Indigenous Peoples Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Indigenous Peoples - Essay Example It is also this roots that makes the term Indigenous Peoples, not just ambivalent, but highly paradoxical. Definition of Indigenous Peoples The term Indigenous Peoples has been a subject of much debate but mainstream understanding indicates that people who lived in an area before the conquerors arrive are indigenous. This understanding, however, is muddled with confusion. Indians, for example, were in Louisiana before the arrival of white Americans but ask any American and they would claim original ownership of the land. A further understanding would most likely present two concepts: 1) The First People pertains to the original settlers of a country or area. They are also often called ethnic group or aborigines. 2) Cultural Difference is also used as a major differentiating point between who is indigenous and who is not. Languages, religion or spiritual belief, and socio-economic structure define who is indigenous to the culture In a bid to have a universal understanding of indigenou s peoples, a defition was developed by Jose Martinez Cobo in the Special Rapporteur on Discrimination against Indigenous Populations. This was, for a time, accepted internationally (Sanders 214): "Indigenous populations are composed of the existing descendants of the peoples who inhabited the present territory of a country wholly or partially at the time when persons of a different culture or ethnic origin arrived there from other parts of the world, overcame them, by conquest, settlement or other means, reduced them to a non-dominant or colonial condition; who today live more in conformity with their particular social, economic and cultural customs and traditions than with the institutions of the country of which they now form part, under a state structure which incorporates mainly national, social and cultural characteristics of other segments of the population which are predominant." However, the definition resulted to many questions and challenged many political, cultural, and s ocial beliefs. For one, the acceptance of the definition makes the identity of indigenous peoples dependent on the chronology of its social development. Next, classifying conquerors as people from other parts of the world effectively eliminates neighboring conquerors which may have been more prevalent before recorded history. The definition fundamentally assumed and solidified that the formation of identity, history and culture were dependent on when Europeans started colonizing different parts of the world. It was beyond simple. It was, in fact, unreasonable as it ignored the more organic formation of culture, history and identity that started hundreds, if not thousands of years before European colonizers. Essentially, the definition that was supposed to uphold the identity of a country was based on discrimination. So much, in fact, that even their definition had to be around the axis of the colonizers. Europeans had to arrive before the presence of culture is recognized. The defin ition may have been well-intentioned but the result only lead to further marginalization of people that should have never had to fight for their land. There is also the lack of framework on how culture, tradition and beliefs continue to persist even in the face of modernity and continuous strengthening of global hybrid community. What the definition did, though, is make provide a better and stronger mainstream understanding of the

Organizational Culture and Cultural Values Essay Example for Free

Organizational Culture and Cultural Values Essay One of the most prominent instrumental values of 3M’s culture, and which has contributed to its success is employee risk-taking and encouragement of the same (Mitsch, 1990). 3M’s policy of creating room for employees to experiment and conduct research means that the researchers are more exposed to the risk of failure than they would be were risk-taking not encouraged. However, risk-taking also enhances chances of making improvements on existing products and developing new products. Another instrumental value in 3M is efficiency. Management of new technologies and innovations, assessing, reacting to and anticipating market trends, and assessing customer needs can be very challenging for the management. Research and Development can be costly yet some results are not always positive or available for immediate use. The management of available resources requires efficiency in management. Efficiency is therefore central to 3M’s culture. An important terminal value of 3M’s culture is high quality of output to meet customer expectations. 3M improves the quality of its output by encouraging research and development for long-term and short-term purposes. By encouraging risk-taking, allowing researchers to spend 15 percent of their time researching for new products and technologies, and scaling up RD budget from 4. 6 percent to 6. 5 percent within a decade, 3M declares its intention to ensure that consumers get a continous supply of high quality products (Mitsch, 1990). A second terminal value is innovation. As noted above, 3M attaches high premium on research and development of new technologies and improvement of existing technologies and products (Mitsch, 1990). Innovation is one of the factors which separate market leaders from mediocre organizations and 3M invests heavily to sharpen its innovative edge. Question 2: Human interactions, property rights and ethics do influence 3M’s cultural values. The involvement of marketing, manufacturing, quality, laboratory, financial and packaging staff in production of new products promotes healthy relationships between staff members working with the different units. This team-work reduces the frequency of inter-departmental rivalry and exchange of blame for mistakes and failures. Healthy interactions among units and sub-units are instrumental to increased productivity and staff motivation. An important property right at 3M is access to and right to use laboratory resources and technologies developed within one’s operating unit, as well as technologies developed by other units. A leading cause of failure in many organizations is unhealthy rivalry among units, which lead to some units keeping technologies and resources to themselves and barring others from accessing them. The management of 3M ensures that workers, regardless of which unit they come from, can access laboratory resources and technologies easily (Mitsch, 1990). Such property rights encourage inter-unit co-operation and cohesion, reduce RD costs, and promote productivity in the long-term. They also enrich the organization’s cultural values. Reference Mitsch, R. (1990). Case: Three Roads to Innovation. Journal of Business Strategy (Sept/Oct 1990), pp 18-21.

Steroid Use in Professional Sports :: Athletics Drugs Papers

Steroid Use in Professional Sports For fans, the issue of steroid use in professional sports is one of growing concern. Professional athletes were once hailed as roll models for young Americans, now there is an asterisk next to many names once idolized. Is he legitimately getting bigger, faster, and stronger? Is he one of the league’s best, strictly due to his talent and work ethic alone? Or is he one of â€Å"those guys†? Maybe former NBA great, Charles Barkley, had it right when he said, â€Å"I am not a roll model.† But maybe, just maybe, these men and women have a responsibility to the kids who adore them to do the right thing; to compete at the highest level with absolute legitimacy in the way they go about doing it. Maybe they are roll models and because they are, they must conduct themselves in a way that is respectable and â€Å"right†. The problem of steroid use in professional sports is perpetuated because the current testing policies in such leagues as Major League Baseball are n ot strict or comprehensive enough to curb the benefits athletes gain from steroid use. They have sub-par policies and are conducting sub-par testing practices. Since we cannot count on the athletes themselves to rid the leagues of this problem, the leagues need to take steroids on and defeat it with stricter regulations. Testing of steroids is simply ineffective in professional sports and until something is done the negative influence it has upon America’s youth will continue to grow. Anabolic steroids, which can be taken as a pill or as an injection, are a derivative of and mimic the effects of the male sex hormone testosterone. Both men and women naturally produce testosterone, although women make very small amounts in comparison to men. Testosterone's role in the body is two-fold: first, it maintains the male reproductive system, including production and maintenance of the male sexual characteristics of a deeper voice, greater amounts of body hair, larger body size, and greater muscle mass. Second, for a short period of time at the onset of puberty in young men, testosterone production rises dramatically to stimulate the bulk of the male physical maturation process which leads to full bone growth, deepening voice, and growth of facial hair. It is this ability to promote muscle growth, increase lean body mass, and decrease body fat that entices teenagers to take anabolic steroids.

Antigone Foils Creon

In the play Antigone we learn about a stubborn character named Creon who is the ruler of Thebes. This ruler goes on many power trips through out the play, which end up leading to his demise. Antigone, sister of the former king Polyneices sees Creon as a man with to much power who is making poor decisions and acting against the Gods. In a face-to-face confrontation, Antigone does not back down from the powerful leader, and tells him that what he is doing is wrong. Creon, who still has too much pride, banishes her into a cave where she would be left to die. Only later does Creon realize that what she was saying was correct. He tries to fix all the mistakes he has made but is too late. Antigone is the foil to Creon because she brings out fear and many character trait flaws in the Kings personality. Creon has a major lapse in judgment when he decides to bury Antigone in a cave to die. She tells him that she does not care because she was honoring her brother. â€Å"Why the delay? There is nothing that you can say that I should wish to hear, as nothing I say can weigh with you†¦.† (Sophocles 500-7) At first, it does not seem that Creon feels bad about doing this. Later he understands that he was wrong and regrets his decisions. Antigone has a big affect on this change of heart from Creon because she truly believed  she was in the right. By believing this she forces Creon to finally notice that he was wrong, and reverses his decisions. Antigone’s suicide effects Creon as a character immensely. It is her suicide that causes Heamon to stab himself. â€Å"Who is dead, and by what hand? Heamon is dead, slain by his own father. His father? His own hand. His father‘s act it was that drove him to it.† (1171-77 Sophocles) This later also leads to Eurydice’s suicide at the end of the play. Through Antigone’s actions, Creon is extremely effected. As a character, these events change the way Creon thinks about what he has done. â€Å"There is no man can bear this guilt but I. It is true, I killed him. Lead me away, away. I live no longer† (1323-29 Sophocles) Antigone convinces Creon that he is not a God, and that going against the Gods is a bad idea. â€Å"Yes. That order did not come from God. Justice, that dwells with the Gods below, knows no such law†¦.†(Sophocles 450-69) Antigone fights with all she has, and finally brings Creon to the realization that what he has done was wrong. When Creon realizes that Polyneices body is unburied, and that he has not given a proper burial to the 5 chieftains, he recognizes that this will upset anger the Gods considerably. She helps him realize his fault by having a reckless attitude, this shows Creon that she will not go down without a fight. She makes one last plea to the Gods by attempting to put a curse on him. I believe this scares Creon later and is one of the main reasons why he tries to reverse the decisions he’s made in the end. Creon gives the harsh penalty of not burying the dead Polyneices which is the ultimate punishment. Antigone’s plea to show Creon that what he has done is wrong is ery evident at this point. â€Å"So to my grave, My bridal-bower, my everlasting prison, I go those many of my kinsmen who dwell in the mansion†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Sophocles 892-919) Antigone believes that the God, along with her brother would be proud of what she has done. At first, Creon is to stubborn to listen to what she is saying. He later realizes that many of the things she said were right. Antigone’s influence on Creon’s mind ultimately cause a change of heart. Without her this would not have happened. Without Antigone, Creon’s fears and character flaws would not have been exposed. Creon’s stubborn attitude and unwillingness to listen to others is his ultimate downfall. If he would have took Antigone’s advice earlier, there is a chance he would not have lost everything that was important to him.

Is the Basque Language an Endangered Language?

A language is a repository of the riches of highly specialised cultural experiences. When a language is lost, all of us lose the knowledge contained in that language's words and grammar, knowledge that can never be recovered if the language has not been studied or recorded.Not all of this knowledge is of immediate practical benefit, of course, but all of it is vital in teaching us different ways of thinking about life, of approaching our day-to-day existence on planet earth (Daniel L Everett, From Threatened Languages to Threatened Lives, Online Article, 2007).According to the Unesco Red Book on Endangered Languages, there are 13 languages that were once spoken in Europe that are now extinct; 9 languages that are almost extinct; 26 languages that are seriously endangered, and 38 that are in danger. This last list includes the Basque language (Unesco Red Book on Endangered Languages, Online document, 1999).Due to an increasing concern amongst linguists regarding ethnolinguistic groups , in-depth research, and a number of studies, have been undertaken to explain the extinction of languages, the reasons why certain languages become endangered, and how to ensure that languages are not lost in the future. The results of these studies signify several representing factors that explain why languages become endangered. One aspect is due to the fact that often a people group, or language group, moves towards another language because of increased earning and power opportunities (Daniel L.Everett, Online Article, 2007), something that is putting several European languages under threat (Unesco Red Book on Endangered Languages, Online document, 1999). And another is when there are so few people speaking the language that it becomes impossible to continue with its usage (SIL International, Endangered Language Groups, Online Article, 2007). Or, as was the case with the Basque language, it can be partly due to the prohibition of its usage. But these are not the only dictating fa ctors; existing social, political, economic and religious factors, all play their part.This paper will be looking at Euskera, which is the name of the Basque language; a language that dates as far back as the 7th century, and which is considered to be under threat. An Historical Overlook of Euskera. Since the beginning of mankind, new languages have been continually emerging, while others disappear forever; and while the loss of a language may not seem to be of great importance, according to professional linguists ‘each loss is a great tragedy’ (Daniel L Everett, From Threatened Languages to Threatened Lives, Online Article, 2007).Euskera, the Basque language, is spoken by approximately 890,000 people in Northern Spain, and 80,000, mostly elderly people in the South-West of the Pyrenees in the South of France (Unesco Red Book on Endangered Languages, Online document, 1999). However, although the Basque Community shares the same language, it is comprised of three Basque areas, which are governed by different political and administrative bodies: Iparraldea, which belongs to France; Navarra, which belongs to the Spanish State, and the BAC (Basque Autonomous Community), which governs only this particular area of the Basque Community.Once far larger in terms of geographical boundaries, research has shown that Euskera was once spoken in Aragon and West Catalonia, as far back as the 7th century (Tover, 1959). Then in the 9th and 10th centuries, through mass migration, it reached south of Alava (University of Deusto, Bilbao, Online Document, 2007). Although records show that geographical language loss can be traced as far back as the Roman period (University of Deusto, Online Document, 2007), it was really when Prince Bonaparte drew his map recording where the Basque dialect was spoken that evidence of massive language loss could be seen. By 1863, ‘†¦..Basque had been lost in west Biscay, most of Alava, south of Pamplona†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. and the Baiona area of northern Basque Country’ (University of Deusto, 2007). The decline was partly due to decisions made concerning the supremacy of Spanish during the Bourbon period of the 18th Century, and the way the language was stigmatized as inferior, only being considered as suitable for farmers and peasants (University of Deusto, 2007). Spanish was used exclusively in education and instruction, and children who attempted speaking Basque were punished, resulting in illiteracy amongst the children of Basque speakers (University of Deusto, 2007).Industrialization also played its part during the 19th century. The need for workers resulted in mass immigration, and saw the arrival of so many monolingual Spanish speakers that their numbers far outweighed those of the Basque speakers. The fact that the Spanish speakers moved into several areas where the language had already been lost, and the fact that the Franco government prohibited the use of Euskera, both helped to ensured tha t the language would become endangered (University of Deusto, 2007). Spanish and French Attitudes Concerning the Basque Language.The use of Basque by Basque-speakers is only partial during the day. With the exception of a few areas in the Basque Country, it is almost impossible to live speaking only Basque. However, living speaking only French or Spanish is possible and frequent. The Basque-speaker must use French or Spanish at least in part, not only because of the legal imperative but also because of the social relegation of Basque (Euskal Herria Journal, The Basque Language at Home, Online Article, 2007). It was during the Franco dictatorship period, through cultural and language oppression, that the majority of loss occurred.And it was only when democracy was restored that the Basque movement, whose aim was to restore their language and culture, came into being. Both the Spanish and French governments have, historically, been instrumental in the loss of the Basque language by en forcing the exclusive use of their nation’s respective languages. The results of the prohibition concerning the usage of Euskera, is believed to have resulted in half of the Basque population being more comfortable when speaking Euskera, and the other half more comfortable speaking either French or Spanish (Daniel L. Everett, Online Article, 2007).However in recent years, or at least in Spain, there have been efforts to ensure the future of the Basque language; these are mainly through educational choices. In Southern Basque Country, which is under Spanish administration, there are three types of education available to students, and which are chosen according to language choice. 1. Education in Spanish only. 2. Education in both Spanish and Basque. 3. Education in Basque only. In 1991-1992, the figures given for students attending all public, private and religious schools were as follows: The Spanish-only education system totalled 58.3% of students; Spanish and Basque totalle d 19. 5% students; and the Basque-only, totalled some 22. 2% of students (Euskal Herria Journal, Online Article, 2007). In France, however, there have been no attempts at such integration, where the only recognised language is French, and where there is little support for the Basque State. In Northern Basque Country, just 1. 4% of children who attend compulsory full-time education, are able to learn Basque; but that is through Ikastolas, which are nationalist, private schools (Euskal Herria Journal, Online Article, 2007).Protecting Euskera. The language and culture oppression that the Basque’s suffered during the dictatorship of Franco was probably instrumental in the massive resurge of people’s interest in their cultural and language identity. Emphasising language as the symbol that gave a group its uniqueness, and; against the political and social situation of the time, Basque was perceived as the central element in a process of cultural renovation. Distinguishing fr om previous rural cultural manifestations, urban youngsters wanted to show their urban voice and they wanted to do it in Basque.They proved that Basque did not have to be linked only to the rural environment, that Basque was not just â€Å"the farmers’ language,† but rather that it could occupy an important place in the manifestation of modern urban Basque culture’ (University of Deusto, 2007). With recent memories of the Franco Regime, Spain was just coming to terms with her own political, social and culture freedom, and Spanish world views and opinions would have probably been far different from than that of neighbouring France.The introduction of new laws concerning minority languages paved the way for not only Euskera, but also other ethnic tongues. The Basque language was officially recognized in Spain after the Spanish Constitution (1978), and declared in 1979 at the Basque Parliament (BAC) in the Statue of Autonomy. Education was quickly recognised as one of the major ways of protecting and spreading Euskera, and human, legal and financial resources were all, and still are being, used to this effect (Euskal Herria Journal, Online Article, 2007).More than forty years have passed since the start of the program to promote the Basque language, and it is evident that efforts are having positive results. There are reported increases in the amount of bilingual speakers, ‘especially within the younger generations, and due mostly to the introduction of Basque in the education system’ (University of Deusto, 2007), and successful results in adult literacy programs. Achieving such results, when faced with the difficulties of re-introducing a minority language, stand as evidence of the Basque’s determination concerning the continuation of their heritage, language and culture.Conclusion An endangered language is a language headed for extinction. It is a language without monolingual speakers, people who speak only that language (Your Dictionary, Online Article, 2007). If taking the above criteria and applying it to the title of this paper, ‘Is the Basque Language an Endangered Language? ’ the answer would undeniably have to be yes. This is mainly due to the fact that the Basque language is almost without monolingual speakers – but whether the Basque language is headed for extinction, or not, is debatable.At present the Basque language is growing, rather than reducing, due to the effort that has been made be the Basque community, and that does not show any sign of changing. In today’s climate the conservation of heritage, cultures and languages are recognised as vitally important for man, and more effort is being made to ensure their protection – although this still needs to increase. However, globalization is a modern reality and our world is shrinking.Europe is enlarging her boarders, frontiers are opening, and people are crossing in to other countries in the hope of fin ding better situations. As was stated earlier in this paper, immigration is one of the causes of language loss, which in some respects is a natural outcome of a changing world. References Daniel L. Everett, From Threatened Languages to Threatened Lives, Online Article, 2007. http://www. yourdictionary. com/elr/everett. html Euskal Herria Journal, The Basque Language at Home, Online Article, 2007 http://www. ehj-navarre.org/blessons/blt(2). html SIL International, Endangered Language Groups, Online Article, 2007 www. sil. org/sociolx/ndg-lg-home. html Tovar, Antonio (1959). El euskera y sus parientes, p. 144-98, Madrid: Ediciones Minotauro. Unesco Red Book on Endangered Languages: Europe, 1999. http://www. helsinki. fi/~tasalmin/europe_index. html University of Deusto, Bilbao, Online Document, 2007 www. rci. rutgers. edu/~jcamacho/363/amorrortu. pdf Your Dictionary, Endangered Languages, Online Article, 2007 www. yourdictionary. com/elr/index. html

Handel essays

Handel essays George Frideric Handel was born in Halle, Germany on February 23, 1685. Early in his life Handel began to study music. He started studying music in 1694 against his fathers wishes. From his very childhood Handel had discovered such a strong propensity to music, that his father, who always intended him for the study of Civil Law, had reason to be alarmed. Perceiving that this inclination still increased, he took every method to oppose it. He strictly forbad him to meddle with any musical instrument; nothing of that kind was suffered to remain in the house, nor was he ever permitted to go to any other, where such kind of furniture was in use. All this caution and art, instead of restraining, did but augment his passion. He had found means to get a little clavichord privately conveyd to a room at the top of the house (Mainwaring, 12-13). On one of Handels family visits to Saxe-Weissenfels court, where Handels half-brother Karl, who is 36 years older than him, held the position of Valet de chambre and his father the position of court surgeon, Handels organ playing attracted the attention of the duke, who urged Handels father to allow him to study music as well as law (Dean and Hicks, 1-2). Handel was then placed under the tuition of F.W. Zachow, an organist In 1706, Handel traveled to Italy where he met Arcangelo Corelli and Alessandro and Domenico Scarlatti who had influenced his music. The five years he spent in Italy he learned the Italian music styles concerto grosso, chamber cantata, and opera seria. His writing for strings undoubtedly benefited from his acquaintance with Corelli (Dean and Hicks, 12-13). From Italy, Handel then decided to visit England. He decided to settle in London where he had worked for most of his life, and never returned to Germany. In England is where he had his biggest challenge of getting the people intereste...

Housing Problems and Options for Improvement essays

Housing Problems and Options for Improvement essays Everyone needs a house. Rich people poor people; all people are included. This is a problem, because housing costs a great deal of money. Poor people that can barely afford food and clothing also have a difficult time finding affordable housing. As a result, some live in unsafe and unsanitary conditions that are badly in need of repair. As we read in several Los Angeles Times articles, there are many people here in the Valley that live in places like these, and that live way below the poverty line. Many of these unkempt dwellings reside in the inner city of large urban areas, such as Los Angeles, Philadelphia or Chicago. According to our textbook, Urban Economics, (page 338) Poverty rates in the central city are about two times higher then the poverty rates for suburban areas. In some metropolitan areas, the differences in poverty rates are even higher. Poor people reside in the central city for two different reasons, according to discussions on various economic models from lecture. First, the farther away that you get from the central business district, the higher your transportation costs to get to your job (assuming that the job is located in the CBD). If you can not afford to commute to your work, you will be unable to keep your job, making you worse off economically. Therefore, you would chose to locate your residence close to your place of employment (closer to the CBD) in order to reduce your transportation costs. IF you live close enough to your place of employment, you may not need to use any form of transportation other then your feet, which doesnt cost you anything but your time. The second reason has to do with where new houses are built. New homes are built on land that was previously undeveloped, usually located on the outer edge of the residential district, furthest away from the central business district. The wealthiest people move into these new homes, leaving the upper middle class to move ...

Facts on the Russo-Japanese War

Facts on the Russo-Japanese War The Russo-Japanese War of 1904-1905 pitted expansionist Russia against up-and-coming Japan. Russia sought warm-water ports and control of Manchuria, while Japan opposed them. Japan emerged as a naval power and Admiral Togo Heihachiro achieved international fame. Russia lost two of its three naval fleets. Snapshot of the Russo-Japanese War: When: February 8, 1904, to September 5, 1905Where: The Yellow Sea, Manchuria, the Korean PeninsulaWho: The Russian Empire, ruled by Tsar Nicholas II, versus the Japanese Empire, ruled by the Meiji Emperor Total Troop Deployment: Russia - approx. 2,000,000Japan - 400,000 Who won the Russo-Japanese War? Amazingly, the Japanese Empire defeated the Russian Empire, thanks mostly to superior naval strength and tactics. It was a negotiated peace, rather than a complete or crushing victory, but hugely important for Japans rising status in the world. Total Deaths: In battle - Russian, approx. 38,000; Japanese, 58,257.From disease - Russian, 18,830; Japanese, 21,802. (Source: Patrick W. Kelley, Military Preventive Medicine: Mobilization and Deployment, 2004) Major Events and Turning Points: Battle of Port Arthur, Feb. 8 - 9, 1904: This opening battle was fought by Japanese Admiral Togo Heihachiro against Russian Vice Admiral  Oskar Victorovich Stark in a surprise night attack by the Japanese. While the battle was largely inconclusive, it resulted in a formal declaration of war between Russia and Japan on the day after the battle.Battle of Yalu River, April 30 - May 1, 1904Siege of Port Arthur, July 30 - January 2, 1905Battle of the Yellow Sea, August 10, 1904Battle of Sandepu, January 25 - 29, 1905Battle of Mukden, February 20 - March 10, 1905Battle of Tsushima, May 27 -28, 1905: Admiral Togo destroyed a fleet of Russian ships, ambushing them on their way through the Tsushima Strait on their way to Vladivostok. After this victory, Russias prestige was damaged and they sued for peace.Treaty of Portsmouth, September 5, 1905, formally ended the Russo-Japanese. Signed at Portsmouth, Maine, USA. Theodore Roosevelt earned the Nobel Peace Prize for negotiating the treaty. Significance of the Russo-Japanese War The Russo-Japanese War held great international significance, as it was the first all-out war of the modern era in which a non-European power defeated one of Europes great powers. As a result, the Russian Empire and Tsar Nicholas II lost considerable prestige, along with two of their three naval fleets. Popular outrage in Russia at the outcome helped lead to the Russian Revolution of 1905, a wave of unrest that lasted more than two years but did not manage to topple the tsars government. For the Japanese Empire, of course, victory in the Russo-Japanese War cemented its place as an up-and-coming great power, particularly since it came on the heels of Japans victory in the First Sino-Japanese War of 1894-95. Nonetheless, public opinion in Japan was none too favorable. The Treaty of Portsmouth did not grant Japan either the territory or the monetary reparations that the Japanese people expected after their significant investment of energy and blood in the war.

Mexican Immigration in Los Angles 1990's Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Mexican Immigration in Los Angles 1990's - Essay Example In this new political and economic context, the 1982 and 1994 financial crises have contributed to a redefinition of the relations between unions and the state, especially with regard to labour market deregulation, but also regarding capital-labour relations (Zapata 6-10; Delgado 1-19). The direct effect of the new economic and labour context has been to make employment more precarious, with a general reduction in wages. This has been going on for nearly 20 years (Cortes 12-19). Income levels, already low in 1980, declined even further in the next few years. For example, the minimum wage shows an uninterrupted tendency to fall steadily over the last 20 years, and by 1998 it was worth only 31 per cent of its 1980 value. Average working incomes have also been badly hit and have continued to go down during this period. In the first half of the 1990s there was some improvement in average incomes, but not enough to restore wages to the values they had in the early 1980s. The crisis of December 1994 reduced salaries again, and this state of affairs has continued pretty much up until now (2002). The current value of average working incomes is still about 25 per cent less than it was at the start of the 1980s (see Figure 1). In addition, the number of people earning less than the minimum wage has increased, from 27.7 per cent of the working population in 1990 to 32.5 per cent in 1995 and 37.5 per cent in 1997. The proportion of those receiving between twice and five times the minimum wage has remained stable over the decade. Those who earn more than five minimum wages are in the curious position of having increased in number in 1995 only to go back to representing the same proportion of the workforce as in 1990 (see Table 1). In spite of this, the most important fact to emerge from the figures is that for the entire 1990s a third of the working population earned less than the minimum wage established by law, which is itself very meagre and insufficient to cover even basic needs. Furthermore, an additional 30 per cent of the working population earned between 1 and 2 minimum wages. This means that two-thirds of the workforce have been exposed to a precarious and vulnerable situation in which the movement of their wages has been, in fact, downwards. The persistence of this pattern of income inequity and insecurity for more than 20 years has made migration a real alternative for many. International migration (and remittances) has become a more attractive option than working in new industrial zones or in cities in Mexico, although job opportunities in urban areas are far superior to the limited chances in the Mexican countryside. As Figure 2 shows, the average amount sent back in remittances to Mexico by each migrant worker from 1995 onwards is 2.4 times the official minimum wage, which is two-thirds of the average working income in Mexico. In other words, migrant workers were able to bring to the family income as much money as

Caveat Emptor Is this common Law Maxim undermined Essay

Caveat Emptor Is this common Law Maxim undermined - Essay Example This act is in addition to the existing law and accordingly a consumer usually has a remedy either in contract or in the tort of negligence (Slack 1997). The term Caveat emptor connotes that let the buyer beware. It is a common law sales contract concept that exposes the buyer to the risk inherent in a transaction. Though it involves the principle of freedom to contract, nevertheless implied warranties in the context of sale of goods are latent in it (Rossini 1998) The Sale of Goods Act 1893 was amended by several pieces of legislation, some of these are the Sale and Supply of Goods Act 1994, the Misrepresentation Act 1967, the Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977 and the Consumer Protection Act 1987 (Jones and Benson 2003). This act was the first piece of legislation that provided protection to the buyer. Recently there had been a spate of legislations, whose purpose was to enhance the protection that had been made available to consumers. Some instances of such acts are the Misrepresentation Act 1967, the amended Sale of Goods Act (Sale and Supply of Goods Act 1994 and the Sale of Goods (Amendment) Act 1994) and the Unfair Terms Regulations (S.I 1994/3159. Unfair Terms Regulations in Consumer Contract Regulations 1994). In this manner the caveat emptor doctrine has been progressively undermined and substituted by the doctrine of caveat venditor or let the seller beware. The noted legal luminary Atiyah opined that the basic principle of law was one of caveat venditor rather than one of caveat emptor (Atiyah and Adams 1995). In addition, the European Union as a champion of the rights of the consumer has planned to introduce legislation that would serve to bestow further protection on the rights of consumers. The Directive on the Sale of Consumer Goods and Associated Guarantees is an important step in this direction (EUROPA 2006). There has been a marked reluctance on the part of judicial policy to interfere with contracts between parties having equal bargaining power. The Unfair Contract Terms Act attempts to extinguish the exclusion and limitation clauses that occur in consumer contracts and contracts that are based on one of the contracting parities' standard terms (Unfair Contract Terms Act (as amended on the 1st of October, 2003) 1977). The above act is inapplicable to commercial contracts in general. In Photo Productions Limited v Securicor the House of Lords permitted Securicor to avoid liability for the acts of one of its employees (Photo Production Ltd v Securicor Transport Ltd 1980). In the case of Slater and others v Finning Ltd, the House of Lords held that if a product failed for the reason that it had been used for a purpose other than that it had been designed for then the seller was absolved of any liability for such failure (Slater v Finning Ltd 1996). This was similar to the decision in Griffths v Peter Conway Ltd, in which the buyer had concealed from the seller as to what use was to be made of the goods (Griffths v Peter Conway Ltd 1939). This indicates very clearly that there has been a preference for caveat venditor in the context of the implied condition of suitability in commercial law. The legal consequences of the rule of caveat emptor require the buyers to undertake

Two pantings from the getty museum Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Two pantings from the getty museum - Essay Example Both paintings are approximately from the same time period, with about 20 years difference between each other, both are allegorical, and both make an open and manifest reference to fields of knowledge through the humanization of concepts, personifying mentations. But there the similarities end. Van Mieris' diminutive Pictura is an oil-on-copper that displays a frequent simplicity in tandem with a minute attention to detail (see Getty Museum), typical of the Dutch art from the period, as well as the pearlescent finish in general achieved by using copper as a medium. It is a tiny portrait (5" x 3 ") of a young girl (Pictura, the art of painting in human form) who has an unobtrusive aura about her, whether worked in by Van Mieris or inherent to her nature, we will never know. In the crook of her left arm she holds a small figure, a white sculpture of a nude man that looks very Greco-Roman in its workmanship, possibly alluding to the rediscovery of classical antiquity -that is, an idealized vision of Greek and Roman culture- as a major factor for explaining the origin of the Renaissance (see "Classical"). Also in her left hand she holds a palette and some brushes. Her right hand is poised on a necklace from which a large mask pendant hangs.

Please help me pick one Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Please help me pick one - Research Paper Example 19-21). The informal corporate culture of Google is one of the distinctive components that it provides for its employees as one of its motivating strategies for its employees. Google has emphasized through their corporate values and beliefs that employees must enjoy the challenges that they confront at workplace, rather coming under stress by the challenge (Google, 2004, pp. 14-15). Google has invested to provide the employees with additional services and relaxed environment as a technique of reward and benefit that they can enjoy and relax their minds in order to be productive at work. In this regard, the company provides with onsite swimming pools, snack rooms, cafà ©s, gyms, onsite childcare, and many other services. The primary aim of providing these services to the employees is to make them feel that they are valuable asset for the company (Hajdini, 2010, pp. 32-38). Another aspect of Google that cannot come under ignorance is the careful management team. The careful leadership is structured in such a way that they provide the finest and paramount environment to the employees in order to have great ideas from them. Moreover, the leadership and management also motivate the employees with intrinsic and extrinsic rewards and benefits and appraisals based on their performances (Hajdini, 2010, pp. 32-35). Google has believed in having dynamic and creative employees, due to which they initiated a policy known as ‘Innovation Time Off’ as one of the motivating techniques that can encourage and induce the employees to enhance their skills of innovation. This practice allowed the employees to work out and contribute some of their valuable time on the assignments that are of their interest. Since Google promotes their employees to think and implement outside the box, consequently, Gmail, Google News, Orkut and so forth are few of the invented new services by these creative engineers (Hajdini, 2010, pp.

Whity (1971) by Rainer Werner Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Whity (1971) by Rainer Werner - Essay Example The movie remains fresh in the minds of the viewers long after his death in 1982. Until his death, Fassbinder had written a number of movies including Avant-garde, Katzelmacher, The American Soldier, Beware of a Holy Whore, World on a Wire, just to name but a few. It shows how talented the film writer was though he died at an early age of thirty-seven years. The stars in the movie include Ron Randell, Hanna Schygulla and Katrin Schaake (Itchload 29). The film begins in the midst of one of the key actors by the name Gunther Kaufmann who appears to lie on the ground holding something reddish in hands. At first sight, one may think he is dead. A song plays in the background, and from its words, the actor claims to require only five bullets to use to finish a family. A woman black in color follows chopping off the head of a fish. Whity is the main character in the movie. He belongs to the illegal family of Nicholson. All the family members are, in one way or the other, crazy people who w ear face makeup, which are grey in color (Itchload 29). Ron Randel, the father, is an extremely cruel one and convinces his wife that he may die so soon. His aim is to make her assume she is inheriting his husband’s property, which is not the case. ... This obsession carries the viewer up to the last part of the film. Fassbinder uses this shared obsession by all members of the family to develop the theme of the film (Pipolo 18). The contribution is represented by repeatedly stated episodes which dominate the plot of the story. The role played by each of the actors, their sexuality and the known economical relationships also help in plot development. In addition, the effects of fate in growing impacts of love the actors have in the movie make the viewer understand what the writer wants to put across (Mathews and Charles 5). This shows the society’s behavior in the whole context. These issues get even more complicated when the viewer realizes that Fassbinder’s lover plays Whity. To make matters even worse, Whity’s senior punishes him as the other members of the family watch. This is truly an embarrassing scene and shows how that community’s morality has deteriorated. As all these scenarios take place, Fass binder watches all the unfolding from his dictatorial chair. Pipolo reviews that the complicated relationship of Fassbinder and the other actors was also evident in the writer’s other movie, Beware of a Holy Whore (29). The same author also indicates that it was necessary to include Whity in Fassbinder’s other acted movie, Despair, equally celebrated by many viewers because of its creativity and complexity. The writer also demonstrates a number of customs that natives from different societies follow. As one of the most highly polished films that Fassbinder produced, Whity has quite a number of scenes that explain much about people’s behavior. As one watches the film, one will realize that there is a lot of flagellating, sexual low tones, prostitution and other fascinating styles,

Please help me pick one Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Please help me pick one - Research Paper Example 19-21). The informal corporate culture of Google is one of the distinctive components that it provides for its employees as one of its motivating strategies for its employees. Google has emphasized through their corporate values and beliefs that employees must enjoy the challenges that they confront at workplace, rather coming under stress by the challenge (Google, 2004, pp. 14-15). Google has invested to provide the employees with additional services and relaxed environment as a technique of reward and benefit that they can enjoy and relax their minds in order to be productive at work. In this regard, the company provides with onsite swimming pools, snack rooms, cafà ©s, gyms, onsite childcare, and many other services. The primary aim of providing these services to the employees is to make them feel that they are valuable asset for the company (Hajdini, 2010, pp. 32-38). Another aspect of Google that cannot come under ignorance is the careful management team. The careful leadership is structured in such a way that they provide the finest and paramount environment to the employees in order to have great ideas from them. Moreover, the leadership and management also motivate the employees with intrinsic and extrinsic rewards and benefits and appraisals based on their performances (Hajdini, 2010, pp. 32-35). Google has believed in having dynamic and creative employees, due to which they initiated a policy known as ‘Innovation Time Off’ as one of the motivating techniques that can encourage and induce the employees to enhance their skills of innovation. This practice allowed the employees to work out and contribute some of their valuable time on the assignments that are of their interest. Since Google promotes their employees to think and implement outside the box, consequently, Gmail, Google News, Orkut and so forth are few of the invented new services by these creative engineers (Hajdini, 2010, pp.

Economic Transition Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Economic Transition - Essay Example In addition, trade barriers are being lifted, the export portfolio is diversifying from oil to other products, and market forces are emerging as strong determinant of price and demand. The reasons behind this shift have their roots in the lessons, which the Saudi policy makers learnt from the crisis and recessions of 1980s due to fluctuations in the oil prices. Since then, slowly and gradually, the Saudi government has been trying to strengthen the oil sector and create a reliable banking system, which could provide credit facilities to the new foreign and domestic investors. Important here to understand that this transition is not complete yet it is had some impacts on the macroenvironment. Rather than controlling the country based on the feedback on family members and a few friends, the King has gone on to create a cabinet of ministers, which are experts of economic and financial affairs for policy making and suggestions. The administration has witnessed some retaliation from the s ide of the religious experts of the country because it is hard for them to digest that how can an Islamic welfare state adopt the western capitalistic policies but the administration has appeared firm on its decision to complete this smooth transition by the end of this decade (Ramady, 2010).

Cons of Playing Video Games Essay Example for Free

Cons of Playing Video Games Essay Video game is a series of 2D or 3D world created by author or editor to allow public experience by representing as a person or animal inside. In my humble opinion, playing video games have more cons than pros. My essay will tell you that playing video games have more cons because it wasting time, cause indulgence, side effect on body health and cause volatility. In the 21 century, video games not only available for boys, it is also already become part of the girl’s life style. Although most of the teenagers like to play video games, but playing video games is actually wasting our time. Commonly, video game is story style and continuously. So, we will need a lot of time to finish one chapter or complete a task. Regarding to that, our time to doing our homework or revision becomes less. Students may be scolded by teacher or being demerit for not completing their homework. Finally, the result of the students may be affected. Playing video games will also cause indulgence. The interesting story lines encourage people to indulge in video games. They usually play the video games until forget to eat, wash and rest. Some of them even play the video games until the whole day. This endangers one person life. Among these few month, there are report on teenager die in front of computer and the causes of death is due to play video games three days non-stop. The main reason is do not have enough rest. Besides that, playing video games for long term will also cause side effect or negative effect on body health. One of the effect is eating without follow the actual time. When playing video games, a person will always play until forget the time and miss out the lunch time and dinner time. Sitting in front of the computer for a long period of time without moving will also increase the risk of obesity and give burden to the spiral cord. Tiredness of eye and fingers are also caused by looking at the screen and typing for too long, At the other sides, video games also encourage teenager to involve in volatility. Many of the video games contain volatile issues like video games that involving fight and guns. If a person cannot control himself, he will slowly follows the attitude of the character inside and involves in volatile. Teenager probably will also unable to come back to reality world as the illusion world in video games are always perfect as it can be change according our favorable. In conclusion, playing video games have more cons than pros. Teenagers must not be besotted video games too much. In fact, they should spend their time on enjoying their teenager’s life.

Nursing Research Methods: Article Critique Essay

Nursing Research Methods: Article Critique Essay Title: Factors related to academic success among nursing students: A descriptive correlational research study Samina Iqbal Kanji The article under critique is a quantitative research study titled as â€Å"Factors related to academic success among nursing students: A descriptive correlational research study†; published in the year 2013. I will be critiquing this article according to the provided guideline. Title of the study under concern is unambiguous, thus capturing the population and phenomenon of interest. Additionally, the abstract is structured and is providing information under separate headings. The problem: The described problem is of great importance to nursing, because increased nursing shortage is posing a threat to the health industry in terms of competency and quality of care by the nursing staff. The researcher has critically analyzed the significance in terms of the relation between the academic success and its effects on the replacement of existing nursing staff The purpose of the research has been explained and the study will fulfill its purpose by providing an insight to the nursing education system to bring changes in curricula for improved results. As prior knowledge about the variables has already been discussed with other students therefore to precede the level of inquiry a quantitative approach is used as the purpose is to know about the correlations. There was no operational definition mentioned explicitly about the research variables; however their correlation with academic success has been given in other contexts. There was no explicit problem statement present in the introduction; however, linkages were made following the broad to narrow approach. Thus, provide an insight in to the nursing practice. The researcher has acknowledged the limitations of the study in terms of sample bias, low generalizability and different results at times due to the spiritual component. There were no explicit assumptions described; however one can infer from the introduction that giving an answer to the factors affecting academic success can in long run help in combat the effects of nursing shortage. Review of the literature: The review provided in the study was comprehensive, logical and critically analyzed, hence gave sequential information ranging from the admission of the nursing students, factors important for their academic success, associations between different factors and academic success and finally the itch of the study i-e correlation of factors with academic success of nursing students. The relationship of the literature review to the research purpose is unambiguously evident by using a funnel approach. In addition, most of the references were taken from the year 1982-2012. Those with old references were explicitly supported by their presence in the latest literature. The review consists of almost all of the theoretical work, though if empirical support could have made this review stronger. Besides, almost all of the researches were from primary sources and were paraphrased adequately. The information provided in the review clearly gives a way for conducting a new research; moreover, research er has also acknowledged this gap at the end of the literature review i-e there is a gap of researches done for the improvement of academic success of nursing students. Protection of human rights: The proposed study has been designed to lessen the effects of issues occurring as a result of nursing shortage i-e decreased quality of care, decreased number of competent nurses, and increased rates of nursing student’s turnover. Besides, the results of this study will not only affect the whole health care system, but it will affect the professional growth and academic success of individual nursing student. The evidence of voluntary informed consent has been mentioned explicitly that was sent to participants via electronic medium. There was no evidence present explicitly for coercion. As the sampling was done conveniently, therefore, participants were not invited during periods of high stress; rather they were asked to fill the research questioners in their own time. There was no way to identify about the identities of study participants as their data was incorporated anonymously on survey monkey software and also provided with numerical codes.. There is an explicit evidence of study review by Institutional Review Board (IRB). Theoretical/conceptual Framework: The researcher has not acknowledged the use of any theoretical / conceptual framework. According to Burns and Grove (2010), descriptive studies do not require any theoretical framework as the purpose is still to explore and describe phenomenon. The researcher may have conceptualized by looking the effects of different variable on the academic success. According to Burns and Grove (2010), at times elementary concepts about the variables make the conceptual frameworks and are present at the start of the study but are not acknowledge by the researcher and are referred as implicit frameworks. The research problem flows from the background knowledge. Concepts such as nursing shortage, student attrition, and academic success are briefly described. Hypothesis: The researcher has not stated hypothesis explicitly. However, there absence is justified in Polit and Beck (2012) that the purpose of descriptive correlational design is to describe the nature and relation between different variables and hypothesis generation; rather than concluding about casualty. However, on the other hand, Coughlan, Cronin and Ryan (2007) suggest that correlational designs approaches the relationship either via hypothesis testing of answering research question. But, researcher has not explicitly mentioned about his study research question also which could be a negative critique. Academic success in this study serves as the dependent variable, however emotional intelligence; psychological empowerment; resilience; and spiritual wellbeing plays the part of independent variables respectively. As it as a non-experimental design, therefore predictions can’t be made about the intervention or control group. Sampling: The researcher wants to generalize the study findings to all the nursing students, and has described it well. The target population is appropriate according to the research problem and resource limitation, as it would have been very difficult to cater all nursing students keeping in mind the cost constraints, human, and material resources. The researcher has clearly defined the selection process that is convenient sampling and snowballing via professors of the universities. The sampling method used fits very well with the level of inquiry and research design. This point was supported by Polit and Beck (2012) that in descriptive correlational studies; the purpose is to explore the initial relationships between variables without knowing about the conclusions therefore, self-selection or convenient sampling methods are use. Moreover, as the researcher is unaware about the existence of relationship in nursing students therefore choosing this sampling strategy would be cost effective. The re are no potential sampling biases explicitly described in the study. However, according to Rebecca (2010) one of the limitation of convenient sampling is selection bias itself, therefore potential biases could have been existed. The researcher has used power analysis to calculate sample size. However, according to Rebecca (2010), the acceptable standard for calculating power analysis is alpha 0.05, moderate effect size, and power of 0.80. The researcher has used very small power therefore; sample is not sufficiently large to generalize it to the whole population. The generalizations can be made cautiously to the nursing students. There were no control groups present, however, exclusion criteria is used to ensure a representative sample. There is no evidence of minimizing sampling error; yet if large sample size was used then it could have been minimized. Research Design: The design used for this study is a non-experimental design named as â€Å"descriptive correlational study†. This design comes under the category of level II studies and according to Rebecca (2010), correlational studies are used when the researcher wants to answer about the relationship between the variables whose nature has been described either by prior researches or literature synthesis. After going through the article and other literatures, researcher has selected an appropriate study design. One could say that researchers have already been done on students in addressing the relationship of this variable as the researcher acknowledged its absence in nursing students therefore it was a wise decision because stressors could be different for students with different programs. There is no discussion about the effects of extraneous variables and their control, however he has discussed the application of regression to analyses unique predictors however he was not successful with the regression models. The information provided in this study can permit the study replication in other nursing universities. Moreover, as this was a religious university, therefore replicating the research in non-religious universities could give better understanding about the relationship between spiritual wellbeing and academic success. Data Collection: The data collection instruments used by the researcher were Mayer–Salovey–Caruso Emotional Intelligence Test (MSCEIT), Spreitzer Psychological Empowerment Scale, Wagnild and Young Resilience Scale, the Spiritual Well-Being Scale (SWBS), and the background information of the participants. There were selection reason described, they are explained sufficiently. The research instrument by their characteristics showed congruency with the research question.. The researcher has described the use of different types of validity (face, content, discriminant, incremental, convergent) for each of the instruments where possible. Moreover, to ensure the reliability, the researcher has run reliability coefficients. According to Polit and Beck (2012), ensuring the validity and reliability of an instrument is important for the quality and results accuracy of the study results. The results of these tests of validity and reliability are enough for their usage as they are analyzed for both showing stronger correlations separately. Since the reliabilities of the instruments were stronger ranging from 0.85 to 0.91 respectively and they were valid; therefore they were suitable to for use with the study sample keeping in mind the four factors to be analyzed via them. Quantitative Analysis: The researcher has used descriptive statistics (means, standard deviations, and percentages) and Pearson’s correlation using the PASW statistics 18 to analyze the data. According to Coughlan, Cronin and Ryan (2007), descriptive studies results are analyzed via descriptive statistics. Moreover, according to Polit and Beck (2012), correlation between two variables is described through correlation procedures mainly through correlation coefficient. Therefore, the analysis methods fit with both the level of inquiry a research design. The level of measurement in this study for all variables is quantitative ratio in nature. According to Polit and Beck (2012), Pearson’s correlation coefficient are used when the variable under study either belong to interval or ratio level of measurement. The link between the data analysis and findings has been made clear unambiguously by the researcher. Moreover, the researcher has used Pearson correlation(r) and p value to show the degree of r elationship and statistical analysis for each variable, and described them very clearly altogether to show the relationship logically. At times researcher has gone beyond the data to interpret the result, for example in measuring emotional intelligence; the researcher has analyzed the differences between graduate and undergraduate students by the type of stressors. The statistical result is very well presented in the text but numerical presentation could have been better in the form of showing all results and statistics altogether. The provided results by correlation coefficient and p value are giving enough evidence about the correctness of the results. There were no graphical displays shown by the researcher, however according to Polit and Beck (2012), correlation relationships can be shown through scatter plots. Conclusions and recommendations: The results of the data analysis were unambiguously explained in terms of the research purpose for undergraduate and graduate students separately. Through this the reader can make decisions about the correlation between different factors affecting academic success easily. The generalization of these findings can be questionable due to small sample size and convenient nature of the design, thus posing a threat to external validity. The results of the findings can indirectly affect our patients as such factors could lead to student’s retention thereby welcoming more qualified nurses to provide competent care to the patients. There are no risk identified by the study findings; however, such results could provide an insight to the nursing educators in renewing the curriculum to bring positive long-term results. In the discussion section; the researcher has given recommendation in the light of literature and study findings for improving teaching strategies. Moreover, future researc hes for academic planning has also been proposed, however no such discussion has been made about nursing practice. Though the study needs cautious generalizations in terms of small sample size, still can give insight for replication, experimental studies for future policy making References: American Psychological Association. (2010). Publication manual of the American psychological association (6th ed.). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association Burns, N., Grove, S. K. (2010). Understanding nursing research: Building an evidence-based practice. Elsevier Health Sciences. Coughlan, M., Cronin, P., Ryan, F. (2007). Step-by-step guide to critiquing research. Part 1: quantitative research. British Journal of Nursing, 16(11), 658-663 Keele, R. (2010). Nursing Research and Evidence-Based Practice. Jones Bartlett Publishers. Polit, D.F. Beck, C.T. (2012). Nursing research: Generating and assessing evidence for nursing practice (9th ed.). Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams Wilkins

Essay --

Smoking Smoking is an addicting habit on the rise worldwide. Smoking across the globe has many different forms from cigarettes and cigars to pipes and shisha’s. There are many different reasons for smoking whether it is for medicinal reasons or recreational use. Smoking has been around for a very long time and in this essay I will discuss the origins of smoking, the serious health risks, economical burdens, the addicting materials as well smoking among teenagers. Despite efforts from governments and organizations to bring awareness to people across the globe of the serious dangers and implications of smoking, the number of smokers worldwide generally remains on the rise. Brief History Of Smoking Smoking in one form dates back to as early as 5000 BC. It was used in shamanistic rituals to allow the users to achieve a state of trance and connect with the spirit world. Cannabis smoking quickly spread through Africa and the Middle East almost 3000 years ago. Smoking was sighted in England as far back as 1556 and then spread to France in 1560. Tobacco was then brought into Africa by French traders in the early 1600’s. Tobacco at that time was chewed or smoked. Around that time many religious leaders banned smoking and considered it immoral and even blasphemous. The first machine made to produce cigarettes was made by James Bonsack in 1881 after the civil war. The negative effects of smoking were brought to public attention in 1929 by the paper published linking cancer and smoking. During the Great Depression and in Nazi Germany, Hitler viewed smoking as unnecessary and a waste of money and also that woman who smoked as unsuitable to be mothers and wives. After the Second World War, anti-smoking groups lost popularity and smoking increas... ...lic places including universities, shopping centers, cafes and restaurants. This bans includes shisha’s (Kuwait Bans Smoking, 2012). Also many governments have set up a â€Å"quit smoking† number and website to assist in quitting smoking.                   Conclusion Smoking has been prevalent worldwide for thousands of years and according to the World Health Organization looks to increase even more. Currently over 1 out of 7 people are smokers. There are many health risks associated with smoking and deaths due to smoking are more than 5 million people every year and has a large economic impact globally. This is more than double the deaths due to natural causes. Smoking is more and more prevalent in teenagers in today’s world due to advertising through the internet and peer pressure. Many anti-smoking organizations were set up to help people quit smoking and to raise awareness.

Career Objectives Essay

My career objective is to develop and build-up manpower with practical knowledge and problem solving skills to expand small and medium agribusiness enterprises and improve the productivity of agribusiness value chain in agricultural industry and also in my country. Also I plan to apply acquired knowledge and practical skills from TAMU to up-scale agribusiness management, farmer producer organizations and groups, agribusiness supply chain management and improve agribusiness marketing of processed commodities and small business enterprise development. To be involved in international research, outreach programs and teaching in various aspects of agribusiness management and Enterprise Development. These activities inform our domestic efforts and enable me to address important problems and opportunities in my country’s (Nigeria) agribusiness supply chain and Enterprise Development. Also to help in the attainment of the national objective of poverty alleviation and food security in my country as envisage by the Agricultural Perspective Plan (APP) through assured and efficient agricultural marketing system. To create environment for incentive price of the farmers at the same time help the consumers in their access to agricultural produces at a comfortable price. To carry out relevant agriculture marketing research activities to support the future marketing policies and programs. To facilitate and support agro entrepreneur’s association for promoting agribusiness and export from Nigeria. To construct and strengthen agriculture marketing infrastructure. Commercialization of the agriculture has been my priority at the recent time which has increased substantial market surplus of various agricultural commodities, like vegetables, fruits, species, cash crops and other agricultural products within the country. With the increase in volume of marketable surplus, t he need for assured market outlet has become very necessary. This calls for improvement is the my overall interest.

Hardware and Software Requirements For an IT system Essay

For this assignment we have to produce a report on the types of hardware and software requirements, and their purposes, for an IT system. In the context of this essay I have decided that bullet point form along with brief descriptions and graphics is the best way to present this assignment. 6 STAGE MODEL Shown above is the six-stage model, showing the processes undertaken by a computer system. Below is what each of my pictures represents: * Mouse: Input Device * The Tower: Central Processing Unit * Monitor: Output Device * Floppy Disk: Backing Store * Head: Main Memory * Telephone: Communications Devices e.g. Internet Input Devices and Techniques ‘Input devices are the means whereby computers can accept data or instructions’ (Heathcott P M, 2000, p 159) * Keyboard: The keyboard is the most commonly used of all input devices. It can be used for a various number of tasks, form entering programs, to typing documents using a word processor, or entering a persons personal details etc. * Mouse: The mouse and its variants such as the trackball is well known with all PC users. * Scanner: A scanner can be used to scan graphical images and photographs, and software can then be used to edit or touch up the images. Scanners can also be used to read typed or hand-writtten documents and this can then be interpreted by using OCR software, which can then export it to a word processor or data file. Scanners can also be used to input large volumes of data on pre-printed forms such as credit card payments, where the customers account number and amount paid are printed at the bottom of the payment slip. * Web Cam: This transfers images onto the screen. In can be used via the internet for video conferencing or you can even pre-record messages and send them via E-mail. * Bar Code Reader: Bar codes appear on almost everything we buy, whether it is a new CD or a tin of bins. The pattern of thick thin lines represents the 13 – digit number underneath the bar code. There are four main pieces of information on a bar code. The first few two or three digits represent in which country the product was registered. The next five digits represent the manufacturer’s code. The second group of five numbers represents the product and package size. The last digit is a check digit, which is calculated from the other digits in the code and ensures that the barcode is keyed in or read correctly. A very similar process to that used in the ASCII code where the spare digit is used as the parity. A Product Bar Code * Light Pen: A light pen is a device which incorporates a light sensor so that when it is held close to a screen over a character or part of a graphic, the object is detected and can be moved to create or modify graphics. * Microphone: An input devise for sound recording. * OMR (Optical Mark Recognition): An Optical Mark Reader can detect marks made in present positions on a form. The most common example of this is the lottery. It is also widely used for marking, multiple choice exams and market research questionnaires. * OCR (Optical Character Recognition): Light is emitted, bounced back and then received. This is how the OCR reads its characters. The light emitted is in different resolutions depending on the character. OCR is used widely in services such as gas and electricity etc. * MICR (Magnetic Ink Character Recognition): All banks use MICR for processing cheques. Along the bottom of a cheque the banks sort code, customer account number and cheque number are encoded in special characters in magnetic ink. The amount of the cheque is encoded in magnetic ink when it is handed in at the bank. The cheques can then be processed by MICR devices that read, sort and store the data on disk. MICR has several advantages for processing cheques: 1. It is hard to forge the characters 2. The characters can be read even if the cheque is crumpled, dirty or smudged 3. The characters are readable by humans, unlike bar codes The disadvantage of MICR though is the expense. This is why you don’t find many other examples of it being used. * Swipe Cards: Swipe cards are operated by using a magnetic strip. They are used in credit cards, debit cards, railway tickets, phone cards and many others. The magnetic strip can be encoded with upto 220 characters of data and other 83% of adults in Britain own at least one card. Unfortunately because there are only 220 characters of data this makes the cards very easy to copy, which is why the strips will eventually, disappear and be replaced by a chip, which is almost impossible to fake. Something slightly similar to the smart card. * Smart Cards: Smart cards are of a similar appearance to that of the swipe cards, but instead of using the magnetic strip they contain a small 1-millimeter square microprocessor which is stored in the centre of the card. This is then protected by a small gold electrical contact the card can still read information through this. Unlike the swipe card the smart cards can hold millions of characters of data. In the future banks hope to replace all the swipe cards with a ‘Super card’ which will also be able to be used to pay for smaller goods such as milk and newspapers without the need to carry cash. This card will almost be unbreakable. In Belgium they already have a similar system working to this it is called the ‘Proton Card’, which incorporates the use of both magnetic strip and a microprocessor chip for bank withdrawals and payments of small goods. The Smart Card * Touch Sensitive Screens: A touch sensitive screen allows the user to touch an area of the screen rather than having to type the data on a keyboard. They are widely used in tourist centres, where tourists can look up various local facilities and entertainment’s, in fast food stores such as McDonald’s for entering customer orders, in manufacturing, and also bars. * Digitisers: A digitiser can draw quality illustrations. It has a flat rectangular slab onto which a stylus (anything that terminates in a point) is placed. Output Devices and Techniques ‘The ultimate aim of the computer is to produce useful information, the information that is produced by the computer is in binary digits, we therefore need devices to translate these into a form we can use’ (Corbitt T, 1990, p 11) * VDU: (Visual Display Unit) The VDU is similar in appearance to the television receiver, an alternative name is the monitor. VDUs have better resolution than TVs and therefore are better for graphical work. It has its own fixed amount of RAM (Random Access Memory) associated with it to store the image being displayed on the screen. So the more RAM it has the better the resolution displayed on the screen. The number of pixels used to represent a full-screen image determines the resolution. Example: If 1 bit represents each pixel then two colours can be displayed, so to display 256 colours you would need 8 bits (1byte) It is usually possible to adjust both the resolution and the number colours – if you select a high resolution you won’t be able to have as many colours because of the memory available on the VDU Printers The results of processing are usually required in printed form. Printers come in all shapes and sizes, there are two main categories of printers: * Impact Printers which transfer the image on to the paper by applying pressure against a ribbon onto the paper, this transfers ink form the ribbon to the paper forming the image * Non-impact Printers which produce the image on the paper without any contact. Impact Printers * Dot-matrix: The characters on this are formed by dots. The print head contains a number of needles, the more there are of these the better the quality of print. A head with nine needles would take seven horizontal movements to print a character, this printer would be said to have a seven-by-nine-character matrix. In the latest type near letter quality is produced by double printing. The line of type is printed, the head moves back to the beginning of the line, moves down fractionally and then prints the line a second time. This doubles the time taken to print a document. To overcome this more expensive models use twice the number of needles and near letter quality can be achieved with one pass of the head. The dot-matrix can also print out graphics and pictures of a basic quality. Dot-matrix printers, which can print in colour, are available, these use a ribbon which contains red, green and blue. Coloured output is obtained by repeated printing, repositioning of the paper, print head and ribbon. The dot-matrix can print between 30 and 200 characters per second (cps). * Daisy-wheel printers: The print head consists of flexible arms extending from a centre hub, the characters are at the tips of the arms. When printing the hub revolves bringing the required character next to the ribbon. Some daisy-wheel printers are bi-directional and the print head can turn in either direction so that quickest possible print time is achieved. The print can be changed so that different font styles can be used. Daisy wheel printers are unable to print graphics unlike the dot-matrix. It is capable of speed ranges 12 to 55 cps. Non-impact printers * Thermal printers: These use specially treated paper, which is affected by heat generated by the print head as it passes across the paper. The main advantages are that they are silent and fast, printing 30-120 cps. Disadvantages are that the paper is expensive and that the printed image degrades in time. * Ink-jet printer: With this type of printer the characters are formed on the paper by spraying it with a stream of ink dots. They are fast, printing 150-270 cps and almost soundless, the quality of print is very good. A Canon Bubble Jet Printer BJC7000 * Plotters: Plotters are used to produce drawings, diagrams and other types of graphical output. There are two varieties in use, the flatbed plotter which is used where accuracy is important and the drum plotter which is used for business applications. The flatbed type is fixed while the pen moves over the top of the device while the axis moves up and down, whilst the drum variety uses continuous stationery. In both types the pens, under the program control, are moved to the down position, the movement of the pens is then controlled to draw the image. There are from one to six pens, which can be used to output different colours. There is also the less commonly known graph plotter. This is most commonly seen in use for lie detector tests. * COM: (Computer Output on Microfilm) The problem of storing information on paper can be considerable in a large business. One way to solve this is to have output from the computer photographed as microscopic images directly onto microfilm. Two methods of storage are used, one put the information onto a roll of 16mm film while the other uses microfiche. Microfiche can store upto 100 pages of A4 on a single piece, to see it you must have a microfiche reader. The most recent examples of this being used is in libraries and in garages for checking car parts. Data can be stored onto microfilm directly from the computer or off line using magnetic tape as an intermediary store. * Voice output: The output of the computer can be given in spoken form by using voice synthesisers to transform words stored in the computer into human speech, this is great for disabled people who cannot speak as it allows them to communicate. The user can hear through a loudspeaker. Secondary device techniques A permanent, non-volatile form of storage is required by all computer systems to save software and data files. Magnetic tape, magnetic disks, CD-ROM (Compact Disk Read Only Memory), and microfilm are all examples of what is known as secondary storage. * Floppy disk: The standard 3 1/2†³ floppy disk is a thin, flexible plastic disk coated in metal oxide, enclosed in a rigid plastic casing for protection. A standard high density disk has a storage space of 1.44 Megabytes. * Hard Disks: The hard disk used with conventional PCs consists of one or more disk platters, which are permanently sealed inside a casing. Hard disks have a capacity of between 2Gb and 10Gb, though external hard drives can be plugged into the computer to provide extra storage space. For large-scale applications storing huge amounts of data, more hard disks would be used. The disks can be fixed or removable, although the fixed disks are more reliable and have more storage capacity. Data is stored on the concentric tracks, which are divided into sectors. Data is then stored in one of the sectors so that it minimises the movement of the read-write heads, thereby minimising access time. * CD-ROM: CD-ROMs can store around 680Mb of data, which is the equivalent of hundreds of floppy disks. CD-ROMs do not transfer data as quickly as the hard disk drive. As the name suggests the disks are read-only memory. Unlike a magnetic disk they are created by burning tiny holes into the surface of the disk, a laser beam is then reflected off the surface of the disk, detecting the presence or absence of pits, which represent the binary digits. * Worm disks (Write Once, Read Many): These look very similar to the CD-ROM in appearance but are gold rather than silver in colour. These disks can be used to write your own material and are ideal for archiving or storing images or data, which will not be changed. They are popular in the pirate industry because a à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½5 blank disk can store upto à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½20 000 worth of software and sell for à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½50 – à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½80. They are used by less reputable PC company’s which install the software onto the PC so they can charge the consumer more for the package. However because of the competition in the pirate industry at present many of these carry viruses which can cause chaos on the hard drive. * Magneto-optical disks: Magneto-optical disks integrate optical and laser technology to enable read and write storage. A 5 1/2†³ disk can store up to 1 Gb. These disks may in future replace current magnetic disks, but at present the technology is still developing and the disks are too expensive, slow and unreliable to be in widespread use. * Magnetic tape: Magnetic tape was developed in the 1950s and very quickly became the primary means of storing data. The data is stored on magnetic tape in the form of dots of magnetism. It is used widely for archiving past transactions or other data that may be needed again, for example, old news readings that have been collected over a number of years. * Jaz Drive: Two Gigabytes is a tape drive and a mass storage device mainly used for backing up large files or batches of files i.e. end of day transaction backup for banks or businesses Software requirements and techniques Software is the name given to the programs that direct the operation of the computer. It can be divided into two main groups, system software and applications software. System software is the programs required to run the computer system and applications software is the programs required to carry out a particular application such as stock control Systems software This is the software that the microcomputer system needs to run. In this group there are three divisions: operating systems, utilities and compilers/interpreters/assemblers. Operating systems: An operating system is a set of programs that allows the user to perform tasks without having to know how they are done. For example, a user can give a command to save a file on disk without having to know where the file will be stored or how it will be retrieved again. Applications programs are usually written to work with a particular operating system e.g. Excel will only work with Windows and not with Apple Mac, which has a different operating system. Utility programs: Utility programs perform common tasks that every computer user will need at one stage or another. They carry out such jobs as formatting and copying disks, deleting files from disks, sorting information into a required order, and to help with the testing of programs that have been written. Compilers, interpreters and assemblers: These are programs that translate the programming language that is used into a form that the computer can understand. Compilers work by translating the whole of the program from what is known as the source program into the object program which will be in a form that the computer can understand. Interpreters are programs that translate and execute source programs one statement at a time. An assembler is a program supplied by the computer manufacturer that will translate a program that was written in assembly language (low-level programming language) into machine code. Applications software: In large organisations that have a mainframe or minicomputer we would find that programmers were employed whose job it would be to write the programs for the applications that the organisation wished to have run on the computer, such as payroll, stock control or hospital appointments. The software may be designed specifically for one particular company and written especially for them using a programming language or software such as database management system. Alternatively, the software may be purchased ‘off the shelf’. General purpose software: Most general purpose software is sold as a package, including a CD containing the software. Below is the most common packages that you would find on the market to date: 1. Applications: spreadsheets, database, word processing, Desk Top Publishing 2. Presentation: CD based presentations (Power Point, Director) 3. Internet Publishing: web page development software (Front Page, Dreamweaver, Flash) 4. Programming Software: BASIC, Visual Basic, C++, Java, Pascal, HTML 5. Creation and Editing: Photo Shop, Paint Shop Pro, Premier, Coral Draw 6. Utility: Anti-virus, tidy and compression, Doctors. The newer computer systems will have these utilities on them already. Software such as word processing, spreadsheet and databases is sometimes refereed to as generic software. This means that many of the packages can be made to do many different tasks, and is not specifically for one type of application. The other types of application software such as stock control and payroll as mentioned before are special purpose because they have been designed to complete one particular task. Conclusion: I found this assignment very interesting and now feel I have a much sounder understanding off computer hardware and software. I would have liked to incorporate more images into the assignment as reference to each of the products described, but was unable to find all of the images that I required, and also had problems trying to transfer them from the internet. Apart from this I feel quite satisfied with the overall assignment and hope that I have entered all the data needed and presented it in a clear fashion. Bibliography Corbitt T, (1990), Information Technology And Its Applications. Avon, United Kingdom: Bath Press Heathcott P M, (2000), ‘A’ Level Computing. Ipswich, United Kingdom: Payne-Gallway Publishers Ltd References Corbitt T, (1990), Information Technology And Its Applications. Avon, United Kingdom: Bath Press Heathcott P M, (2000), ‘A’ Level Computing. Ipswich, United Kingdom: Payne-Gallway Publishers Ltd Michael Firmstone Tutor: Del Turney 14/11/01

Five Force Analysis

Rogers Chocolate: Five Force Analysis Feedback A graphic portrayal of the five-forces model for the chocolate industry is shown in below. At the end of the analysis, always state a conclusion: Rivalry Among Competing Premium Chocolate Producers—a Moderately Strong Competitive Force In the discussion of the five competitive forces that follows, we use a + sign to indicate factors acting to strengthen rivalry and a – sign to indicate factors acting to weaken rivalry.The +/– signs are shown in parentheses. ?The Canadian premium chocolate industry has been growing by about 20% annually while the chocolate industry as a whole has been relatively stagnant or falling. (–) ? The gap between the growth of the premium and lower quality markets has spurred a movement by large, traditionally low quality, manufacturers into the premium market through acquisitions and upmarket launches. (+) ? Product differentiation is moderate among makers of premium chocolates.While t here is some differentiation with respect to the quality of the chocolate produced, the main differentiating feature is the packaging of the product which helps draw first time users to one premium brand over another. (+) ? Competitors consistently pursue premium placement and packaging changes that make their product more attractive to the consumer. (+) ? With large percentages of annual sales being seasonal, advertising and competitive jockeying for retail sales intensifies during the most profitable periods of the year. (+) ? Switching costs to consumers is low.While the costs of switching from one brand to another are low, consumers of premium chocolates tend to be brand loyal. (–) ? The industry is mostly regional with only a few large players. (neutral) ? Most competitors have similar strategies, offering some customization on wholesale and online purchases and maintaining standardized retail operations. (+) Threat of Entry—A Strong Competitive Force ?With the in dustry currently composed primarily of regional players there are not significant economies of scale in production that would prohibit entry. (+) ?Significant learning curve effects and lower fixed costs independent of scale, such as favorable long-term leases in retail locations, for incumbents exist that could discourage new entrants. (–) ?Strong brand loyalty and preferences for existing brands would make it difficult for new entrants to take market share. (–) ? There are high capital requirements in the form of manufacturing facilities, machinery, retail space, and distribution channels to launch large scale operations but low capital requirements for local and some regional operations. (neutral) ?With the industry growing at 20% annually potential entrants may see room to flourish in an underserved market. (+) ? This high growth has caused large, well known, low quality manufacturers with large resources to begin positioning themselves to enter this market. (+) ? With a large portion of the market consisting of baby boomers, there is potential for market growth for decades to come. (+) Competition from Substitutes—Varies Depending on the Taste Preferences of Consumers ? The primary consumers of premium chocolates appreciate high product quality and have a high level of brand awareness.Traditional off-the-shelf candy and chocolates do not compare in the minds of these consumers. This leaves very few substitutes that include upscale, premium candies, cakes, and ice creams. (–) ? Switching costs to the few substitutes are low. (+) ?Average consumers that may purchase premium chocolates on special occasions or as gifts have a wide array of readily available substitutes. The substitutes to these consumers are traditional candy bars, flowers, stuffed animals, hard candy, etc. , etc. (+) ? Substitutes are readily available and are sold at lower price points. (+) ? Switching costs for these consumers are also low. (+)The Bargaining Pow er and Leverage of Suppliers—Weak to Moderate for Packaging Inputs; Moderate to Strong for Product Inputs ? Packaging inputs for the industry can be procured from a multitude of suppliers located around the world. (–) ? There are some costs to switching packaging suppliers for industry members but these costs are not so extreme that they prevent switching. (neutral) ? Packaging inputs are readily available from most suppliers. (–) ? Suppliers of packaging inputs are heavily relied upon to deliver inputs on time and in conjunction with production runs. These inputs are also a large portion of overall product costs. +) ? It is not economically viable for industry members to backward integrate into production of packaging inputs. (+) ? It is not likely that suppliers will integrate forward. (–) ? Consumer concerns for human rights and environmentally safe packaging increases the pressure on industry members to procure packaging inputs from what are considere d responsible suppliers or to pressure suppliers into producing packaging inputs under set terms and conditions. (neutral) ? Production inputs to the industry, such as cocoa beans, are a commodity but can only be grown in certain climates restricting the number of suppliers. +) ? Switching suppliers of production inputs can be costly if they come from regions or continents other than what the industry member is currently using. This may require new procurement channels and transportation methods. (+) ? Production inputs can be in short supply or abundant depending on the climate that year. (neutral) ? Production inputs are basically standard across the industry. (–) ? Suppliers provide inputs that account for a large portion of the product cost. (+) ? It is neither feasible nor economically viable for market participants to integrate into the production of these inputs. +) ? It is not likely that suppliers will integrate forward. (–) ? Consumer concerns for human right s increases the pressure on industry members to procure production inputs from what are considered responsible suppliers or to pressure suppliers into producing inputs under set terms and conditions. (neutral) The Bargaining Power and Leverage of Buyers—Weak for Consumers; Moderate for Wholesale Buyers ? Cost of switching brands for retail/online buyers is low, and despite high brand loyalty, many buyers may switch to another brand if they perceive the brand to be equivalent in quality at a lower price. +) ? Number of buyers is large and the individual buyer is a small portion of the total business. (–) ? Retail/Online buyer purchases are infrequent and small. (–) ? Retail/Online buyers can postpone purchases. (+) ?There are equivalent products from competitors available. (+) ? Cost of switching brands for wholesale buyers, such as large retail chains, is low when there are no contracts in place; however, if contracts are in place the switching costs are high. ( neutral) ? Wholesale buyers purchase in larger quantities and on a more regular basis. (+) ?Wholesale buyers can easily compare prices, costs and product quality. (+) ? There is a moderate threat of wholesale buyers, such as food retailers, integrating into this industry. (neutral) ? There are equivalent products from competitors available. (+) ? Wholesale buyers are not able to postpone purchases as easily as individual buyers. (–) Conclusions concerning the overall strength of competitive forces. The overall competitive pressures on the premium chocolates industry are moderate and that industry conditions are favorable to above average profit margins.However, when considering the threat of new entrants, the growth potential and the resources that some potential entrants control, this industry is likely to see an increase in the number and/or size of industry participants in the near future. This will inevitably result in an increase in the rivalry among industry participant s. An increase in supplier power could result if large manufacturers arrange strategic alliances and/or sole provider contracts with suppliers that restrict the inputs available to other industry participants.

Outliers Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Outliers - Assignment Example He is a sports lover and has an attitude inclined towards psychology and research. In his literature psychological and sociological issues are delved deeper by the use of sports at all levels. Gladwell said; "Im not sure that the boundaries that used to exist among different recreational activities will matter as much in the future." Gladwell is the writer of four books, all successful. He described his brainwave of writing as; "I have two parallel things Im interested in. One is, Im interested in collecting interesting stories, and the other is Im interested in collecting interesting research. What Im looking for is cases where they overlap." The Tipping Point gives a new way to understand world, Blink changed the view of thinking and Outliers transformed the understanding of success. He really is a gifted man with the ability to see beyond those simplicities which others ignore. Outlier is a statistical term which is used to define points which do not follow the trend. Literally an outlier is the odd one out, the different, the status quo breaker, the one who brazen out the routine and the one who has the ability to challenge the norms. The book â€Å"Outliers† is itself an out of the box idea of Gladwell. Like his previous books, Gladwell, in Outliers has followed his tradition of challenging the status quo. The name itself has embark an extremely different and entirely new definition of the term; â€Å"Outliers†. After reading â€Å"Blink† the initial two seconds spent on looking the book comprised of the name; â€Å"Outliers†. My very first opinion influence through the name of the book was that it will be a powerful piece of literature. To me the hypothesis is successful, decisions made in mere two seconds are as good as the decisions made cautiously and deliberately. The book; â€Å"Outliers† is as powerful as the name itself suggests. Gladwell has used the term â€Å"Outlier† to represent the successful people of the world. He talks of those