of profit because it is through customer satisfaction that profits are made. In other words, the more satisfied customers are, the more they want to purchase from the company. Kumar, Petersen, and Leone (2010) suggest that when customers are satisfied with a product or service, they will tell other people about it and they will refer them to the business. They devised a formula to decide what customers had the highest value for referrals and applied it to their research. They found that customers who had a high level of referral possibility only needed to have one form of advertising come to them because if they liked the business enough, they would automatically refer people to it. These different theories of how researchers see customer satisfaction makes it difficult to devise a strong independent or dependent variable for what

Thursday, September 12, 2019

Formal Written Report and a Creative Marketing Presentation for Essay

Formal Written Report and a Creative Marketing Presentation for marketing mix - Essay Example Pricing Objective and Strategy 13 5.3 Perceptual Mapping 14 Perceptual map at the introductory stage of the PLC 14 Perceptual map at the maturity stage of the PLC 15 6. Marketing Mix adjustment strategies 15 7. Conclusions & Recommendations 16 Reference 17 1. Formal introduction 1.1 Authorization and Purpose The purpose of the report is to analyses the marketing and the branding strategies of Olay which the company has implemented and currently perceiving the strategies. 1.2 Limitation Most of the information was based on secondary research and due to time limit an extensive primary research was not a part of the report. 1.3 Scope of the report The report contains detail information about the brand Olay and its product total effect. The paper discusses the target market, promotion, product strategy of Olay, the positioning statement of Olay, also the perceptual map taking price and quality as two dimensions. 2. Product and target market Product is the core of any marketing plan for a n organization. It is the product that leads the company either towards the success or failure. Products are of many types, the type of product which is dealt in this case is the consumer goods products. Products are those which are consumed or used by the consumers. The brand chosen here is Olay, manufactured by Proctor & Gamble. Olay is regarded as worldwide leader in skincare and the brand is the most trusted by women for around 60 years. The product to be discussed further is Olay, Total effects. This product has been in demand for its features as it claims to fight seven signs of anti ageing problem (Olay, 2012). In this competitive world, women has been equally at par with their counter partners, the male segment and this has lead to more increase or demand of the grooming section. In... Product is the core of any marketing plan for an organization. It is the product that leads the company either towards the success or failure. Products are of many types, the type of product which is dealt in this case is the consumer goods products. Products are those which are consumed or used by the consumers. The brand chosen here is Olay, manufactured by Proctor & Gamble. Olay is regarded as worldwide leader in skincare and the brand is the most trusted by women for around 60 years. The product to be discussed further is Olay, Total effects. This product has been in demand for its features as it claims to fight seven signs of anti ageing problem (Olay, 2012). In this competitive world, women has been equally at par with their counter partners, the male segment and this has lead to more increase or demand of the grooming section. In order to tackle the issue with regards to skincare P&G has introduced line of products which claims to compliment her youthful looks in every stage of her life (Olay, 2012). Hence it can be concluded that the target market for Olay is the large section of women of all age group who loves to stay good, look good at all age of their lives. The product chosen is Olay Total Effects, which has been manufactured to fight the seven signs of ageing for a visibly younger looking skin. The product line of total effect includes from moisturizing to cleansing and also special treatment for skin and these arrays of products are dedicated towards making her skin look at its best.

Wednesday, September 11, 2019

Application of auction theory in the context of the Indian Premier Essay

Application of auction theory in the context of the Indian Premier League - Essay Example This theory is highly essential from a theoretical, empirical and economic perspective. This paper aims to discuss the main principles of the auction theory along with the considerable issues and their solutions associated to the phenomenon of auction market. For this paper, we shall consider an example of the Indian Premier League (IPL) to relate it with the relevant theoretical principles of the auction theory. Auction Theory: Auction theory is a branch of economics which takes a number of concepts into analysis that includes the risks, behaviors, challenges and activities of bidders within the auction processes. The process of auction has been used from earliest traces of economic activities. Economists have contributed in the auction theory including Vickrey (1961), Griesmer, Levitan and Shubik (1967) etc. Extension of Auction theory is referred to as theorem of revenue equivalence (see appendix 1.1). As per the contributions of different economists, there are four standard types of auctions. These bids are commonly known as the English Bid, the descending bid which also known as the Dutch bid, first sealed bid and a second seal bid. Each one is unique and possesses interesting factors, which grasp attention of the interested buyers (Besanko and Braeutigam 2000). Now we shall analyze each type of bid separately supported with relevant examples. English Bid: According to Gul and Stacchetti (1999), English bid is a type of bid that slowly goes higher. Sometimes this type of bidding appears as most simplistic, however at the same time it can create complexities for both buyers and sellers. English auction begins with a bid which is placed by an auctioneer who places the starting bid which is a given price of the product being sold. The bids are then placed one by one in an increasing order. English bid is different from other bids such as sealed bids because it is open to all bidders with no policy of hiding (Gul and Stacchetti 1999). The one who makes the highest bit wins the product. In this type of bid prices increase comparatively with small margins and the buyers intend to win the item at low price than its original value at which the product bidding started i.e. starting bid. For example, there is a likelihood of quick sale of a car during an auction as the standing bid will be lowest, which will be affordable for a sing le buyer, who will finally take the commodity home (Auctus Development, Inc, 2004). It should also be noted that the English auction can be win by the standing bidder which can only be displaced by a competitively higher bid than the standing bid (Jaiswal 2010). Furthermore, Klemperer (1997) noted that English bids or ascending bids are usually used for selling household items such as cars, appliances, furnisher and sometimes properties as well. This type of bid facilitates sellers to make great sum of money and an amazing opportunity for the buyers to win the bid (Klemperer 1997). A reserve or minimum price is charged for house hold commodities in English auction (Auctus Development, Inc 2004). Dutch Bid: According to Besanko and Braeutigam (2000), the Dutch system is entirely

Tuesday, September 10, 2019

An Exploration into the Role of Nutrition Information in Influencing Literature review

An Exploration into the Role of Nutrition Information in Influencing Consumer Choice - Literature review Example The strong association between nutrition and health, alongside the ever rising problem of obesity justify a study into nutrition consumerism. The main aim of this literature review is to explore the role of nutrition information in influencing consumer choices. Objectives The following objectives will guide this review of literature towards achieving the stated aim: To perform a prudent search for relevant literature detailing the role of nutritional information on consumer choices To review the literature noting highlights and emerging themes To arrive at a conclusion based on the literature review on the role of nutritional information on consumer choices Literature Review The approach followed for sourcing the literature involved a search for research and theoretical work through the key phrase â€Å"Role of Nutrition Information in influencing Consumer Choice.† The search was focused on a number of peer-reviewed journals for the research articles. Further, a look at the bi bliographies of the journals was used to find more relevant literature. The sources selected for use were restricted to the last decade in order to ensure this literature review is up-to-date, valid and relevant. ... Factors determining Consumer Choices in Nutritional Purchases A number of studies have explored the factors determining consumer choices when making food purchases. One of these is by Petrovichi and Ritson (2006) who investigated the factors that influence individual decisions to engage in dietary health preventative behaviour in Romania. Conceptually, the close relationship between health and nutrition translates to an association of managing nutrition practices to prevent or manage health. The methodology adopted by the two researchers entailed face-to-face issuance of questionnaires to 485 adult respondents. This study established that the respondents’ health motivations, beliefs that diet choices have the capacity to prevent diseases, financial status of households and the level of educational influenced their nutrition and health and thus food purchase decisions. Ling and Horwath (2001) established that the perceived benefits of certain dietary products influenced consume r food purchase decisions. Through a cross-sectional telephone and mail survey, the scholars gathered data from 1200 households. They showed that the perceived benefits of fruits and vegetables in diet tipped the decisional balance towards purchasing these food items. Godwin, Speller-Henderson and Thompson (2006) undertook a consumer survey involving 160 participants and established that knowledge about nutrition greatly influenced consumer preferences in food purchases; the majority of respondents perceived themselves as knowledgeable enough to understand nutrition labels and use these to make purchase decisions. To conclude this part, the general factors that influence consumer purchase decisions include knowledge on nutrition; health

Monday, September 9, 2019

CONSUMER PSYCHOLOGY AND BUYING BEHAVIOR Research Paper

CONSUMER PSYCHOLOGY AND BUYING BEHAVIOR - Research Paper Example Research shows that the congruity between product image and self-image affects the product preference of a consumer and their intentions to buy an item. This congruence with self-image could also facilitate positive attitudes and behaviour towards products. The study conducted in â€Å"Consumers and brands a study of the impact of self-image congruence on brand preference and satisfaction†, was seeking to understand the consequences of congruity of self-image on brand preference and the consumer satisfaction in the UK’s precious jewellery sector. Results indicated that congruity of self-image acted as a vitally powerful predictor of brand preferences of consumers as well as acting as a suitable predictor for satisfaction of the consumer. The respondents with above average self-image, congruity levels were found to be more likely to enjoy higher satisfaction levels, as well as increased likelihood to buy the brand. This was when compared to those who had below average se lf-image congruity levels (Gordon, 2006 p140). For this case study, the consumers were found to be dissonance-reducing buyers (Gordon, 2006 p141). They were highly involved in the jewellery purchase since the product was expensive. There was minimal difference between the brands of jewelry that existed. The consumers were also found to be complex buyers as they were buying highly valued products, and they looked for detailed information before making the purchase.

Sunday, September 8, 2019

Ladies and gentleman Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Ladies and gentleman - Essay Example From the scripts of Castiglione, a universal person is nature’s goal set for every human being. It is only natural to become a well-rounded person. What this universality does to the person is that he/she form his opinion, makes him judgments and decides from a plethora of theories and ideas and incorporates almost every possible angle of the problem under the discussion. Leonardo Da Vinci was one such person, in fact he is also regarded as the prophet of the renaissance god. For he was a master of many fields of life, and he always preached the interconnectedness of things. (2) Create a â€Å"survey† based on the identified characteristics and â€Å"poll† at least ten people to find out whether or not the characteristics are relevant for a â€Å"gentleman† or â€Å"lady† of today. I agree with the characteristics of ladies and gents explained in the Book of Courtier. For instance, in the book a person of high etiquettes is considered to possess the necessary fashion sense (Raleigh, 1997). I agree with the book as it shows the spirit of a gentleman, men and women don’t have to absolutely have to agree with each and everything. For instance, kissing the hand of the lady was considered gentle back when the book was written, these days if someone does that in a club where everyone is dancing to trance music, it would certainly feel odd. The spirit of renaissance should not be taken in letter only, the spirit is more important than the words. Castiglione gave a general idea of what are proper manners in general back in his time plus the roles vary according to regions and cultures, even throughout Europe, the acceptable manners of a gentleman and a lady vary (Burke, 1995). For instance in the book, Sir Fredrick talks about Persia and how women should be at the court. Lord Gaspar thinks that the rules that apply to men are also applicable to women but Lord Julian disagrees. The nature of