Review Sheet Results Essay

1. Explain why increasing extracellular K+ reduces the net diffusion of K+ out of the neuron through the K+ leak channels. Your answer: Because outside a typical cell, the concentration of K+ is about 5mM and the concentration of Na+ is about 150 mM. When you increase the concentration of K+ from 5 to 25 mM and reduce concentration of Na+ from 150 to 130 mM, the outside has more concentration of K+. The membrane is permeable to a particular ion, that ion will diffuse down its concentration gradient from a region of higher concentration to a region of lower concentration. 2. Explain why increasing extracellular K+ causes the membrane potential to change to a less negative value. How well did the results compare with your prediction? Your answer: Because outside has more K+, the rate of diffusion is less. The resting membrane potential will become less negative. 3. Explain why a change in extracellular Na+ did not significantly alter the membrane potential in the resting neuron? Your answer: Because it did not effect the resting membrane potential. 4. Discuss the relative permeability of the membrane to Na+ and K+ in a resting neuron. Your answer: The resting membrane potential is really a potential difference between the inside of the cell (intracellular) and the outside of the cell (extracellular) across the resting permeability of the membrane to ions and on the intracellular and extracellular concentraions of those ions to which the membrane is permeable. Na+ and K+ are the most important ions, and the concentrations of these ions are established by transport protein, such as the Na+ -K+ pump, so that the intracellular Na+ concentration is low and the intracellular K+ concentraion is high. The ions will diffuse down its concentration gradient from a region of higher concentration to a region of lower concentration. 5. Discuss how a change in Na+ or K+ conductance would affect the resting membrane potential. Your answer: The resting period potential is a potential difference between the inside of the cell and the outside of the cell across the membrane. It depends on the resting permeability of the membrane to ions and on the intracellular and extracellular concentrations of those ions to which the membrane is permeable. View as multi-pages

Case studies

Mudflats Biscuit Manufacturing Plant Roles Mudflat is said to be a leading businessman in the hill country who owns the largest and the one and only state of the art biscuit manufacturing plant in the country that was running for more than 30 years. His business constitutes over 2000 employees and his products had a 70% market share in the local market. He also exports his products to 20 countries including USA. Roles Mudflat also had other business Interests In the field of hotels, travel, apparel and plantation.He is a father of two children who has completed their Master Degrees in Bangor n the field of IT and Fashion Design. His belief was that it's his prime responsibility to look after the welfare of his fellow employees' and their families and his character towards them was more of father than an owner of the plant Itself. He also proved that paper qualification does not matter when It came to real life business. Them in order to enjoy his retirement. He then appointed his son Reason as the Director Operations and his daughter Rossini as the Director Marketing.Overall analysis of this case is to see as to how the new management approach is different to that of the old management approach of managing the biscuit manufacturing plant. 2. Question 1 – Discuss about the leadership approach of Roles Mudflat and how the company was benefited for many years with his self-learned management skills and main drawbacks of the process. The leadership approach used during the reign of Roles Mudflat at his manufacturing plant is a mixture of Autocratic approach, Democratic approach and Paternalistic approach.As an autocratic he decided that his manufacturing plant would be more controlled if he did not recruit professional managers. Through practicing autocratic approach he was able to make quick decisions, this was rather unofficial as he was facing constant changes in the environment due to competitiveness in the local as well as the foreign markets. It was ra ther a challenging thing for Roles Mudflat to be looking into his workers needs as they were needed to keep his business from falling apart.Through democratic approach Roles Mudflat was able to create an environment as such that he appointed his most senior employees as Supervisors to overlook employees under thereby encouraging decision-making amongst them. He also believed in an open-door policy, which encouraged employees to come to him whenever and whatever time they wanted to talk to him. This resulted in building the employer and employee relationship which built trust in-between, encouraged team- work amongst his fellow employees and so forth. Finally, as a paternalistic Roles Mudflat was more looked as a father rather than a boss.This is so because he believed that the people working for him were the best assets he possessed. He not only looked into the needs of his employees, he also extended an extra hand towards the needs of their families too. He supported his workers by giving 02 month bonuses, provided soft loans to purchase a motor cycle to errors who worked more than 05 years, distributed a dry ration pack worth of RSI. 1000/-, offered scholarships to their children whom were selected to universities, provided books and other accessories to needy children. Society, without which survival of the company would be damaged. And he also was a people person, although he did not have an HRS to look into the needs of the employees he happen to do it the way he understood how to manage people. The benefits gained through Roles Mudflat with his self-learned management skills are however very few compared to that of the drawbacks. He believed in an open or policy, whereby all employees' feedback was considered and he acted upon accordingly. This policy improved the morale of employees to a greater extent and had a direct impact to the turnover.When employees feel that their decisions and feedback are accounted for they gain a sense of belongingness and tr ust which helps Roles Mudflat retain his fellow employees. Another benefit is that Roles Mudflat has a 70% market share in the local market, exports his products to 20 countries including USA, caters to the needs of over 2000 employees and also together has won over the society through certain CAR projects. The little knowledge of management he has, had helped him not only look into the internal environment but also to cater to the external environment too.The drawbacks of the leadership approach used by him is such that, it is the result of lack of interest of the leader that leads to his adopting this style. This proves poor management and makes the employees lose their direction and focus. Roles Mudflat has no interest about the future of his business, I. E. No mission or vision of the business, no career development for his employees. According to the case, his most senior employees are Just Supervisors. They have no development beyond that because he does not see the importance of such a promotion for such employees.This may be due to his lack of knowledge of how to manage people or more or less the reason as to his lack of interest to take his business forward. There is no proper organizational structure that illustrates the positioning of the employees of the manufacturing plant. He has no set procedure and policy of how the business has been running in the past and how it came to be. This is necessary for the next heir who would be taking over. Without this policy or procedure no one can put two and woo together and continue the business, or to survive in the competitive market. . Question 2 – What are the shortcomings of the new approach taken by the young directors and their team to the change the process? The new approach taken by the young directors and their team to the change the process was rather costly. Rather than providing internal promotions they hired two Secretaries as Personal Assistants to the newly appointed directors. Six manag ers were hired for the core functions of the company namely Production, HRS, Quality, Supply Chain, Marketing and Finance.The managers were the newly appointed directors' classmates. They failed to identify manpower requirement, through internal recruitment. They incurred a lot of finance on unnecessary expenses like for instance; Reason came to understand that the company was running without a vision consultant in the country to come up with an attractive vision and corporate plan. Reason made available printed cards to all employees with the vision and mission statement and spent one million rupees on fixing digital boards with the company's vision.The HRS introduced a new incentive scheme based on individual performance and informed all employees that their annual bonus will be based on performance appraisals. Here the new management failed to inform the employees as to how their performances were going to be appraised and as to what they had to do in order to improve their curre nt performance. Employees had no one to go with their grievances as they were not given much attention as compared to Roles Mudflat. Employees were highly denominated as they faced difficulties communicating with the new management.The new directors failed to integrate the culture of the company's vision and mission. There was a clash between the previous culture and the existing culture. Reason and Rossini were too busy recruiting new blood to the organization that they ailed to realize the damages it was doing to the company. The employee turnover increased by 25% of the first three months Reason and Rossini took over the company. 4. Question 3 – Being the HRS Manager, what is your proposal to young directors to implement best HRS practices and processes in this 30 year-old company with over 2000 employees?When we look at the business that Roles Mudflat maintained for the past 30 years and the manufacturing plant that is now about to reach extinct, we could see that the mai n reason for this unsuccessful turn is the lack of knowledge the new management as about the culture and the business itself that was run by their father. As an HRS Manager, before I implement best HRS practices and processes I shall first speak to the employees and learn from them about the manufacturing plant. This is done so as to get a wider picture of the business as a whole, and as to how it was controlled by Roles Mudflat.Through this I could derive his secret of managing people and do a comparison of before and after the new management took control. As it is the employees are much disgusted over the way they have been treated and how much they have been ignored. So as an initial step I would involve employees in helping me to work out a SOOT of the past and present and get their valuable comments or suggestions, if any. Based on the SOOT analysis, I shall look into the areas that were lacking much expertise.Initially, the HRS manager should be able to fix the denominated sta ff and to do so he/she has to be very open to them, allow them to speak about their problems bothering them. Later, recruit a counselor to help those employees whose minds needs special attention. The HRS Manager should effectively encourage employee engagement benefit from owe employee turnover, greater customer satisfaction, a solid corporate culture, improved performance and communication, and higher commitment to the core values and objectives of the organization which had been embedded during the initial period when Roles Mudflat was leading.HRS Manager should also clarify the strategic direction by means of articulating the Vision, Mission and Values of the organization. HRS Manager should also integrate HRS programmed through HRS practices. For instance, by establishing a Staffing and Recruitment Policy it well help the organization to develop an effective recruitment tragedy in order to attract qualified workers who are committed to the organization's goals.The HRS Manager s hould also be able to identify the short-term and long-term human resources needs through a HRS planning process in order to mitigate resignations. HRS Manager should also develop a compensation policy. This is done by identifying goals and objectives of the organization by considering the competitiveness in attracting and retaining employees and whether performance is tied with pay increases. HRS Manager should also provide for training and development programmed so as to eater to all employees in need of training. Case Studies Case Scenarios Read the following scenarios. Answer, in a 50- to 100-word response, each of the following questions: Scenario 1 Sophia has been removed from her family and placed into foster care for the second time in the last 2 years due to her mother’s ongoing substance abuse. Sophia has missed many days of school and often comes to school dirty and wearing clothes from the day before. Sophia’s mother does not think she has a problem and blames the system for once again taking her daughter. 1. What can a human service professional do to help this family?They can have the family go to family counseling; also have the mother take substance abuse classes or to a drug rehab program. Then go talk to the foster care center and talk to Sophia and see why see is missing school and wearing dirty clothes. The human service can tell Sophia if she want to go back home she need to go back to school and get good grade and wear clean clothes to school then she can go back home with her parents Sophia would be my first focus because kids are most vulnerable. I would place Sophia in temporary foster care and set up biweekly meetings to understand her point of view of her current situation.I would also check her school attendance. And see if she needs some counseling to talk to someone about how she feels. We have a duty to protect that child not only from her living situations but also by placing her into a caring, loving family that will not allow this to happen. If she eventually comes to realization that this temporary situation could become a permanent situation maybe she will engage in the services offered and take things seriously the second time around, but never allow her to think it’s too late to make a change with her life. 2.How might the family’s previous involvement with the child protection system affect their willingness to engage in services the second time around? The family's previous involvement could be that they were not infor med of why their child was being taken out of their care and they are just upset about the whole situation of having her taken away. The case worker could have just taken the child and gave no explanation or propose a plan to help the family provide a stable environment for their daughter which would make anyone unwilling to engage in services. I would hope that the mother would realize the longer it takes her to seek help and stay clean the longer it will take for her daughter to return home. If she eventually comes to realization that this temporary situation could become a permanent situation maybe she will engage in the services offered and take things seriously the second time around, but never allow her to think it’s too late to make a change with her life. I am sure the child is very insecure of the Human Services at this point.Especially due to the fact that she has had so many issues with them in the past, and nothing has been done, at least nothing that was making a positive impact on her future. I personally feel having a closer relation with this child and building up trust may be a very positive approach. Social service workers are helpers. One asset that we possess in this profession is the ability not to judge. In this profession, just like our lives, we see people progress and regress. It does not stop our willingness to help.However, we do change our tactics to help these individuals with each failed attempt. Scenario 2 John has been homeless for most of his adult life. He is often seen on the medians of busy intersections asking for food and money or wandering through the park talking to himself. John used to seek housing in a homeless shelter but often chooses to sleep in the local park. During the winter, the local homeless coalition attempts to talk to John about staying in the shelter but he refuses.Staying out in the cold has led John to being hospitalized on several occasions, but he maintains that he is better off without anyone ’s help. 1. If you were a case manager for the homeless coalition what would you do to try and help John seek appropriate housing during the winter months? I would try to talk to John to see what happened all through his life and why he is homeless and why he refuses to stay in the shelter. There could be a mental or emotional underlying issue that could factor his reasoning with himself.I would try my best to offer John alternatives such as appropriate housing or shelter, along with assigning him to a case worker to follow up with and seek for resources. I would try to offer counseling and build that trustworthy client-caseworker relationship in order for him to understand and believe there are better ways to live in this world. Identifying the skills he may lack as well. It’s obvious John may be suffering from depression, lack of trust, and low self-esteem. The longer John remains in this state of mind it will be hard for him to get all his needs met. Adults, childre n and youth who have Developmental Disabilities are offered programs that range in intensity and setting according to their needs and desires – from highly supervised residential programs to job coaching and supported living. The Network strives to protect the welfare of individuals at-risk in numerous ways. I feel getting John involved in an organization like this one where he was taken care of and receiving meds I feel he would be on the path to a healthy happy life.In this case it would be good to know what disciplines John most likely fit into. Psychology would be my choice. I would attack his mind and behavior for a solution. 2. How does John’s outlook about receiving help affect his ability to get his needs met? John has too much pride in his self to accept the help he needs. He is already got it set in his mind that he can make its own his own without any help from anyone. He thinks this is a handout to him. Many homeless have this mentality and they live day to day on the streets.John (as well as the many others) need to be reminded that these programs are here to help and are not a handout in any way, most of the programs that are out there for the homeless are set up to assist those in getting back on their feet and off drugs and the street. This is going to be a process in which we may have to take baby step to get the job done. First we must get John to trust us, and let him know we are his friends looking out for him. We must get him to a doctor, get him medicated and get his mental illness under control so he understands us and his situation better.I believe after those two steps we will see huge improvements in him, and I’m sure he will also want to make great changes in his life. . Resistant means they have to attend but they don’t participate, they miss their appointments, So, We want to give John whatever services he will accept. Scenario 3 Juan often runs away from home because his parents constantly fight and oft en blame him for their issues. Juan runs away for 2 to 3 days at a time and will do this at least once a week. When he is at home, he typically does not follow the rules and will yell at his parents and siblings.Juan has a history of defiant behavior, but his home environment has often been chaotic. Juan’s parents have been through family counseling, but they feel it was not helpful and are reluctant to do it again. Juan sometimes will run to a local group home that takes in runaway youth. 1. If you were a counselor at the group home, how might you work with Juan to get him to stop running away from home so that he is not sleeping on the streets? I would try to talk to Juan to ask him why his parents are fighting about and why does he think he is the blame.Then ask him has he ever sat down and had a talk with his parents to see if he can help them out being he is the oldest in the family. I would try to get Juan to understand that the only blame he should take responsibility for would be any deviant behavior that he does. His parents fighting and him being blamed for it is just a way for them to pass the buck onto him and make him feel bad. He is not responsible for his parents fighting and once he can realize that and put measures of emotional protection he would not feel the need to run away. However I would encourage Juan to seek positive ways to handle and deal with the stress from home, whether becoming involved with sports or other positive groups. Juan would be offered therapy and anger management classes. Trying to figure out what makes him the angriest and we both figure out a solution to the problem so that he can remain in his home every night and learn the importance of rules as well. . Parent’s sometime worry when they don’t know where their kids are, therefore, causing arguments.I would show him ways he could be an influential key to the other kids in the house. 2. How might you try to work with the family even though they ha ve participated in family therapy previously and did not find it effective? I would try talking one on one with each family member. Since I have already talk to Juan, I would talk to his mother to see what she has to say and how she feels. Then I would talk to his father to see if he has been in Juan’s life from birth to now. After talking to the parents then I would talk to his brothers and sisters to see how they feel about him.Once I have completely talked to everyone I can understand what really happen or have a whole picture of all the problems. Then I will bring the whole family together and let them express how they really feel and how they want to stay a happy family. Encourage the parents to understand and accept the fact that there is a problem in the home and it starts with them. As a counselor there would be weekly follow up visits with the family. The family would be offered resources and as a whole we all work together to find a solution to the problems inside t he household.I am a firm believer that one should never give up. And as a human services worker, I will never give up on a patient or a family. Maybe, they weren’t ready to change with the first session, I feel we must give up all we got in order to show change and get a positive result. To break the ice, I would start by asking questions like, â€Å"What do you see the problem being? † This gives the parents some since of control in helping the problem. I would suggest marriage counseling to stop the arguing. There has to be another reason for their arguments other than Juan running away.

Answers for final exam Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Answers for final exam - Assignment Example ...........................Discrete Participation in online auction............Discrete Amount spent online .........................Continuous Time ............................................... Continuous (McBurney and White, 2009) b) In addition to the variables above, data were also collected on total sales each month. Using the SPSS output provided below, describe the distribution of ‘Monthly Sales’. Remember to comment on Centre, Shape and Spread. (1 ? marks) Distribution of sales has a mean value of $ 4178.29 per month with a standard deviation of 7011.633. The data is further skewed to the right, and is widely scattered apart. The skewedness value, the plots and the standard deviation explains this (Gravetter and Forzano, 2010). c) Is the distribution of ‘Monthly Sales’ normal? Explain. (1 mark) The distribution is not normal. This is because of the observed deviation of the plats from the straight line as observed in the Normal Q-Q plot. (Hahn and Meeker, 2011) Question 2 (3 marks) An investor wants to compare the performance of three managed funds, so she performs an ANOVA test to compare their returns. The results of this ANOVA test and the post-hoc Tukey test are provided below: ANOVA Return Sum of Squares df Mean Square F Sig. Between Groups 4191.977 2 2095.988 9.627 .000 Within Groups 669510.465 3075 217.727 Total 673702.442 3077 Multiple Comparisons Return Tukey HSD (I) Fund (J) Fund Mean Difference (I-J) Std. Error Sig. 95% Confidence Interval Lower Bound Upper Bound 1.00 2.00 -1.07173 .65147 .227 -2.5993 .4559 3.00 -2.83090* .65147 .000 -4.3585 -1.3033 2.00 1.00 1.07173 .65147 .227 -.4559 2.5993 3.00 -1.75916* .65147 .019 -3.2868 -.2316 3.00 1.00 2.83090* .65147 .000 1.3033 4.3585 2.00 1.75916* .65147 .019 .2316 3.2868 *. The mean difference is significant at the 0.05 level. a) Explain why the investor used an ANOVA test. (1 mark) The investor used an ANOVA test because the test is suitable for comparing more than two means and compares means of each pair of variables to determine the one with the highest mean (Rumsey, 2007). b) Interpret the results of the one-way ANOVA test. (1 mark) The low p-value, 0.00 that is less that 0.05, from the ANOVA test shows that a significant relationship exists among the different funds at 0.05 level of significance (Comrey and Lee, 2006). c) Based on the post-hoc Tukey test, which of the funds had the highest returns? Explain. (1 mark) The mutual fund 3 had the highest returns. This is because its mean is significantly different from, and larger than the means for fund 2 and fund 3 (Hanna and Dempster, 2012). Question 3 (10 marks) A large company wants to compare the performance of two of its franchises. To complete this study, they collected monthly sale revenue data from the Sydney and Newcastle franchises. They believe that the Sydney store is performing better, but want to conduct a statistical test to prove this fact. If Newcastle is seen to be underperfor ming, management intends to increase advertising for this store. A two-sample t-test is conducted and the following output is reported from SPSS: a. Explain why an independent two-sample t-test was used rather than a paired samples t-test. (2 mark) An independent two-sample-t test was used because the two sets of observations were made from different samples, franchises, instead of paired sample test’s two sets of observations, each pair from same participants in a sample (Walkenbach, 2013). b. Write the null and alternate hypotheses (2 marks). HO:

The Development of Models for a Multimedia Presentation Assignment

The Development of Models for a Multimedia Presentation - Assignment Example Despite the fact that the car is the only car, its effect can be easily distinguished without application of a lot of expert interpretation or read its label. The reference materials have been exploited as much as possible. They include the rocky texture of the ground and the green watery plants common in cool places mostly inhibited by snails, the smoke below and past the car signifying the speed of the car, and many other observable references. It is also worth acknowledging the presence of various anatomical errors, used intentionally to express that the snail is frightened. These include references like the teeth and mouth of the snail, which are not present in the real-life appearance of a snail, as expressed in Figure 2 below. On the other hand, it is evident from the actual appearance of the car represented in Figure 3 below, that some details are not very accurately represented. For instance, this is a low clearance vehicle, which cannot rise as high as it is represented on the picture created. The objects captured in the created in the outcome (represented in Figure 1 above) involved the application of box modeling, and further subdivision and extradition of the objects to attain the right shapes. Figure 4 below is a collection of images representing the process of coming up with the snail’s shell. It began with a box, then adding lines to mark the edge flow, edges and vertices moved to shape. Thereafter, the subdivision of was done was applicable to attain better specifics, through chamfering or connecting edges. Occasionally pulling parts nearby with the Magnet/Tweak tools to acquire the shape of the snail, and the final appearance of the snail is represented in Figure 5 below. It is worth noting that sequence of modeling followed the highly advocated for steps as highlighted in the subsequent sentence.  

The management of financial risks in the telecom industry Essay

The management of financial risks in the telecom industry - Essay Example To study the financial risks of telecom industries, we will also introduce information regarding telecom sectors from countries such as India, China, and Philippines and so on to give an enhanced overview of existing practices. In this dissertation proposal, we will adequately sum up the reasons for this research, why it is significant, what methodology needs to be adopted, how information will be obtained and so on. As mentioned in the abstract, the purpose of this dissertation proposal is to study financial risk management in the existing telecom industry. Today, telecommunication is widespread and devices such as telephones, radios, internet, instant messaging and so on facilitate the process of communication. By definition, financial risk management means the process of identifying, evaluating and reducing financial risks. The telecommunication industry suffers from a number of problems such as market saturation2, financial recession, growing consumer prospects and so on. ... Moreover, certain external factors such as natural disasters and terrorist attacks, cross-border transactions, development of new markets and so on have added to the existing risks in the telecommunication industry paving the way for greater financial risk management. To gain a better perspective of financial risk management, let us consider some theories. Financial risk management3 becomes essential when an organisation desires an increase in its shareholders value by taking on a viable project. However, organisations alone, cannot hedge a risk correctly when the cost of the services or product is similar in the existing market and the market where the organisation desires expansion. For this purpose, these organisations require outside help in terms of financial risk management. Derivatives4 are commonly used in financial risk management as tools through which specific risks can be gauged effectively and accurately. Some of these derivativesi include swaps or forward contracts that tend to be costly; while others include trade on future exchanges that tend to be cost efficient but leave certain risks. Proposed methods As stated earlier, the purpose of this dissertation proposal is to study financial risk management in the existing telecom industry. In order to complete an efficient study of the project, the research will comprise of the following stages; a detailed literary search, anthology of a bibliography, drafting the literary review, designing the research instrument, revising, planning and organising the research, making a glossary of the bibliography, scheduling, conducting a research, collating and analysing the data generated by different agencies on a regular basis, writing the results and analysis, writing the full draft,

Three Interesting Articles about an Issue Related to Money and Capital Assignment

Three Interesting Articles about an Issue Related to Money and Capital Markets, Financial Markets, Financial Instrument - Assignment Example The first article "Economists are rethinking the view that capital should not be taxed" relates to policy making. Taxation is one of the major tools of fiscal policy. The policy makers consider the canons of taxation put forth by Adam Smith but some markets are so complex that it is almost impossible to achieve all the objectives of these canons: There are trade-offs. This article probes into the usefulness of tax on capital gains. Traditionally, taxes on capital gains have been low because of the belief that higher taxes would have an impact on growth. This article provides arguments against this view and suggests that taxing capital gains is a good idea. America’s current corporate-tax system is being blamed for the struggling economy. Currently, the tax rate on capital gains is 15% which is lower than in many countries. Since the 1970s and 1980s, many economics have believed that this tax must be made lower. Some argue that there should be no capital tax at all. Governments have to tax some part to restore equality and to fund public goods but there is an inevitable trade-off: taxes have an impact on consumption. Negative responses to taxation are harmful for the economy. Taxation has been dealing with inequalities that related to pay differences and these inequalities were addressed through taxation on labor. However, capital tax has more complicated implications because when tax affects the level of investments and savings, it has an impact on future growth and consumption. The economic sector has incessantly appealed the policy makers to cut the rate of capital tax and it was, in fact, brought down to more than half from 1950 to 1980. There is pressure for more and zero capital tax has been recommended by most economists. Messrs Piketty and Saez have argued that lower capital tax has brought more inequalities and lesser growth. They argue that taxing capital gains is not a bad idea because the capital markets are imperfect and it is appropriate to tax capital to provide social insurance against risks. It is commonly believed that capital investments are very sensitive to the changes in tax rates. In order to keep these investments running in the future, zero tax on capital gain should be employed. This belief is reputed by the argument that most of these taxes are paid by working-age ad ults who are saving for their retirement. Therefore, they are going to save regardless of the fact that their savings are being taxed. Some economics argue that the conventional view of taxes has been ignoring inheritances. Taxing hard workers who have earned their income due to their ability seems to be unfair as those who have done nothing to earn their income are exempt. Messrs Piketty and Saez found out that the capital-output ratios

Social Psychology Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Social Psychology - Assignment Example First, Bernice stood up in the wedding and announced to all the visitors that the reason for the wedding was the advice-seeker’s pregnancy. And that the pregnancy was done in purpose to tie down Simon. Second, during Bernice’s hospital visit when the advice-seeker gave birth, she once again reiterated that the pregnancy was just a rouse to tie her son down. The final straw for the advice-seeker was during the college graduation party of her husband. Bernice made reservations for everyone but the advice-seeker and her baby. And everytime conflict happens, the advice-seeker will get the same answer from her husband, â€Å"I can’t control my mother.† The situation shows high consistency in Bernice’s and Simon’s behaviour thus implying that the root cause of the conflict between the marriage is Bernice’s behaviour towards the advice-seeker. These situations also indicate low distinctiveness since in different stimuli and events, Bernice ha s the same reaction towards her daughter-in-law. Bernice’s behaviour indicates clearly resentfulness towards her daughter-in-law and Simon’s behaviour indicates clearly that Simon hasn’t come into terms that he should be supporting his wife and defending her and their marriage against her mother. The situation shows high consensus, low distinctiveness and high consistency. This leads to a conclusion that the marriage is continually being destroyed because of the behaviour and actions of the mother-in-law and the husband’s low response with his wife’s need of support against her mother’s behaviour. The marriage may then really be saved if the couple will not encounter anymore of the mother-in-law’s behaviour. The second situation tells about how a woman wanted to help out her friend in dealing with his son (Dear Abby). The deep friendship between the woman and the father started from the time

Logistics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 4

Logistics - Essay Example It also contributes to from utility, based on its ability to make the product be in a form in which the customer can use it. For example, logistics can contribute to production economies, such as lowering the cost per unit. The economic impact of logistics can also be seen in place utility, where it helps in the movement of products from one place to another (Bowersox et al 3). Q 2. A reduction in economic regulation has enabled companies to specify various logistics service levels; therefore, adjusting prices accordingly. It also enabled those who buy transportation services in large quantities to reduce costs on transportation. Reduction in Economic regulation also allowed individual carriers to have the flexibility to pricing and provision of services (Bowersox et al 6). Q 3. The five activities that might be part of a company’s logistics department include customer service, which entails keeping customers satisfied and ensuring that they get the right product. The department may also consist of demand forecasting; this includes estimating the future demand of a product (Bowersox et al 18). Facility location decisions may also be part of a logistics department; this relates to the location of production and warehousing facilities. The fourth activity entails inventory management; logisticians have to consider ordering cost, holding cost, and costs caused by running out of stock. Procurement should also be part of a company’s logistics department; this relates to the acquisition of supplies and raw materials needed for production (Bowersox et al

Obesity literature review Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Obesity - Literature review Example The following databases were searched for literature for this review: Pubmed, Cochrane library, Wiley, Cinhal Randomized Controlled Trial (RCT), Ovid, NHS Evidence, World Health Organisation Website and Medline. Keywords searched were obesity, obese, risks, co-morbidities, surgery, bariatric, anaesthesia, perioperative, prevention and airway. Obesity Measurement and Definition Obesity can be measured using total body weight, body mass index, body fat composition, fat mass index, and fat free mass index, and is specifically defined as having a body mass index greater than 30 kg/m2(Zhang & Wang, n.p.; Hjartaker, Langseth & Weiderpass, p 72). Risk for co-morbidities seems to be better indicated by measures of fat distribution, such as height-weight comparison or waist circumference, than by total weight (Zhang & Wang, n.p.; Hadaegh et al., p 310). Body mass index is not as accurate at determining true levels of overweight and obese nor at estimating risk factors, but it is a faster meth od at screening a larger population (Zhang et al., p 244). Overweight and obese adolescents tend to have poorer overall health than their normal weight peers, but they do not report more health issues requiring medical care. Those that do have other health issues tend to be overweight or obese currently, rather than having a history of weight problems. Weight loss can therefore help reduce many of the of the health risks associated with childhood obesity (Wake et al., p 162). However, those adolescents who have co-morbid type II diabetes and obesity are also more likely to have higher arterial stiffness than their peers (Urbina et al., p 1692). This is a concern due to the fact that paediatric type II diabetes is quickly becoming a public health crisis (Dea, p 42). Also, obese children with asthma have a much higher rate of nighttime desaturation, or lack of oxygen. They were also more prone to snoring and other respiratory issues that could lead to hypoxia (Ross et al., p 877). The presence of overweight and obesity in young children seems to be primarily a result of their home environment, and is especially related to the parental attitude toward food and exercise (Weker, p 3). We can extrapolate that a patient's attitude toward food and health in childhood will have a profound effect on their weight as an adult. Many children with congenital or acquired heart disease become overweight or obese as a result of restrictions imposed on their activity level. Healthy levels of exercise and healthy life style choices are often forgotten in patient education, as the focus is often solely on preventing the worsening of the existing heart condition and fail to protect the young patient's overall health (Pinto et al., p 1157). The best method for preventing obesity is to change the eating habits of children before they become overweight or obese. This can be done by increasing the attractiveness of healthy lifestyle choices and healthy foods, especially in schools, wh ere most children spend the majority of their time away from home. Schools should offer and encourage sports and other after-school activities, and offer remedial physical education courses for any student in poor physical shape (Della Torre, Akre, & Suris, p 233). Co-morbidities Eighteen major co-morbidities have been identified that show statistically significant connections with obesity or overweight. The conditions and diseases

Classroom Scenario Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Classroom Scenario - Essay Example Mr. Hamilton should meet with Danny’s parents and inform them what role they can play in improving Danny’s academic performance. This includes monitoring Danny’s activities at home, providing Danny with a proper place to focus his attention, and linking timely completed homework with rewards. It is vital that Danny’s parents adopt the same approach that Mr. Hamilton has adopted i.e. praising Danny at the display of good performance, and look disappointed at poor performance and yet, encourage him to do better next time rather than scold him. The monitoring system that can help determine the effectiveness of the instructional interventions should comprise both behavioral assessment and performance assessment. â€Å"Prereferral intervention strategies are generally determined by a committee of general education teachers before any specialists are included in the plan† (D’Amico and Gallaway, 2008, p. 4). For optimal performance, it is imperative that Danny feels satisfied and happy with the monitoring system. One way to achieve this is by gauging what intervention strategies Danny feels comfortable with. Instructional interventions can also be established by way of mutual consensus between Mr. Hamilton, Danny, and Danny’s

Argumentative Essay Essay Example for Free

Argumentative Essay Essay In America there are so many people who live without healthcare. President Obama has tried hard to change that known fact by introducing and passing his new Obama Care Act. It is very important for people to have proper healthcare coverage, medical care, affordable medications, and for all healthcare services to be available to everyone, whether they are poor, middle class or rich. For most Americans, high quality care generally is readily accessible without long waits but at high cost. However, the uninsured and, increasingly, the underinsured, the poor, and members of underserved minorities often have poor access to health care and poor health outcomes. The health workforce is well trained, yet the United States faces a severe shortage of primary care physicians. Approximately 45% of the U.S. population has a chronic medical condition, and about 60 million people, half of these, have multiple chronic conditions; the CDC estimated these numbers during a recent survey. 2 Most Americans 250 million (84.2%) have some form of health insurance coverage. But an estimated 47 million Americans (15.8%) were uninsured for a year, as reported for 2006 by the U.S. Bureau of the Census. A survey by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that 43.6 million people (14.8%) of all ages were uninsured at the time of the National Health Expenditure Survey interview in 2006. However, as many as 89.5 million people under the age of 65 years lacked health insurance for a least 1 month or more during 2006-2007, according to a study by Lewin and associates published by Families USA. In addition, another 16 million people can be  considered underinsured. People without health insurance are much less likely than those with insurance to receive recommended preventive services and medications, are less likely to have access to regular care by a personal physician, and are less able to obtain needed health care services. Consequently, the uninsured are more likely to succumb to preventable illnesses, more likely to suffer complications from those illnesses, and more likely to die prematurely. The U.S. health care system has much potential for improvement. Disparities related to race, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status has pervaded the U.S. health care system. In addition to the large numbers of Americans who lack adequate health insurance, the cost, quality, and utilization of health care services vary widely. Meanwhile, the need for long term care services and care coordination is increasing. Preventive care, cross discipline coordination, and proactive management of long term care might reduce the cost of care, but these services often are uncovered or poorly reimbursed. 3 Spending on health care in the United States has been rising at a faster pace than spending in the rest of the economy since the 1960’s. According to the Centers for Medicare Medicaid Services- National Health Statistics Group states that in 2005, national health care spending amounted to approximately $2.0 trillion, or $6697 per person and 16% of the gross domestic product. By 2015, health care spending is expected to reach $4.0 trillion. People with large medical care cost are often chronically ill, disabled, or poor. Our society’s inability to provide continuous, coherent patient centered care for this group of individuals is one cause of the high aggregate cost of health care and contributes to the cost of public insurance programs. Patients who enter Medicare without previous insurance but with chronic illness will be sicker and more disabled and therefore more costly to that government program. Health insurance premiums increased drastically since the year 2005. Many have been unable to even afford health coverage. Employer based health insurance has been the basis for paying for health services since 1940, but  it is fast eroding under the pressure of relentlessly rising costs of care. Despite the growing need for coordination of health care services, government and private insures pay for health care services primarily on a episodic, visit related basis with few, if any, incentives for providing comprehensive, coordinated, and continuous care for the prevention and management of chronic illness. Primary care physicians now spend about 20% of their time in unreimbursed coordination of care tasks using the telephone or e-mail. Despite repeated attempts to rein in federal expenditures for Medicare and Medicaid, federal have continued to increase much faster than inflation in the entire economy. 4 The Medicaid program provides medical benefits to over 52 million people who meet categorical eligibility standards. The federal government and the state share responsibility for funding Medicaid. The success of the VA system in dramatically restructuring itself indicates that major gains can be achieved in the United States in improving health care access and quality while reducing costs. One response to rising health care costs has been the adoption of consumer directed health plans in which the individual takes greater responsibility for paying for care out of pocket rather than the employer or government. Unfortunately, for those with modest incomes, cost sharing has reduced medically necessary care, such as taking medicines for hypertension. The United States is in such a crisis when it comes to the health care system, yet is very important to see that every one of its citizens is afforded health coverage. People are sickly in this nation, like it is in other countries. The United States is in the midst of a primary health care workforce crisis that is expected to worsen in the next decade. The population is aging, and baby boomers are at a high, and a large amount of people will soon be over 65 years and at greater risk for needing care for chronic conditions. The United States should continue to work on having national policies introduced to the health care system to help guide training, supply, and the distribution of health care providers to better assist those in need of health coverage. It is very important to make this a reality, because we the  people of the United States need to be able to receive medical care, and health coverage, no matter if we are rich or poor in this society.

Martin Luther King Memorial in Yerba Buena Gardens Essay Example for Free

Martin Luther King Memorial in Yerba Buena Gardens Essay Situated on the corner of 4th St. and Mission St., in downtown San Francisco is Yerba Buena Gardens. Sounds from the hustle and bustle of cars driving and people walking permeate Yerba Buena Gardens, except in one particular location. In one corner of the gardens stands a Martin Luther King Jr. memorial. The memorial is breathtakingly beautiful with a fifty foot high and twenty foot wide waterfall that falls over Sierra granite. In the Memorial’s hallway, visitors read quotes from Dr. King himself that are engraved on glass panels and set in granite. The physical beauty of the memorial is undeniable, however many people are not aware of the symbolism lying beneath the memorial’s surface. The memorial’s waterfall symbolizes the realization of Dr. King’s dreams the realization of Dr. Kings dream, the tears shed by millions and of the voices of African Americas The memorial also reminds us of the oppressed African Americans whose voices were drowned out ignored; yet, it is apparent that society was pushed backwards in the race to equality with the mandatory evacuation of thousands of people due to the development of the Yerba Buena Gardens. King Jr. dreamt that all human beings, regardless of skin color, will one day be able to live in a completely free, just, and non-discriminatory society. It was his dream of an equal society that pushed Martin Luther King Jr. to become an advocate for universal suffrage. Even though the United States already had universal suffrage, unfair literacy tests and poll taxes plagued the voting process and disqualified nearly all impoverished African Americans from voting 1. King wanted a colorblind society; a society where all human beings are treated equally and respectfully and given the same personal liberties and political freedom. Martin Luther King argued, in his â€Å"I Have a Dream† speech, that â€Å"we are not satisfied until justice rolls down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream† 2. This quote from Dr. King’s speech is inscribed on the right end wall of the memorial. After reading the final inscribed quote, it is apparent that the purpose of the waterfall is to signify the realization of Martin Luther King’s dream of a just society. Justice , The United States Martin Luther King’s dream of justice in today’s society; a monumental victory of justice over prejudice. It is so easy to forget about what it took for America to become a truly free and nondiscriminatory nation. The mists are a necessary reminder for people in today’s society that personal liberty and political freedom should never be taken for granted. Though Yerba Buena Gardens is situated in downtown San Francisco, a busy city filled with loud noises, the memorial itself is peculiarly quiet and calm. The memorial’s serenity is due to the overpowering, yet surprisingly tranquil sound of the rushing water from the waterfall. The power of the waterfall to drown out all exterior noise is phenomenal. It is impossible to even hear what someone is saying when they are right next to you. Visitors try to overcome the sound of the rushing water by screaming or whistling, but are unsuccessful. Independent from life’s distractions, visitors are given the opportunity to absorb all that the memorial and Dr. King’s words have to offer. Visitors can take this time to self-reflect and to appreciate the efforts of earlier generations fighting for equality during our nation’s infancy. The undeniable strength of the waterfall’s sound to obscure all external noise makes Being incapable of expressing feelings or thou ghts leaves an unfamiliar and dreadful sensation. People living in today’s society are usually ignorant to this unfamiliar, almost claustrophobic feeling of screaming at the top of your lungs without a single person acknowledging your frustrations. During our nation’s history, however, nearly all African Americans struggled with this same frustration. Helpless against the white minority, blacks throughout history struggled to get their concerns addressed and their votes counted. The visitor’s inability to communicate vocally is short-lived and fortunately, only lasts as long as it takes for the person to walk through the memorial. African Americans, however, were plagued with powerlessness for hundreds of years. Martin Luther King Jr. felt obliged to provide a voice for all African Americans stripped of the right to do so on their own. Due to the hard work of Martin Luther King, civil rights leaders and activists, and President Johnson, on August 6, 1965 the Voting Rights Act was signed into law, which banned the use of literacy tests and also required stricter monitoring of the use of poll taxes in state and local elections† 3. Finally, the time had come when African Americans could voice their opinions and have them be heard, and vote for the political constituent whom carried similar beliefs and morals. The development of the Yerba Buena Gardens, as part of the â€Å"Urban Renewal Project† was not always considered to be something positive and beneficial. During the 1950’s, city planners forced thousands of people living in the South of Market area out of their homes, arguing that the area was â€Å"dangerous ‘Skid Row’ ripe for redevelopment, populated by â€Å"bums† and â€Å"transients† whose fate mattered little† 4. City planners left out the important fact that many people who lived in this area were elderly and poor and had â€Å"little defense against the federal bulldozer† 5. The city did try and relocate as many people as possible, but only had 276 units of new housing to replace thousands of demolished units. Thousands were left homeless and kicked out of possibly the only home they have ever known and will ever know, due to lack of job skills needed to find employment. The irony of placing a Martin Luther King Jr. memorial, a man who advocated for equality and justice until his assassination, on land where thousands of impoverished people were evicted just a couple years earli er, is almost too horrific to comprehend. The hypocrisy in the decision to place this memorial at the Yerba Buena Gardens is undeniable and unforgiveable. The memorial’s waterfall is a reminder of the relentless adversity that plagued millions of blacks for thousands of years and the tears they shed. The waterfall also symbolizes the realization of Dr. King’s dream. The eviction methods used during the Urban Renewal period to obtain the land where the memorial sits were ethically questionable, however it is still important to visit this monument from time to time. The memorial stands there in the middle of Yerba Buena Gardens, in the middle of downtown San Francisco, as a silent, yet constant reminder to never take anything for granted and to always remember the blood, sweat, and tears shed by millions in order for people today to enjoy and exercise the complete personal liberty and political freedom that we are so fortunately blessed with.

Novating design team to a contractor

Novating design team to a contractor Synopsis Clients within the Construction Industry prefer to use the JCT Design Build Contract rather than other traditional procurements methods. Novation is a process that allows Clients to oversee the early stages of design development of a project and then transfer the responsibility for the design to a Contractor after the contract has been awarded. By transferring the responsibility to the Contractor through novation the Client takes minimum risk contractually while retaining an influence on project design from the initial stages. This process transfers maximum risk to the Contractor as he becomes responsible for all future design of a project and all past design completed up to the point of a contract being awarded, this includes any design errors. Both Contractors and Designers must work together closely on any design and build project, but particularly when novation has taken place. For a project to be profitable and be completed on time it is essential that there is a good working relationship between Contractor and Designer. Research to establish if the process of novation has an adverse affect on the working relationship between Contractor and Designer was conducted. The aims were to identify factors that may affect the working relationship of the two parties and to understand the opinions of both Contractors and Designers about what affect novation has on their working relationship. The objectives of the research were to highlight specific problems within the process of novation and recommend improvements to industry. To achieve this research in the form of a literature review, questionnaires and an interview with Contractors and a Designer was performed. The report recommendations are aimed at Clients to hold more pre-contract meetings with Contractors not just Designers, and understand the criteria a Contractor follows when appointing a Designer to ensure compatibility between parties when in Design and Build contract together. Acknowledgements I would like to express gratitude to the following people and organisations for their time, knowledge and support in assisting the in the successful completion of this research project: My final year Supervisor Dr Ron Craig of the Civil and Building Engineering Dept of Loughborough University, for constructive criticism and guidance throughout the process of developing the dissertation. HBG UK Ltd for using a lot of Commercial Managers, Design Co-ordinators, Legal Correspondents and Personnels time in completing the literature review and aiding in the data collection. The Commercial Manager of the second Contracting Company questioned The Architect questioned for his experience and opinions of the process of novation. Mr Andrew Moss for proof reading the final draft of this report and suggesting possible alterations. Chapter 1 Introduction 1.1 Introduction to Subject The Design and Build form of J.C.T contract (please see chapter 4.0) has become more popular with construction Clients that employ Contractors to construct new buildings and/or renovate existing structures. The Authors research has shown that the percentage of contracts tendered for under a Design and Build form of J.C.T has increased over the last five years. In conjunction with this the traditional form of JCT contract has decreased in popularity with Clients. In many cases the designs which make up part of the contract between the Client and Contractor, under JCT Design and Build, are completed by a Design Team on behalf of the Client before the contract between the Client and Contractor is made. To ensure that the Contractor who successfully tenders for a project retains the Design Consultant that the Client employed prior to the contract being made it is sometimes necessary for a Client to novate (please see chapter 5) the design team across to the Contractor. The purpose of this report is to investigate into the problems, if any, with the process of novating a design team to a Contractor from the Client and suggest solutions. This report will also detail the affects on the working relationship between the Contractor and the Designer, and how novation either aids or hinders the working relationship 1.1.1 Aims of Chapter One To introduce the Dissertation subject area. The reasons behind the investigation of this Dissertation. To outline the work carried out and a description of the contents of the Dissertation. Detail a well constructed hypothesis that the investigation will either prove or disprove. To outline a guide to the report, and introduce each individual chapter. To detail the aims of the report and the objective that must be achieved to meet the aims. 1.2 Rationale behind I nvestigation The interest into the investigation of Are there always problems with novating a design team to a contractor? came about after the Authors industrial placement. While working on site for a Contractor on a J.C.T. Design and Build contract where the design team was novated it became apparent to the Author that there were many differences of opinions between the Designers and the Contracting Company. The main items of debate and disagreement between the Contractor and the Design Team were the Clients requirements. In the Authors experience there was a large difference of opinion of how design changes and/or variations should be treated between the Design Team and the Contractor. Whilst profit-driven Contractor seemed to always look for the cheapest and most cost effective way of bridging any design problem; where as the Design Team gave the impression that they were more concerned about the aesthetics of the design and the Clients design opinions rather than the buildability and cost. Many design variations that were requested by the Client, or those forced upon the Contractor were not always as the Contractor had specified to the Design Team. The Contractor felt that his time was wasted by the Consultant not designing elements as originally specified. The working relationship between the Contractor and the Designer seemed to deteriorate from the project start date, until beyond the design completion stage. After the Author had asked other members within the Contracting Company about the novation of a Designer to the Contractor it became apparent that the relationship between Contractor and Designer was similarly affected on other projects. The Author had discussions with the Client of the project he was placed on. The Client stated that more building work was being undertaken using the J.C.T. Design and Build form of contract as this reduces the risk to the client and/or the person funding the project. The Author found that under Design and Build more risk was placed on the Contractor, and that management techniques had to change to appropriately manage higher risk projects. He also realised that as more contracts were being made under the Design and Build form of contract with the Designers being novated to work for the contractor a greater knowledge of the subject area would be beneficial to the Author in the management of Design and Build contracts. 1.2.1 Originality of Thought The Author had discussions with his Supervisor before commencing the research about the subject matter. A hypothesis was agreed upon that gave the Author scope to research areas of the process of novation in design and build contracting that have not previously been discussed in an undergraduates research project for the Supervisor. The process of novation being used in the design and build contract has recently become popular with Clients. The aim of the research is to establish if Contractors and Designers have not yet fully adapted to the change and improvements in the working relationship between the parties must be made to ensure that they remain competitive and profitable. 1.3 Subject Definition Novation is a process in which [1]a contract between party A and party C is turned into a new contract between party B and party C. This process can only be achieved if all three parties agree that novation can take place. A Deed of Novation[2] is commonly used to terminate a contract between parties A and B, and then create a new contract between parties A and C. There are standard legal documents, blank deeds of novation, which are available as downloads from the internet, for example at (www.citysolicitors.org.uk/legal_activities as of 28/03/06). A deed of novation has been used for many years before it became popular with Clients in the construction design and build context. It is used in the sale of manufacturing companies, where components made are used by other larger companies. For example, the purchase of a windscreen wiper company by a new owner whilst retaining the commitment to an existing customer car manufacturer. Novation has many other wider applications other than construction; Porsche in their latest brochure[3] offer a novated lease for their new motor cars. In this case an Employee of a company (the lessee) signs a lease agreement with Porsche (the lessor). A Deed of Novation, then supplied by Porsche, is signed by Porsche, the Employee and the Employer. This then transfers the responsibility for the payment to the Employer. Novation is used in a construction context where the relationship between two parties has developed over time and the introduction of a third or new party is necessary. There then needs to be provision to contractually protect the existing parties in the relationship. 1.4 Report Intention The intention of this report is to investigate how the working relationship between the Contractor and the Designer novated to the Contractor from the Client could be improved to their mutual benefit, and to the benefit of the Client. However, the report may show that there is no improvement to be made, and that the process of novation as it presently stands is adequate. 1.4.1 Aims To identify clearly factors that may affect the relationship between the Contractor and the Designer under novation To discover any adverse characteristics that may cause a poor working relationship between the Contractor and the Designer To clearly understand the opinions of Designers and Contractors that has been involved with novation To understand the attitudes of Designers and Contractors towards novation To clearly understand the definition of novation and the context in which it is used within the construction industry To identify any differences in attitudes between Contracting Companies towards novation under a J.C.T. Design and Build contract To understand why Clients now prefer to use the Design and Build form of contract rather than the Traditional contracts they favoured to use To identify why Clients within construction novate the Design Team across to the Contractor 1.4.2 Objectives To highlight specific problems within the process of novation that requires improving To investigate how the process of novation may differ between contracts and/or with varying Clients To identify differences between the Contractors and Designers opinion of novation under the J.C.T. Design and Build Contract To highlight areas within construction where it is necessary to use novation in Design and Build contracts To advise the Contracting Companies of the most economic way of managing a Design Team that has been novated by a Client To identify if a Contractor and Designer have a better working relationship, i.e. have a greater understanding of each others objectives and needs, under a traditional contract rather than novation under a Design and Build Contract 1.4.3 Hypothesis The working relationship between Contractor and Designer is adversely affected by Novation. 1.5 Overview of Research Methodology The methodology of the research for this project will take the form of the following; please see the methodology in chapter three for a detailed discussion on the report methods used: A review of past and current literature concerning the background of novation within the construction industry. A review of specific literature concerning the working relationship of a Contractor and Designer. Discuss the definition of novation within construction, and where it is most commonly used in the industry. Design a questionnaire to send out to a selected Contractor and a Designer. Design an interview format and questions for a specific Contracting Company to answer on the subject of novation. Design an interview format and questions following the results of the previous interview to issue a separate questionnaire to a different Contracting Company to analyse company differences. Analyse results gathered in the interview to form a conclusion about the effect of novation in construction. Make suggestions or recommendations to the industry and Clients within the construction industry. 1.6 Overview of Main Conclusions The Authors completed research shows that there are ten factors that could adversely affect the working relationship between a Contractor and a Designer under a novation agreement. The Author found through analysing an interview and questionnaires completed by two Contractors and an Architect that the reasons for novation having an adverse influence on the working relationship of a Contractor and Designer were that: The time allowed for Contractor to Tender is not increased The loyalty of Designer to Client remains evident after novation to the Contractor There is usually a large distance between the Designers head office and the project Insufficient design fees are allocated at the tender stage There is an increased risk of error in design There could have been a previously poor working relationship between the parties The Designer may be inappropriate for the project The performance of the Designer is not consistent throughout the process of completing the design Novation is usually late or rushed from the Client There is an increased probability of conflict between the two parties The Author found that many of these factors were specific problems which could be attributed to the process of novation under a design and build project. Therefore, the results support the hypothesis of the research. However, additional research is required if the hypothesis is to be proven to be correct. 1.7 Guide to the Report Chapter One: Introduction This section introduces the study and outlines the hypothesis, aim and objectives of the research. It indicates the origin of the Authors interest in the subject, why the hypothesis was chosen, and describes the methodology that was followed. Chapter Two: Literature Review This section examines the literature research conducted by the Author. It is an investigation into the definition of novation, and describes where it is used within the construction industry. This section details the current view of the contractor in a novation agreement. Chapter Three: Methodology This section of the report describes the methodology which was used to conduct this research. It shows how the information was collected. It also includes the topics covered within the interview and the design of questionnaires that were employed. Chapter Four: Design and Build Contracts This section describes the forms of J.C.T. contract used and highlights the advantages and disadvantages to the Design and Build form of JCT contract. It provides an introduction into Design and Build and details the differences between the Employers Requirements and Contractors Proposals that are a key feature of the Design and Build contract. Chapter Five: Novation This section of the report describes in detail the uses of novation within a construction context. It gives a definition to the process of novation as used in a Design and Build situation. This chapter details the conflict of interest the Contractor and the Designers tend to experience due to novation. It illustrates the problems that may arise in the design, payment of design fees and the varying levels of the Consultants performance. Chapter Six:Analysis This section of the report is the analysis of the questionnaires sent to Clients within the building industry and their Project Managers and the Designers. It analyses the interviews conducted with the contractors and additional information gathered. Chapter Seven: Conclusion This section of the report presents the Authors conclusions based upon the findings within the analysis chapter of the report. It suggests solutions to the aims and objectives set out in the introduction, criticises the hypothesis around the report was based and highlights the possibility for further research. Chapter 2 Literature Review 2.1 Introduction The literature review is a comprehensive analysis of all relevant articles, books and publications to this research project. Derek Swetnam[4] describes the literature review as a report; That is central to the dissertation and in all styles of work it has a number of functions: It shows that you have read widely around your chosen topic It demonstrates your critical understanding of the theory It acknowledges that work of others It informs and modifies your own research The Literature review in this chapter is broken down into eight sub-headings. The chapter talks about the description of novation, then goes on to describe where novation is used today both in and outside the construction industry. The literature review describes the process of a Designer being novated to a Contractor. The final section of this chapter discusses and analyses in what way the literature which is reviewed is relevant to the Authors research project. 2.1.1 General Aims To break down the causes of the problem highlighted in the hypothesis into logical stages. To collect and analyse previous research and literature to further investigate the subject area of this project. To research any previously made recommendations. Make recommendations which have been concluded from a detailed literature review. 2.2 Aim of This Literature Review What is the description of Novation and in what context was it used before in construction? Where is Novation used today outside of construction and what is its main purpose? What other uses are there of Novation within construction other than a Designer being novated to a Contractor? When did Novation of a Designer to Contractor become popular with Clients in the construction industry? Have there been problems with the novation of a Design team to a Contractor in the past? When is Novation practical in construction contracts? What are the risks to the Contractor in the novation process? 2.3 Contents of Literature Review 2.3.1 Description of Novation David Janssens[5] stated that: Occasionally, an Employer may stipulate that the successful Contractor is to engage one or more of the Employers consultants to complete the design and detailing of the project in the post-contract stage. Such consultants are employed by Contractors under novation agreements, i.e. a novation agreement is a new agreement in substitution of a previous agreement between the Consultant and the Employer. Novation exists when an agreement or contract between two parties is going to be broken and a third party enters to take the place the agreed or contract role of the party which is leaving the agreement or contract. Novation can also exist when a third party enters into an agreement or contract without any other party leaving. Jeremy Hackett[6] stated that: Novation is a legal concept, formally providing for the re-employment of a Consultant by the Contractor, as part of the contract agreement between the Employer and Contractor. Should the Contractor merely choose to re-employ the same individuals who have previously sat the other side of the interview table from himself that would not be novation, but its effect would be very similar. 2.3.2 Uses for Novation. Novation is not only used within the construction industry, the use of novation in law is much more commonly used in the buying and selling of manufacturing companies. In this context a novation agreement maybe drawn up by lawyers of a manufacturing company which intends to sell to buyer whilst still retaining the same business clientele. In this instance a customer of the business being sold would be novated across to the new buyer of the business, this ensures that the customer can always source what ever item the new buyer manufactures. Ann Arbor[7] Stated that: A hospital in Texas is taking electronic commerce beyond purchase orders and usage reports to adoption of digital contract management. The sooner hospitals are able to sign up to participate in new contracts, the sooner they are able to access contract pricing. Using the enhanced form management program, materials managers can submit forms online where suppliers can approve them, also online. In this example a hospital in Texas is using the agreement of novation over the internet to sign up for new contracts much faster than it was able to previously. This has benefited materials managers the most as they are able to source cheaper or higher quality materials from differing suppliers and simply transfer the agreement they have with one supplier to another using novation. 2.3.3 Alternative uses of Novation within construction. The section above discusses how different forms of novation are implemented in areas other than the construction industry. However, within the realms of construction there are many more uses for the novation agreement to be used. The use of novation within construction has only been commonly used during the past decade or so, the main reason for this is the introduction of the JCT Design and Build Contract which made the novation of Designer to the Contractor much easier for the Client. Before the introduction of Design and Build Contract novation was present in the same format it exists today in other industries as mentioned above. If during the construction process a Client was unable to fund any further necessary works and there was a willing buyer to stand in for the Client, it may be in the interest of the entering party to continue to use the existing Contractor. The easiest and least time consuming way to do this would be using the Novation agreement. The second way in which novation occurred in a construction context before the introduction of the Design and Build Contract was if the Contractor was suffering from financial issues or the relationship between himself and the Client has been irreparably affected in someway. If a situation like this occurred it was beneficial for the Client to take on board a new Contractor through a novation agreement. This removed the necessity for the remaining works to be re-tendered, and the likelihood that the Client would have to pay an excess for the works to be completed. 2.3.4 When did novation become popular with Clients Jim Smith[8] stated that: The choice of a procurement method is probably the single most important decision the client makes, other than the decision to build. The various procurement methods can be described, as defined by Masterman (2002), under these three distinct categories: Separated and co-operative. Integrated. Management orientated. In the last few years and particularly within the past decade the procurement methods for contractors have been moving away from the more traditional contracts as described above. The change to a procurement method which uses the second and third categories above has largely been Client-driven; the main reason for this is that the Contractor has to accept a high level of risk if he is to tender successfully for a project. As more design development has been shifted across to the Contractor it is becoming easier and more cost effective for the Client to shift higher levels of risk to the Contractors. The Design and Build contract and all its variations have expanded considerably to accommodate a Clients needs in recent times. The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) [9] in 2000 stated that: Design and build and its variations have expanded considerably in the last decade. It has increased dramatically in the 1990s going from a 10 percent share during the 1980s up to a 35 percent share of the construction procurement market, with management contracting declining to a 10 percent share. Chan stated[10] that: 21% of private Clients in the UK use the Design and Build system, of which 42% commonly use Design-Novate and Construct for their projects. Design-Novate and Construct has also been widely adopted in Australia and Hong Kong. David Jaggar[11] Stated that: The major advantages of design and build are that all the risks, both financial and period for completion, are transferred to the design and build contractor, with the client only dealing with one organisation, so eliminating the complexities and frustrations of dealing with a range of separate organisations. The approach also overcomes the problem of the separation of design and construction, so saving overall time and allowing the design to reflect improved buildability in the construction solution. The argument against this is that a Contractor may be taking a higher percentage of higher risk projects. However, as a Client is off loading a lot more risk than what was traditionally not possible in the past they are able to fund much more projects and engage a lot more designers. The result of this is that the Contractor has more work to tender for and a much higher chance of winning projects as more tenders will be processed. 2.3.5 Issues arising from using Novation in construction. Jim Smith[12] stated that: There is considerable debate as to the merits and demerits of the approach and it is fair to say that many design professionals were unhappy about the approach, not least because there was a reduction in their own influence and independence. However, a valid view put forward, which undoubtedly design and build suffered from in the 1980s, was that the quality of the final building was often inferior and the role of design was devalued, as the design and build contractors shaped the design to suit their particular methods of construction. More recent views from clients noted above indicate that they were satisfied with the quality of their completed design build projects. The Design Manager of a Contracting Company plays a critical role in the development of design to determine a contract value for a project. The role involves being able to balance cost and quality and time constraints within a framework. This is an essential skill for all Design Managers or Project Co-ordinators. The Design Manager will work closely with the Commercial Manager at the tender stage of a Design and Build contract when novation of the Design team is being used by the Client. It is crucial that both managers work together to reduce the amount of design and financial risk the contractor will have to carry through the contract period if the tender submission is to be successful. Allinson[13] states that: The developments in the construction industry, the continuing specialisation of professions and the rising application of alternative procurement methods have all contributed to the gap between design and management, but they have also emphasised the need for a design professional with management and technological skills. The management of the process should ensure a successful and deliverable project When Design and Build contracts first became widely used by Clients in the 1990s Contractors tended to manage the building works in the same way they managed traditional contracts. Here a Project Manager was responsible for the development of the construction and concluding the outstanding design issues as well as resolving any building sites day-to-day issues. Project Managers were supported by a number of other managers such as Services Engineers, Site Management and Quantity Surveyors. Jim Smith[14] states that: However, a single reporting source on all aspects of design and cost has not always benefited the client, contractor or the project. Projects have been organised in a very flat structure with numerous lines of responsibility reporting directly to the project manager. The larger projects would have over half a dozen separate factions directly beneath the project manager, including the above stated managers, structure coordinators, documentation managers, tendering coordinators, contract administration, project administration and occupation health safety and rehabilitation (OHSR). In practice, this structure has proved to be an inefficient and ineffective form of management on many projects.

METAPHORS :: Essays Papers

METAPHORS I have usually found writing papers to be a stuggle, but this paper was different. At first I was intimidated by the fact that it had to be an analysis of ones own writing pertaining to a specific discourse, but then once I saw the opportunity for creativity, the paper seemed fun and interesting. It gave me an opportunity to focus on the things I like about writing, the things that to me make writing an art form containing beauty and freedom. Words are groups of mixed and matched letters which create sentences. The above words and analagous words are silly-putty that one can maneuver into any shape, size, or form one chooses. Manueuvering these words to express ideas in a different way would describe a metaphor. Metaphors can help convey a thought, or make a transition among ideas smoother; like a football that glides through the air from one player to the next. I find there is an excitement in taking words, as Webster's Dictionary puts it, taking, "units of language...typically seen as the smallest such units of space...distinguished phonetically...", and making metaphors; creating words into brief moments for someone else to experience. Everyone in his/her life, at one time or another has had a moment when they have been left speechless. A moment on a cliff overlooking fierce, untamed waters, a sunset that sends blinding sparks off urban buildings, or a basketball game in which the underdog triumphs in the final seconds -- there is at least one time that everyone sees or perceives a sight that to them, is awesome. Something that in one's mind is distinguishable from any other moment and is too breathtaking, scary, or cool to describe in common vocabulary or phrasiology, for the emotions or feelings involved in that moment would not recieve due justice. People behold scenes differently, so metaphors can vary greatly in the degree of imagery and the amount of emotion they elicit. This implies that they appeal to a larger discourse community rather than academic writing, unlike Jennifer Gebelein's term paper, "Giardia", which because of its nature has a more selective community. The discourse community, the writers and reader of metaphors may range from a seventh grade reading class to the C.E.O. of an international company. This emphasizes the freedom that is allowed with metaphors, the fact that metaphors hold no boundaries on audience or creativity. As with any form of freedom, risk is involved.

Death Penalty and Deterrence Essay examples -- Capital Punishment Crim

Death Penalty and Deterrence Ever since the beginning of time man has committed crimes. Crimes were described as acts which go against the social and moral norms of society and people. People have learned to deal with these crimes in many different ways. One of the most used forms of dealing with crime is punishing those who commit crimes. There are numerous ways in which people have punished those who commit crimes throughout history from making the criminal pay fines to banishing them from the community. However, in modern times, there are fewer acceptable forms of punishment that are used. For very unserious crimes, governments may simply make a criminal pay a small fine or do service for the community in some way. Offenders who commit more serious crimes may be forced to spend months or years in jail or prison. However, for the most serious crime of premeditated murder there is an even greater punishment; the punishment of death. According to Jacquelyn C. Black, since 1976 when the death penalty was reinstat ed, over 821 men and women have been executed in the United States. Capital punishment is one of the most hotly debated issues in politics and criminal justice today. The ability of the government and the judicial system to punish a criminal in the most severe way, the taking of their ability to live, is an issue that is discussed and evaluated nearly every day. Capital punishment has its roots in history though. Ever since man has formed societies he has used capital punishment as a form of punishment for criminals. The United States has also been using capital punishment for a long time. Many people think that capital punishment is a very barbaric form of punishment that should be gotten rid of. They think that no civilized nation should allow such sanctioned brutality. P61According to Ron Fridell, ?capital punishment has been abolished in all of Europe and most of Latin America, as well as Australia, New Zealand, and Canada. The United States remains the only Western nation in which capital punishment is still practiced.? Other people think that t he death penalty is an effective and just way of punishing offenders for the most heinous of crimes. This paper will try to describe the death penalty, where it came from, and its role in the judicial system today. The purpose of capital punishment is also a debated issue in the subject. Most ... ... and decrease murder rates. Constan p102 says that ?other factors that influence murder rates are unemployment, probability of arrest and conviction, percent of the population between the ages of fifteen and twenty-four, per capita financial expenditures on the police force, and other factors.? He also states that none of these factors seem to affect the crime rate though none is major enough to completely cause major changes. End Notes Davis, Michael. Justice in the Shadow of Death: Rethinking Capital and Lesser Punishments. New York: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc, 1996 Kronenwetter, Michael. Capital Punishment. Santa Barbara: ABC- CLIO, Inc, 1993. Bedau, Hugo Adam., and Pierce, Chester M. Capital Punishment in the United States. New York: AMS Press, Inc, 1975.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Megivern, James J. The Death Penalty: An Historical and Theological Survey.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  New York: Paulist Press, 1997.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Fridell, Ron. Capital Punishment. New York: Benchmark Books, 2004. Costanzo, Mark. Just Revenge: Costs and Consequences of the Death Penalty. New York: St. Martin?s Press, 1997. Goldberg, Steven. ?So What if the Death Penalty Deters World Wide Web.1989.

Rate of Reaction :: GCSE Chemistry Coursework Investigation

Rate of Reaction Coursework Aim: To investigate how temperature affects rate of reaction. Introduction: I am going to investigate how temperature affects the rate of reaction of hydrochloric acid with calcium carbonate. This is the reaction that will take place: Hydrochloric acid + Calcium Carbonate à ¨ Calcium Carbonate + Water + Carbon Dioxide The rate of reaction can be measured in various different ways: * Using a balance you can check the mass before the reaction and then after the reaction has taken place. Then check the change in mass. * You can also use the method of obscuring a cross with sodium thiosulphate and time which cross becomes invisible first. I am going to use a syringe to measure the amount of carbon dioxide given of at regular intervals. This is because it is accurate as the smallest division on it is 1ml. The important variables are: * Temperature – if it is increased the reaction as the particles will have more energy. * Number of calcium carbonate chips – if there are a lot of chips more carbon dioxide will be formed. * Amount of acid – if there is more acid the rate of reaction will be faster. * Surface area – if the chips have a larger surface area then the rate of reaction will be faster. Prediction: I have chosen to investigate the affect of hydrochloric acid on calcium carbonate chips. I predict that as the temperature of the acid increases so will the rate of reaction. This is because for two substances to react they have to have a successful collision which means the have to collide with a minimum amount of energy which is called the activation energy. This diagram shows how the particles will react with each other with the minimum amount of energy (activation energy): The higher the temperature of the acid the faster the acid particles will be moving around as they’ll have more energy and there will more collisions. This energy will also allow there to be more successful collisions and so more carbon dioxide will be formed in smaller amount of time. Therefore the rate of reaction will be faster. This diagram shows the reaction of particles with more energy from the heat: I can also predict that the shape of my final graph of rate of reaction and temperature will look like this: From this graph I can predict that as I increase the temperature by 10 °C the rate of reaction will double. Apparatus: 1 Bunsen burner Calcium Carbonate chips Hydrochloric acid 1 Syringe 1 50ml measuring cylinder 1Heatproof mat 1 Wire gauze 1 Conical flask 1 Beaker filled with ice 1 Thermometer 1 Clamp I chose to use the syringe as it has small divisions to help me make Rate of Reaction :: GCSE Chemistry Coursework Investigation Rate of Reaction Coursework Aim: To investigate how temperature affects rate of reaction. Introduction: I am going to investigate how temperature affects the rate of reaction of hydrochloric acid with calcium carbonate. This is the reaction that will take place: Hydrochloric acid + Calcium Carbonate à ¨ Calcium Carbonate + Water + Carbon Dioxide The rate of reaction can be measured in various different ways: * Using a balance you can check the mass before the reaction and then after the reaction has taken place. Then check the change in mass. * You can also use the method of obscuring a cross with sodium thiosulphate and time which cross becomes invisible first. I am going to use a syringe to measure the amount of carbon dioxide given of at regular intervals. This is because it is accurate as the smallest division on it is 1ml. The important variables are: * Temperature – if it is increased the reaction as the particles will have more energy. * Number of calcium carbonate chips – if there are a lot of chips more carbon dioxide will be formed. * Amount of acid – if there is more acid the rate of reaction will be faster. * Surface area – if the chips have a larger surface area then the rate of reaction will be faster. Prediction: I have chosen to investigate the affect of hydrochloric acid on calcium carbonate chips. I predict that as the temperature of the acid increases so will the rate of reaction. This is because for two substances to react they have to have a successful collision which means the have to collide with a minimum amount of energy which is called the activation energy. This diagram shows how the particles will react with each other with the minimum amount of energy (activation energy): The higher the temperature of the acid the faster the acid particles will be moving around as they’ll have more energy and there will more collisions. This energy will also allow there to be more successful collisions and so more carbon dioxide will be formed in smaller amount of time. Therefore the rate of reaction will be faster. This diagram shows the reaction of particles with more energy from the heat: I can also predict that the shape of my final graph of rate of reaction and temperature will look like this: From this graph I can predict that as I increase the temperature by 10 °C the rate of reaction will double. Apparatus: 1 Bunsen burner Calcium Carbonate chips Hydrochloric acid 1 Syringe 1 50ml measuring cylinder 1Heatproof mat 1 Wire gauze 1 Conical flask 1 Beaker filled with ice 1 Thermometer 1 Clamp I chose to use the syringe as it has small divisions to help me make

BCG Matrix

The idea of carrying your favorite music wherever you go has always been fascinating for people all over the world for the longest time. It started with carrying of stereo systems, then came the portable cassette players followed by the portable CD players and then finally the digital music players. In 2001 the portable music players industry was revolutionized by the advent of an Apple’s product called the iPod; this came as a breath of fresh air for music lovers all over the world and was an instant hit.The success of it can be determined by the fact that it has become a household name a brand known all over the world in such a short time; it is one of the highest revenue generating products for the Apple and is now the market leader in products of its genre. iPod – Target Market iPod’s target market has been the youth primarily who listen to music of all kinds and are always on the go, but with time the target market expanded tremendously.Now it caters to almo st everyone with accessories available it has made the music available for people where ever they are all the time. It has become part of everyday life of any professional who listens to music where ever he is working, although through campaigns it still targets the young energetic segment of the consumer market but benefits of the product are enjoyed by everyone (Apple Investor, 2008). Organizations have now employed iPod in training of their new recruits; this shows the diversity of the market that the product is now catering to.The product has grown over the years but has kept its integrity and maintained its status; as the market grew and competitors came in Apple as always tried to stay ahead of the competition by bringing variety in the product while keeping the originality. The iPod now ranges from iPod Classic, iPod Nano, iPod Shuffle and iPod touch; each caters to a different segment of the society and has its own niche. Factors influencing consumer behavior Factors that ha ve the most impact on the behavior of a consumer are †¢ Psychological †¢ Personal †¢ Social †¢ Cultural (Robbins & Judge, 2004)A manger while making any decision about a product needs to keep in mind anything that falls under the lines defined by the above mentioned factors. iPod on the other hand catered to each of these factors in its own way. Psychological If we analyze the add campaigns for the iPod it would tell us that it shows people that iPod is a product that has been designed for people who are energetic who are young or at least feel young, the colorful pattern adopted in the ads as well as in the product depicts that it is a product that doesn’t cater to a specific class but is for everyone (BCG Expertise, 2009).Being a technological product it also appeals to the techno side of a human mind, the desire to stay ahead of others and own an object that would be a statement for them. iPod over the years achieved this status of being a self statemen t for people and it is a major success of the product indeed. A lot of people associate their choice of music with their personalities, and are very possessive about the songs they own and they listen to, the iPod enable them to keep this possession close to them and take it wherever they go and enjoy them whenever they feel like, hence gives them this sense of completion as well.Personal The appeal of the product is created towards the younger generation primarily the students and the freshly hired professionals. The product is a little high priced that is why it has always been a status symbol as well in many societies, it is also for the people who have some know-how of technology and are inclined to learn more (Apple Investor, 2008). For people of young age life is always on the move, it is very important for them to have things that are portable and are easy to carry.Music is by far the favorite pass time as well as a motivator in a way that it complements their work habits, he nce having a device that can be easily carried and taken to places and can carry your favorite things is a great attraction. Social The social aspect of an iPod is on the greatest factor influencing consumer behavior. iPod from its introduction in 2001 became an instant hit and the culture of iPod started, it became a second name for music for a lot of people (Apple iPod Touch, 2009).Apple had a lot to do in bringing and enabling this culture to flourish as they kept on bringing in new features and accessories for the iPod music for example the iTunes and its advancements, this kept the customers involved in the product while on the other hand gave reasons to people to talk about the product hence iPod became a topic of discussion as well as the time progressed.A lot of the success of iPod has to do with peer pressure and reference groups as well, people adopt things that they see in their surroundings, or with people who they are close to. This creates a desire among them to have t he same object as well, with iPod being a state of the art product the word of mouth was tremendous people couldn’t stop talking about their iPods and its features; this created hype in the market about the product and more and more people bought them. CulturalWith the advancement in technology the people wanted convenience in everything and hence the involvement of technology increased day by day in a common man’s life, this culture of technology also progressed with time. With this culture flourishing iPod came as a perfect fit, people were willing to adopt changes and try out new products, people were better educated and well aware of what the product was all about hence less effort was required in making the people understand the product also it enabled people to better receive the product (iPhone 3G, 2009).The today’s world has become really fast paced, time is the most expensive resource and everybody seems to be short of it; in such times it was hard for people to relax at their work places or enjoy a few minutes of good music, even if they were able to they didn’t feel comfortable with it. In such time iPod came as blessing as it was handy yet could carry loads of music files now people were able to enjoy their music while being at work or being busy with whatever they want to do (Bulik, 2008). Consumer Behavior ModelBlack Box Model The Black Box model is divided into three basic parts: †¢ Environmental Factors †¢ Black Box †¢ Buyer’s Response (Daft, 2001) Environmental Factors The Environmental Factors is the basic scenario in which a consumer is placed and has to make a decision these are his surroundings and how the product is presented to him and also how he perceives the product, how important is it for him and does he even feel the need for the product or not. The environmental factors are further divided into two categories 1.Environment: These are the conditions that the customer lives in and hi s surroundings, the aspects involved are the political situation of the country and its stability, this also involves the economical standing of the country the buying power of the consumer, the cultural aspect is also included in order to analyze the fact and understand how the customer will perceive the product and also the technical issues are also discussed for the reason that whether the society is able to adopt and understand and support the technology or not.In iPods case as the product was launched predominantly in the western markets, the environment was favorable although some problems were faced in countries else where, the financial and political support was there, the product was a perfect fit for the fast paced on the go culture and also the technology was very well received by the audience (Robbins & Judge, 2004). 2. Marketing Strategy: The marketing aspect of the environmental factor is more company related this is more about how the company designs its product, pric es it, promotes it and defines distribution channels based on the environment discussed above (Martin, 2008).The success of iPod is an indication of its great marketing strategy; the product was a very well thought device which catered to the consumer needs perfectly, secondly the promotion was such that it appealed to everyone and distribution channels were effective enough that it was available everywhere. The pricing although was a little question mark the big profit margin that the company enjoyed restricted some of the potential customers from using the product but then again it was good enough to make it an extremely profitable product. Black BoxBuyers’ Characteristics: This is the part where the buyer’s personality is involved, the attributes that give him his identity influence his decision making process. The way the buyer perceives a product, the attitude with which he receives the product, his personal likes and dislikes and also his background and his lifes tyle all combined influence the decision that he takes. The characteristics of the target market were thoroughly analyzed and were responded with a great product and a marketing strategy, the habits and interests of the young generation were very well responded.The buyer’s response is considered as a rational decision based on the factors above while in reality it might not be the case, a buyer can be influenced by other factors as well, his decision doesn’t have to be rational in the defined lines of the black box, he can be bias and unreasonable as well but even in that way he is satisfying his own need to optimum utility (BCG Expertise, 2009). The positive response to iPod from the consumers is not necessarily due to the fact that it caters their needs but it can also be due to the fact that the buyer wants to fit into a certain circle of people and needs iPod as a support for his status.Decision Making: The second part of the black box is the buyer’s decisio n making process, it starts off with the identification of a problem that is the buyer’s realization of a need or a desire, second part is the research where the buyer looks out to find how can he fulfill his need, when he finds out ways how he can fulfill his needs then he evaluates all the options available to him, after the evaluation he finally comes to a conclusion and buys a product. The last part of the process is the behavior of the buyer after the purchase whether he comes back the second time or not, does he have complains, is he satisfied etc.(Martin, 2008) In the decision making process the problem was that people weren’t able to find a high quality digital music player that was reliable yet looked good, they did their research and iPod being the first of its kind was the only option available to them, after evaluating it and finding it best against the rest they bought the product. After the sales most of the customer were genuinely satisfied the evidence for which is the number of iPods sold and number of tunes downloaded from iTunes (Graham, 2008). RecommendationsPricing Strategy The iPod has always been a premium product by apple, relatively high priced but high quality; the high price is primarily due to the high profit margin that is kept on each device. The survey that was conducted that was conducted was based on 4 major points: 1. It was asked that which in their perspective is the best digital music player, the response was clear as more than 70 percent of the responses replied iPod; this shows that iPod is positioned as the best product in the market among the consumers (Bulik, 2008). 2.On the question whether respondents owned an iPod or not around 55 percent of the respondents replied positively. 3. When asked if they would want to own an iPod of their more than 90 percent replied positively; this showed the great potential the product had in the market. 4. When those who didn’t own an iPod already that why they di dn’t have an iPod the majority replied that they were not able to afford it. Hence it can be concluded that the product has great potential and still can capture a bigger share in an already self dominated market, but the only barrier is the high price.The price needs to be lowered a bit so that affordability of the product increases. This is not just in the western nations but one of the major reasons that iPod has not been able to flourish as greatly in rest of the world is the fact that an already high priced product becomes extremely unaffordable for people of poor economies when they are caught currency exchange rates. Even these markets have tremendous potential but they fall pray to cheap Chinese copies or other portable devices when the desire to own an iPod is great.The profit margin can be reduced and the recovery can be made on other products such as the accessories and music. Music Diversity Music form different genres must be added to the iTunes feature in order to attract a worldwide audience. This is the biggest internet music seller portal, recently iTunes celebrated its billionth download in just 9 months, this shows that how great the operations related to iPod have become and can become even bigger if a little diversity is added (Graham, 2008). Music SharingSharing the music between two iPod users is still an issue as there is no convenient way of transferring a file from one iPod to another, although there have been attempts such as the miShare but still it is a hassle. What needs to be done is that a wireless system of transferring files between the devices must be made so that two users are able to share their songs and enjoy the music together. FM Radio iPod doesn’t have an FM Radio feature; the FM industry has become huge over the years and has a great fan base and listenership.Not giving such a feature is just missing on to opportunities that are quite simple to catch on, hence an FM feature needs to be added in the produ ct. Advertisements While the high spirit energetic young look for advertisement must be maintained but also different campaigns must be introduced in order to attract audiences who may not like to be associated with this perception. References Apple Investor. (2008). Retrieved April 24, 2009, from http://www. apple. com/investor Apple iPod Touch. (Apple Inc.). Retrieved April 19, 2009, from http://www. apple. com/ipodtouch/ BCG Expertise. (n. d. ). Retrieved April 21, 2009, from Boston Consulting Group: http://www. bcg. com/impact_expertise/publications/files/Summary_Shop_org. pdf Bulik, B. S. (June 2008). Apple's iPhone steals marketing thunder from iPod. Advertising Age , 4-55. Daft, R. (2001). Organization Theory and Design, 9th ed. Chicago: South-Western. Graham, J. (2008). Apple iPhone hasn't gotten on Flash bandwagon yet. USA Today . iPhone 3G.(2008). Retrieved April 23, 2009, from http://images. apple. com/br/accessibility/pdf/iPhone_3G_vpat. pdf Martin, R. (2008). Apple Goes After Business With Phone Apps And SDK. Informationweek , 23-24. Robbins, S. P. , & Judge, T. A. (2004). Organizational Behavior. New York: Pearsons. Survey: High Awareness, Strong Demand for Apple iPhone. (n. d. ). Retrieved April 22, 2009, from Marketing Charts: http://www. marketingcharts. com/interactive/survey-high-awareness-strong-demand-for-apple-iphone-694/