Effects of Postpartum Depression on Child Bearing and...

Effects of Postpartum Depression on Child Bearing and Rearing Family Postpartum depression (PPD) is a major event occurring in eight to fifteen percent of the woman population after delivering their child (Glavin, Smith, Sà ¸rum Ellefsen, 2010). The symptoms and causes of PPD are similar to depression symptoms in other periods of life (Glavin et al., 2010). These symptoms may include feelings of helplessness and hopelessness, loss of interest in daily activities, sleep changes, anger or irritability, loss of energy, self-loathing, reckless behavior and concentration problems. These symptoms may lead to other factors that are detrimental to the child bearing and rearing family. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the effects of PPD†¦show more content†¦In a study made by Gao et al. (2007), they found out that children of depressed mothers are three more times likely to develop behavioural problems. Second, children-parent attachment is very important to children development. According to Barnes (2006), â€Å"studies show a link between maternal depression and a new mother’s state of mind with respect to attachment†. Poor maternal-infant attachment is directly related to poor child development. Maternal-infant attachment enhances infant outcome (Barnes, 2006). Breastfeeding is one aspect of maternal-infant attachment that directly compliments children development. Infants that are not breast fed will not benefit from the more nutritious and anti-bodies rich breast milk. In retrospect, this may still be discussed under child development. However, poor maternal-infant attachment posed other health issues worth discussing separately. Being a mother is often very overwhelming to many women. Negligent parenting may result if there is no attachment between the parent and infant. Negligence poses increase health risk for the child as mentioned in the first paragraph. In addition, depressed women may respond to their infants with increased withdrawal and hostility making the child at risk for child abuse (Barnes, 2006). Consequently, child abuse may cause trauma that may affect the child’s lifelong psychological and cognitive health. Poor maternal-infant

Module 1 Essay - 2577 Words

MODULE ONE AN INTRODUCTION TO GENESIS Bible Topics | * Mosaic Authorship * Dating of Genesis * Purpose of Writing * Theological Themes of Genesis | People to Know | Places to Know | Terms to Know | SpinozaAstruc | | Documentary TheoryCovenant History | Study Questions Answer the following questions (based on the reading), save it and then submit it to the professor. 1. What is the Documentary Theory? The documentary theory, proposes the first five books of the Bible was derived from originally independent, parallel and complete narratives, which were subsequently combined into the current form by a series of editors. The number of these is usually set at four, but this is not an essential part of the theory. The†¦show more content†¦On the other hand, if the earth is billions of years old, this wouldnt prove that either of these had occurred, but it would make them possible. There is another reason for the importance. God presumably doesnt teach us things for no reason. If He has clearly taught that the earth is a certain age, then that must be important. Further, if the earth is only thousands of years old, then erosion and deposition, and other slow geologic processes, cant have been responsible for many of the geologic phenomena which we observe. 9. What is considered the most important purpose of Genesis? Why? Purpose of Writing: The Book of Genesis has sometimes been called the seed-plot of the entire Bible. Most of the major doctrines in the Bible are introduced in seed form in the Book of Genesis. Along with the fall of man, Gods promise of salvation or redemption is recorded (Genesis 3:15). The doctrines of creation, imputation of sin, justification, atonement, depravity, wrath, grace, sovereignty, responsibility, and many more are all addressed in this book of origins called Genesis. Many of the great questions of life are answered in Genesis. (1) Where did I come from? (God created us - Genesis 1:1) (2) Why am I here? (We are here to have a relationship with God - Genesis 15:6) (3) Where am I going? (We have a destination after death - Genesis 25:8). Genesis appeals to the scientist, the historian, the theologian, theShow MoreRelatedModule 1 Hw1347 Words   |  6 PagesModule 1 Homework 1. Describe three or four benefits of globalization. Globalization is increasing interdependency of nations and businesses throughout the world. It has had a profound effect on both markets and production. It has lowered or eliminated government barriers to export-import trade. Gives firms access to the worlds vast offerings of food, clothing, and other manufactured goods. Companies can also benefit from foreign manufacturing, shifting factory production to less developedRead MoreModule 1 Assignment2093 Words   |  9 PagesSUCCESSES IN TECHNOLOGY Successes in Technology Leah Andersen Allied American University Author Note This paper was prepared for SOC250, Module 1 Homework Assignment taught by Instructor Jesse Kleis. 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Uncertainty Reduction Theory free essay sample

Soumya Prem Roll no: 20120119150 Uncertainty reduction theory Charles Berger and Richard Calabrese This theory explains how communication is used to reduce the uncertainty among people when they meet each other for the first time. It is assumed that when strangers meet, their primary objective is to reduce uncertainty about the other person involved in the interaction. We always want to reduce the uncertainties about our surroundings and the people in it since being uncertain about anything is not a pleasant feeling to have. Berger proposed that there are 3 factors that influence whether people will want to work towards reducing uncertainties about a certain situation. 1. Anticipation of future interaction – You will try to reduce uncertainties if you know there is a possibility of meeting this person again. Therefore, you are more likely to use uncertainty reduction behaviour when you meet someone at a party that you might be interested in. 2. Incentive value – If this person is capable to doing something for you or against you even, then there are higher chances of you trying to reduce uncertainties. 3. Deviance If the person behaves oddly and shows some bizarre characteristics, you are likely to use uncertainty reduction. For example if you meet a new prospective client whom you have to meet in the future and could give your company a new project and has a strange fascination for the colour purple, you would be interested in communicating more to fit the pieces of the jigsaw puzzle together to get to know who she really is. There are 3 ways to seek information from the other person- 1. Passive Strategy Observing someone without being observed 2. Active Strategy Asking a third party for more information 3. Interactive Strategy Obtaining information directly by asking questions and offering personal information about yourself A demonstration of this can be seen in this scene from a very famous Hollywood movie ‘Hitch’ where Will Smith’s character tries to seek more information about Sara Melas at a bar where in he uses all the strategies mentioned above for interaction. http://www. youtube. com/watch? v=x-CBqcb0Kcc Berger proposes a series of 8 axioms to explain the connection between uncertainty and eight key variables of relationship development which are 1. Verbal communication -As the amount of verbal communication increases, the level of uncertainty decreases. As uncertainty decreases, the amount of verbal communication increases. 2. Non verbal warmth As nonverbal warmth increases, uncertainty levels decreases in a situation. In turn a decrease in uncertainty level will cause an increase in nonverbal warmth. 3. Information seeking –When uncertainty is more, the tendency to seek information increases. As uncertainty decreases, information seeking behaviour decreases. 4. Self disclosure – When uncertainty levels are high, the levels of intimacy in communication is less. As uncertainty reduces the level of intimacy increases. 5. Reciprocity – Higher the uncertainty, higher the reciprocity. Lower the uncertainty, lower the reciprocity. 6. Similarity Similarities between people decreases uncertainty, while dissimilarities increases uncertainty. 7. Liking Increase in uncertainty decreases liking and decrease in uncertainty increases liking. 8. Shared networks – If there are shared networks among the two people like common friends then uncertainty is less and vice versa. Uncertainty reduction theory in movies – Meet the parents Meeting someone for the first time can be a nerve racking experience for many. In this movie Greg is meeting his girlfriend’s parents for the first time. Jack, Pam’s father is overly protective of his daughter. He constantly mocks Greg’s choice of occupation as a nurse and makes him uncomfortable in a lot of situations with an intention to keep him away from his daughter. Greg tries to impress Jack from time to time but nothing seems to work in his favour because Jack does not show any liking towards him. Jack’s verbal output, nonverbal cues and constant information seeking causes Greg to fear him. Consequently, there is never a stable interaction between Jack and Greg as there is a lot of uncertainty between them. Applications of Uncertainty Reduction theory In an article titled ‘Interactive Uncertainty Reduction Strategies and Verbal Affection in Computer-Mediated Communication’ published by Marjolijn L. Antheunis, Alexander P. Schouten, Patti M. Valkenburg and Jochen Peter, they investigated the language-based strategies that computer-mediated communication (CMC) users employ to reduce uncertainty in the absence of nonverbal cues. CMC condition had i. Higher levels of intimacy than face to face condition ii. More affection statements than face to face condition iii. There was no observed differences between text-only CMC and visual CMC condition In another article titled ‘The Acquaintanceship Process: An Examination of Uncertainty, Information Seeking, and Social Attraction during Initial Conversation’ published by William Douglas, the relationship between uncertainty reduction, information seeking, and liking during unstructured initial interaction was studied. Analyses showed that Significant linear and quadratic trends in the uncertainty scores. Global uncertainty-related to uncertainty about the specific person after interaction and the amount of uncertainty reduction that they achieved. Uncertainty and liking were inversely correlated both before and after interaction. Global uncertainty -predictive of amount of information seeking Specific uncertainty -unrelated to the frequency of both asking questions and disclosing. Critique point of view It can be argued that reducing uncertainty about the self and another in an initial encounter might not be an individuals primary concern. A more primary goal would be to maximize relational outcomes. It is not always necessary to reduce uncertainties for obtaining your incentive from the other person. Also a want for information rather than lack of information is what promotes information-seeking in initial encounters with other people. Also one of the axioms states that as the level of uncertainty reduces, liking increases. This may not be necessarily true since there can be a situation where in after communicating you come to realise that the other person possesses qualities that you are not fond of or comfortable about. In this case, there will not be an increase in liking rather there is a possibility of the opposite, i. e. a decrease in liking. Scholarly article sources: http://crx. sagepub. com/content/21/2/154. abstract http://crx. sagepub. com/content/early/2011/06/01/0093650211410420. abstract Other sources: http://www. wikipedia. org/ http://wikis. lib. ncsu. edu/index. php/Uncertainty_Reduction_Theory http://www. youtube. com/

The Color Purple Essay Example

The Color Purple Paper Compare how Celie and Jeanette deal with the influence of Mr. ____ and Mother in The Color Purple and Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit. Refer to the way structure and language demonstrates their resilience. Both protagonists seek others for the comfort they are lacking from Mr. ___ and Mother, yet neither Shug nor Melanie or Katy are able to truly compensate for what they have lost. Shugs abandonment of Celie appears to hurt her more than Mr. ____s physical abuse ever did: My heart broke. Shug love somebody else. Celie does not need to be well educated, and Walkers language does not need to be sophisticated to show the pain that Celie is feeling. These two short sentences create enormous impact, particularly as they open one of the letters/prayers. It also evokes more sympathy here from the reader because of how much Shug means to Celie, My life stop with Mr. ___ but start up again with Shug. Celie, like Jeanette, loses little when her primary caregiver is insensitive, yet loses everything when her soul mate is, I feel my heart begin to cramp I cover it with my hand. This gesture is so achingly poignant because of its simplicity, and because it is so child-like; Celie has not been taught any other way to cope. Wintersons description, though more detailed, describes a strikingly similar reaction to loss from Jeanette: We cried each other to sleep sweating and crying with mixed up bodies and swollen faces. It is unsurprising that both characters react almost identically when suffering, due to not receiving the physical comfort they deserve from those that should provide it. We will write a custom essay sample on The Color Purple specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on The Color Purple specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on The Color Purple specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer There is no doubt, however, that finding this comfort from another source does help Jeanette and Celie, even if it is only temporary, I was delighted. She was my friend, and I wasnt used to that. This is particularly true in The Color Purple: Shug, throughout the novel, gives Celie passion, confidence, and reassurance, For the first time in my life, I feel just right and is everything that Mr. ____ is not. Walkers novel is so powerful because of the development we see in Celie, essentially because of Shugs support. At the beginning, Celie is fragile, with little optimism, yet after Shug, Nettie and Sofia act as inspiration, she is able to confront Mr. _____: Your dead body just the welcome mat I need. This is such a contrast to Celies earlier behaviour, but shows resilience rather than reluctant acceptance. Although not to the same degree, Jeanette finds similar physical comfort in Melanie that she lacks in her mother: We never usually touched except in anger. Melanie, Katy and Miss Jewsbury however, are not inspiration for Jeanette, but merely figures in her life that will offer comfort. Celie and Jeanette differ in terms of confidence, yet not in their need for support: Knowing Melanie was a much happier thing I needed that kind of friend. Here, Winterson could be suggesting that Jeanette even recognised that she was lacking that kind of friend, which is not unlikely, as Jeanettes language displays a certain wise, tolerant quality throughout the novel. The use of the adjective much happier clearly shows the positive influence Melanie has, and that Jeanette still believed that their relationship, in hindsight, was worthwhile. Escapism forms a large part of Celie and Jeanettes ability to be resilient; through faith or fantasy, both characters find a way of distracting themselves from their undesirable reality: Most times I pretend I aint there. Celies letters/prayers are evidence enough of her frequent escapism, and writing to God or Nettie is used as a release. Jeanette however, uses fairy tales and symbolic stories to express herself. The enormity of Mothers influence on Jeanette is shown in the way even the fictional characters she creates are based on reality. Even in fantasy, she cannot truly escape. The novel contains several references to accounts of Sir Perceval leaving King Arthur, as well as a princes quest to find the perfect woman. The latter is clearly representative of Mother wanting Jeanette to be a saviour: She would get a child, train it, build it, dedicate it to the Lord. This language is not typical of a mothers to a child, but rather describing some construction project; the child is not described as human, with specific and specialised needs, but instead an object to be put through a process. The verb train is not usually associated with motherhood, but has more military connotations, suggesting a definite lack of affection from Mother that is acknowledged by Jeanette. Jeanette also refers to characters in literature as role-models, something Celie is unable to do because of her lack of education, So I was alone. I thought of Jane Eyre, who faced many trials and was always brave. Similarly to the unrealistic expectations her mother has of her, Jeanette is basing her behaviour on a fictional character, expecting too much of herself: I want a woman who is perfect. This is unusually nai ve of Jeanette, a typically objective character who seems far wiser than her years at times, but does show how her Mother has influenced her in terms of striving for something impossibly out of reach, It must exist because I want it. The desperation for perfection shown with the use of the modal verb must fully conveys the pressure Jeanette is under to conform to her mothers ideals. Escaping into a fantasy world is her only real opportunity to attempt to remain resilient. One significant difference between the narrative voices in the two novels is the pressure they face to rebel or conform. While Celie is constantly being berated for not standing up to Mr. ____, Jeanette faces harsh criticism for straying from the strict boundaries of her religion: Youre a disgrace. Both protagonists eventually concede to this pressure, and Celie grows in strength while Jeanette accepts that arguing achieves nothing: No mum, I replied, its not like that at all. But she wasnt listening. This significant lapse in communication is disappointing in a relationship that should be as close and supportive as that of a mother and daughter, and evokes sympathy from the reader towards Jeanettes character, as well as hostility for the character of Mother. Even Jeanettes fantasies reflect her reluctance to argue with Mother: anyone who disagrees with the Prince, her fantasy parallel, is beheaded. Unlike Celies feelings for Mr. ____, Jeanette does not speak about being in fear of her mother, but rather accepts that confrontation is not effective: Well thats that then, I thought. And it was. The fact that Jeanette, as the narrative voice, can confirm that her earlier thoughts were correct, shows how often she must experience this. It also reflects a certain maturity at being able to assess a situation, and walk away if it cannot be resolved. Her explanation of Pastor Finchs whereabouts even shows wit at such a young age: playing with the fuzzy felt, adding this embarrassing detail purely to show her maturity and eye for humour over the Pastor. The use of first person narrative allows us to clearly see how Jeanette and Celie are finding ways of coping. Surprisingly, there is almost no use of denial by either protagonist: a typical coping technique. They are both very honest, and this narrative structure allows the reader to see their genuine feelings, with no reason to hide anything. Jeanettes reaction to Pastor Finch is not truthful; she does not tell him that she was just beginning to enjoy a rewrite of Daniel in the lions den, but instead acts as if it was a mistake, putting on my best, blessed face. The adjective best could even suggest that she is so used to these situations that she has been practising, and now knows which one is the most effective. She is used to the behaviour of the adults in her life, and has learnt that protesting will only get her into more trouble. One key contrast between Celie and Jeanette is their self-confidence. Jeanette, although defeatist at times, does seem to realise her potential, and is rarely self-pitying: I cannot recall a time when I did not know that I was special. Celie, however, has a clear association between women and oppression, one that is only reinforced by the appalling treatment of Sofia, and one that doesnt ever seem to truly leave her. Her perceptive observation of Harpo emphasises this association: He strong in body but weak in will. He scared. His eyes be sad and thoughtful. His face begin to look like a woman face. The detail of this description suggests that Celie recognises so much of herself in Harpo, the last line being particularly moving. It implies that through her experience, and Mr. ____s influence, sadness has been inextricably linked to being a woman, particularly through the use of the verb begin. Harpos fear and dejection is only one aspect of the emotional isolation that Celie feels, making the reader question exactly what a woman face looks like to Celie, if fear and sadness form only the foundation. The protagonists love interests are both rude when they are first introduced, yet neither Celie nor Jeanette are discouraged by Melanies Ive said no and Shugs You sure is ugly, despite their blunt and abrasive tone. Mr. ___ and Mothers constant emotional abuse leaves them expecting a lack of emotional support in a relationship, and results in them accepting that society will always treat them like this: There was nothing for me to do but contemplate my fate and lie still. The use of the verb contemplate links to Jeanettes reliance on prayer, and the fact that there is nothing for her to do but be passive, emphasises that this is all she knows, and is the only comfort she can receive. Religion plays such a significant part in both novels, as both an explanation for the behaviour of many of the characters, and a form of escapism for the two protagonists. Celie turns to God for comfort, whereas Jeanette turns because she is forced to: [I had] enrage[d] my mother because I had abandoned biblical themes. There rarely seems to be a sense of real therapy or enjoyment from Jeanette when reading the Bible, or learning about biblical stories, and instead she often adapts them, making her own versions. This could be showing that she doesnt want to conform to one idea of coping with their emotional abuse, or one set of beliefs: I had all kinds of variations, but usually I drowned it. The use of casual violence connected on more than one occasion with these innocent biblical stories is humorous in places, yet conveys the stark message that Jeanette feels some sense of anger towards the people who are forcing her to believe these tales, and base her life around them. Pastor Finch even turns something as insignificant as Jeanettes age into a religious warning: The demon can return SEVENFOLD. Similarly, the incident with the fuzzy felt is evidence of how religion stifles Jeanettes imagination, and because her mother follows it so closely, she is as afraid as Pastor Finch is of over-crossing the boundaries, But thats not right Lets put it right shall we? He puts the importance of copying the exact biblical image before the actual enjoyment for Jeanette, emphasising how patronising and controlling she views them as. Celie, however, is able to appreciate the value of faith because it is never imposed on her: All this week I suffer. I turn to prayer. The verb turn emphasises how it is an escape for Celie, and that she is turning from something that is distressing. There is also no self-pity from her here, but simply I suffer in the description of her pain, without any detailed melodrama. This conveys a real resilience from Celie: that she is able to move on without dwelling on the past. Unlike Jeanette, she finds a life without religion difficult, and needs faith to struggle through, But it aint easy trying to do without God. Even if you know he aint there, trying to do without him is a strain. One technique Celie certainly uses to deal with Mr. ___s influence is to deflect her pain by ensuring she is not the only victim: Beat her. I say. When she tells Harpo to beat Sofia, the reader sees an unfamiliar Celie, one with malice. However, her inability to allow it to leave her conscience stops the reader from ever really altering their respect or admiration for Celies character, particularly when she justifies her behaviour: I say it cause Im a fool, I say. I say it cause Im jealous of you, I say it cause you do what I cant. Fight. At this point in the novel, Celie is not strong enough to fight Mr. ____, and so uses Sofia as a proxy. The repetition of I say shows Celies anxiety and evident uneasiness with being this cruel, though her behaviour is not unforgivable, given the trauma she has suffered, and her hasty change in attitude: You still bothering Sofia? Sofia love you. I dont know what more you want. Like her mother, Jeanette begins to enforce religious ideas on the people around her, and instead of being praised like she would be at home, she is criticised at school: You have been talking about Hell to young minds. It seems to be saying that despite this very Christian idea of hell, telling young children about it is wrong for fear it might corrupt them. The phrase, young minds implies this, in the way that they could be moulded, perhaps suggesting a fear of Satanism within society, which is certainly reflected throughout the novel: Parents, watch your children for the signs. This is also ironic in that a religious idea is not fit for exposure to a young, pure, mind, and contrasts with so much of Mothers behaviour, Whatever it is, its not holy. There is the sense, with both novels, that society plays a major part in Celie and Jeanettes lack of freedom: All my life I had to fight. The two protagonists are not the only ones experiencing this kind of oppression, nor are Mr. and Mother the only ones enforcing it. In Jeanettes case, it is her religions boundaries that restrict her, and with Celie, it is the social ones. Mother and Mr. ____ are merely representative of the figures in society that are so controlling, and are certainly not rare. This explains, in part, why there is so little abhorrence felt by the protagonists towards Mr. ___ and Mother. They are not used to being treated any differently, and so ultimately, instead of trying to physically escape, both characters learn to be resilient: Im pore, Im black, I may be ugly but Im here.

Essay on Abstinence Teen Sexual Activity

Essay on Abstinence Teen Sexual Activity Essay on Abstinence: Teen Sexual Activity Killing Abstinence In Killing Abstinence by Robert Rector Robert Abstinence programs are questioned. Robert states that the media had recently stated that Abstinence programs had dramatically reduced teen sexual activity, and this surprised many people. According to Robert anyone who was at all knowledgably wouldn’t have been surprised by this fact at all. Robert also talks about the positive effects being abstinent can have on teens, besides the obvious lack of STDS or ability to become pregnant. Some of the other many benefits Robert talks about include happiness, better grades, and that teens are more academically inclined. According to Robert this is simply because teens who choose to be abstinent are â€Å"somewhat smarter and more mature, and have greater self-control†. Robert also mentions that sex is an â€Å"overpowering psychological that can cause youth to loose future orientation and work focus.† Robert believes that the main problem behind teen pregnancy is the progra ms that have replaced abstinence programs today. Where abstinence programs warned teens about the dangers of sex, the Sex Ed programs that remain are sub-par. Robert says that the curriculum in these sex ed courses shows students that society expects and accepts teen sexual activity and he thinks the abstinence programs worked better to protect teens. However, Sex Ed programs today do not promote sexual activity, and they are a very effective way of helping teens. Sex Ed programs are more effective than abstinence programs By telling teens not to have sex it only makes them want to do it more. Abstinence programs scare teens into thinking they are doing something ‘bad’ if they have sex. Human sexuality is a wonderful thing and we shouldn’t place negative connotations in our teen’s minds. Hormones are at a peak during the teenage years. Teen’s bodies are telling them to have sex, and we shouldn’t make them feel bad about it. Teenage desire to explore sexuality, combined with a desire to rebel doesn’t match up to abstinence programs. Sex programs do not ‘accept and promote’ but they instead protect. For example, Sex Ed programs focus

Science Terms and Definitions You Should Know

Science Terms and Definitions You Should Know Scientific experiments involve variables, controls, a hypothesis, and a host of other concepts and terms that may be confusing. This is a glossary of important science experiment terms and definitions. Glossary of Science Terms Central Limit Theorem: states that with a large enough sample, the sample mean will be normally distributed. A normally distributed sample mean is necessary to apply the t test, so if you are planning to perform a statistical analysis of experimental data, its important to have a sufficiently large sample. Conclusion: determination of whether the hypothesis should be accepted or rejected. Control Group: test subjects randomly assigned to not receive the experimental treatment. Control Variable: any variable that does not change during an experiment. Also known as constant variable Data:  (singular: datum) facts, numbers, or values obtained in an experiment. Dependent Variable: the variable that responds to the independent variable. The dependent variable is the one being measured in the experiment. Also known as the dependent measure, responding variable double-blind: neither the researcher nor the subject knows whether the subject is receiving the treatment or a placebo. Blinding helps reduce biased results. Empty Control Group: a type of control group which does not receive any treatment, including a placebo. Experimental Group: test subjects randomly assigned to receive the experimental treatment. Extraneous Variable: extra variables (not the independent, dependent, or control variable) that may influence an experiment, but are not accounted for or measured or are beyond control. Examples may include factors you consider unimportant at the time of  an experiment, such as the manufacturer of the glassware in a reaction or the color of paper used to make a paper airplane. Hypothesis: a prediction of whether the independent variable will have an effect on the dependent variable or a prediction of the nature of the effect.   Independence  or  Independently:  means one factor does not exert influence on another. For example, what one study participant does should not influence what another participant does. They make decisions independently. Independence is critical for a meaningful statistical analysis. Independent Random Assignment: randomly selecting whether a test subject will be in a treatment or control group. Independent Variable: the variable that is manipulated or changed by the researcher. Independent Variable Levels: refers to changing the independent variable from one value to another (e.g., different drug doses, different amounts of time). The different values are called levels. Inferential Statistics: applying statistics (math) to infer characteristics of a population based on a representative sample from the population. Internal Validity: an experiment is said to have internal validity if it can accurately determine whether the independent variable produces an effect. Mean: the average calculated by adding up all the scores and then dividing by the number of scores.   Null Hypothesis: the no difference or no effect hypothesis, which predicts the treatment will not have an effect on the subject. The null hypothesis is useful because it is easier to assess with a statistical analysis than other forms of a hypothesis. Null Results (Nonsignificant Results): results that do not disprove the null hypothesis. Null results dont prove the null hypothesis, because the results may have resulted from a lack of power. Some null results are type 2 errors. p 0.05: This is an indication of how often chance alone could account for the effect of the experimental treatment. A value p 0.05 means that 5 times out of a hundred, you could expect this difference between the two groups, purely by chance. Since the chance of the effect occurring by chance is so small, the researcher may conclude the experimental treatment did indeed have an effect. Note other p or probability values are possible. The 0.05 or 5% limit simply is a common benchmark of statistical significance. Placebo (Placebo Treatment):  a  fake treatment that should have no effect, outside of the power of suggestion. Example: In drug trials, test patients may be given a pill containing the drug or a placebo, which resembles the drug (pill, injection, liquid) but doesnt contain the active ingredient. Population: the entire group the researcher is studying. If the researcher cannot gather data from the population, studying large random samples taken from the population may be used to estimate how the population would respond. Power: the ability to observe differences or avoid making Type 2 errors. Random or Randomness: selected or performed without following any pattern or method. To avoid unintentional bias, researchers often use random number generators or flip coins  to make selections. (learn more) Results: the explanation or interpretation of experimental data. Statistical Significance: observation, based on the application of a statistical test, that a relationship probably is not due to pure chance. The probability is stated (e.g., p 0.05) and the results are said to be statistically significant. Simple Experiment: basic experiment designed to assess whether there are a cause and effect relationship or test a prediction. A fundamental simple experiment may have only one test subject, compared with a controlled experiment, which has at least two groups. Single-blind: when either the experimenter or subject is unaware whether the subject is getting the treatment or a placebo. Blinding the researcher helps prevent bias when the results are analyzed. Blinding the subject prevents the participant from having a biased reaction. T-test: common statistical data analysis applied to experimental data to test a hypothesis. The t-test computes the ratio between the difference between the group means and the standard error of the difference (a measure of the likelihood the group means could differ purely by chance). A rule of thumb is that the results are statistically significant if you observe a difference between the values that are three times larger than the standard error of the difference, but its best to look up the ratio required for significance on a t table. Type I Error (Type 1 error): occurs when you reject the null hypothesis, but it was actually true. If you perform the t-test and set p 0.05, there is less than a 5% chance you could make a Type I error by rejecting the hypothesis based on random fluctuations in the data. Type II Error (Type 2 error): occurs when you accept the null hypothesis, but it was actually false. The experimental conditions had an effect, but the researcher failed to find it statistically significant.

Obesity and its effect on Insurers and Insurance costs Research Paper

Obesity and its effect on Insurers and Insurance costs - Research Paper Example It was also interesting to note that 4 of them were men while the rest were women. My observation of the obese persons pointed to the reality of the epidemic. Whereas more Americans stand to be obese, this condition has a negative impact on their health, social wellbeing, work, and on their insurance costs. In the United States, researchers have found out that obesity is associated with an array of health complication such as depression. Strine et al. carried out a study of obese persons and they found out that people who have obesity are more likely to be depressed as compared to those who drink of smoke (p. 127). This research pointed to the fact that obesity creates a favorable environment where obese individuals are predisposed to other diseases. As a result of this finding, it is correct to postulate that many Americans are likely to have depression as majorities have a body mass index of 30 and above. Prevalence of obesity can cause cancer in individuals. Research on the prevalence of cancer indicates that a significant number of people with cancer are obese (Berger 129). According to Berger, research reveals that there is a strong correlation between obesity and a number of malignancies such as cancer of the breast (p. 129). Given these findings, there is no doubt that obesity in the United States can pave way for variants of cancer in individuals. This impact is extensive and can affect all age groups because obesity spans a across all the age structures. Obesity can also cause diabetes, especially the type II diabetes. Tsai, Asch and Wadden argued that obesity is strong determination of type II diabetes in children and adults (p. 1651). The study trio carried out a research where they found out that obesity increased body resistance to insulin. This condition was prevalent in adults and children as well. From this research, there seem to be a relation between obesity and

Human Nature Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Human Nature - Essay Example Maslow’s hierarchy of need theory, which associate motivation with people’s needs, informs my view of human nature. The theory identifies different levels of needs that expand to the macro social environment, but with the aim of meeting an individual’s needs. Self-actualization needs, for example, may lead to macro social achievement such as establishing and managing a social center for the benefit of needy members of a society, but the key drive is an individual’s need for self-actualization (Griffin and Moorhead 86). My view on human’s desire is consistent with Hobbes’ view that factors such as fear and curiosity motivate humans. The view is however contrary to Locke’s view that some aspects in life are unattainable and people should stop striving towards them. This is because Locke’s view undermines motivation (Rosen 8, 9). Based on my conception that people are self centered and may therefore undermine others’ interest, a set of rules that provide for strict and significant penalties for non compliance, is necessary for governing people. Without such a set of rules, however, people may exercise their arbitrary power and undermine other’s rights and

Strategic management Essay Example for Free

Strategic management Essay Introduction Preparing an effective case analysis In most strategic management courses, cases are used extensively as a teaching tool. 1 A key reason is that cases provide active learners with opportunities to use the strategic management process to identify and solve organisational problems. Thus, by analysing situations that are described in cases and presenting the results, active learners (that is, students) become skilled at effectively using the tools, techniques and concepts that combine to form the strategic management process. The cases that follow are concerned with actual companies. Presented within the cases are problems and situations that managers and those with whom they work must analyse and resolve. As you will see, a strategic management case can focus on an entire industry, a single organisation or a business unit of a large, diversified firm. The strategic management issues facing not-for-profit organisations also can be examined using the case analysis method. Basically, the case analysis method calls for a careful diagnosis of an organization’s current conditions (as manifested by its external and internal environments) so that appropriate strategic actions can be recommended in light of the firm’s strategic intent and strategic mission. Strategic actions are taken to develop and then use a firm’s core competencies to select and implement different strategies, including business-level, corporatelevel, acquisition and restructuring, international and cooperative strategies. Thus, appropriate strategic actions help the firm to survive in the long run as it creates and uses competitive advantages as the foundation for achieving strategic competitiveness and earning above-average returns. The case method that we are recommending to you has a rich heritage as a pedagogical approach to the study and understanding of managerial effectiveness. 2 As an active learner, your preparation is critical to successful use of the case analysis method. Without careful study and analysis, active learners lack the insights required to participate fully in the discussion of a firm’s situation and the strategic actions that are appropriate. Instructors adopt different approaches in their application of the case analysis method. Some require active learners/students to use a specific analytical procedure to examine an organisation; others provide less structure, expecting students to learn by developing their own unique analytical method. Still other instructors believe that a moderately structured framework should be used to analyse a firm’s situation and make appropriate recommendations. Your lecturer or tutor will determine the specific approach you take. The approach we are presenting to you is a moderately structured framework. We divide our discussion of a moderately structured case analysis method framework into four sections. First, we describe the importance of understanding the skills active learners can acquire through effective use of the case analysis method. In the second section, we provide you with a process-oriented framework. This framework can be of value in your efforts to analyse cases and then present the results of your work. Using this framework in a classroom setting yields valuable experiences that can, in turn, help you to successfully complete assignments that you will receive from your employer. The third section is where we describe briefly what you can expect to occur during in-class case discussions. As this description shows, the relationship and interactions between instructors and active learners/students during case discussions are different than they are during lectures. In the final section, we Introduction Preparing an effective case analysis present a moderately structured framework that we believe can help you to prepare effective oral and written presentations. Written and oral communication skills also are valued highly in many organisational settings; hence, their development today can serve you well in the future. Skills gained through use of the case analysis method. The case analysis method is based on a philosophy that combines knowledge acquisition with significant involvement from students as active learners. In the words of Alfred North Whitehead, this philosophy ‘rejects the doctrine that students had first learned passively, and then, having learned should apply knowledge’. 3 In contrast to this philosophy, the case analysis method is based on principles that were elaborated upon by John Dewey: Only by wrestling with the conditions of this problem at hand, seeking and finding his own way out, does [the student] think If he cannot devise his own solution (not, of course, in isolation, but in correspondence with the teacher and other pupils) and find his own way out he will not learn, not even if he can recite some correct answer with a hundred percent accuracy. 4 The case analysis method brings reality into the classroom. When developed and presented effectively, with rich and interesting detail, cases keep conceptual discussions grounded in reality. Experience shows that simple fictional accounts of situations and collections of actual organisational data and articles from public sources are not as effective for learning as fully developed cases. A comprehensive case presents you with a partial clinical study of a real-life situation that faced managers as well as other stakeholders, including employees. A case presented in narrative form provides motivation for involvement with and analysis of a specific situation. By framing alternative strategic actions and by confronting the complexity and ambiguity of the practical world, case analysis provides extraordinary power for your involvement with a personal learning experience. Some of the potential consequences of using the case method are summarised in Exhibit 1. As Exhibit 1 suggests, the case analysis method can assist active learners in the development of their analytical and judgement skills. Case analysis also helps you learn how to ask the right questions. By this we mean questions that focus on the core strategic issues that are included in a case. Active learners/students with managerial aspirations can improve their ability to identify underlying problems rather than focusing on superficial symptoms as they develop skills at asking probing yet appropriate questions. The collection of cases your instructor chooses to assign can expose you to a wide variety of organisations and decision situations. This approach vicariously broadens your experience base and provides insights into many types of managerial situations, tasks and responsibilities. Such indirect experience can help you to make a more informed career decision about the industry and managerial situation you believe will prove to be challenging and satisfying. Finally, experience in analysing cases definitely enhances your problemsolving skills, and research indicates that the case method for this class is better than the lecture method. 5 Furthermore, when your instructor requires oral and written presentations, your communication skills will be honed through use of the case method. Of course, these added skills depend on your preparation as C-4 Exhibit 1 | Consequences of student involvement with the case method 1 Case analysis requires students to practise important managerial skills—diagnosing, making decisions, observing, listening and persuading—while preparing for a case discussion. 2 Cases require students to relate analysis and action, to develop realistic and concrete actions despite the complexity and partial knowledge characterising the situation being studied. 3 Students must confront the intractability of reality—complete with absence of needed information, an imbalance between needs and available resources, and conflicts among competing objectives. 4 Students develop a general managerial point of view—where responsibility is sensitive to action in a diverse environmental context. Source: C. C. Lundberg and C. Enz, 1993, ‘A framework for student case preparation’, Case Research Journal, 13 (Summer), p. 134. Introduction Preparing an effective case analysis well as your instructor’s facilitation of learning. However, the primary responsibility for learning is yours. The quality of case discussion is generally acknowledged to require, at a minimum, a thorough mastery of case facts and some independent analysis of them. The case method therefore first requires that you read and think carefully about each case. Additional comments about the preparation you should complete to successfully discuss a case appear in the next section. Student preparation for case discussion If you are inexperienced with the case method, you may need to alter your study habits. A lecture-oriented course may not require you to do intensive preparation for each class period. In such a course, you have the latitude to work through assigned readings and review lecture notes according to your own schedule. However, an assigned case requires significant and conscientious preparation before class. Without it, you will be unable to contribute meaningfully to in-class discussion. Therefore, careful reading and thinking about case facts, as well as reasoned analyses and the development of alternative solutions to case problems, are essential. Recommended alternatives should flow logically from core problems identified through study of the case. Exhibit 2 shows a set of steps that can help you to familiarise yourself with a case, identify problems and propose strategic actions that increase the probability that a firm will achieve strategic competitiveness and earn above-average returns. C-5 Exhibit 2 | An effective case analysis process Step 1: Gaining familiarity a. In general – determine who, what, how, where and when (the critical facts of the case). b. In detail – identify the places, persons, activities and contexts of the situation. c. Step 2: Recognising symptoms Recognise the degree of certainty/uncertainty of acquired information. a. List all indicators (including stated ‘problems’) that something is not as expected or as desired. b. Ensure that symptoms are not assumed to be the problem (symptoms should lead to identification of the problem). Step 3: Identifying goals a. Identify critical statements by major parties (e. g. people, groups, the work unit, etc. ). b. List all goals of the major parties that exist or can be reasonably inferred. Step 4: Conducting the analysis a. Decide which ideas, models and theories seem useful. b. Apply these conceptual tools to the situation. c. Step 5: Making the diagnosis As new information is revealed, cycle back to sub-steps (a) and (b). a. Identify predicaments (goal inconsistencies). b. Identify c. Step 6: Doing the action planning c. problems (discrepancies between goals and performance). Prioritise predicaments/problems regarding timing, importance, etc. a. Specify and prioritise the criteria used to choose action alternatives. b. Discover or invent feasible action alternatives. Examine the probable consequences of action alternatives. d. Select a course of action. e. Design an implementation plan/schedule. f. Create a plan for assessing the action to be implemented. Source: C. C. Lundberg and C. Enz, 1993, ‘A framework for student case preparation’, Case Research Journal, 13 (Summer), p. 144. Introduction Preparing an effective case analysis Gaining familiarity Identifying goals The third step of effective case analysis calls for you to identify the goals of the major organisations, business units and/or individuals in a case. As appropriate, you should also identify each firm’s strategic intent and strategic mission. Typically, these direction-setting statements (goals, strategic intents and strategic missions) are derived from comments made by central characters in the organisation, business unit or top management team as described in the case and/or from public documents (for example, an annual report). Completing this step successfully can sometimes be difficult. Nonetheless, the outcomes you attain from this step are essential to an effective case analysis because identifying goals, intent and mission helps you to clarify the major problems featured in a case and to evaluate alternative solutions to those problems. Directionsetting statements are not always stated publicly or prepared in written format. When this occurs, you must infer goals from other available factual data and information. C-6 The first step of an effective case analysis process calls for you to become familiar with the facts featured in the case and the focal firm’s situation. Initially, you should become familiar with the focal firm’s general situation (for example, who, what, how, where and when). Thorough familiarisation demands appreciation of the nuances, as well as the major issues, in the case. Gaining familiarity with a situation requires you to study several situational levels, including interactions between and among individuals within groups, business units, the corporate office, the local community and the society at large. Recognising relationships within and among levels facilitates a more thorough understanding of the specific case situation. It is also important that you evaluate information on a continuum of certainty. Information that is verifiable by several sources and judged along similar dimensions can be classified as a fact. Information representing someone’s perceptual judgement of a particular situation is referred to as an inference. Information gleaned from a situation that is not verifiable is classified as speculation. Finally, information that is independent of verifiable sources and arises through individual or group discussion is an assumption. Obviously, case analysts and organisational decision makers prefer having access to facts over inferences, speculations and assumptions. Personal feelings, judgements and opinions evolve when you  are analysing a case. It is important to be aware of your own feelings about the case and to evaluate the accuracy of perceived ‘facts’ to ensure that the objectivity of your work is maximised. Conducting the analysis The fourth step of effective case analysis is concerned with acquiring a systematic understanding of a situation. Occasionally cases are analysed in a less-thanthorough manner. Such analyses may be a product of a busy schedule or of the difficulty and complexity of the issues described in a particular case. Sometimes you will face pressures on your limited amounts of time and may believe that you can understand the situation described in a case without systematic analysis of all the facts. However, experience shows that familiarity with a case’s facts is a necessary, but insufficient, step in the development of effective solutions – solutions that can enhance a firm’s strategic competitiveness. In fact, a lessthan-thorough analysis typically results in an emphasis on symptoms, rather than on problems and their causes. To analyse a case effectively, you should be sceptical of quick or easy approaches and answers. A systematic analysis helps you to understand a situation and determine what can work and probably what will not work. Key linkages and underlying causal networks based on the history of the firm become apparent. In this way, you can separate causal networks from symptoms. Also, because the quality of a case analysis depends on applying appropriate tools, it is important that you use the ideas, models and theories that seem to be useful for evaluating and solving individual and unique situations. As you consider facts and symptoms, a useful Recognising symptoms. Recognition of symptoms is the second step of an effective case analysis process. A symptom is an indication that something is not as you or someone else thinks it should be. You may be tempted to correct the symptoms instead of searching for true problems. True problems are the conditions or situations requiring solution before the performance of an organisation, business unit or individual can improve. Identifying and listing symptoms early in the case analysis process tends to reduce the temptation to label symptoms as problems. The focus of your analysis should be on the actual  causes of a problem, rather than on its symptoms. Thus, it is important to remember that symptoms are indicators of problems; subsequent work facilitates discovery of critical causes of problems that your case recommendations must address. Introduction Preparing an effective case analysis theory may become apparent. Of course, having familiarity with conceptual models may be important in the effective analysis of a situation. Successful students and successful organisational strategists add to their intellectual tool kits on a continual basis. What to expect from in-class case discussions Classroom discussions of cases differ significantly from lectures. The case method calls for instructors to guide the discussion, encourage student participation and solicit alternative views. When alternative views are not forthcoming, instructors typically adopt one view so that students can be challenged to respond to it thoughtfully. Often students’ work is evaluated in terms of both the quantity and the quality of their contributions to in-class case discussions. Students benefit by having their views judged against those of their peers and by responding to challenges by other class members and/or the instructor. During case discussions, instructors listen, question and probe to extend the analysis of case issues. In the course of these actions, peers or the instructor may challenge an individual’s views and the validity of alternative perspectives that have been expressed. These challenges are offered in a constructive manner; their intent is to help students develop their analytical and communication skills. Instructors should encourage students to be innovative and original in the development and presentation of their ideas. Over the course of an individual discussion, students can develop a more complex view of the case, benefiting from the diverse inputs of their peers and instructor. Among other benefits, experience with multiple-case discussions should help students to increase their knowledge of the advantages and disadvantages of group decision-making processes. Student peers as well as the instructor value comments that contribute to the discussion. To offer relevant contributions, you are  encouraged to use independent thought and, through discussions with your peers outside of class, to refine your thinking. We also encourage you to avoid using ‘I think’, ‘I believe’ and ‘I feel’ to discuss your inputs to a case analysis process. Instead, consider using a less emotion-laden phrase, such as ‘My analysis shows’. This highlights the logical nature of the approach you have taken to complete the six steps of an effective case analysis process. When preparing for an in-class case discussion, you should plan to use the case data to explain your assessment of the situation. Assume that your peers and instructor know the case facts. In addition, it is good practice to prepare notes before class discussions and use them as you explain your view. Effective notes signal to classmates and the instructor that you are prepared to engage in a thorough discussion of a case. Moreover, C-7 Making the diagnosis The fifth step of effective case analysis – diagnosis – is the process of identifying and clarifying the roots of the problems by comparing goals with facts. In this step, it is useful to search for predicaments. Predicaments are situations in which goals do not fit with known facts. When you evaluate the actual performance of an organisation, business unit or individual, you may identify over- or underachievement (relative to established goals). Of course, single-problem situations are rare. Accordingly, you should recognise that the case situations you study probably will be complex in nature. Effective diagnosis requires you to determine the problems affecting longer-term performance and those requiring immediate handling. Understanding these issues will aid your efforts to prioritise problems and predicaments, given available resources and existing constraints. Doing the action planning The final step of an effective case analysis process is called action planning. Action planning is the process of identifying appropriate alternative actions. In the action planning step, you select the criteria you will use to evaluate the identified alternatives. You may derive these criteria from the analyses; typically, they are related to key strategic situations facing the focal organisation. Furthermore, it is important that you prioritise these criteria to ensure a rational and effective evaluation of alternative courses of action. Typically, managers ‘satisfice’ when selecting courses of action; that is, they find acceptable courses of action that meet most of the chosen evaluation criteria. A rule of thumb that has proved valuable to strategic decision makers is to select an alternative that leaves other plausible alternatives available if the one selected fails. Once you have selected the best alternative, you must specify an implementation plan. Developing an implementation plan serves as a reality check on the feasibility of your alternatives. Thus, it is important that you give thoughtful consideration to all issues associated with the implementation of the selected alternatives. Introduction Preparing an effective case analysis Exhibit 3 | Types of thinking in case preparation: Analysis and synthesis C-8 125 000 Sources: Income figures are approximate and based on A. Chatterjee, 1998, ‘Marketing to the superrich’, Business Today (Living Media India Ltd), 22 April; W. Berryman and J. McManus, 1998, ‘India: Turning the elephant economy’, Independent Business Weekly, 24 June. offered spicier sauces, such as McMasala and McImli (made from tamarind). Other elements of the menu, such as chicken nuggets, fillet fish sandwiches, fries, sodas and milkshakes, were in common with the rest of the McDonald’s system. In 1998, McDonald’s India set up a menu development team to collect consumer feedback. Subsequently, the team came up with its menu vision, and new products since then have been based on this vision. The adaptation of the strategy went well beyond the menu, encompassing many aspects of the restaurant management system. Two different menu boards were displayed in  each restaurant – green for vegetarian products and purple for non-vegetarian products. Behind the counter, restaurant kitchens had separate, dedicated preparation areas for the meat and non-meat products. The kitchen crew (in charge of cooking) had different uniforms to distinguish their roles and did not work at the vegetarian and non-vegetarian stations on the same day, thus ensuring clear segregation. The wrapping of vegetarian and non-vegetarian food took place separately. These extra steps were taken to assure Indian customers of the wholesomeness of both products and their preparation. To convince Indian customers that the company would not serve beef and would respect the culinary habits of its clientele, McDonald’s printed brochures explaining all these steps and took customers on kitchen tours. McDonald’s positioned itself as a family restaurant. The average price of a ‘Combo’ meal, which included burger, fries and Coke, varied from Rs 76 for a vegetarian meal to Rs 88 for a Maharaja Mac meal. This could be compared with KFC meal prices at Rs 59 (Crispy Burger, regular fries and large Pepsi) and Rs 79 (KFC Chicken, Colonel Burger and regular Pepsi). McDonald’s Happy Meal, which included a complimentary toy, was priced at Rs 46. The prices in India were lower than in Sri Lanka or Pakistan, and even the price of the Maharaja Mac was 50 per cent less than an equivalent product in the United States. To fight its premium image among the public, the company undertook selective price cutting and ran some periodic promotions. In February 1999, the company was offering ‘economeals’ for as low as Rs 29. The company reduced the price of vegetable nuggets from Rs 29 to Rs 19 and that of its soft-serve ice-cream cone from Rs 16 to Rs 7. Apparently, this still afforded McDonald’s a healthy margin (40 per cent for cones). As Vikram Bakshi, explained, ‘I will never become unaffordable, as I will not then be able to build up volumes. ’ The lower price could be attributed to two factors: the pricing strategies of MNC rivals as well as mid-range local restaurants, and the development of a local (low-cost) supply chain. McDonald’s pricing strategies, as well as special promotions, were influenced by rivals. In February 1999, several competitors were running special promotions, with KFC offering a meal inclusive of chicken, rice and gravy for Rs 39. For Rs 350, Pizza Hut was offering a whole family meal, including two medium pizzas, bread and Pepsi. Wimpy’s was offering Case 8 McDonald’s expansion strategies in India mega meals at Rs 35. A typical vegetarian ‘set meal’, or ‘thali’ (which included Indian breads, rice, vegetables and yogurt) at a mid-range restaurant cost around Rs 50, which was considerably lower than a McDonald’s meal. Some analysts believed that that by introducing loss leaders (for example, cones), McDonald’s wanted to highlight good value for all its products. Whether customers attracted by special promotions pay repeat visits to McDonald’s remains to be seen. In October 2000, the company introduced two new Indianised products to its menu – the Chicken McGrill and the Veg Pizza McPuff. At that point in time, 75 per cent of the menu in India was unique – that is, different from the rest of the McDonald’s system. The Chicken McGrill had a grilled chicken patty topped with onions and mint sauce, to give it an Indian flavour. The Veg Pizza was a takeoff on the popular Indian samosa (potato-based curry puff) with differences in shape (rectangular) and stuffing (capsicum, onions and Mozarella cheese with tomato sauce). In keeping with the low pricing strategy in India, these items were priced at Rs 25 and Rs 16, respectively. With its value pricing and localised menu, McDonald’s had attracted some loyal customers. One such customer said, ‘A normal kebab, with all the trimmings, at a regular restaurant would cost more than Rs 25 and if the new McGrill is giving us a similar satisfaction with its mint chutney (sauce), then we’d rather eat in a lively McDonald’s outlet than sitting in a cramped car on the road. ’ Some elements of the promotional strategy remained the same as in other parts of the world. One instance of this included the emphasis on attracting children. A Happy Meal film was consistently shown on the Cartoon Network and the Zee (a local channel) Disney Hour. McDonald’s also teamed up with Delhi Traffic Police and the Delhi Fire Service to highlight safety issues, again trying to create goodwill among schoolchildren. In October 1999, in conjunction with The Walt Disney Company and UNESCO, McDonald’s launched a search for Millennium Dreamers. The program would bring together 2 000 young people from around the globe who had made a positive and significant impact on their communities. Based on the number of its outlets, India was allocated two representatives. By June 2000, the company had started rolling out its first national campaign, as it was expanding beyond Mumbai and New Delhi. The campaign, budgeted at Rs 100 million, was expected to highlight (in phased order) the brand (the experience that there is something special about McDonald’s), food quality and variety. The company also ran special promotions during festivals, and ‘vegetarian’ days, and was even developing garlicfree sauces to bring in ‘hard-core’ vegetarian traffic. In terms of the selection of cities, McDonald’s followed the same strategy in India as in the rest of the world. Its initial focus on Mumbai and Delhi was driven by the following factors: they were the two largest cities in India; their citizens enjoyed relatively high income levels compared to the rest of the country; and they were exposed to foreign food and culture. After establishing a presence in the leading cities, McDonald’s then moved to smaller satellite towns near the metropolitan cities (for example, from Delhi to Gurgaon and Noida, both suburbs of Delhi, and from Mumbai to Pune). McDonald’s often found that there were positive spillover effects, in terms of its reputation, from the metropolitan cities to the satellite towns. In Jaipur, the company was hoping to attract foreign tourists. C-125 Developing the supply chain McDonald’s search for Indian suppliers started as early as 1991. Its initial challenge was to develop local suppliers who could deliver quality raw materials, regularly and on schedule. In the five-and-a-half years until start-up, McDonald’s spent as much as Rs 500 million (US$12. 8 million) to set up a supply network, distribution centres and logistics support. By mid-2000, some estimates placed the total investment in the supply chain at almost Rs 3 billion. Local suppliers, Exhibit 6 | McDonald’s supply chain in India Phillaur (sauces) Dehradun (lettuce) Nainital (lettuce) Taloja (veg. nuggets) Thane Pune (lettuce) Oo’ty (lettuce) Baramati (cheese) Hyderabad (mutton patties) Venkatapur (pickles) Cochin Supplier locations Distribution centres Case 8 McDonald’s expansion strategies in India distributors and joint venture partners and employees had to match the restaurant chain’s quality and hygiene standards before they became part of its system. McDonald’s experience in identifying and cultivating the supplier of lettuce provided an excellent illustration of the difficulties involved. In 1991, hardly any iceberg lettuce was grown in India, except for a small quantity grown around Delhi during the winter months. McDonald’s identified a lettuce supplier (Mangesh Kumar from Ootacamund in Tamilnadu, a southern state) and helped him in a broad range of activities, from seed selection to advice on farming practices. In the case of several other suppliers, such as Cremica Industries which supplied the sesame seed buns, McDonald’s helped them to gain access to foreign technology. In another instance, it encouraged Dynamix, the supplier of cheese, to establish a program for milk procurement by investing in bulk milk collection and chilling centres. This, in turn, led to higher milk yields and overall collections, as well as to an improvement in milk quality. McDonald’s ended up with a geographically diverse sourcing network, with buns coming from northern India, chicken and cheese from western India, and lettuce and pickles from southern India. There were as many as 40 suppliers in the company’s supply chain. (See Exhibit 6 for McDonald’s supply chain. ) A dedicated distribution system was established to match the suppliers’ production and delivery schedules with the restaurant’s needs. The first two centralised distribution centres were set up near Mumbai and at Cochin (in the southernmost part of India) in joint ventures with two local retailers, both of whom had to learn from international distributors of McDonald’s products how the restaurant chain handled distribution worldwide and, especially, how to enhance the quality of storage operations. The company estimated that each distribution centre could service about 25 outlets. McDonald’s strove to keep the storage volumes of products high in order to exploit all possible economies of scale. The distribution centres were also expected to maintain inventory records and to interact with suppliers and the logistics firm to ensure that their freezers were well stocked. Said Amit Jatia, ‘The most important part of our operations was the development of a cold chain [the process of procurement, warehousing, transportation and retailing of food products under controlled temperatures]. There is practically no need for a knife in any restaurant. All the chopping and food processing is done in the plants. Only the actual cooking takes place in the restaurants. ’ Even with the suppliers and distribution system in place, McDonald’s needed a distribution link to move raw materials to its restaurants. Logistics management was contracted out to AFL Logistics – itself a 50:50 joint venture between Air Freight (a Mumbai-based firm) and FX Coughlin of the United States, McDonald’s international logistics provider. AFL logistics was responsible for the temperature-controlled movement of all products (by rail, road or air, as appropriate) from individ.

Satire and the Deployment of Irony in A Modest Proposal by Jonathan Swi

Satire and the Deployment of Irony in A Modest Proposal by Jonathan Swift Therefore let no man talk to me of other expedients: of taxing our absentees at 5s. a pound: of using neither clothes, nor household furniture, except what is of our own growth and manufacture: of utterly rejecting the materials and instruments that promote foreign luxury: of curing the expensiveness of pride, vanity, idleness, and gaming in our women: of introducing a vein of parsimony, prudence and temperance: of learning to love our country, wherein we differ even from Laplanders, and the inhabitants of Topinamboo: of quitting our animosities and factions, nor acting any longer like the Jews, who were murdering one another at the very moment their city was taken: of being a little cautious not to sell our country and consciences for nothing: of teaching landlords to have at least one degree of mercy towards their tenants. Lastly, of putting a spirit of honesty, industry, and skill into our shop-keepers, who, if a resolution could now be taken to buy only our native goods, wou ld immediately unite to cheat and exact upon us in the price, the measure, and the goodness, nor could ever yet be brought to make one fair proposal of just dealing, though often and earnestly invited to it. Therefore I repeat, let no man talk to me of these and the like expedients, till he has at least some glimpse of hope that there will ever be some hearty and sincere attempt to put them into practice. (Swift 57-58) "A Modest Proposal" has been hailed by literary critics as one of Jonathan Swift's greatest satirical works. The essay takes the form of a proposal that sets out to offer a solution to the problems of overpopulation and poverty in 18th century Ireland, a... ...ff. Hypertext Rhetoric Lesson for Swift's "A Modest Proposal". Updated date unknown. <http://www.du.edu/~jegoldst/html/a_modest_proposal.htm>. Cited 27 March 2004. Hutcheon, Linda. Irony's Edge: The Theory and Politics of Irony. London: Routledge, 1994. Montgomery, Martin et. al. "Irony." Ways of Reading. Advanced Reading Skills for Students of English Literature. London: Routledge, 2000. 161-171. Rose, Margaret A. Parody: Ancient, Modern, and Post-Modern. Cambridge: CUP, 1993. Swift, Jonathan. "A Modest Proposal--For preventing the children of poor people in Ireland from being a burden to their parents or country, and for making them beneficial to the public." "A Modest Proposal" and Other Satirical Works. New York: Dover. Wilson, Deirde & Dan Sperber. "On Verbal Irony." The Stylistics Reader. Ed. Jean Jacques Weber. London: Arnold, 1996. 260-279.

Linux Security Technologies Essay

In a world so largely dependent on computer systems, inadequate security measures could lead to anything from having a single person’s financial information compromised to an electronic 9/11 against some of our country’s most secure federal computer networks. In the modern computer based society we live in, security is essential to protecting everything from personal desktops all the way up to the most secure federal databases. And many corporate and government level computers are based on the Linux kernel. SELinux has 3 states it can be in if on a system: Enabled, Disabled, and Permissive. Enforcing means SELinux security policy is active, Disabled means SELinux security policy is not active, and Permissive is a diagnostic state commonly used for troubleshooting. To better understand what improvements Mandatory Access Control (MAC) can provide for security, one needs to know about the standard Linux security provision called Discretionary Access Control (DAC). DAC, though it is still a form of security, only provides minimal protection to a Linux file system. With DAC, access to files merely requires needed permissions from the owner of the file to access (commonly referred to as file permissions), often requiring a password to open. A basic weakness of DAC is not being able to fundamentally differentiate between human users and computer programs. And with so many systems often having such large numbers of users, it only takes hackers accessing a single user’s account to have access to any and all of the files they have permissions for. If the compromised user account were to have super-user (root) access, the hacker could then gain access to an entire file system. This became the basis for coming up with a more secure way of protecting wrongful access into standard Linux based systems. SELinux utilizing MAC, on the other hand, was created to address this very weakness that DAC has as the standard Linux security. The way MAC helps improve overall security of SELinux is by providing what is called granular permissions for every subject (user, program, process) and object (file, device). In other words, through MAC, you only grant any subject the specific object or objects required to perform a specific function, and no more. Compared to DAC, security is more compartmentalized and has more layers of protection. Hence, SELinux provides a much more secure environment than the original Linux security features alone can. Another feature providing further security for a network is TCP Wrappers. TCP Wrappers work by controlling access through the utilization of IP addresses. In Linux, this is accomplished through 2 specific files that need to be created. The first file, hosts. deny, is a file listing names of hosts that are to be denied access to the network. The second file, hosts. allow is a file listing the names of hosts that are allowed access to the same network. The absence of theses 2 files, would allow the entire Internet access to network services, severely lowering the security of a host. This lowers a system being compromised through a sort of â€Å"gate guard with an access list† policy. If your name appears on the list, you gain access; if it’s not, you don’t. Creating an artificial root directory is yet another way to provide security for Linux systems, and is commonly referred to as a chroot jail. This prevents accessing or modifying, possibly maliciously, any file outside the directory hierarchy. The command required to create a chroot jail is /usr/sbin/chroot. Note, you must be working as root inside the Linux shell to do this. By creating a chroot jail, it prevents users from navigating up the hierarchy as high as possibly â€Å"/† (root). Even if the user did not have permissions required to edit higher directories, they may still be able to see files they don’t have any reason to have any access to. Chroot can be useful for providing basic preventative security by making it more difficult to exploit information on a server. But, by limiting user access in this way, if a user account were ever hacked, it still provides yet another layer of security by limiting the amount of access each user account has to begin with. It is important to understand that you must run a program in chroot jail as a user other than root (/). This is because root can break out of jail, making the chroot jail not provide the security it is intended to against unwanted access. Setting up iptables is another form of network security in Linux. They allow for setting up a firewall on the network. Iptables allow for network packet filtering rules. The use of iptables function allows rules to be set up that can reject inbound packets opening new connections and accept inbound packets that are responses to locally initiated connections. This basic feature therefore acts as a firewall to the system, preventing unwanted outside attempts to hack into a host network. In conclusion, with the technological direction of our future apparent, security technologies will be a continuing issue that will never stop making further advances. After all, the financial, physical, and ideological future of our country, and people as a whole, cannot afford to do otherwise. As our children, and children’s children, begin to take the reins of this electronically motivated world, computer security technologies will continue to be an important issue as long as we continue as a society. References: * http://www. omnisecu. om/gnu-linux/redhat-certified-engineer-rhce/what-is-security-enhanced-linux-selinux. htm * http://fedoraproject. org/wiki/SELinux_FAQ * http://www. nsa. gov/research/_files/selinux/papers/x/img3. shtml * http://docs. redhat. com/docs/en-US/Red_Hat_Enterprise_Linux/4/html/SELinux_Guide/selg-preface-0011. html * http://docs. fedoraproject. org/en-US/Fedora/13/html/SELinux_FAQ/ * http://www. bu. edu/tech/security/firewalls/host/tcpwrappers_macos x/ * http://www. serverschool. com/dedicated-servers/what-is-a-chroot-jail/ * http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Chroot

Hit and Run Sports and Lesiure Company Essay

* The company provides wide range of sports and leisure facilities to members and non-members. The facilities include golf courses, football pitch, basketball court and swimming pool. Members have to book to use facilities and bill is charged to their account. * The leisure club’s shop provide to customers wide range of sports goods such as clothing, golf clubs and tennis racquets. For members there is 10 % discount. * The club provides qualified coaches for different sports that can be booked to give lessons to individuals or groups. The fee is charged for each lesson and the company receives half of the fee. Types of members Type of membership Description Individual They are any one of the ages from 16 to 60, who are not students, under corporate or affiliated team member. Student This membership is available to anyone over 16 and under 25 years of age who is in full time education. Senior For elderly people who are over the age of 60. Corporate For nominated employees from a company who has account with the leisure centre. Family This is available up to 2 adults and 4 children. Children who are under the age of 12 can only join the club as part of a family membership. Affiliated team Available to local sports teams. It allows them for priority bookings and discount rates for regular bookings. Functions of each department within the clubs The club shop The primary function of the shop is to sell sports equipment. However the sales assistants are also responsible for replenishing the stock on display from the stockroom. Also the shop can take bookings for the facilities. They hold all their stock item’s details and quantities on the database. When a member purchase an item, the item code is typed in and the description and the price is displayed on the screen. Also the member’s number is entered from their membership card. This allows them to identify the member and available discount is automatically calculated. The shop also allows members to pay through their account, cash, cheque or credit card. If credit card is used, the Sales assistant has to contact the credit card Company, usually by telephone, to check the credit availability. Receipt is issued when the sale is complete and the appropriate stock item quantities are decreased. The Sales manager is responsible for regulating the stock of all equipment. The sales manager has to make sure that the quantities are up to the required levels. If there is a shortage of any equipment, the database automatically produces a report. This operates at the end of each working day. The following day, the Sales manager telephones the appropriate equipment suppliers and orders the equipment required. The confirmed purchase orders are printed and sent by post. The shop also has specially printed carrier bags for customer’s purchases. The design of the bag changes every year however it always includes the Hit and Run name and logo. Every year the Sales and Marketing Director negotiates a new order for bags for all clubs. Administration The administration manager handles all applications for membership with the help of assistant. The administration assistants are responsible for all office procedures within a club. They produce and post out all correspondence from the club such as letters to members. They also produces invoices for goods and services. One of the administration assistants is responsible for updating the member’s details on database and also ordering membership cards. The summary of all membership transactions which include new members, bookings and membership renewals, is sent to Head office on a floppy disk. The floppy disk also contains information about financial summaries for shop sales, membership and booking fees and lastly a summary of all purchase orders raised. Administration assistant sends all the invoices received by suppliers on the goods received or service done, to head office. This is done at the end of each week. Head office then deals with the payment. Most important function of Administration department is keeping records of the hours worked by each member of the club’s staff along with any coaching fees received. The information is sent to the Human Resource department in head office. The human resource department deals with the information so that wages due can be calculated and paid. Reception Reception department deals with bookings. When a member books facilities, receptionist take member number on a booking login screen together with expiry date on the card. The member’s details are displayed on the screen. Receptionist asks for member’s address and name. When it is confirmed booking screen is displayed. The member’s number is copied onto the booking screen. Also code for facility, the date and the start time is required. The booking system then checks the availability of the facility and if it is the booking is confirmed. Then a booking card is produced containing the information to the member. Reception also deals with members checking in. The member provides the receptionist with the booking number. The details of the booking are displayed on the computer when the booking number is typed in on a check in screen. The receptionist checks and allocation of the facility is confirmed. Then another card is printed for the member. This confirms that the facility has been booked. Facilities maintenance The facilities manager deals with maintenance of all the buildings and facilities in the club. Outdoor facilities such as pitches and the golf course are maintained b a team of green keepers. A team of maintenance staff maintains the indoor facilities and the structure of the buildings. The facilities manager must schedule regular maintenance. This will reduce the chance of member’s disruption on using facilities and also to make efficient use of available staff. The manager also contacts contractors from outside the club for tasks such as the servicing or repair of mowers, rowing machines and other equipment. Once a month the manager contacts suppliers for cleaning materials. Coaching Qualified coaches provide lessons for each of sports. They provide this service to groups or individuals. They also supervise the use of club facilities. The head coach is responsible for ordering sports equipment needed such as tennis balls, shuttlecocks, nets or racquets. This is sent off to the suppliers by fax. Suppliers to the club and relationship between these suppliers and the department/individuals within the company * Sports equipment retailers – They provide stocks for the shop in the clubs. The sales manager phones the suppliers when there are shortage of equipment. They also provide equipment for the coaching department. * Card Company – They provide membership cards for the administration department. The administration assistant sends the details of the membership card. * Cleaning material suppliers – They provide cleaning materials to the facilities maintenance department. The facilities manager places the order. * Maintenance equipment service – The service is provided for repairing or servicing mowers, rowing machines and other equipment for facilities maintenance department. Facilities manager also places the order. * Carrier bag suppliers – They provide carrier bags for the sport shop. The sales manager and marketing manager change the design every year. The supplier provides yearly allocation. * ICT service and suppliers – The club uses ICT facilities. There are computer workstations at the main desk, in the sports shop, administration office and the General Manger’s office. They need software, which hold data for all sports equipment in sports shop. Also for membership database and booking data. The ICT suppliers along with ICT department in head office supply this.

Contemporary legends

Contemporary legends Introduction In the contemporary literary world, there are stories that can be considered as legends. These are stories that depict several features making them qualify as urban legends. Contemporary legends refer to the stories that are said to be true. These stories are carried on from one individual to another.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Contemporary legends specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More In most instances, the contemporary legends are passed through word or mouth or mass media. In the present times, electronic media may also be used to pass down the legends. It has been observed that contemporary legends mirror the modern themes. The contemporary legends have been in existence for quite some time. However, they were neglected as the focus was on other forms of literature. Nonetheless, the contemporary legends became prominent in the second half of the 20th century following the publication of various works in this genre (Clarke, para 2). The legend of the Fir-tree is a good example of an urban legend. The story was told by Lonely Shell and it goes as follows: The legend of the Fir-tree They both knew, from the start, that their love was impossible; that a day would come when they would have to say Good-bye. On Christmas Eve, they decided that their relationship, as beautiful as an angels love story, should end with the dying year. He would have liked to have spent all of their days together, but she decided it was better to leave. The New Year should find us in our new lives, where we will miss each other she said. There were tears in her eyes, as she kissed him good-bye and he could still hear her words, as he looked through the window of the house, at the traces of her steps, far away, at the edge of the forest. He had wanted to accompany her until they reached the base of the mountain, where the town began, so that he would know she was safe, but she didnt want him to. She wanted to leave, without looking behind, remembering him there, in the house of their love. The memory she was always going to keep in her heart.Advertising Looking for essay on literature languages? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The snowfall was getting heavier and, as all trace of her was slowly disappearing, covered by the snow, his fears and worries were growing. He should not have let her leave! At least, not before it had stopped snowing! How is she going to reach the town alone, through all this snow. It grows thicker with each moment? The days are so short; soon the evening will fall, she might lose her way and remain alone in that desert of snow, where nobody will hear her if she screams, or the wolves may attack her, before she can get out of the forest! He decided that he should find her, at any cost, and bring her back, or at least go with her to the town. He grabbed a hatchet, for defense against the wild an imals, and started running through the snow, following the traces of her steps that were barely visible. He could hardly walk by now, and the evening was getting darker and darker. He hoped that she had found shelter, inside the ruins of the old hut, in the clearing, on the top of the hill, but nobody was there. All traces of her had been completely erased! He fell to his knees, screaming desperately Dont go! Please come back! I love you! His voice woke-up the dry fir-trees from their slumber and, furious at being disturbed, they scattered the burden of their branches upon him, covering him in a huge pile of snow. Good-bye, I love you, he thought.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Contemporary legends specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More He woke up late, without understanding where he was but then he recognized the clearing. The snowfall had stopped, and his footsteps in the snow clearly marked the way that he had come. H e remembered the snow that had fallen upon him, taking his breath away. He could not understand how it was that he was still alive, where had all that snow had disappeared to, why his clothes were dry, and, moreover, why it was that even the snow under his body had melted away. Most of all though, he could not understand where the fir-tree fragrance was coming from. Had he entered the delirium of those who die by freezing? Its impossible for a green fir-tree to be there, in the middle of the winter! Yet, in the middle of the clearing, just next to the place where he had fallen, a green fir-tree had grown from that warm patch of land. He touched it to see if it was real, and the soft whisper of its branches brought, from far away, the echo of her laughter. He then realized that her love had made the fir-tree grow there; to protect him from the winter frost that would have killed him. Feeling that the fir-tree was the last memory he would ever have of her, he decided to take it home a nd replant it in his garden, right in front of the window. He knew that every morning when he saw it, it would be like her saying Good morning. With that fir-tree, kept evergreen by the same miracle of love that had made it turn green in the middle of winter, he would never be alone again! As he was walking through the snow, the fir-tree on his shoulder, all the dry fir- trees that he passed by started turning green, filling the forest with their fragrance. Since then, the fir-tree has become the symbolic tree of Christmas, and it stays evergreen, so that nobody will ever be alone during the cold Christmas nights (Shell, para 1). The legend of the Fir-tree as a contemporary legend This story qualifies as an urban legend considering that it has several features of an urban legend. This legend offers an explanation to the origin of the fir-tree. It also explains why the fir-tree is used during Christmas time. Just as the case in most contemporary legends, the woman in the legend is po rtrayed as weak, whereas the man is portrayed as a hero.Advertising Looking for essay on literature languages? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The man sets out to rescue the vulnerable woman. In addition, the truthfulness of this story cannot be verified. It can also be noted that the location and details of the contents of this story are not clear. The story emphasizes on the culture of togetherness during Christmas time indicating that the presence of the fir-tree in the house means that there is no room for loneliness. These are some of the aspects that make this story qualify as a contemporary legend (Barnes and Smith, 169). In this legend, the man in the story was not willing to let his lover leave him alone. Although the lover was determined to leave without the man, the man decided to follow her. However, this was an afterthought as the woman had already left. His pursuit led to the discovery of the fir-tree. The fir-tree reminded him of his lover who had left him. Indeed, he took the fir-tree back home where it reminded him of his love. With respect to the group in which the story was performed, it can be noted tha t the legend was meant to offer an explanation to the origin of the fir-tree that is common during the Christmas time. In my interpretation, I can observe that the story serves as a contemporary legend in that it depicts various characteristics associated with urban legends. Other Versions of The legend of the Fir-tree There are other versions of the story regarding the origin of the fir tree. Some of them have been noted as shown below: According to a legend, Saint Boniface, an English monk who organized the Christian Church in France and Germany, came upon a group of pagans around a great oak tree, about to sacrifice a child to the god Thor. To stop the sacrifice and save the childs life Boniface felled the tree with one mighty blow of his fist. In its place grew a small fir tree. The saint told the pagan worshipers that the Fir was the Tree of Life (Emerson, para 4). Another legend is told as follows: Another legend tells us that Martin Luther, founder of the Protestant faith, wa lking through the forest one Christmas Eve, was awed by the beauty of the stars shining through the branches of the evergreen trees. He cut a small tree and took it home. To recreate the same starlight beauty, he placed candles on all its branches (Emerson, para 5). There is yet another legend that goes: Yet another legend tells of a poor woodsman who met a lost and hungry child on Christmas Eve. He gave the child food and shelter for the night. The next morning he found a beautiful glittering tree outside his door. The hungry child was really the Christ Child in disguise. He created the tree to reward the good man for his charity (Emerson, para 6). These legends have a common element in that they try to explain the origin of the fir-tree. They also try to explain how the fir-tree became associated with the Christmas festive season. According to these legends, the fir-tree did not exist before, but only came up after something happened. However, it has to be mentioned that each lege nd has a different explanation on how the fir-tree came into existence. In addition, the legends seem to converge as they all associate the fir-tree with the Christmas season. This is a common cultural practice that is widespread in the contemporary society. Conclusion In all these legends, there is a common motif. All legends discussed focus on the origin of the fir-tree and its association with Christmas festivities. As I was looking for parallels, the motif of the fir-tree stood out. All versions of the legend can qualify as urban legends as the details are not clear and that they cannot be verified to be true. However, they all offer an explanation to the origin of the fir-tree. Barnes, Daniel and P. Smith. â€Å"The Contemporary Legend in Literature – Towards an Annotated Checklist, Part 2.† Contemporary Legend, 2 (1992): 167-79. Print. Clarke, David. Urban Legends are contemporary stories, told as true but incorporating ancient and modern elements from folklore. 2008. Web. https://www.shu.ac.uk/ Emerson, Ralph Waldo. The wonder is that we can see these trees and not wonder more. n.d. Web. angelfire.com/journal2/flowers/pcd40.html Shell, Lonely. The Legend of the Fir-tree. n.d. Web.