Critical literature review Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Critical literature review - Research Paper Example Globalization involves the process of globalizing which implies particularly the growth of a tremendous integrated global economy marked particularly by the free flow of capital, free trade and the tapping of low-cost foreign labor markets. The world has witnessed various advances in the field of communication and enhanced technology that have both made globalization possible. Globalization has become a common phenomenon in the world wherein the most production of goods and services has become international. A key element of the current wave of increased globalization is foreign production chains that presently allow workers to pair easily up across various borders. Although globalization has been seen to have benefits, there are various arguments put forward by lobby societies and protestors who oppose the conditions under which globalization operates. Likewise, the incidence of inequality has been on the rise with many nations not getting a fair share of this global trend. The foll owing literature addresses these concerns and provides more insight into the issue of globalization and inequality. Joyce (2008) in his research addresses the gap that exist between the richest and poorest nations in terms the average GDP per capita levels. The author argues that despite the tremendous increase in globalization, developing nations have continued to drag behind economic wise. In his research, the author provides a review of the evidence on the contributing factors of the disparities in GDP per capita, which has concentrated on the role institutions play in fostering development. These institutions mainly reflect prevailing domestic conditions; however, globalization, as indicated by the Joseph, has an impact on development of these nations. The work adds to the knowledge that globalization has direct effects on economic activity, which impacts the occurrence of poverty,

Johannes Kepler Essay Example for Free

Johannes Kepler Essay Johannes Kepler was born in the midst of an exciting and confusing time for Europe. The continent was entering the Renaissance, a reawakening of thought across the continent. By the time of Keplers birth, the Renaissance had reinvigorated European culture, politics, philosophy, religion, literature, and science. The authority of the Catholic Church was challenged for the first time in centuries by the reformer Martin Luther, who pointed out the wrongs that he felt the Church had committed. Luthers rebellion spurred the Protestant Reformation, in which Luther and his followers freed themselves from the authority of the Church, creating a new sect of Christianity. Kepler, a Protestant, often found himself caught in the midst of the resulting tension between Catholicism and Protestantism. Catholics frequently persecuted him. A similar challenge of scientific authority was also in progress, a radical shift in thought that later became known as the Scientific Revolution. Scientists in all fields were beginning to question the wisdom of the ancient philosophers who had molded their disciplines. They gradually began rely on objective facts and observation and to turn away from the mysticism, religion, and unfounded theorizing that had previously dominated the field. This drastic change in scientific practices and beliefs was most apparent in the field of astronomy. Physics and astronomy had been dominated by the work of Aristotle, a philosopher from the time of ancient Greece, and Ptolemy, an astronomer from the second century A.D. Astronomy was rooted in both philosophy and theology, and it was difficult for scientists to separate their work from that of the mystics or the clergy. Through the work of the four fathers of the astronomical revolution, Copernicus, Kepler, Galileo, and Newton, both the practice of astronomy and mans view of the universe were transformed. Astronomers rejected the Ptolemaic view of the universe that had held court for centuries. They supplanted Ptolemys earth-centered universe with a new sun-centered system. These modern thinkers, far ahead of their time, persevered against the mockery, apathy, and anger of their peers. And eventually, through Newtons synthesis of math, physics, and astronomy, they triumphed. The work of these astronomers shook the world. They denied everything that humans had held certain for centuries. The excitement and confusion that these astronomers left in their wake in is reflected in John Donnes seventeenth century poem An Anatomy of the World – The First Anniversarie. As he wrote, And new Philosophy calls all in doubt. Tis all in pieces, all coherence gone. General Summary Johannes Kepler was born in Germany in 1571, in the middle of the Scientific Revolution. The weak and sickly child was abandoned by his father Heinrich in early childhood. Because his family moved around so much, it took Kepler twice as long as usual to get through elementary school. He eventually graduated, moving on to a theological seminary and then to the University of Tuebingen. At the university, Kepler decided to pursue a graduate degree in theology, but he was soon distracted from that goal. A Protestant school in the Austrian town of Gratz offered him a job as a professor of math and astronomy. Although Kepler believed he had no special skills in those subjects, he took the job. Once there, he turned his attention toward deciphering the mysteries of the universe. Kepler was convinced that God had created a universe with some discernable pattern or structure, and he devoted himself to figuring out what it might be. In 1595 Kepler decided that the planets were spaced as they were because the planetary orbits were arranged around geometric figures: the perfect solids. Perfect solids are three-dimensional figures whose sides are all identical, and Kepler was convinced that God had used these forms to build the universe. He elaborated on this view in his first book, the Mysterium Cosmographicum, or the Cosmic Mystery. Keplers theory was incorrect, but the book was the first major work in support of the Copernican system since Copernicuss death fifty years before. The book was also significant because Kepler was the first major astronomer in centuries to address physical reality, rather than being content with a mere mathematical description of the universe. Kepler could not quite get his data to fit his theory; he needed a source of more accurate data. He found this in Tycho de Brahe, a wealthy Danish astronomer. Tycho was the best observational astronomer of his age, and Kepler decided that only Tychos observations would do. So Kepler traveled to Prague to work in Tychos lab. Tycho, an arrogant, demanding, and unpleasant employer, died after only a year. But Kepler worked for seven more years on the problem he had started on while there: constructing the orbit of Mars. Keplers work on Mars led him to discover his first two planetary laws: that the planets travel in elliptical orbits and that they sweep out equal areas of their orbits in equal times. He published his results in 1609 in the Astronomia Nova, or the New Astronomy, revolutionizing astronomy and greatly simplifying the Copernican system. Kepler was considered one of the top astronomers in Europe–although not because of his published work. Few of his peers recognized the importance of his planetary laws, and few even accepted that they were true. It was difficult for his colleagues to recognize him as a scientist of the modern age, when his work remained mired in the mysticism of the past. The years just before and after the Astronomia Nova were a professional triumph for Kepler – he was well known and well respected. He spent these years researching lenses, as well as astronomy, adding several major contributions to the field of optics. At the same time, his personal life was taking a turn for the worse. In quick succession, Keplers wife and favorite son died, and his patron went insane and abdicated the throne. His new home, Prague, was torn apart by civil war, and his mother was accused of being a witch. Through it all, Kepler continued to work toward his greatest goal: finding a way to explain the structure of the universe. He had been forced to abandon most of his theory of the perfect solids, and needed so mething new to replace it. After years of thought, he came up with a new idea: the theory of universal harmonies. Kepler decided that the planets were spaced around the harmonic ration of another set of geometrical figures. Once again, he believed he had looked directly into the mind of God. Once again, his theory was completely wrong. Butthe pursuit of an incorrect theory led him to a stroke of scientific genius. In 1618, Kepler published the Harmonice Mundi, or the Harmony of the World, in which he explained his new harmonic theory. Keplers third law offered a specific mathematical relationship between the distance of a planets orbit from the sun and the time it took a planet to circle the sun. Kepler thought little of this law, as did his peers, because it made little sense to him at the time. It was only later, when Sir Isaac Newton created the theory of universal gravitation, that the fundamental importance of this law became clear. Kepler continued to publish important works. In 1619, he published Epitome Astronomiae Copernicanae, a summary of the Copernican system, adjusted to accommodate Keplers laws. The Copernican system as we now know it is basically the one offered in the Epitome. Then, in 1627, Kepler published the Tabulae Rudolphine, or the Rudolphine Tables, a comprehensive list of astronomical observations, predictions, and explanations, all based on Tychos data and Keplers discoveries. Keplers final publication came a few years after his death. Though filled with scientific explanations, it is not actually a scientific work – instead, it is a science fiction story. Somnium, or Dream, tells the story of a young boys trip to the moon. Much of the story seems to be a thinly veiled autobiography. However, the Somnium was also packed with notes on the scientific ramifications of Keplers discoveries. The accuracy of his prediction of what a lunar journey would be like reveals what remarkable physical intuition he had. Kepler is perhaps the least known of the major figures of the Scientific Revolution. His lack of fame may be due to the fact that he is difficult to classify – he seems less modern than the other scientists of the time, and he relies on mysticism and religion. His scientific contributions are themselves harder to simplify than those of Copernicus or Newton. But while he may be less known than his peers, Kepler is no less important. Physics and astronomy had been separated for two thousand years before Keplers birth. It was an incredible leap for him to put the two together – and in doing so, he paved the way for the Newtonian revolution that was to come. Important People, Terms, and Events People Copernicus Copernicus was a Polish astronomer and clergyman who, in 1543, introduced a new heliocentric system of the universe. In Copernicuss system, the planets revolved on a complex system of epicycles, but they all revolve around the sun. This was a revolutionary idea in the sixteenth century. Everyone was firmly convinced that the earth was motionless at the center of the universe. To imagine that it moved around the sun seemed ridiculous. It took several decades for the Copernican system to become fully accepted by astronomers and the public. Kepler was the first major astronomer to publicly acknowledge his support of it. Tycho de Brahe Tycho de Brahe was a Danish nobleman who made a name for himself in the late sixteenth century as Europes best observational astronomer. He kept a closely guarded collection of astronomical observations, the most accurate astronomical data available at the time. Eager to use Tychos figures to develop his own system, Kepler traveled to Prague to work in Tychos lab. In addition to being a brilliant astronomer, Tycho was also an arrogant and temperamental man. Tycho and Kepler had a love-hate relationship; they respected one another, but each was also jealous of the others achievements and potential. Several times, Kepler fled the lab, only to return full of apologies. When Tycho died, he expressed a hope that Kepler would use his data to develop the Tychonic system of the universe, in which the planets orbited the sun, which orbited the earth. Instead, Kepler applied Tychos observations to the Copernican system, which led him to discover his first two laws. Galileo Galilei Galileo was an Italian astronomer who discovered the moons of Jupiter. Galileo was the first major astronomer to use a telescope to observe the heavens. When these observations yielded findings that the scientific community was reluctant to believe, Kepler lent him public support Galileo later became a symbol of sciences break from religion during the scientific revolution. He was put on trial by the Catholic Church and convicted of heresy for his support of the Copernican system Heinrich Kepler Keplers father, Heinrich, was an itinerant criminal who repeatedly abandoned his family. At one point he owned a tavern, at another, he was nearly hanged for an alleged crime. One of Keplers younger brothers was forced to run away from home when Heinrich threatened to sell him. Heinrich left for good in 1588 – he was not missed. Katherine Kepler Katherine Kepler, Keplers mother, was born Katherine Guldenmann. She was the daughter of an innkeeper and the niece of a woman who had been burned at the stake as a witch. Kepler later described her as a petty, angry, quarrelsome woman. She came back into Keplers life in 1615, when her fellow villagers accused her of being a witch. Kepler was quick to come to her defense. After five years of argument and negotiation, Katherine was interrogated under threat of torture. When she continued to deny being a witch, she was finally released. She was driven from her town and died six months later. Michael Maestlin Michael Maestlin was Keplers most influential teacher at the University of Tuebingen. Maestlin was the first to teach Kepler about the Copernican system. In the classroom, Maestlin was a strong supporter of the Copernican system, but on paper, he continued to propound the Ptolemaic system. Kepler turned to Maestlin for help and advice throughout his life, but Maestlin seems to have grown tired of his troublesome student. He often ignored Keplers letters for years at a time. Barbara Muehleck Kepler married Barbara Muehleck in 1597. It was a marriage of convenience, not love. Keplers friends had decided it was time for him to marry and had chosen Barbara as a good mate; Kepler acquiesced. They were married for fourteen years and had four children. Barbara died in 1611 of the Hungarian fever. Susanna Pettinger Two years after his first wife died, Kepler married the 24-year-old Susanna Pettinger. They had eleven children together and Kepler had nothing negative to say about her in later life – a ringing endorsement considering the way he described most of his family members. Ptolemy Ptolemy, an astronomer from the second century A.D., formulated a system of the universe that lasted for over one thousand years after his death. His system placed the earth at the center of the universe, with the planets and the stars revolving around it. Ptolemy insisted that the planets in his system moved with uniform circular motion. Because this is not actually how the planets move, he was forced to introduce the following mathematical devices. The deferent is the main circle around which each planet orbits the earth. An epicycle is a smaller circle around which the planet orbits the deferent. Finally, the equant is an imaginary point in the exact center of the planetary orbits. Ptolemys system was so complex that, by the time of Copernicus, it contained somewhere between forty and eighty epicycles. Terms Astronomia Nova  · The Astronomia Nova, or the New Astronomy was Keplers masterpiece. Published in 1609, it was the result of over eight years of work. Kepler spent those years trying to work out the shape of the orbit of Mars. Using Tychos data about the motion of the planets, Kepler was finally able to determine the shape of the orbit more accurately than anyone who had come before him. This resulted in the formation of his first two laws, which were published in the Astronomia Nova. Geocentric  · A geocentric system is one in which the earth is at the center of the universe. For thousands of years, scientists, philosophers, and theologians believed that the universe was geocentric. They were unwilling to believe Copernicus when he challenged that assumption. Harmonice Mundi  · The Harmonice Mundi, or Harmony of the World was the culmination of Keplers life-long study of the structure of the universe. Published in 1618, it described a system in which the spacing between th e planets was determined by universal harmonies. The theory was wrong, but the book is nonetheless important, as it marks the first appearance of Keplers third law. Heliocentric  · A heliocentric system is one in which the sun is at the center of the universe. The system that Copernicus introduced was a heliocentric system. This was not a completely original idea – some of the philosophers of ancient Greece had imagined that the universe might be constructed in this way. However, the dominant view had always been that the universe was geocentric, so Copernicuss claims were a shock to the European system. Keplers Three Laws  · Kepler is best known today for his contribution of the three planetary laws, which were instrumental in Newtons later development of his theory of universal gravitation. They are as follows: 1. The planets travel around the sun in elliptical orbits with the sun located at one focus. 2. As the planets travel around their orbits, they sweep out the same amount of area per unit of time, no matter where they are on the orbit. 3. The distance a planets orbit is from the sun, cubed, is directly proportional to the time it takes the planet to travel around the orbit, squared. Mathematically, this can be stated as a 3/p 2 = K where a is the distance a planets orbit is from the sun, p is the period, the time it takes for a planet to revolve around the sun once, and K is a constant. Mysterium Cosmographicum  · Published in 1597, the Mysterium Cosmographicum, or Mysteries of the Cosmos, was Keplers first major work. It described his theory of the perfect solids, which, although he never fully admitted it, was completely wrong. More importantly, the Mysterium was Keplers first step to rejoining physics and astronomy, as he grasped for physical explanation for the structure of the universe. He was the first astronomer in centuries to do so. It is in the Mysterium that Kepler first proposes that the sun be moved to the exact, physical center of the universe, and that a force from the sun is responsible for moving the planets around their orbits. The Mysterium was also the major work in fifty years to support the Copernican system. Perfect solid  · A perfect solid a three dimensional figure, such as a cube, whose sides are all identical. There are only five perfect solids: the tetrahedron (which has four triangular sides), cube (six square sides), octahedron (eight triangular sides), dodecahedron (twelve pentagonal sides), and icosahedron (twenty triangular sides). Each perfect solid can be inscribed in and circumscribed around a sphere. In the beginning of his career, Kepler believed that the planetary orbits could all be inscribed in one of the perfect solids. Growing Up Johannes Kepler was born on December 27, 1571, in the small German town of Weil- der-Stadt. He was born at the tail end of the European Renaissance, an age of intellectual, religious, cultural, and scientific transformation. But Keplers own early childhood showed no such signs of enlightenment. The young Kepler was trapped in his own period of personal depression and darkness. The Kepler family tree had distinguished roots – his arrogant grandfather Sebaldus Kepler had even served as town mayor. But by the time Kepler came on the scene, the family had fallen into a state of disrepair, filled with tormented personalities, hot tempers, invalids, and criminals. Sebaldus and his wife, Katherine Mueller, had twelve children. Heinrich, Keplers father, was the oldest surviving child; three others had died in infancy. When he was twenty-four years old, Heinrich married Katherine Guldenmann – Johannes was their first child. Katherine had a slightly less auspicious pedigree than Heinrich. She was an innkeepers daughter whose aunt had been accused of being a witch and had been burned at the stake. Heinrich was a restless husband who abandoned his family often. When Kepler was only three, Heinrich left to fight the Protestant armies in the Netherlands. This was a public embarrassment for the Keplers – one of many that Heinrich would cause – since the Kepler family itself was solidly Protestant. Heinrich came and left frequently through Keplers youth. At one point, he was accused of a crime and almost hanged. After briefly running a tavern, the itinerant Heinrich abandoned the family for good in 1588. Johannes Kepler had six brothers and sisters, three of whom died in childhood. Of the remaining three, two grew up to be normal, law-abiding citizens. The last one, Heinrich, was an epileptic who was always either sick or in trouble. He eventually ran away from home after Heinrich Sr. threatened to sell him. Historians have an incredibly detailed sketch of Keplers childhood, thanks, in large part, to the scientist himself. At the age of twenty-six, Kepler drafted a horoscope of his entire family. He also spent a fair amount of time analyzing his own personality. Kepler recorded everything, including the time of his conception (May 16, 1571), the length of his mothers pregnancy (224 days, nine hours, and fifty-three minutes), and his own opinions of each member of his family. The image we are left with is not a pretty one. Grandfather Sebaldus was remarkably arrogantshort tempered and obstinate and Grandmother Katherine was restless, clever, and lyingan inveterate troublemaker, extreme in her hatred, a bearer of grudges Mother Katherine is described as small, thin, swarthy, gossiping, and quarrelsome. But it is Keplers father who bears the brunt of Keplers familial criticisms. In Keplers autobiographical study, Heinrich appears as a man vicious, inflexible, quarrelsome, and doomed to a bad end. Kepler spares no one in his autobiography, least of all himself. He portrays himself as a sickly child, weak in health and personality, always picked on by other children. He describes a miserable childhood filled with illness, injury, and skin disorders. His chronological listing of events from his early days reveals that Kepler was not one to look on the bright side – the list is a recital of moments of suffering and weakness. In 1575, Kepler almost died of smallpox; in 1585, he suffered from a series of sores, wounds, and skin problems. The litany of complaints breaks for only a few events, including the sighting of a comet in 1577 and, a few years later, a sighting of a lunar eclipse. As these astronomical events marked a few bright moments in a childhood of darkness, astronomy itself would soon illuminate Keplers troubled adult life.

Radio Shacks Termination of Employees Essay -- Corporate Communicatio

Radio Shack As the economy continues to be unstable companies, large and small, are making decisions to reduce their workforce. This is a daunting task that has to be handled delicately. When companies begin the process of reduction, even if the staff is aware, the communication must be honest, open and appropriate. If a company is a large retailer there is more at stake than just the current financial situation. The employees can become customers and advocates for the business. They can also become the customers of the competitors and communicate to others the bad experience. In 2006 Radio Shack was on a turnaround plan (O’Rourke, 2010). This plan included a reduction of workforce of about 400 employees. Employees were aware this was the plane, but were taken by surprise that when the â€Å"pink slip† came through as an email. Most employees received this at the same time and were given a limited amount of time to gather their belongings and say goodbye. This action cau sed a backlash of publicity. For Radio Shack to continue and regain trust of the employees and public they will need immediate training in communication standards to further avoid any other incidents. Secondly, they must reach out the employees that received the email and lastly work on a new mission statement and culture to match with where the company is heading. Communication training Understanding the audience is a very important piece to communication (O’Rourke, 2010). For Radio Shack to change perspectives of the current employees and public, and to avoid further incidents, the leadership team needs to complete communication training. When a company has made a decision that could impact current and future employees they must focus on how to n... ... because the this decision by communication training for remaining leadership, reaching out to the employees that were terminated and changing the culture an mission statement during a time of transition. By attempting to complete these tasks Radio Shack has a possibility of continued growth after transition and the possibility of not losing the successful employees they still have. Works Cited Finnie, R. r., Sniffin, P. B., & College and Univ. Personnel Association, W. C. (1984). Good Endings: Managing Employee Terminations. Retrieved from EBSCOhost. Krapels, R. H., & Davis, B. D. (2000). Communication Training in Two Companies. Business Communication Quarterly, 63(3), 104-110. Retrieved from EBSCOhost. O’Rourke, J. S., IV (2010). Management communication: A case-analysis approach (4th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. ISBN-13: 9780136079767 Radio Shack's Termination of Employees Essay -- Corporate Communicatio Radio Shack As the economy continues to be unstable companies, large and small, are making decisions to reduce their workforce. This is a daunting task that has to be handled delicately. When companies begin the process of reduction, even if the staff is aware, the communication must be honest, open and appropriate. If a company is a large retailer there is more at stake than just the current financial situation. The employees can become customers and advocates for the business. They can also become the customers of the competitors and communicate to others the bad experience. In 2006 Radio Shack was on a turnaround plan (O’Rourke, 2010). This plan included a reduction of workforce of about 400 employees. Employees were aware this was the plane, but were taken by surprise that when the â€Å"pink slip† came through as an email. Most employees received this at the same time and were given a limited amount of time to gather their belongings and say goodbye. This action cau sed a backlash of publicity. For Radio Shack to continue and regain trust of the employees and public they will need immediate training in communication standards to further avoid any other incidents. Secondly, they must reach out the employees that received the email and lastly work on a new mission statement and culture to match with where the company is heading. Communication training Understanding the audience is a very important piece to communication (O’Rourke, 2010). For Radio Shack to change perspectives of the current employees and public, and to avoid further incidents, the leadership team needs to complete communication training. When a company has made a decision that could impact current and future employees they must focus on how to n... ... because the this decision by communication training for remaining leadership, reaching out to the employees that were terminated and changing the culture an mission statement during a time of transition. By attempting to complete these tasks Radio Shack has a possibility of continued growth after transition and the possibility of not losing the successful employees they still have. Works Cited Finnie, R. r., Sniffin, P. B., & College and Univ. Personnel Association, W. C. (1984). Good Endings: Managing Employee Terminations. Retrieved from EBSCOhost. Krapels, R. H., & Davis, B. D. (2000). Communication Training in Two Companies. Business Communication Quarterly, 63(3), 104-110. Retrieved from EBSCOhost. O’Rourke, J. S., IV (2010). Management communication: A case-analysis approach (4th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. ISBN-13: 9780136079767

Human Trafficking Essay

Since biblical times, men, women and children have been trafficked across borders and sold into slavery. The modern slavery trade is called human trafficking. Young Adults should be aware of human trafficking because half of the 27 millions victims are teenagers, 600,000-800,000 people are trafficked across borders worldwide annually, and 10 minutes from here in Westminster there are buildings full of teenage girls trapped in the malicious lifestyle of a human trafficker. And so the counter argument, Erick Erickson; a human events reporter stated â€Å"if we legalized prostitution this would all go away. † Meaning every money problem, all the kidnapping, every single little piece of slavery still today would simply disappear on one action. Some see eye to eye, others oppose robustly, without a clear decision and declaration the world stands oblivious. Sex Trafficking is a major issue in our society. As more researched is being done, it has come apparent that the sexual enslavement occurs most habitually in certain regions. The Eastern Europe, former Soviet Union countries, and The United States stand out as the major source of forced prostitution. â€Å"Eighty percent of the victims are female, and seventy percent of victims are trafficked for sex purposes. †(New York Times) As next generation leaders, we should become alert of this crisis and find a way to put a stop to it so our children can have a safe and healthy lifestyle. â€Å"An ounce of cocaine wholesale: $1,200. But you can only sell it once. A woman or child: $50 to $1,000. But you can sell them each day, every day, over and over again. The markup is immeasurable. † (2005 Lifetime film â€Å"Human Trafficking†). The absolute ignorance of these so called â€Å"geniuses† is causing pain to more than 27 million lives. This 8 billion dollar industry not only affects the innocent lives being enslaved but also communities around the world. About every 45 minutes away, you can find houses full of young teens imprisoned to perform sexual acts and labor for the buyer. 00,000 is more common than an average person can believe, think twice before you step outside your door. August 7th, 2009: Police arrest 23-year-old Westminster man who is connected to dealers in the business of prostitution and human trafficking. Eleven Vietnamese women are suspected of prostitution were arrested at the business location. The case was most commonly around Orange County, particularly in the Asian American communities around Little Saigon. Little Saigon is down he street from Garden Grove High School, knowing we are around the corner from danger , we should come together and discuss the brutality we will shun from here on out in our society for the better of mankind. My position on this subject matter is out of all the 27 million lives that were unlucky enough to escape this evil, we the free citizens should come to know this as a history and prevent it from growing any larger in our community. Take action, be loud, speak up, never underestimate our power, and become an inspiration for those in need.

Industrial Grinders Case Essay

G’s large quantity of steel rings are on hand and the substantial inventory of special steel for their manufacture. And this steel as inventory can’t be sold. I. G had manufactured industrial machines for sale in numerous countries for nearly 70 years. It means it has market to sale rings no matter whether it is steel or plastic ring. These rings could be supplied for their own machines too. In general the plants were allowed considerable leeway in administering their own affairs. Bridgeman has right to make market strategy in time. During slack periods, company has a policy of employing excess labor on various make-work projects rather than laying the men off. At that time, the salary is at about 70% of regular wages. Low labor cost will decrease the cost of production. There are a lot of steel rings on hand and can’t be sold. The total book value of these inventories exceeded $93,000. Large inventory means less liquid cash. Maybe it influences operation in the future. Now I. G only has steel rings and these rings have higher cost than plastic rings. Also the lives of steel rings are shorter than plastic rings. I. G’s competitor Henri Poulenc has already started selling plastic rings at the same price as steel rings. And if I. G makes plastic rings, it can start selling only after 4 months so by then Henri Poulenc will take over more market shares. The competitiveness of I. G is very weak now. The ring innovation is an opportunity for I. G, but also a kind of threat. When instead of steel rings, plastic ring I. G starts using it gives I. G a chance to reform. It could cut down the cost and improve the quality of rings. If I. G switches from steel rings to plastic rings successfully, it could expand business and get more profits because of low cost, so it’s an opportunity. However, the competitor had plastic rings in advance than I. G, so it’s threaten for I. G. Competitor could use this advantage to get more business. It maybe threat to I. G’s operation and profits. In the early 1970, Japanese manufacturers had successfully entered the field with low priced spare parts. Other companies also had appeared with low quality and lower price machines. The competition would become more intense. More competitors share one market, so each supplier needs to improve competitiveness. It’s a new challenge. After analyzing internal and external situation of I. G, we can say that I. G has strong operational capacity. However, the core problem is what to be done about the steel inventory. I. G should start developing plastic rings as soon as possible and start using those. Because the core of competition is production, even though steel ring still has its value now, the plastic ring will substitute for it sooner or later. The strong competitor of I. G is Henri Poulenc. It has already introduced plastic rings. Only if I. G produces plastic ring in time it can compete with Henri Poulenc and stop them from grasping more market share. In addition, plastic ring has lower cost and longer life than steel ring. The Table A shows the cost of 100 plastic rings is $66. 60, but 100 steel rings cost $263. 88. Obviously, if they sale at the same price, 100 plastic rings will get $197. 25 more profit than steel rings. However, Anders Ericsson, the development engineer, estimated that the plastic rings could be produced by mid-September, so before mid-September, I. G has to sell steel rings on hand. Fortunately, Henri Poulenc was said to be selling the plastic ring at about the same price as the I. G steel ring, so I. G wouldn’t get strong shock from Henri Poulenc. Of course, Henri Poulenc will get higher profit, but only analyzing from the price, I. G and Henri Poulenc are in the same position, so it depends on demanders’ preference which kind of rings they like. And I. G could sell the steel rings in different markets, which are not covered, by plastic rings of Henri Poulenc. It avoids direct conflict. Steel inventory is a big weakness of I. G, so it’s a good time to consume a large amount of steel. Assuming the sales continued at the current rate of 690 rings per week before mid-September, it would consume 19400 steel rings. During the slack time, I. G could ask labors to convert the steel inventory into rings to satisfy the supply amount before mid-September, because at that time, the labor cost will be about 70% of regular wages so that decreases the cost to produce steel rings. Those steel rings only need to satisfy the supply amounts for 4 months using, because after mid-September, plastic ring will be used instead of steel. If there are more steel rings converted than demanded, I. G will pay for labour cost from their pocket. It will waste resources, time and money. So nothing definite can be said about the steel inventory.

Sally Hemings Children

Sally Hemings' Children When James Thomas Callender published allegations in 1802 alleging that Sally Hemings was not just Thomas Jeffersons slave, but his concubine, it was the beginning but not the end of public speculation on the parentage of Hemings children. Sally Hemings Own Genealogy Sally Hemings  was  a slave owned by Jefferson who came to him through his wife,  Martha Wayles Skelton Jefferson. She may have been Martha Jeffersons half-sister, fathered by Marthas father, John Wayles.   Sallys mother, Betsy (or Betty), was herself the daughter of a white ship captain and a black slave woman, so Sally may have had just one black grandparent.   Nevertheless, the laws of the time made Sally, and her children no matter who was the father, also slaves. Birth Dates The birth dates of six children of   Sally Hemings  were recorded by Thomas Jefferson in his letters and records. Descendants of Madison Hemings and Eston Hemings are known. The evidence is mixed for a son who may have been born to Hemings when she returned from Paris. Descendents of Thomas Woodson claims that he was that son. One way to look at the likelihood of Jefferson as the father of the Hemings children is to see whether Jefferson was present at Monticello and whether that is within a reasonable conception window for each child. The following chart summarizes the known  birth dates and the dates of Jeffersons presence at Monticello within that conception window: Name Birth Date Jefferson atMonticello Death Date Harriet October 5, 1795 1794 and 1795 all year December 1797 Beverly April 1, 1798 July 11 - December 5, 1797 probably after 1873 Thenia? aboutDecember 7, 1799 March 8 - December 21, 1799 soon after birth Harriet May 1801 May 29 - November 24, 1800 probably after 1863 Madison January (19?), 1805 April 4 - May 11, 1804 November 28, 1877 Eston May 21, 1808 August 4 - September 30, 1807 January 3, 1856 What Happened to These Children and Their Descendants? Two of Sallys documented children (a first Harriet and a girl possibly named Thenia) died in infancy (plus, possibly, the child named Tom who was born shortly after the return from Paris). Two others―Beverly and Harriet―ran in 1822, were never formally freed, but disappeared into white society. Beverly probably died after 1873, and Harriet after 1863. Their descendants are not known, nor do historians know what names they used after their escape. Jefferson spent minimal effort to track them after their departure, lending credence to the theory that he let them go purposely. Under an 1805 Virginia law, if hed freed them or any slave, that slave would not be able to remain in Virginia. Madison and Eston, the youngest of the children, both born after the 1803 Callendar revelations, were freed in Jeffersons will, and were able to remain in Virginia for some time, as Jefferson had requested a special act of the Virginia legislature to permit them to stay contrary to the 1805 law. Both worked as tradesmen and musicians, and ended up in Ohio. Estons descendents at some point lost their memory of being directly descended from Jefferson and from Sally Hemings, and were unaware of a black heritage. Madisons family includes descendents of three of his daughters. Eston died January 3, 1856 and Madison died November 28, 1877.

salem witch trials essays

salem witch trials essays During the witch trial, of 1692, people of Salem, Massachusetts were not looking to cleanse the town of spirits or devils, but to clear the city of their enemies. People of this era were willing to do anything for what they wanted, even killing. The judge, Danforth, of the witch trials was an arrogant judge. He would believe any story that was brought to his attention., and even if he did not believe it, he would not take the time to tell anyone or to dissect the investigation and prove the defendant innocent. The worst of all the people of Salem Massachusetts was Abigail Williams who betrayed her friends time and time again to obtain the desire of her heart, John Procter. "You drank blood Abby! You didnt tell them that!"-Betty Parris, pg19. The story begins when Abigail Williams and her friends go out into the forest to make spells and wishes. They all made a wish to get the men which the desired for themselves. Abby made a spell by drinking chicken blood to make John Proctor lover her. The big problem with that though is John Proctor is already married to Elizabeth Proctor. Abigail Williams is in my opinion the entire reason the Salem witch trials had begun. Abby had once been the servant to John Proctor. However, Elizabeth thought John to not be holding loyal to her. During a long argument at home between Elizabeth and John over the subject of he not being truthful, Elizabeth says "Youll tear it free - when you come to know that I will be your only wife, or no wife at all! She has an arrow in you yet, John Proctor, and you know it well." Elizabeth has a conversation with John about how he still feels something passionate about Abigail Williams and if he does not stop thinking of Abby, Elizabeth will leave him. After the incident of Abigail being fired from her job, she always wanted to get back at the Proctor name. When she would see John in the church or ...

ACT What Should You Do

Low GPA but High SAT/ACT What Should You Do SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips Say you have done the near-impossible, and gotten an amazing SAT score of 2200 or higher or an ACT score of 32 or higher. Many high school students across the country are probably jealous of you! But what if your GPA is much lower – a 3.0, or even a 2.0? Do you still have a shot at top colleges? What will admissions officers think about you? Read on to find out what to do with a low GPA, high SAT/ACT score application. That high score could be worth a lot more than you think! The Good News Your high SAT/ACT score proves your academic abilities and intellectual aptitude. While it’s possible to have a high GPA without being super smart (since some schools inflate GPAs), it’s almost impossible to get a high SAT/ACT score if you don’t have significant intellectual ability. Colleges know this. Since the SAT and ACT are national, standardized tests, if you do well on them you'll stack up very favorably compared with the entire applicant pool. For example, if you have a 34 ACT, that means you scored higher than 99% of the country. Having a 4.0 GPA, on the other hand, doesn’t allow colleges to easily compare you to other students. This is because grading scales and class difficulty varies among high schools. One other thing to keep in mind is that applying to schools where your SAT/ACT score is above their average admitted student score raises your odds of admission because your score will raise the schools' averages. Remember, colleges are also trying to maximize their score profiles, and getting students with higher SAT/ACT scores to apply can make them look good. The Bad News Your transcript and GPA are very important, especially for competitive schools. Stanford says on their admissions website, â€Å"We expect you to challenge yourself throughout high school and to do very well. The most important credential that enables us to evaluate your academic record is the high school transcript.† Why is the transcript – including your GPA – so important? Because your GPA shows your performance over a long period of time, as well as your ability to succeed in tough classes. This is important to help colleges decide if you will be able to succeed in their classes. If you’re a junior or senior with a low GPA, you don’t have a lot of time to raise it before you turn in your college applications. So what can you do? We will tell you what colleges might think about your low GPA and high ACT/SAT combination, questions they will have, and tips for you based on what your exact circumstances are. How Low Is Low? Of course, just how low your GPA is will affect your odds of admission. There is a huge difference between a 3.5, which would be considered low at selective colleges but well within range at many state schools, and a 2.0, which is considered low at most colleges. Also make sure you're not being hard on yourself... you may think your 3.9 GPA is low, but most colleges won't. Find out what the admitted student GPA range is at your target schools. You can do this by searching â€Å"[Name of College/University] Average GPA Admission† or â€Å"[Name of College/University] Admission Requirements.† If your GPA is just out of range, your high SAT/ACT score will likely make up for your GPA, especially if the rest of your application is strong. But if your GPA is far below their range, it will be especially important to use your application to explain why your GPA is low. So if you’re reaching for a tough college, or have a way out-of-range GPA, read on to find out what to do! What Do Colleges Think of Your High SAT/ACT and Low GPA? If you have a high SAT/ACT score but low GPA, admissions officers will assume your academic potential is high – your SAT/ACT score shows that – but that your motivation is low, hence your low GPA. A â€Å"smart slacker† could be the first thing that comes to mind when an admissions officer reads your file. So what you have to do is prove that assumption wrong. Whether you have personal circumstances leading to a low GPA, a demanding extracurricular, or other academic preparation outside of high school classes, your goal is to show that not only are you smart – but you can also work hard and do well in college. We will go through a series of scenarios, guided by the main questions admissions officers will be asking, about why your GPA is low and what it means. For each scenario, we have some specific advice, but read through all of them as your situation is likely unique and combines multiple scenarios. Why Is Your GPA Low? This is the big question admissions officers will have when they see your application. This is the question your application has to satisfyingly answer, especially if you want a shot at top colleges. We will explore the two circumstances most likely to excuse a low GPA. Don’t worry if these don’t apply to you – we have plenty more advice coming! Scenario 1: Extenuating Circumstances If you have serious extenuating circumstances like a medical condition or family crisis, definitely explain them on your application. This would fit in the â€Å"extra information† box for sure, but it could also be good material for your personal statement. For example, if you have a low GPA because your family had financial troubles, both of your parents started working long hours, and you became the primary caretaker for younger siblings and didn’t have time for homework, that should definitely be on your application as part of your story. Or if your grades suffered due to a medical condition, you should definitely make that known on your application. In short, if you had serious outside circumstances that affected your grades, make sure you explain them thoroughly on your application. You want to make sure colleges know that, in your case, your GPA wasn’t entirely in your control. You should highlight academic interests and classes you did do well in, but the explanation of your circumstances will be the best way to help admissions officers evaluate your file fairly. Scenario 2: You Spent Tons of Time on an Extracurricular If you spend a lot of time on an extracurricular – say you’re a debater who’s been to nationals or an award-winning flute player – at the expense of classes, it won’t excuse a low GPA, but it will improve your chances. In addition to top scores and high GPAs, colleges are also looking for exceptionally talented students in specific fields. If you have an exceptional ability, it could overcome a low GPA, especially with your high ACT/SAT score. Any extracurriculars done at the national level will look especially good. Do neither of these situations apply to you? Keep reading. If you've played Carnegie Hall, colleges will probably be fairly forgiving about that C in Biology... What Kinds of Classes Were You Taking? A low GPA in hard classes will look better than a low GPA in easier ones. You should think about the pattern of grades you received and why you got low grades where you did. College admissions officers will be trying to figure out this pattern too, so make it easier for them and explain whatever pattern you have. For example†¦ Scenario 3: You Took Hard Classes and Got a Low GPA Did you overload yourself with too many hard courses and struggle to keep up? In your essay, you could talk about what you learned from taking on too much at a time and how you will be more careful and focused in college. Since you were in those hard classes, you should also highlight what you learned and any intellectual development you experienced. For example, even if you got a low grade in AP Biology, maybe taking it convinced you that you want to explore pre-med courses in college and so you began volunteering at a local hospital or signed up for a medical anatomy class. That kind of journey would show colleges that you have serious interests, and even if your grades aren’t high, you are capable of doing hard work and improving. Scenario 4: You Took Easy Classes and Got a Low GPA Were you uninterested by easy classes at your school, and ended up slacking off? This will be a harder sell, but if you were in mostly regular classes (not honors or AP or IB) and got a low GPA, you could argue you simply weren’t interested by your classes and had a hard time keeping up with menial assignments, but did have intellectual pursuits in your free time. The above argument will be more compelling if you went to a high school without very many honors, AP, or IB options. Your application would also be strengthened if you have a career goal in mind and do well in certain classes related to it. For example, if you want to be a lawyer and manage to pull decent grades in English and History, it could help convince admissions officers that despite your slacking in other classes, you will be able to pull together and focus on your major in college. Hint: video games don't count as an intellectual pursuit (unless you design them). What’s Your Grade Trend? While a high GPA is important, so is an overall trend of improved grades or harder classes year to year. Whether you have a rising grade trend or a sinking one, read on to learn what it means and how it affects your applications. Scenario 5: You Started With Low Grades but Improved If you’re reading this as a sophomore or junior, work to improve your grades starting now. You won’t be able to totally fix your GPA, but you will be able to show a story of improvement, which can be just as important. A pattern of improved grades shows that you fixed issues you had with time management and have gotten better at handling assignments and tests. This growth is important because it shows admissions officers you can continue to grow and improve in college. This will look especially good if you have been succeeding in honors, AP, or IB classes later in your high school career, as it suggests you are learning the skills needed to succeed in college. If you have this pattern on your transcript, definitely spend some time on your application explaining why you struggled at the beginning of high school, and what caused you to improve your grades. Along with a high ACT/SAT score, an improved GPA can convince colleges you are academically prepared. Scenario 6: You Started With High Grades but They Dropped If you started with great grades and your GPA has fallen, you’ll have to explain why. Took on too many hard classes? You became overly involved in a sport or extracurricular? Illness in the family? It will also be especially important to prove you have other academic or intellectual interests, like we will discuss below. A lowering grade trend is more worrisome to collegesbecause it suggests you had a hard time coping with harder classes later in high school, or even that you’ve burned yourself out before college. You will have to prove that you have strong academic interests and are capable of doing well, despite your trend of sinking grades. One way to do this is to take a few Honors, AP or IB classes senior year and make sure you do well in them. Colleges will see a mid-year grade report, so if they see that you have taken on harder classes and are doing better, that will reassure them that you are capable of doing well in college courses. Another way to reassure colleges is with SAT Subject Tests. Some colleges require them for admission, some don’t, but nearly all will consider them. Getting high SAT subject tests scores will help convince admissions officers that you’re academically capable in certain subjects. If you haven’t taken any SAT Subject Tests yet, consider it – many students take them late in the game (even in Senior fall). If you are confident of your ability on tests, and you have even a bit of time to devote to studying, a high SAT subject score or two could help prove your ability in academic subjectsand help overshadow your GPA. If your GPA trend looks like this, you have some explaining to do... Can You Prove Your Academic Preparation in a Different Way? If your GPA is low and you don’t have a good reason for it, your task will be to prove to colleges you are still academically prepared, despite your low GPA. Your high ACT/SAT score is the first step towards proving yourself, but also consider other ways you can show your smarts†¦ Scenario 7: You Have One Weak Subject Is there a certain subject you struggle in? Is your GPA low because you have Ds in math but As and Bs everywhere else? If so, you should highlight your strengths in other subjects. For example, If you have great grades in English classes, highlight that on your application and talk about what draws you to English and why you enjoy it. Show that you have strong intellectual interests in your best subjects, which you can do through your personal statement or college supplements on the Common App. If you have done outside work or an extracurricular related to these classes, even better. For example, if you’re great at English and history and spend time outside of class in Mock Trial, you can talk about how your interest in law drives you to do well in history and English. This won’t totally excuse low math grades you might have, but it will show colleges you have strong academic interests. Help colleges focus on the positive! Scenario 8: You Took and Passed AP or IB Exams Did you take and pass AP or IB exams? For example, even if you got Cs all year in World History but passed the test with a 4, that at least proves you mastered most of the material. If this is the case for you, highlight exams you did well on and talk about your intellectual interest in those subjects. You could address why you didn’t do well in the classes in the â€Å"extra information† box, but focus on explaining your academic interests and how you want to continue pursuing them in college in the personal statement. Remember, you want to demonstrate your academic abilities to colleges. A passing AP/IB score is an important piece of evidence, so follow it up with an essay further explaining your interests! Scenario 9: You Took Outside Enrichment Classes Whether you attended an academic summer camp or took an extra course or two at a community college, definitely put that information on your application. It won't make up for your low grades, but it will show colleges that you are serious about your intellectual pursuits and made time outside of school for learning. This can be especially helpful if you get an additional letter of recommendation from a professor or instructor you worked with. Scenario 10: You Have Academic Interests Outside of School So your GPA is low, but do you do things like read War and Peace in your spare time? Have you learned a coding language on your own and designed your own app? If you can’t show your academic preparation through any high course grades or AP/IB exam results, find a way to include outside academic interests in your application. If you’ve attended Hackathons or entered writing contests, fit that into your application under extracurriculars. This kind of outside interest could be great material for a personal statement as well. Basically, if you have academic preparation or interests that are not going to show up on your transcript, make sure they show up on your application! It will be reassuring to admissions officers to see you have outside intellectual pursuits. Writing code is a more acceptable excuse for slacking off in Algebra than watching television... How Can You Compensate With the Rest of Your Application? College applications are holistic, meaning they consider the candidate as a whole. GPA is just one factor. While it’s an important factor, if everything else on your application is strong you can improve your chances of admission. Having a high SAT/ACT score is your big advantage because you won’t be weeded out immediately based on your score. Read on to see how to maximize the other categories. Personal Statement Your essay is another opportunity to prove yourself. If you had significant extenuating circumstances, you could talk about them here. If you were bored and slacked off, use the essay as a space to explain an intellectual interest or hobby to offset your low GPA. No matter what you write about, make sure your essay is well-written and presents your unique voice. Remember – you no longer have control over your GPA, but you have complete control over your essay and how it presents you. Use it wisely! Extracurriculars Do you have any other extracurriculars that speak to intellectual aptitude? Math competitions, Model United Nations, writing for the school newspaper – these are the kinds of extracurriculars that support academic interests. If you have them, definitely highlight them. Extracurriculars in the arts – from musical instruments to drawing to theater – are also great because they speak to interests outside of the classroom. You should also talk about your involvement in sports, since that excelling in them requires both discipline and teamwork skills. In short, you should highlight any extracurricular activity you have, even if you don’t think it’s significant. Extracurriculars can help show colleges you have outside interests, discipline, and the ability to work with others. These are all important factors, but can also help make up for a low GPA. Teacher Recommendations For your letters of recommendation, find teachers who can either speak to your personal circumstances or believe in your academic potential. You want to make sure your recommendations are supporting evidence for your application, not contradicting information. For example, if your GPA is low due to an illness, find a teacher who can speak to your perseverance when you were sick, or how hard you worked once your condition improved. If you don’t have extenuating circumstances like that, make sure you find teachers who have great, specific things to say about you and your academic potential. Maybe you have an English teacher who always loved your essays or a math teacher who often called you to the front to explain problems on the board. Find teachers who recognize your abilities and would write you a kind letter. Don't get a teacher to write a letter just because they taught you in a hard subject. If a recommender doesn't have specific things to say about you, the letter won't help your application. If you’re not sure you can get an amazing recommendation from a teacher, many colleges allow an additional letter to be submitted, from someone like a coach or boss. Find a third person who you know will speak very highly of you and use them for that third letter. Where Are You Applying? Your odds of admission will also depend on where you’re applying. For example, say you have a 2360 SAT but a 2.7 GPA. While your SAT would make you competitive for the Ivy League, it will be harder to overcome your low GPA at highly competitive schools. They simply have too many applicants with both high test scoresand high GPAs to admit many people with a serious deficiency in either. That 2360 alone won't get you into Harvard... However, if you apply to less competitive schools where your SAT is far above their 25-75 percentile ranges, you would actually be quite a desirable candidate since your SAT score would raise their averages. (The 25-75 ranges are the score ranges that the middle 50 percent of colleges’ accepted students fall in. For example, a 25-75 range of 24-30 ACT means that 25% of applicants scored lower than a 24, 25% scored higher than 30, and the middle 50% were between 24 and 30.) Furthermore, a less competitive school will be more forgiving of a weak spot on your application, in this case your GPA, as opposed to a very selective school. As a general rule, it’s important to apply to a range of colleges. Don't just apply to all eight Ivy Leagues hoping that one will let you in. Apply to a few schools that are reaches given your GPA and ACT/SAT combo, a few that are safe targets, and a few that you think you will definitely get into, like state or community colleges. You want to make sure you have some choices when it’s time to decide which college you’ll attend. What’s Next? Learn about automatic scholarships for SAT/ACT scores. While colleges usually factor in GPA or Class Rank, see how far your high test score can get you. Want to use SAT Subject Tests to raise your chances of admission? Learn which colleges require SAT Subject Tests for admission. Check out our SAT/ACT Percentile rankings guides to see just how much your high score stands out. Want to improve your SAT score by 160 points or your ACT score by 4 points?We've written a guide for each test about the top 5 strategies you must be using to have a shot at improving your score. Download it for free now:

School corporal punishment Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

School corporal punishment - Research Paper Example Many nations however have enacted legislations against its use while others still legalise it. In United States for example, about 20 states have it as a legal form of instilling discipline in schools (Human Rights Watch 36). This practice has received increased condemnation in the last 40 years from child rights activists and the general public but some people still advocate for its use. This paper looks into pros and cons of corporal punishment in schools while shedding light on how teachers can slowly remove its reliance as a disciplinary measure. ARGUMENTS FOR CORPORAL PUNISHMENT By use of corporal punishment students are made aware that there is an authority figure. This helps in ensuring that students respect the elder people in the society and it also draws a line between who is in authority as far as classroom management is concerned. In other instances students hail from quite lenient families who end up spoiling them. They therefore require someone to set them back on the r ight path of good discipline and respect for authority. In some regions dropping of corporal punishment in schools was followed by considerable decline in performance and heightened indiscipline among students. This is the case of Britain where teachers complained a great deal after its abolishment was followed by general decline in performance in many schools (Council of Europe 24). Corporal punishment acts as a motivation towards performance and as such it ought to be used where necessary so as to attain desirable results (27). Teachers are trained professionals who are also adults and they know what level of corporal punishment is appropriate for who and when. They should therefore be left to play their part and if they find this kind of punishment to be appropriate, then they can go ahead with it. This also shows that it is not a form of abuse to students as it is just punishment to an indiscipline student from a responsible teacher. Immediate physical punishment is more prefera ble than suspension or expulsion since after a few strokes a student goes on with their normal learning activities. The former two forms of punishment interrupt a students learning schedule. Misbehaving students are easily rewarded by suspensions due to the free time they are allowed to stay at home (54). These kinds of children usually stay home alone while their parents are at work and can easily indulge in further naughtiness. ARGUMENTS AGAINST CORPORAL PUNISHMENT Physical punishment opens doors for abuse and leads to battery tendencies in children. There is a thin line between punishment and abuse and teachers usually cross this line as they wish where the law allows for corporal punishment. Corporal punishment degrades students a great deal as others mock them for being punished. This brings shame to them and if this happens constantly, these students result to having low self esteem. Such a student is lowly motivated to learn or even conduct themselves in a disciplined manner. This type of punishment has many negative impacts psychologically (Human Rights Watch 92). Anxiety is one of them because students tend to become scared of their teachers in the classroom especially when punishment is imminent from something they had done earlier e.g. failure to have finished yesterday’s homework. Other psychological effects are rigidity, inhibition and depression all of which have far reaching consequences on a student’

Process based organizations Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Process based organizations - Essay Example In an organization, process based structures are an important aspect of success because they offer a flexible way of working toward the goals. The most important benefit of process based structures is that the role of each process is well-defined; hence, the overall process becomes error-proof, nearly if not completely. It becomes important, at times, to define the division of process integrators when activities are transferred from one process to the other (Sugiharto, 2009, par.12). Other advantages of process based structures include speedy attainment of deadlines and goals, and the ability of the project to adapt to environment changes quite rapidly. Since there is less overhead structure, hence the overall cost is reduced. Process based structures are most needed when the business environment is unclear and frequently changing. However, although the organizational structure of process based organizations is completely different than that of functional organizations, still, the im portance of functional skills cannot be denied. Sugiharto, T. (2009). Process-based organizations: structure and integration. The Jakarta Post. Retrieved February 15, 2015, from

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

Business and culture - Essay Example 3) My group got down to business straight away and just started discussing what the task was. Many of our personalities are geared towards getting things done in a timely manner, so it was good that we were all able to think along the same lines. Of course, this method has its downsides, but I think that we were all able to adapt to the situation at hand and work together towards completing our project. To do this, we set out a list of priorities and deadlines that we would all work towards so that everything was not left until the last minute. I think that this was good because it relived the stress on all of us. We decided that it would be better not to appoint one leader because if that person did not perform adequately, then it would affect the whole group. We came to the conclusion that it would be better if we shared leadership because then we would all be responsible for the success or failure of the group. I did not like this idea at the start because I felt that our group would be like a ship without a rudder, but I was pleasantly surprised that we all contributed equally to the project. As was mentioned above, we shared out responsibility among all the group’s members. To get work done faster, we assigned ourselves different roles that were based on our strengths. There were very few arguments over who should have done what because we all knew our role in the group and did not overstep our boundaries. Communication was surprisingly a strong point for us. At the beginning of the project, we all agreed to swap phone numbers so that we would all be reachable at any time. Also, we used methods such as Facebook and regular email to stay in contact. This was really good because we could remind each other about when we had to complete a task by. Of course, we also communicated face-to-face during class time and also during our breaks during the day. As was mentioned above, we were always reminding each other about what we had to do and when we had

Accounting and taxation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Accounting and taxation - Essay Example The employment status of an employee has been categorized as employed or self-employed.This categorization is based upon the terms and conditions of the relevant association.It is important to mention that such classification is important as separate rules have been promulgated which are applicable to specific conditions of employment in special circumstances. It is important for an employee to realise that he/she should be aware of her job description along with lists of the designated authorities to whom he/she is responsible. It is significant to evaluate the capacity of your designation, which shall be verified against the standard classification of employed or self-employed, "it is important to know whether you are working for that person in an employed capacity or in a self-employed capacity as an independent contractor". This classification is significant in terms of imposition of tax bracket, the employment status is crucial to determine "the charge to tax on income from that employment or self-employment, and determines the class of NICs, which are to be paid" (Helen, 2000).The differentiation between the self-employed and employed is possible after evaluation of "contract of service or under a contract for services". It is important with reference to tax and NIC that "there is no statutory definition of a contract of service or of a contract for services", it is indeed the relationship towards the institution which is significant in assessment. The application of common law principles is critical for the determination of the nature of a contact. The courts have developed specific factors and assessment, the affirmative response towards series of factors helps in the classification of employed personnel. The questions includes, "do they have to do the work themselves; can someone tell them at any time what to do, where to carry out the work or when and how to do it; can they work a set amount of hours; can someone move them from task to task; are they paid by the hour, week, or month; can they get overtime pay or bonus payment". The affirmative response towards following suggest the strong possibility of self-employed personnel, "can they hire someone to do the work or engage helpers at their own expense; do they risk their own money; do they provide the main items of equipment they need to do their job, not just the small tools that many employees provide for themselves; do they agree to do a job for a fixed price regardless of how long the job may take; can they decide what work to do, how and when to do the work and where to provide the services; do they regularly work for a number of different people; do they have to correct unsatisfactory work in their own time and at their own expense" (Helen, 2000). As per legal regulations, contract has been regarded as oral and/or implied agreement between minimum two parties. The common elements of valid contract service and contract for services include, "the intention to enter into le gal relations; an offer (usually of work) and its acceptance (an agreement); consideration (for example, in return for performing work the worker receives payment)". The establishment of contact is essential, it is also important to settle the terms and conditions of the contract against "case law laid down by the courts over the years" (Greg, 2006). Issues The legal requirement envisaged by the courts include "basic approach to identify the factors present; weigh those that point to self-employment against those that point the other way; and then stand back and consider the picture that emerges" (Helen, 2000). The contract shall include the discussed features, which shall essentially reflect the nature of employment and will assist in differentiation of employment status. The understanding and interpretation of relationship between the parties is not of significant interest, "it is the reality of the relationship that matters, the intention of the parties has to be taken into account and can be decisive where the relationship is ambiguous

Emergence of Modern Europe Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Emergence of Modern Europe - Essay Example The age of enlightenment, also known as age of reason refers to the period of intellectual awakening known as enlightenment (Lindberg 2008 p. 18). It was a time of scientific awakening largely dominant in Europe. From the viewpoint of socio-political phenomena, enlightenment period is believed to have started close with the thirty years of wars and came to an end after the French revolution. This period called for use of reason as a means of developing and establishing an authoritative system of ethic, government, religion, and aesthetics, which will give human beings an opportunity to attain objective truth about reality of this world. The enlightenment thinkers believed that reason would salvage man from religious authoritarianism and superstition that had brought suffering, misery, and death to many people in religious wars. In addition, knowledge was made available to the masses through encyclopedias, which led to enlightenment cause of educating human beings. The age of enlighte nment just like the renaissance and protestant reformation, had a profound impact on society. The European States turned towards science between 1700s, which led to focus of life as experience of human being. By doing so, the enlightenment period influenced greatly on modern western European States. There were developments in mathematics, physics, astronomy, and anatomy during that time that were successfully applied to medicine, astronomy, and mechanics. The usage of these ideas motivated a sense of western emergence into contemporary or modern time that had real and precise technological knowledge of this world. The philosophers at that time argued that science provided scientific method as general view of life. Popularization of science During enlightenment period, popularization of science led to growth and change in society in that individuals in the 18th century adhered to new codes of sociability and enjoyed equitability in society. Women who took part in the enlightenment de bate were seen as enhancing and promoting enlightenment ideas in the public arena. In addition, they were viewed as civilizing force determined to overthrow the old totalitarian regime (Bowler 2009, p. 89). The spread of enlightenment ideas across Europe was enhanced by production of cheap books by renowned philosophers such as Diderot and Voltaire. Scientific inventions like works of Isaac Newton and Copernicus changed mathematical philosophy of Europe in that people realized the need of creating new and orderly world and the need for integrating philosophy of science that would help in transformation of secular and religious life. People argued that if Newton was able to order the cosmos using his natural philosophy, it would also be possible to order the politics using political philosophy. During this, time people adopted new ways of ordering things based on divine right and natural law. Using divine rights, it led to creation of absolutist ideas while natural law would enhance liberty to human race. Some people argued that the universe was ordered by rational God and therefore, his representatives on this world had powers of God. This according to such thinking meant that Gods’ power translated to the powers of the monarchy. Natural law rose to react against such thinking of divinity with the aim of creating new order in society. They argued that God did not govern

Accounting and taxation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Accounting and taxation - Essay Example The employment status of an employee has been categorized as employed or self-employed.This categorization is based upon the terms and conditions of the relevant association.It is important to mention that such classification is important as separate rules have been promulgated which are applicable to specific conditions of employment in special circumstances. It is important for an employee to realise that he/she should be aware of her job description along with lists of the designated authorities to whom he/she is responsible. It is significant to evaluate the capacity of your designation, which shall be verified against the standard classification of employed or self-employed, "it is important to know whether you are working for that person in an employed capacity or in a self-employed capacity as an independent contractor". This classification is significant in terms of imposition of tax bracket, the employment status is crucial to determine "the charge to tax on income from that employment or self-employment, and determines the class of NICs, which are to be paid" (Helen, 2000).The differentiation between the self-employed and employed is possible after evaluation of "contract of service or under a contract for services". It is important with reference to tax and NIC that "there is no statutory definition of a contract of service or of a contract for services", it is indeed the relationship towards the institution which is significant in assessment. The application of common law principles is critical for the determination of the nature of a contact. The courts have developed specific factors and assessment, the affirmative response towards series of factors helps in the classification of employed personnel. The questions includes, "do they have to do the work themselves; can someone tell them at any time what to do, where to carry out the work or when and how to do it; can they work a set amount of hours; can someone move them from task to task; are they paid by the hour, week, or month; can they get overtime pay or bonus payment". The affirmative response towards following suggest the strong possibility of self-employed personnel, "can they hire someone to do the work or engage helpers at their own expense; do they risk their own money; do they provide the main items of equipment they need to do their job, not just the small tools that many employees provide for themselves; do they agree to do a job for a fixed price regardless of how long the job may take; can they decide what work to do, how and when to do the work and where to provide the services; do they regularly work for a number of different people; do they have to correct unsatisfactory work in their own time and at their own expense" (Helen, 2000). As per legal regulations, contract has been regarded as oral and/or implied agreement between minimum two parties. The common elements of valid contract service and contract for services include, "the intention to enter into le gal relations; an offer (usually of work) and its acceptance (an agreement); consideration (for example, in return for performing work the worker receives payment)". The establishment of contact is essential, it is also important to settle the terms and conditions of the contract against "case law laid down by the courts over the years" (Greg, 2006). Issues The legal requirement envisaged by the courts include "basic approach to identify the factors present; weigh those that point to self-employment against those that point the other way; and then stand back and consider the picture that emerges" (Helen, 2000). The contract shall include the discussed features, which shall essentially reflect the nature of employment and will assist in differentiation of employment status. The understanding and interpretation of relationship between the parties is not of significant interest, "it is the reality of the relationship that matters, the intention of the parties has to be taken into account and can be decisive where the relationship is ambiguous

Reaction Time & Hemispheric Asymmetry Dissertation

Reaction Time & Hemispheric Asymmetry - Dissertation Example The tests failed to demonstrate a clear association with hemispheric aptitude in terms of reaction speed based on results of previous investigations in the literature. Introduction The two halves of the human brain are responsible for different perceptions and styles of information processing. Handedness as a functional preference begins with an entire half of the brain, one of which is personally dominant, and it is that dominant half that is used to process much information. Nonetheless, cognitive functions are enhanced when both sides of the brain learn to get along cooperatively, sharing capabilities in a balanced fashion. To optimize this sharing for the benefit of performance, there should always be room for strengthening whichever a person's weaker hemisphere happens to be. The left brain functions in a sequential, linear manner. It is an organizing, rank-making, list-maker. Left-brained individuals enjoy orderly planning, schedule-creation, and structured organization. Left-b rains finish tasks in sequence and enjoy the regularity that this regimented approach allows. And thus, learning in sequence can be easier for these individuals. Functions such as spelling are probably easier for left-brains. A sequential approach to mathematical calculations and stepwise directions are ideal conditions for this learner. This left hemisphere is also vital for many forms of communication. Aphasia can result from trauma, tumors or stroke-damage to the left hemisphere. Certain complex mouth-movements may be affected also. It is clear that language processing as well as spatial intelligence, and subtle movements involving hand-gestures are dependent on the left hemisphere. (Toga et al. 2003) In seeming opposition is the approach of the right-brained thinker. More haphazard and spontaneous. The right-brained thinker may drift through different modes and styles of thought. They may lack the regimented prioritization of the left-brained operator when they do complete the w ork they have set themselves towards. They may not accomplish less, but in a less direct fashion. A task may be delayed not because the right-brained wasn't applying themselves, but that they were applying themselves to many different priorities. Excessive regimentation provokes feelings of restlessness or rebellion. But schedules and order are still useful, and are perhaps more essential for this thinker. Editing, error-correction and spell-checking will be more important for this learner. Colors and images may be useful to this thinker as an organizational tool, as vivid depictions will be impactful for a right-dominant mind. Mnemonic devices should be the most beneficial for this thinker. In addition, the right cerebral hemisphere specializes in spatial perception and topographical comprehension, and men score higher than women when the input is restricted to the right hemisphere, or conversely, obtain significantly lower scores than women on such tasks after damage to this hemis phere. The left hemisphere specializes in language, and trauma here leads to aphasia, linguistic impairment in speaking, comprehending, or both. The fact that women score lower than men in right hemi-sphere tasks was for years explained in terms of the crowding out effect, a concept referring to the left hemis

Gendered Societal Expectations of Appearance and Their Effects Upon the Individual Essay Example for Free

Gendered Societal Expectations of Appearance and Their Effects Upon the Individual Essay It has long been generally accepted that we as humans are influenced greatly by the things that surround our everyday lives. These things can include friends, family, co-workers, the media and even society as a whole. The society in which people live can play a huge role in how they view themselves and how they view others. Over the years researchers have come up with many theories as to how and why society has such a large influence on people. Now-a-days there are appearance prescriptions for everything in our society. It is not good to be too fat, but it is not good to be too skinny either. The way a person looks, dresses and acts is a large factor in how other people will think about, talk about and respond to them. These societal prescriptions also differentiate between other factors such as gender, race, level of education and more. Interestingly most of these prescriptions for appearance in society today are relatively unspoken until someone violates them. This paper will attempt to shed some light on the complex societal prescriptions regarding personal appearance and body imaging; more specifically it will delve into how those prescriptions are gendered within society and how people respond both positively and negatively to those prescriptions. As previously stated appearance prescriptions are very strong in our society especially when it comes to societal expectations regarding gender. These gendered expectations cause people to do all types of things for the sole purpose of fitting in to societal norms. Some women exercise religiously to maintain a good looking body, other women go tanning regularly because they think it is embarrassing, or even unacceptable, to be pale; there are also many men who do the same things for the same reasons. While looking good is not a bad thing sometimes these societal prescriptions, or expectations, can cause people to go too far. When people are not satisfied with themselves and their appearance they can become desperate and have feelings of inadequacy about their physical appearance. These feelings of inadequacy can lead to depression or making destructive decisions which can include but are not limited to over-eating or even eating disorders such as anorexia or bulimia. There have been numerous studies done on the relationships between societal pressures to be thin and body dissatisfaction among both men and women. One such study, from the University of Texas at Austin that studied the effects of social pressure to be thin on women said that â€Å"These same pernicious messages (that one is not thin enough) are thought to foster negative affect, because appearance is a central evaluative dimension for women in Western culture† (Stice, 2003). This study tested what sources most influence societal expectations of appearance and the different ways those expectations can negatively affect women (Stice, 2003). It concluded that some of the biggest social pressures to be thin come from the mass media, family members and peers (Stice, 2003). It also concluded that the negative effects of these social pressures can go in two different directions, this is not to say that women negatively affected cannot fall victim to both types of effects (Stice, 2003). A synopsis of this study could say that societal expectations to be thin often create body dissatisfaction within women (Stice, 2003). This body dissatisfaction, which can often lead to depression, frequently leads to either restrictive dieting or binge eating. Restrictive dieting, while not bad in itself, can lead to unhealthy eating habits such as eating disorders, laxative abuse or other methods of losing weight that can be extremely harmful to the person practicing them, and binge eating â€Å"because it is commonly believed that eating provides comfort and distraction from negative emotions† (Stice, 2003). A similar experiment, coming from the University of Toronto, studied the relationship between body image and depression among adolescents regarding adiposity (Chaiton, 2009). This study suggests â€Å"that body dissatisfaction may mediate the relationship between overweight and depression† (Chaiton, 2009). It goes on to suggest that the relationship found between obesity and depression is differentiated by gender because of the difference in societal expectations placed on women and men (Chaiton, 2009). The study concluded that females experience body dissatisfaction almost solely when they believe they are overweight, whereas both males who believe that they are under or overweight experience body dissatisfaction which can in all cases lead to some level of depression (Chaiton, 2009). As the aforementioned study showed societal expectations concerning appearance can, and often do, affect men just as much as they do women (Chaiton, 2009). Our society pushes men to be big, muscular and manly. To certain degree the more muscular a man is the more attractive he generally is within society. A study from an international journal regarding social behavior and personality concluded that the attractiveness of a man is more important in determining social desirability than the age of the man in question (Perlini, 2001). Comparatively the results of these two studies add up to say that the attractiveness of a man is one of the main factors in determining societal desirability and one of the biggest factors in being attractive is being muscular or strong. This puts a lot of pressure on males to be concerned with how they look in comparison to society’s expectations of how they should look. There are numerous different theories as to why societal expectations differ between genders, but none that can definitively explain why prescriptions concerning appearance are the way they are (i. e. women should be skinny and men should be muscular). Some theorists take a biological approach saying that something within the genetic makeup of human beings causes men to be larger and more muscular and likewise causes women to be smaller and skinnier; therefore it is innate within human beings to prefer women to be skinnier and men to be more muscular. Other theories use a combination of nature, a biological approach, and nurture, an approach that says how and where people are raised effects how they view the world, to explain why there is such a gendered difference in societal expectations. While still others use strictly nurture based theories to explain these differences. An experiment from Colby College testing the awareness of preschoolers to societal expectations of gender showed that by the age of five or six humans can easily differentiate between what society expects differently of men than of women (Raag, 1998). Granted this study tested the societal expectations of gender based on toys (tools and dishes) and how the children themselves reacted to the toys as well as how the children thought others (parents, babysitters, friends, etc. ) would react to them playing with the aforementioned toys (Raag, 1998). On the whole the children were able to identify that the tools were for boys to play with and the dishes were for girls; the children also, with no hesitation, said that boys playing with dishes or girls playing with tools would often be responded to negatively by parents or babysitters or the like. That means that while this study cannot shed light on the societal expectations of strength versus thinness it does give some credence to the nurture side of the theories mentioned earlier (Raag, 1998). In summation the societal expectations of appearance can have both positive and negative effects upon people. Society pushes for women to be thin, but not too thin and for men to be muscular, but not too muscular. Society pushing people to be in shape is not a bad thing; studies have shown that being physically fit is not only good for people physically, but also mentally. When people feel attractive it boosts their confidence and self-esteem which has been proven to increase mental health. It just happens to be that some of the anxiety or stress put upon people to look good to others can cause them to do harmful things to themselves and others. For instance constant pressure from the media and other outside influences to be skinny and tan has led countless females to have eating disorders and go artificial tanning all the time, neither of which are conducive to being physically healthy. Those same influences have led to countless males developing eating disorders as well to lose weight or even start using all types of drugs, that harm themselves and can harm, or cause them to harm, others, such as anabolic steroids or pro-hormonal supplements simply to gain muscle mass at unnatural and unhealthy rates. The best thing anyone can do to help society as a whole to resist unhealthy expectations regarding appearance is to spread awareness. It may sounds overplayed but awareness about a problem and the education necessary to fix or even just alleviate that problem is always to first step to solving that problem. At the end of every abovementioned study the researchers conducting the study talked about the significance, or importance of that study, and every single researcher included somewhere in that section that raising awareness about the issue at hand was one of the most significant aspects to their respective studies. This is because being aware and educated about a problem is one of the most important and fundamental ways to confront a problem; especially one of this magnitude. This problem will never be solved if society as a whole does not become aware of, and change, how it effects people’s everyday lives regarding physical appearance.

Tata Nano

Tata Nano EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Tata Nano is the first car to be said to be the common mans car. It is sold in home country India around Rs 1-lakh i.e approximately USD 2000. It is manufactured by Tata Motor Limited, the largest automobile company in India. Its Chairman, Mr Ratan Tata envisions that Tata Nano to become a â€Å"People car† which is affordable by almost everybody. Tata Nano was first launched in India on 1st April 2009 and expected to be in Indian market by July 2009. Since launching, it has created a huge buzz all over India. Within the first two days of lunching, it has received 5500 booking. The s keep increasing every day since the launching. What makes Tata Nano so cheap? Basically, by making things smaller, lighter, do away with superficial parts and change the materials wherever possible without compromising the safety and environmental compliance. It is said that Tata Nano has better millage than Toyota Prius and same gas emission as a scooter. Tata Nano will be imported to Malaysia by Tata Industries in parts. It will be assembled in its two factories i.e in Shah Alam, Selangor and Pasir Gudang, Johor Bahru. There are four distribution centres in Peninsular Malaysia i.e. in Kuala Lumpur, Penang, Johor Bahru and Kuantan. All Tata Nano cars will be distributed through these distribution centres only. Order can be made vide these distribution centres or its web site. There are three types of Tata Nano car available i.e. Tata Nano, Tata Nano CX and Tata Nano LX. However, due to hot weather in Malaysia, only Nano CX will be brought to Malaysia and will be sold here. The selling price of Nano CX in Malaysia is RM 13,704 per unit. It is estimated that gross profit for the first year would yield xxx, second year xxx and third year xxx. Estimated monthly instalment payment is xxx for seven years period. With this price, the target market is very wide which includes those with income RM 2000 per month, students, female workers and scooters riders. 2.0 SITUATION ANALYSIS Tata Motors Limited is Indias largest automobile company, with revenues of Rs. 35651.48 crores (USD 8.8 billion) in 2007-08. It is the leader in commercial vehicles in each segment, and among the top three in passenger vehicles with winning products in the compact, midsize car and utility vehicle segments. The company is the worlds fourth largest truck manufacturer, and the worlds second largest bus manufacturer. In March 2008, Tata Motors acquired Fords UK based car brands Jaguar and Land Rover (BBC News, 2008). According to Ratan Naval Tata (Chairman of Tata Group), the need for an innovation like Nano has got to do something for the people of India and transport. Unavailability and poor quality of mass transport is a common problem in India. In a two wheeler, father driving with elder child standing in front and wife behind holding a baby is norm in this country. Thus, this is a relatively an unsafe mode of transporting a family. Thus, with this in mind Tata Nano was created as a safer form of transport. As one of its objectives is to become an Indian business conglomerate operating in many countries, Tata Nano will be introduced in Malaysia. 2.1 Market Summary It is estimated that Malaysia has more than 5 million motorcycles on the road, compared to over 4 million motorcars(ICE, 2001).The majority of motorcycle buyers or users does not own a car and belong to the lower and middle-income group. A significantly larger percentage of motorcycle users in Malaysia are male. 2.1.1 Target Markets The company is targeting lower income group with family, first-time buyers of car (fresh graduates) and motorcycle owners. 2.1.2 Positioning Tata Nano will position itself as the world cheapest car and yet does not compromise the quality, safety and environment. This positioning will be achieved by leveraging Tata Nanos competitive edge: industries experience from the parent company Tata Motor who has been in vehicles industries (commercial, passengers utilities) since 1945. Tata motor has good supplier-manufacturer relationship with more than 100 components. 2.1.2 Demographics Population , demographics, rural urban, vital statistics from Malaysian auto report. 2.1.4 Geographics Tata Motors has targeted the urban area in Malaysia. This is going to be Kuala Lumpur and Johor Bahru. There are 5 million motorcycle riders in Malaysia. 2.1.5 Distribution review Just like in India, Tata Nano will appropriate place as an low-cost car even in foreign markets. ‘Easy-to-assemble kits will be imported from Tata in India. The car then will be assembled at pre-defined locations. The proposed locations are Shah Alam, Selangor and Pasir Gudang, Johor Bahru. It will be then redistributed to showrooms that will be set up based on region. 30 sales offices will be opened throughout Malaysia. 2.1.6 Competitor review The main competitors are Proton, Perodua, Toyota and Honda. The table below indicates the market share of the main competitors in the auto industry for the year 2008. 2.2 SWOT Analysis The following SWOT analysis investigates the Malaysian political, economic and business environment. The following finding are adapted from Malaysian Auto Report 2009. a. Malaysia Political SWOT Strengths Malaysia is a successful example of a democratic Islamic state. Despite murmurs of discontent among hard-line Muslims in some states, multiracial Malaysia is unlikely to abandon moderate Islam Weaknesses The Malay half of the population holds a constitutionally enshrined special position in society, amounting to positive discrimination in not only jobs, but also wealth. Opportunities The weak performance by the ruling Barisan Nasional in the general elections held on March 8 2008, has paved the way for the stalled reformist agenda -promised by Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi back in 2004 to gather pace. This would help to open up the countrys closed political system and improve transparency and accountability within key institutions. Threats Ethnic tension will remain a non-violent, but simmering, problem, so long as there remains a threat that the influence of hardline Islam could revive. For now, however, the hardliners have lost much of their political clout. The poor showing of Barisan Nasional at the 2008 general elections has put Prime Minister Abdullah under intense pressure from both opposition parties and members of his United Malays National Organization (UNMO) party, who blame him for the coalitions worst ever result. b. Malaysia Economic SWOTaysia Economic SWOT Strengths During the past four decades, Malaysia has transformed itself from a commodities-dependent backwater into a major world source for electronics and computer parts. Malaysia is the worlds largest producer of rubber, palm oil, pepper and tropical hardwoods, and is also a net exporter of crude oil. All this provides a solid platform for economic growth Weaknesses Malaysias relative insulation from global energy price shocks is being eroded. Within the next 5 years Malaysia could become a net importer of oil Malaysias economic openness can be as much of a burden as a benefit, since it confers a high degree of vulnerability to global growth and capital flows. Opportunities The opportunity for private-sector-led growth will improve as the government continues divestment of state shareholdings in order to raise funds to narrow the budget deficit. Threats Wages are higher in Malaysia than in a number of its competitors, such as China and Vietnam, which could be a long-term hindrance to economic expansion. To maintain its competitive edge, Malaysia needs a steady stream of inward investment Export competitiveness could be eroded if the exchange rate continues to appreciate markedly. c. Malaysia Business Environment SWOT 3 Strengths 4 Standards of corporate governance in Malaysia have greatly improved since the Asian financial crisis at the end of the 1990s more so, in fact, than in many neighboring countries. Foreign companies, or at least foreign manufacturing companies, looking to do business in Malaysia will continue to be welcomed with open arms, with the government offering lavish tax breaks and concessions. Weaknesses State subsidization of prices will remain a peripheral but persistent part of daily economic life in Malaysia. Doing business in Malaysia will always, to some extent, mean dealing with the politically well-connected. Big construction projects and big contracts for foreign construction firms are unlikely to be as much of a priority for Malaysias government as they were under the previous administration of former prime minister Mahathir Muhammad. Opportunities The opportunity to invest in Malaysian state assets could improve. The government, if it sticks to its word, will conduct its biggest ever divestment of state shareholdings. Malaysia is eager to compete globally in banking, and although it currently lacks a domestic champion, with ten main institutions in the market, bank consolidation is a strong possibility. Threats The waterways and shipping lanes that surround Malaysia will continue to pose the threat of piracy and terrorism Malaysia is at risk, conceivably, of losing out to China in the race for foreign investment. Penang, once the pillar of Malaysias electronics industry, has seen an exodus of foreign firms, with Seagate, Motorola and Solectron all shifting production elsewhere in Asia. d. The following will be key strengths and weakness within the company and describes the opportunities and threats facing Tata Nano. Strength The internationalisation tactics so far has been takeover to local managers in new style, and only to transplanting a couple of higher managers from India into the new trade. The key point is that Tata has been able to share ideas. The company had a successful agreement with Italian mass product Fiat in 2006. This has enhanced the product collection of investments for Tata and Fiat as per agreements of production and ideas sharing. An example, Fiat Palio design was introduced in 2007 by Tata, and both the companies have an contract to create and achieved their Goal at Central and South America. Weaknesses The Tata Nano passenger travel car products are depends upon 3rd and 4th generation platforms, which is a disadvantage of Tata Motors Limited with competition others car manufacturers. One which is not recognised in English the word tat means ‘rubbish. Opportunities In 2008 Tata Motors announced that they had successfully purchased the foreign car assembled Land Rover and Jaguar from Ford Motors for United kingdom  £2.3 million. Worlds Two luxury car brand have been added to Tata Motors portfolio of brands, They have a chance to demonstrate Company vehicles in the luxury segments. Tata Motors Ltd have taken Daewoo Motors Commercial vehicle business in 2004 for USD $16 million. Tata Nano is the most cheapest car in the World selling at little more than a motorbike. The new emerging industrial of the countries such as India, S.Korea and Republic of China will have a thirst for produce and distribute vehicles in low-cost passenger. These are the advantages. However the company has put in place a proactive Corporate Social Responsibility considering to address potential tactics that will make its operations more sustainable. The range of Super Mileage fuel efficient buses are powered by efficient, atmosphere friendly car engines. The bus has auto matic organic clutch with booster help and better air intakes that will low fuel consumption by up to 10 percent. Threats Other car manufacturers companies are in passenger car business for 40 or more then 40 years. Therefore Tata Motors Limited has to catch up in terms of quality and lean production. Sustainability and environmentalism could mean extra costs for this low-cost producer. This could impact its underpinning competitive advantage. 2.3 Objectives and issue We have set aggressive yet achievable objectives for the first, second and third year of market entry. First year objective ( July 2009 to December 2009) We want to achieve 25,000 units of sales gaining †¦.market share % get from market size Second year objective (JAN 2010 TO DEC 2010) We want to achieve 10% increase in quarterly basis (RM 48,600) Third year objective (JAN 2011 TO DEC 2011) We want to achieve 10% increase in quarterly basis (RM 53, 460) 1.0 MARKETING MIX STRATEGIES 3.1 Product Strategies The product strategy which will be adapted would be the straight product extension, which is marketing the car in another foreign market without any change. This is because there would be no additional product development cost, manufacturing changes, or new promotion. 3.2 Product Review * There are three variants in the Nano range: Nano, Nano CX and Nano LX * Only the Nano CX variant would be introduced in the Malaysia Market for the first stage * Tata Nano LX will introduced in the Malaysia Market during the following year The car has achieved its low price by minimizing costs on unnecessary â€Å"luxuries†, the basic Nano comes without front and rear fog lights, without a heater or air conditioning, without anti-lock brakes, only one single windscreen wiper, manually operated windows, manual steering with no air bags, tiny 12† wheels, plastic body parts joined with adhesive instead of more conventional metal and welding and a two cylinder 623 cc engine that provides a massive maximum speed of 65 mph (around 105 km/h). Among the features of the car are: a) Stylish and comfortable The Passenger Car, designed with a family comfortable in mind, has a luxury passenger space with superb leg space and head room. It can luxury sit 4 persons. 4 doors with excellent seating perfection make ingress and egress easy. with a measuring length of 3.1 metres, width of 1.5 metres and a height of 1.6 metres, with adequate ground clearance, it can effortlessly manoeuvre on busy roads in cities as well as in rural areas. Its semi volume structure, with tires at the sides and the power train at the rear, enables it to uniquely combine both space and manoeuvrability, which will set a benchmark among small cars. b) Fuel-efficient engine The Peoples Car has a back wheel drive, with aluminium, 2 cylinder, 523 cc, 33 PS, multi point fuel injection petrol engine. This is the first time that a 2 cylinder gasoline engine fitted in a car with a one balancer shaft. The lean design strategy has helped minimise weight, which helps maximise performance per unit of energy consumed and delivers high fuel efficiency. Performance is controlled by a specially designed electronic engine management system. c) Meets all safety requirements The Peoples Cars safety performance exceeds current regulatory requirements. With an all metal body sheet, it has a solid passenger department, with safety features for e.g crumple zones, intrusion resistant doors, seats belts, strong seats and anchorages, and the rear tailgate glass bonded to the body. Tubeless tyres further enhance safety. d) Environment-friendly The Peoples Cars tailpipe emission performance exceeds regulatory requirements. In terms of overall pollutants, it has a lower pollution level than two-wheelers being manufactured in Malaysia today. The high efficiency also ensures that the car has low carbon dioxide emissions, thereby providing the twin benefits of an affordable transportation solution with a low carbon footprint. 3.3 Branding Brands identify the source or maker of a product and allow consumers either individuals or organisations to assign responsibility for its performance to a particular manufacturer or distributor. Branding is endowing products and services with the power of a brand. Its all about creating differences between products. For branding strategies to be successful and brand value to be created, consumers must be convinced there are meaningful differences among brands in the product or service category. In Tata Nanos case, the branding strategy used is corporate name combined with individual product names. This companys name legitimises and the individual name individualises the new product 3.4 Product Strategy The Tata Nano CX, including all the features described in the earlier Product Review section, will be sold with a three-year warranty or 100,000km warranty, whichever comes first. We will introduce the Tata Nano LX during the following year, after we have established our Tata brand. The brand and logo will be displayed on the car as well as in all marketing campaigns. 3.5 Pricing Strategies The Cost price is an estimated USD2, 420 or equivalent to RM8,954, which includes import tax, duties excise , sales tax, shipment costs and assembly cost . The selling price for the Malaysian market is RM13,704.00, which is inclusive of standard accessories, but exclude road tax (RM70.00), registration fees (RM150.00), number plate (RM50.00) and ownership endorsement fee (RM50.00), sales tax (RM1370.40) which amounted to RM320.00. The On-The-Road price will be RM15797.40.These prices reflect a strategy of taking a share from established competitors, such as Perodua s model of Kancil and Viva. 3.5.1 Setting the price selecting price objectives Tata Nano Malaysia (TNM) has set major three objectives in its effort to position itself in the Malaysia Automotive market. The objectives are: Survival, maximum current profit and maximum market share. a. Survival Intense competition from Malaysias second car manufacturer, Perodua for a share of the automotive market segment for the below 1,000 cc category will spur TNM to ensure that the car price covers variable costs and some fixed costs. In this case, survival is a short term objective as in the long run, TNM will add value such as added safety features to the Nano range. b. Maximum current profit TNM has set a price that will maximize current profits, cash flow and return on investment, after taking into consideration the demand and costs involved. As this category of small foreign cars segment has not been really tested by other manufacturers, therefore the demand is rather difficult to estimate but TNM is confident of a good response towards its entry into the Malaysian market. c. Maximum Market Share For the Malaysian market, TNM will implement the market-penetration pricing, which is to set a low price for a new car in order to attract a large number of buyers and a large market share. This will be done by achieving high sales volume, which will results in falling costs, allowing the company to cut its price even further. We are positive enough that the Malaysia car market is highly price sensitive, as a low price produces more market growth. TNM is also confident that production and distribution costs will fall as sales volume increases and the low price of Nano cars will help to keep out competition and maintain its low-price position. The low-price entry will provide Malaysians consumers with a viable alternative to Perodua -Malaysia second National car. Further liberalization is expected as Malaysia implements the ASEAN Free Trade Area agreement, which commits the Malaysia Government to scrap foreign car taxes. 4.0 PROMOTION STRATEGIES 4.1 Objectives of Promotion Strategies Before determine the promotion strategies, we need to very clear about what are the objectives we need to achieve. We know as above, our missions are to promote Tata nano in Malaysia and increase the sales quarterly. Tata Nano is very new for Malaysian, they feel fresh with this new brand and concept of this car. Tata Nano will get into Malaysia market in July 2009. So first of the objective for promotion strategies are aims to create brand awareness and concept/knowledge of this new car Tata Nano. This is the cheapest car in the world and burst into the worldwide market in the short time. But still is the new brand for the Malaysians, so we do the advertisement and organize the event or campaign in sufficient detail to establish the good brand attitudes. Brand awareness is important to provide a foundation for brand equity. After that, our second objective is knowledge and persuasive. We aim to create liking, preference, conviction, and purchase of a Tata Nano car. We can do the comparison with other cars which are higher purchase price and this price is not every people will be affordable especially lower income families and students. Beside that we will convince current purchasers that we will give the potential customer to enjoying the good experience with Tata Nano by give try to drive the Tata Nano before buying the car. And also will provide them warranty to the Tata Nano. We will organize all the promotion strategies with lower cost to maintain the lower purchase price for the Tata nano in Malaysia. 4.2 Promotion Tag line ‘Have Fun, Pay Less, get more with Tata Nano Why we establish this tag line? Because this is make all the Malaysian to easy to remembered Tata Nano and feel happy all the ways with Tata Nano. Tata Nano is safety and you can travel everywhere by Tata Nano with your family or friends with fun, but you just need to pay all of this at lower price -Pay Less Get More. Beside that we can enjoying special fun with Tata nano, our earth also will feel happy with Tata nano because Tata nano also is the environment friendly car. 4.3 Advertising Program We aims to inform Malaysians this is the cheapest car in the world and persuade Malaysians to buy Tata Nano due to this car is safety, useful, all in good quality and also environment friendly by developing an advertising program. 4.3.1 Online Advertisement First step we start before lunching Tata Nano, we do the online advertisement. Tata Nano created a Web site www.tatanano.com on March 2009 to better communicate with the customers. In the Web site, we posted the photo categories and videos to provide customers the information and special features of Tata Nano and bring them inside the company. In addition to photos and videos, the web site links to recent news about Tata Nano and space for public feedback. Besides that, Blogs have become an important outlet for word of mouth which are regularly updated online diaries. Blogs is bringing together people with common interests. They vary wide and can influence a vast audience due to many internet users have read Blogs. We can establish the blog network and carefully monitoring to find out whats on peoples minds especially the potential customers. This is a cheapest and good way to build up brand awareness. 4.3.2 Television Advertisement Television advertisement is very expensive but this is the most powerful to perform the Tata Nano to the public by demonstrating Tata Nano attributes and persuasively explaining their corresponding consumer benefits. By lower advertising budget, we cannot do the TV advertisement in whole day, so we just choose the prime time (7pm 11pm) to place the advertisement. By properly designed and executed TV advertisement can improve brand equity and affect sales and profits. 4.3.3 Radio Advertisement Most of the Malaysians listen to the radio daily. Now a day have many facilities such as MP3, hand phone and so on, is convenience for the people to listen the radio anytime at anywhere, This is a cheap and pervasive medium for us to create the brand awareness by repeatedly listen the advertisement and the brand name. Advantages of the radio advertisement are flexibility, quick response and also more effective media for reaching teens. 4.3.4 Newspaper Advertisement Beside that the radio, most of the Malaysians also will saw a newspaper everyday. So this is good market coverage. From here, Tata Nano can get the broad acceptance and good reputation from Malaysians. Newspaper advertising is inexpensive. 4.4 Marketing Campaign This Marketing campaign is base on every four month : 4.4.1 Marketing Campaign for July 2009 to October 2009 Tata Nano will lunch at Malaysia on July 2009. Launching program is very important for positioning which is the act of designing Tata Nano and image to occupy Malaysia in the minds of the target market. Launching program also is one of the promotion strategies to build awareness, through launching at public center Tata Motor will introduce the Tata Nano to market. In July and August, we focus on marketing campaign which will take place at all the IPTA and IPTS which have organize the convocation, by providing product display and banner; and the peoples can have the experience with Tata Nano by provide the opportunities to drive Tata Nano around the campus. Theme for this campaign is Good future with Tata Nano. Reason for this marketing campaign is one of our targets are students such as fresh graduate who just get the new job and also the international students. Fresh graduate need the transportation in their working life but they cant afford to buy the too expensive car; international student just need the car which is economy and using it in short period around 2-3years for their student life in Malaysia. This is cheapest cost by event or campaign in the campus. In September and October, Malaysians will celebrate two big festivals together, there are Hari Raya Puasa Aidifitri and Deepavali. So we can focus on lower income group with family especially those are come from Malay family or Indian family. Use the mail, telephone, fax, e-mail to communicate directly with them. Base on historical, more of the Malay or Indian will buy the car before festival. Raya with Tata Nano can be the theme for our campaign at this period, and promote them Tata Nano is cheapest and safety. 4.4.2 Marketing Campaign for November 2009 to February 2009 In November and December, Malaysia have the Mega Sales due to Merry Christmas and New Year in the end of the year at whole Malaysia so that have many people will go to shopping. We can organize the event at shopping centers in Malaysia such as KLCC, Midvalley, Berjaya Times Square, and Sungai Wang by providing product display and banner. On January and February, most of the employees in Malaysia will get the bonus in this period so the purchasing power will increase. Beside that Chinese New Year is at February. Send the brochures to the small and medium company or office and do the introduction or briefing to them. Follow by mail, telephone, fax or e-mail to developing effective communication. 4.4.3 Marketing Campaign for March 2009 to June 2009 We will do the road show at every state (whole Malaysia). We can have the road show at the center market such as all market at all the state. Have many people will go to market early morning to buy the vegetable, take the breakfast or buy the necessary things. Most of them are women or housewife who may be come from the lower or medium income family. Some of them go to Pasar by motorcycle or by bus. There are our target markets. We can promote Tata Nano to them such as, Tata Nano is the cheapest car in the world, Get the Tata Nano to be second car for their family member especially for their children or elder parent, Easy life with Tata Nano. Housewife or mother can go to Pasar or anywhere by Tata Nano better than motorcycle or by bus for complete their daily matter more effectively. When the women get the news, they will pass this news to their friend immediately. This will help us to promote Tata Nano effectively in the local society. At the road show, people also can get the exper ience with Tata Nano by have the opportunities to drive the Tata Nano car before purchase it. 5.0 Channel of Distribution Strategies 5.1 Direct marketing channel (zero-level channel) We perform the Tata Nano in Malaysia by selling it directly to customers. Customers can deal directly with our dealers and make the booking for Tata Nano by visit our sales office or at any special event/campaign. Besides that, customers also can get the information or make the booking via the telephone (1-800-88-nano) and through the Internet ( www.tatanano.com ). By this way we can save more cost and maintain the cheapest purchasing price rather than through retailers or resellers. 5.2 Physical Flow From the diagram, can know that Tatanano will send the paths to the Malaysia after received the order from the sales office. After that, we will assemble a car at the workshop. Finally, send to the customers directly. From here, we can often provide faster delivery to customers because we are closer to the customers. 5.3 Payment Flow Customers can paying bills by cash or do the financing from bank. Customers pay less by this diagram due to not need to pay extra commission to third party such as wholesalers or retailers. Tata Motor also can collect the payment more efficient. 5.4 Information Flow Customers can get the information directly from Tata Motor such as new product, price development and so on. Tata Motor can more understanding customers needs when receiving customers, response calls and mailings or through internet blog. If customers have any need or complaint, we can satisfy them immediately by deal with customers directly. 5.5 Promotion Flow Marketing Campaign/Event Have two ways of promotion flow, directly and indirectly. Directly is well organize the marketing campaign, event and road show. By this way, well promote Tatanano to target market by face by face and provide the opportunities to them try to drive the Tatanano. Indirect ways are we will do the advertisement through media such as internet, TV, radio and also newspaper. By this promotion flow, Tata Motor aims to create brand awareness and increase the sales in the Malaysia. 6.0 Financial Plan This section will offer the overview of Tata Nano related marketing activities. It is include, sale forecast, expense forecast, break even analysis and how those relate to the market strategy. 6.1 Break even analysis Break even analysis indicates that 3369 unit or $ 46,168,776 will be required in monthly sales revenue to reach the break even point. Table: Break Even Analysis Break even analysis : Monthly unit break even 3369 Monthly sales break even $46,168,776 Monthly unit production 6083 Average per unit revenue $13704 Average per unit variable cost $8,954 Average per unit fixed cost $2630.28 Estimated monthly fixed cost $16,000,000 6.2 Sales forecast Sale was forecasted quarterly basis, with adjustment of seasonal factor. At Malaysia there is 3 main celebrations each year, which Aidil Fitri, Chinese new year, and Deepavali, those factors was used as seasonal factor. Since one of our target markets is fresh graduate student, graduation month also was used as seasonal factor to adjust our forecasted sales. The sales was fore