The Best Jobs For Antisocial People

The Best Jobs For Antisocial People So you hate people, and you’d rather not interact with them all day every day. Like at most jobs, right? Well, you’re in luck. You can still be a functioning member of society, hold down a proper career, be successful- all without having to spend too much time in the company of others. So stop beating yourself up for not being a â€Å"people person.† Here are 10  of the best jobs for introverts, misanthropes, awkward people, and the antisocial among us who would prefer to do our work on our own, thank you very much.1. EconomicsSpend your work time conducting research, analyzing data, and formulating economic plans. Most of this requires you to be hunched over your computer in fierce concentration. No conversation necessary.2. PotteryIf you have any talent for pottery, you can retreat to your studio, wheel, and kiln, and then make money off your wares. You could even get someone else to sell them, or set up a shop online.3. Watch RepairIt’s just you and t he cogs. Hide out in some back workroom fixing and cleaning and adjusting watches for a living.4. Agricultural Equipment OperatorA big farm machine, the open field and sky, and no conversation required- it’s too loud to hear anyone talking anyway, even yourself. Plus, it’s vital work that feeds the world.5. Animal CareLike animals more than people? Spend your workweek taking care of them in a shelter, pet store, or veterinary office. It doesn’t pay terribly well, but it’s bliss.6. ArchivistHole up in a solitary corner of a museum or auction house and catalogue or restore items of immense value to a few scholars. You’ll spend your days in silence and make a decent salary.7. Court ReporterYou’ll be in the middle of the action, but you’re a mere fly on the wall; you won’t have to interact with anyone. Just sit there and let your mind wander and your fingers fly.8. Social Media ManagerIt may seem ironic that you can conduct immense ly social marketing business from a little cubicle somewhere and never have to speak to anyone. But it’s true! You’ll have to spend a lot of time online, just by virtue of the position, and you’ll hardly have much time in your workday to be, you know, actually social.9. Tax Accountant/Actuarial AccountantYour contact with clients will be infrequent. You’ll spend most of your day analyzing numbers, dealing with data, and researching. And there are subspecialties in the field that will carry you even further from daily human interaction.10. Transportation Equipment PaintersYou probably didn’t even know this was a job. But surfaces of transportation equipment like buses, trucks, trains, boats, planes, etc. all require painting. So put on your haz-mat suit and enjoy the sound of your own thoughts.

PESTEL analysis of Quick Service Restaurant and identify the key economic and social factors within that environment. The WritePass Journal

PESTEL analysis of Quick Service Restaurant and identify the key economic and social factors within that environment. PESTEL analysis of Quick Service Restaurant and identify the key economic and social factors within that environment. IntroductionSOCIAL FACTORS   REFERENCESRelated v\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);} o\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);} w\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);} .shape {behavior:url(#default#VML);} Normal 0 false false false MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 st1\:*{behavior:url(#ieooui) } /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} Introduction Normal 0 false false false MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} PART A: Undertake an analysis of the environment in which your organization (or one with which you are familiar) is operating and identify the key economic and social factors within that environment. Explain how these are likely to impact on the business strategy and operations of the organization. There is no organization that exists in isolation without an environmental interaction[AM1]  . Strategy planning in any organization will enhance competitive advantage in which the external environment needs to be well understood. To do this, there are different factors that affect business strategy and operations of an organization, though it depends on the organization and the environment they are. Since organizations are operating in a very dynamic environment, they will need to address issues relating to competitive strategy in order for them to gain competitive advantage and to maximize profit. According to Worthington et al (2004[AM2]  ,) the external environment comprises of spatially diverse influences, economic, political, legal, and social, technological which affects business activity in different ways and impact on all aspects of the transformation process of the law. Worthington et al (2004) also stated that the environment of a business organization is the totality of forces, factors, or institutions which are potentially relevant in carrying out of company’s operations; hence relationship between a business organization and its surroundings is very symbolic in nature. That is, it is two way relationships – environment interacts with organisation and vice versa. Environment analysis is an evaluation of the possible effects of an external forces and conditions on an organisation’s survival and growth strategies[AM3]  .   PESTEL (Political, Economic, Socio-Cultural, Technological, Environmental and Legal factors) is one of the major techniques for identifying factors which impact on business organisation; some of which span more than one element – example, a mix of economic and environment though, external forces require an organisation’s response as well. Mr Biggs is one of the Quick Service Restaurant and a subsidiary of United African Company (UAC) Nigeria Plc; a very successful quick service restaurant business in sub region Africa, established in August 1986, provides the largest fast food restaurants retailers in West African countries that has 180 branches in Nigeria and have spread over to Accra, Ghana with many branches in 2003.   In scanning the environment in which Mr Biggs operate, the economic and social factors will be closely looked at. Boddy (2008) highlighted economic factors as having serious effect on the business organisation, some of the key factors being interest rate, inflation, recession, corporation tax, VAT, GDP.   Ã¢â‚¬Å"Inflation is the persistent increase in the general prices of goods and services† Wyplosz and Burda, (1997). BOGOF(Buy-one-Get-One-Free) which is one of the strategies used by Mr Biggs, can be affected by inflation. Inflation aid in increasing suppliers costs, which inversely push up the prices of Mr Biggs products hence. This trend will in turn affect the general operations of Mr Biggs in sales, in that sales will drop due to the increase in prices.     Also, interest rate which is the rate at which company pays on their loans, affects the business. Generally, the higher the interest rate, the lower the company borrows.This will affect the operations and strategy of Mr Biggs in that the cash flow needed to augment the day-to-day activities like paying wages, restocking etc, will be affected to a large extent. The company strategy will also  Ã‚   change to securing a low cost supplier, which normally implies compromising the quality of products supplied. High unemployment rate can have adverse effects on Mr Biggs sales for it will affect the purchasing power of the buyers and thereby reduce the effective demands for their products.   Mr Biggs strategy will be forced to switch to strategies that will encourage repeated purchases from existing customers. This will mean management absorbing the cost of most operations; hence this will have a multiplier effect of reducing profit. These economic factors are largely outside the control of the company, but their outcome on performances and the marketing mix can be profound. SOCIAL FACTORS   These includes population changes, aging population, differences in national culture and health issues. People are more conscious of health; their consumption attitude is changing drastically for they have freewill to choose. Mr Biggs, being a socially responsible member of the community in Africa; they support schools – both secondary and tertiary institutions in their social programs. Everyday of the year, Mr Biggs always make something exciting happening because of their creating relationships. By supporting young people in schools, it create more social intimacy between Mr Biggs and the students for younger people tends to visit the restaurants more than the aged ones because they have higher consumption power than the older ones. It is on record that Mr Biggs gives out bursary to poor students from Primary, Secondary, Polytechnic and University levels. It[AM4]   is noted, that younger people have power and more access to online shopping than the older ones. The types of food demand by the consumers are constantly changing because they are more aware of health issues. Mr Biggs believes in creating relationships, they usually do something to improve the lives of their immediate communities every week or every other day even if it is just a ‘smile that we put on somebody’s face’; this start from their security officers to the top managers. The Core purpose and values define how Mr Biggs do its business, how they value and treat their customers. Their responsibilities are well defined and perfected to meet the needs of communities where their business operates and strengthened the relationship between them and the environment in which their business strategy continues to deliver strong results. Their philosophy of â€Å"have a bigg experience† expresses these wide-ranging responsibilities. They recognise their impact on society and are trying to sustain the benefit they bring to society. Whatever they do, the principle of treating ‘customers as a king’ is highly imbibed in Mr Biggs for they put their customers at the heart of everything they do. Conclusively, Armstrong, (2008[AM5]  ) opined â€Å"companies need to be good to customers to gain sustainability which means environmental and community stewardship. It also needs permission from government to operate within the confines and the organisation would get a good status†. Beyond reasonable doubt, Mr Biggs satisfy the opinion of Armstrong school of thought as it has recorded tremendous growth and remarkable success through its total commitment to the satisfaction of its teeming customers. This is helping this organisation in no small way as it is becoming the main issue in Nigeria and Sub-Sahara Africa in Quick Service Restaurant Business. Mr Biggs has been enjoining good patronage in its environment and they have been giving back to the society that shot them to limelight in form of their welfare package. By this, it will strengthen and sustain the relationship between Mr Biggs and its environment. Part B: Explain how the business strategy and operations might change in order to respond effectively to the factors that you have outlined in Part A. Drucker, (1999[AM6]  ) defines strategy as â€Å"†¦purpose is to enable an organisation to achieve its desired results in an unpredictable environment. For strategy allows an organisation to be purposefully opportunistic.† Business strategy encourages great success and develops to monitor the progress of an organisation by taking into consideration the customer’s interest as well as shareholders and employees. In the view of Burnes, (2009[AM7]  ) â€Å"Strategy is an act of maintaining the position of sustainable competitive advantage in the environment where business organisation operates.† Strategic approach to be deployed by organisation is based on the managerial choice within their limit in terms of national, organisational and environmental factors. An organisation that is profit oriented can only achieved their aims when they motivate and stimulate their employees. This will help them to perform more effectively and efficiently towards achieving p rofitability and organisational goals and objectives. Most organisations are trying to improve and review strategy frequently as there is a rising need if organisation would want to gain competitive advantage. In Nigeria, the environment is very unstable and in year 2003; Mr Biggs embark on franchising in order to respond effectively to the volatile environment where it is to enhance its stipulated goals. Besides they continually updated their strategy to compete with their competitors and based on their quality stuff, it makes it more outstanding among their competitors like Tantalizer Restaurant and The Chicken Restaurant. Strategy could be initiated to enhance business breakthrough in a very volatile business competitive environment. In this regard, Mr Biggs involves modern machines by the dictates of technological evolution to meet challenges that may come up as a result of change in customers taste. It is very important for a company to have an idea of its competitors’ strengths and weaknesses together with their characteristics. This will help them in planning and updating their strategies – for instance, making their products a unique one such as differentiation in pricing and products design. Most organisations used to compare their prices with their competitors, having comparism site like â€Å"Go Compare† make it easier for customers to make their choice. Where organisations expand externally, vertical integration needs to be encouraged. Mr Biggs is planning for expansion to two different countries in 2011 including UK as per on-going discussion with UK firms (Businessday, Dec.14 2010). Rodger and Mac Culloch, (2001) opined that â€Å"firms develop through internal growth and in appropriate circumstances.† This is true because organisation is in total control of all units of production and they can do substantially without borrowing with the supp ort and cooperation of all departments. This will bring a sustainable help during unexpected high interest rates. This will increase and controls the business profit margins, reduce cost of transportation and improve the supply channel and also creates barriers to competitors. Mr Biggs, being the biggest fast food business in Nigeria and Sub-Sahara Africa embarking on rebranding process aimed at delivery as much they spend on increased value to its customers (Businessday, 2010). Mr Biggs was voted as the most trusted fast food brand in year 2010 in Nigeria due to their excellent strategies and performances.   Strategy Reassessment – Mullins (2003) is of the view that â€Å"in today’s fast-changing world, strategy reassessment may happen much more quickly, as competitive and technological developments cause firms to quickly change their entire strategies and business models.† This is based on periodic assessment either quarterly or annually whereby companies evaluate their performances in line with the external environment. Mr Biggs used to reassess their performances in intervals, for instance, they are trying as much as possible to involve new marketing strategy that is in tune with the dynamic nature of business globally. Additionally, Porter (1980) in Boddy, (2008) identified three types of generic strategies among which Mr Biggs adopted by focusing on corporate customers, families, adults and children by fully involve in schools social functions and every children from kindergarten to higher institutions, for example Universities. Little kids identify their big ‘B’ logo and forces their parents to the restaurant all the time. Apart from this, they utilises differentiation strategy by standardize their products and make it of higher quality than their competitors. Though some customers are not bothering about how much they spend on quality, but all they really concern about is to get quality products. Mr Biggs always produce quality foods that meet International Standard Organisation requirement for human consumption – that are hygienic and nourishing to promote good and healthy living.   In conclusion, business strategy, operations plus activities in Mr Biggs are being affected by austerity measure, government budget review – that affect the purchasing power of consumers; population change, different national culture, government budget review, change in consumers’ taste, modernisation (technological evolution). These require the business to change their strategies in order to take advantage of the opportunity and respond to the challenges within the business environment. An articulated and integrated strategy must be in continuous use and part of it be preserved as this will go a long way in providing organisation with the treasure of strategy and reserved techniques that germane to the enhancement of the organisational goals and the environment, (Emphasis mine).   REFERENCES Armstrong, M. (2008) Strategic Human Resources Management: A Guide to Action. 4th Edition. London and Philadelphia. Boddy, D. (2008). Management: An Introduction. 4th Edition. Harlow: Financial- Times Prentice Hall. Burnes, B. (2009). Managing Change: A strategic Approach to organisational Dynamics. 5th Edition. Harlow: Financial Times-Prentice Hall. Businessday (2010): How Mr Bigg’s Nigeria plans to compete in European market. Retrieved from www.businessdayonline.com/NG/index. Drucker, P.F (1999) Management Challenges for the 21st Century. Great Britain: Elsevier Butterworth-Heinemann. mrbiggsonline.com/ Pettinger, R. and Frith R. (2000) Mastering Organisational Behaviour. London: Macmillan Press Ltd. Rodger B.J and Mac Culloch, A. (2001) Competition Law and Policy in the EC and UK. London and Sydney: Second Edition: Cavendish Publishing Limited. Mullins, Walker, and Boyd. (2003) Marketing. 3rd Edition. Berkshire: McGraw-Hill. Worthington, I., Briton, C. and Rees, A. (2004) Economics for Business: Blending Theory in Practice. UK: 2nd Edition. Prentice Hall. Wyplosz, C. and Burda, M. (1997). Macroeconomic. 2nd Edition. Oxford University Press. v\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);} o\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);} w\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);} .shape {behavior:url(#default#VML);} There is no organisation that exists in isolation without an environmental interaction[AM1]  . Strategy planning in any organisation will enhance competitive advantage in which the external environment needs to be well understood. To do this, there are different factors that affect business strategy and operations of an organisation, though it depends on the organisation and the environment they are. Since organisations are operating in a very dynamic environment, they will need to address issues relating to competitive strategy in order for them to gain competitive advantage and to maximise profit. According to Worthington et al (2004[AM2]  ,) the external environment comprises of spatially diverse influences, economic, political, legal, and social, technological which affects business activity in different ways and impact on all aspects of the transformation process of the law. Worthington et al (2004) also stated that the environment of a business organisation is the totality of forces, factors, or institutions which are potentially relevant in carrying out of company’s operations; hence relationship between a business organisation and its surroundings is very symbolic in nature. That is, it is two way relationships – environment interacts with organisation and vice versa.    Environment analysis is an evaluation of the possible effects of an external forces and conditions on an organisation’s survival and growth strategies[AM3]  .   PESTEL (Political, Economic, Socio-Cultural, Technological, Environmental and Legal factors) is one of the major techniques for identifying factors which impact on business organisation; some of which span more than one element – example, a mix of economic and environment though, external forces require an organisation’s response as well.    Mr Biggs is one of the Quick Service Restaurant and a subsidiary of United African Company (UAC) Nigeria Plc; a very successful quick service restaurant business in sub region Africa, established in August 1986, provides the largest fast food restaurants retailers in West African countries that has 180 branches in Nigeria and have spread over to Accra, Ghana with many branches in 2003.    In scanning the environment in which Mr Biggs operate, the economic and social factors will be closely looked at.    Boddy (2008) highlighted economic factors as having serious effect on the business organisation, some of the key factors being interest rate, inflation, recession, corporation tax, VAT, GDP.      Ã¢â‚¬Å"Inflation is the persistent increase in the general prices of goods and services† Wyplosz and Burda, (1997). BOGOF(Buy-one-Get-One-Free) which is one of the strategies used by Mr Biggs, can be affected by inflation. Inflation aid in increasing suppliers costs, which inversely push up the prices of Mr Biggs products hence. This trend will in turn affect the general operations of Mr Biggs in sales, in that sales will drop due to the increase in prices.        Also, interest rate which is the rate at which company pays on their loans, affects the business. Generally, the higher the interest rate, the lower the company borrows.This will affect the operations and strategy of Mr Biggs in that the cash flow needed to augment the day-to-day activities like paying wages, restocking etc, will be affected to a large extent. The company strategy will also  Ã‚   change to securing a low cost supplier, which normally implies compromising the quality of products supplied.    High unemployment rate can have adverse effects on Mr Biggs sales for it will affect the purchasing power of the buyers and thereby reduce the effective demands for their products.   Mr Biggs strategy will be forced to switch to strategies that will encourage repeated purchases from existing customers. This will mean management absorbing the cost of most operations; hence this will have a multiplier effect of reducing profit.    These economic factors are largely outside the control of the company, but their outcome on performances and the marketing mix can be profound.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   SOCIAL FACTORS – These includes population changes, aging population, differences in national culture and health issues. People are more conscious of health; their consumption attitude is changing drastically for they have freewill to choose. Mr Biggs, being a socially responsible member of the community in Africa; they support schools – both secondary and tertiary institutions in their social programs. Everyday of the year, Mr Biggs always make something exciting happening because of their creating relationships. By supporting young people in schools, it create more social intimacy between Mr Biggs and the students for younger people tends to visit the restaurants more than the aged ones because they have higher consumption power than the older ones. It is on record that Mr Biggs gives out bursary to poor students from Primary, Secondary, Polytechnic and University levels. It[AM4]   is noted, that younger people have power and more access to online s hopping than the older ones. The types of food demand by the consumers are constantly changing because they are more aware of health issues. Mr Biggs believes in creating relationships, they usually do something to improve the lives of their immediate communities every week or every other day even if it is just a ‘smile that we put on somebody’s face’; this start from their security officers to the top managers. The    Core purpose and values define how Mr Biggs do its business, how they value and treat their customers. Their responsibilities are well defined and perfected to meet the needs of communities where their business operates and strengthened the relationship between them and the environment in which their business strategy continues to deliver strong results. Their philosophy of â€Å"have a bigg experience† expresses these wide-ranging responsibilities. They recognise their impact on society and are trying to sustain the benefit they bring to society. Whatever they do, the principle of treating ‘customers as a king’ is highly imbibed in Mr Biggs for they put their customers at the heart of everything they do.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Conclusively, Armstrong, (2008[AM5]  ) opined â€Å"companies need to be good to customers to gain sustainability which means environmental and community stewardship. It also needs permission from government to operate within the confines and the organisation would get a good status†. Beyond reasonable doubt, Mr Biggs satisfy the opinion of Armstrong school of thought as it has recorded tremendous growth and remarkable success through its total commitment to the satisfaction of its teeming customers. This is helping this organisation in no small way as it is becoming the main issue in Nigeria and Sub-Sahara Africa in Quick Service Restaurant Business. Mr Biggs has been enjoining good patronage in its environment and they have been giving back to the society that shot them to limelight in form of their welfare package. By this, it will strengthen and sustain the relationship between Mr Biggs and its environment.                Part B: Explain how the business strategy and operations might change in order to respond effectively to the factors that you have outlined in Part A.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Drucker, (1999[AM6]  ) defines strategy as â€Å"†¦purpose is to enable an organisation to achieve its desired results in an unpredictable environment. For strategy allows an organisation to be purposefully opportunistic.† Business strategy encourages great success and develops to monitor the progress of an organisation by taking into consideration the customer’s interest as well as shareholders and employees. In the view of Burnes, (2009[AM7]  ) â€Å"Strategy is an act of maintaining the position of sustainable competitive advantage in the environment where business organisation operates.† Strategic approach to be deployed by organisation is based on the managerial choice within their limit in terms of national, organisational and environmental factors. An organisation that is profit oriented can only achieved their aims when they motivate and stimulate their employees. This will help them to perform more effectively and effici ently towards achieving profitability and organisational goals and objectives. Most organisations are trying to improve and review strategy frequently as there is a rising need if organisation would want to gain competitive advantage.    In Nigeria, the environment is very unstable and in year 2003; Mr Biggs embark on franchising in order to respond effectively to the volatile environment where it is to enhance its stipulated goals. Besides they continually updated their strategy to compete with their competitors and based on their quality stuff, it makes it more outstanding among their competitors like Tantalizer Restaurant and The Chicken Restaurant. Strategy could be initiated to enhance business breakthrough in a very volatile business competitive environment. In this regard, Mr Biggs involves modern machines by the dictates of technological evolution to meet challenges that may come up as a result of change in customers taste.   Ã‚      It is very important for a company to have an idea of its competitors’ strengths and weaknesses together with their characteristics. This will help them in planning and updating their strategies – for instance, making their products a unique one such as differentiation in pricing and products design. Most organisations used to compare their prices with their competitors, having comparism site like â€Å"Go Compare† make it easier for customers to make their choice. Where organisations expand externally, vertical integration needs to be encouraged. Mr Biggs is planning for expansion to two different countries in 2011 including UK as per on-going discussion with UK firms (Businessday, Dec.14 2010). Rodger and Mac Culloch, (2001) opined that â€Å"firms develop through internal growth and in appropriate circumstances.† This is true because organisation is in total control of all units of production and they can do substantially without borrowing with the support and cooperation of all departments. This will bring a sustainable help during unexpected high interest rates. This will increase and controls the business profit margins, reduce cost of transportation and improve the supply channel and also creates barriers to competitors. Mr Biggs, being the biggest fast food business in Nigeria and Sub-Sahara Africa embarking on rebranding process aimed at delivery as much they spend on increased value to its customers (Businessday, 2010). Mr Biggs was voted as the most trusted fast food brand in year 2010 in Nigeria due to their excellent strategies and performances.     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Strategy Reassessment – Mullins (2003) is of the view that â€Å"in today’s fast-changing world, strategy reassessment may happen much more quickly, as competitive and technological developments cause firms to quickly change their entire strategies and business models.† This is based on periodic assessment either quarterly or annually whereby companies evaluate their performances in line with the external environment. Mr Biggs used to reassess their performances in intervals, for instance, they are trying as much as possible to involve new marketing strategy that is in tune with the dynamic nature of business globally.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Additionally, Porter (1980) in Boddy, (2008) identified three types of generic strategies among which Mr Biggs adopted by focusing on corporate customers, families, adults and children by fully involve in schools social functions and every children from kindergarten to higher institutions, for example Universities. Little kids identify their big ‘B’ logo and forces their parents to the restaurant all the time. Apart from this, they utilises differentiation strategy by standardize their products and make it of higher quality than their competitors. Though some customers are not bothering about how much they spend on quality, but all they really concern about is to get quality products. Mr Biggs always produce quality foods that meet International Standard Organisation requirement for human consumption – that are hygienic and nourishing to promote good and healthy living.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚     In conclusion, business strategy, operations plus activities in Mr Biggs are being affected by austerity measure, government budget review – that affect the purchasing power of consumers; population change, different national culture, government budget review, change in consumers’ taste, modernisation (technological evolution). These require the business to change their strategies in order to take advantage of the opportunity and respond to the challenges within the business environment. An articulated and integrated strategy must be in continuous use and part of it be preserved as this will go a long way in providing organisation with the treasure of strategy and reserved techniques that germane to the enhancement of the organisational goals and the environment, (Emphasis mine).     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚      REFERENCES    Armstrong, M. (2008) Strategic Human Resources Management: A Guide to Action. 4th Edition. London and Philadelphia.    Boddy, D. (2008). Management: An Introduction. 4th Edition. Harlow: Financial- Times Prentice Hall.    Burnes, B. (2009). Managing Change: A strategic Approach to organisational Dynamics. 5th Edition. Harlow: Financial Times-Prentice Hall.    Businessday (2010): How Mr Bigg’s Nigeria plans to compete in European market. Retrieved from www.businessdayonline.com/NG/index.    Drucker, P.F (1999) Management Challenges for the 21st Century. Great Britain: Elsevier Butterworth-Heinemann.    mrbiggsonline.com/    Pettinger, R. and Frith R. (2000) Mastering Organisational Behaviour. London: Macmillan Press Ltd.    Rodger B.J and Mac Culloch, A. (2001) Competition Law and Policy in the EC and UK. London and Sydney: Second Edition: Cavendish Publishing Limited.    Mullins, Walker, and Boyd. (2003) Marketing. 3rd Edition. Berkshire: McGraw-Hill.    Worthington, I., Briton, C. and Rees, A. (2004) Economics for Business: Blending Theory in Practice. UK: 2nd Edition. Prentice Hall.    Wyplosz, C. and Burda, M. (1997). Macroeconomic. 2nd Edition. Oxford University Press.   [AM1]This seems to be a bold statement with no theoretical underpinning. You always need to back up your statements with what an author(s) have said.   [AM2]   [AM3]   [AM4]You will need to support your statements with   evidence from an article, journal or so please   [AM5]Page no please   [AM6]Page no   [AM7]Page no Normal 0 false false false MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 st1\:*{behavior:url(#ieooui) } /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;}

Recruitment of Children as Soldiers in Sub-Saharan Africa Research Paper

Recruitment of Children as Soldiers in Sub-Saharan Africa - Research Paper Example African continent experienced frequent civil conflicts especially in the sub-Saharan region such as Rwanda, Liberia, DRC and Burundi, just to mention but a few. In this war torn region, the harrowing development is that children are used as sex slaves. One of the groups in Africa that recruit minors as soldiers are the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) govern by Joseph Kony. For more than two decades, this rebel group has fought the government of Uganda and has recruited minors in this war. Their leader, Joseph, has over the period replenished his war force by abducting young people to recruit. This has been his primary means of maintaining his small army group over the years because the local community has shown little or no support. The minors abducted are then taken to southern Sudan to receive harsh-seasoned training. Cases of body mutilation using machetes were reported where the LRA undertook forceful recruitment. This was common whenever the victims developed resistance. It is, therefore, important to note that the victims are recruited by means of coercion such as forced recruitment and compulsory conscription.The latter may involve identifying the victims using their date of birth.In cases where abduction was employed such as Ethiopia, the rebel groups used to besiege a public place such as marketplaces and select the victims using eligibility criteria. . In cases where the victim demonstrated resistance, the rebels would apply brutish techniques aimed at weakening and subduing them.

Research project outline Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Research project outline - Essay Example This report will outline the internationalization strategy and activities of Bentley in its efforts to enter and establish itself in China’s emerging economy, the market situation analysis, in addition to the firm’s expansion motives, strategic direction. Bentley’s internationalization trajectory Lately, Bentley has been engaged in a number of internationalization strategies including exportation, establishment of wholly owned subsidiaries, Greenfield ventures, and vertical integration across national frontiers; these global brand strategy aim to strengthen its position in the highly competitive automobile industry (Peng 2009, p.33). In formulating a most effective course of action, Bentley has evaluated several advanced technology options and decided to focus on improved efficiency and the use of alternative powertrain technology to reduce CO2 emissions while improving fuel economy. In this regard, Bentley’s environmental strategy addresses both the globa l issues of fuel security and global warming (Bentley 2008, p.7), thus cutting a niche for the socially responsible consumes who are keen in making environmentally sound investments. Bentley is also keen on improving efficiency by utilizing a range of technologies including engine revisions, improved transmission systems, drive train alterations, in addition to enhanced vehicle characteristics. Bentley has also explored the market of hybrid cars due to the advancement of hybrid technology thereby contributing greatly to the energy and CO2 emission savings when driving these cars especially in an urban environment. Besides the hybrid cars, Bentley also has explored the use of Hydrogen and Electricity, as an alternative automobile propulsion system; hydrogen and electric cars have a zero tailpipe CO2 emissions because Hydrogen burns cleanly and combustion is not necessary for electricity-powered cars. Largely, Bentley’s internationalization trajectory is based on economically v iable, ethical, and environmentally sound solutions in response to the global potential crisis over energy shortages and climate change. Bentley’s introduction of car models that are powered by renewable and sustainable energy sources is motivated by the firm’s commitment to reduce the environmental impact of its vehicles with the improvement of efficiency. Situation Analysis China is undoubtedly the second leading automobile producer and market by 2009 with annual sales that are slightly shy of 14 million cars, yet the market continues to expand at a rate of about 36.1% increase in annual sales by 2010 (APCO Worldwide 2010, p.3). The rapid growth of the Chinese automobile industry market is attributable to the rising domestic demand for vehicles because of the rising incomes, an emerging middle class, and supportive government policies in the industry (Xavier Richet and Joel 2008, p.450). The Chinese government has implemented special tax adjustments and subsidies for the purchase of cars, which are aimed to motivate buyers to go for hybrid electric vehicles or the purely electricity powered vehicles, in addition to normal models with a reduced engine displacement. Places such as Beijing in China have

Analyzing Psychological Disorders Essay Example for Free

Analyzing Psychological Disorders Essay A psychiatric or psychological disorder is a disorder of psychological function severe enough to warrant treatment by a psychiatrist or clinical psychologist. Schizophrenia, emotional disorders, Anxiety and Tourette’s syndrome are all classified as psychiatric disorders. The distinguishing line between neuropsychological disorders and psychiatric disorders is quite thin. Though the two types of disorders are a result of a dysfunctional brain, the malfunctions which create psychiatric disorders remain undefined. Psychiatric disorders are often linked to environmental factors as well as dysfunction of the brain. As psychological research advances, treatments and a better understanding of psychiatric disorders comes to bear. The term schizophrenia means a psychic break or â€Å"splitting of psychic function†. (Pinel, 2007). The NIH National Library of Medicine web site defines schizophrenia as having five different categories: catatonic, disorganized, paranoid, residual, and undifferentiated. (NIH National Library of Medicine, 2008). Each category of the disorder has a specific set of symptoms that is mostly unique to that category of the disorder, but schizophrenia in general creates a delusional picture of reality which disrupts the person’s behavior, logic and emotions. A good example of schizophrenia and the related dissociative disorders are the movie Sybil or the more recent film A Beautiful Mind, and another fine example is the television show United States of Tara. Both movies and the Showtime network’s series depict the lives of a person suffering with schizophrenia or dissociative disorders. Neuroleptics and antipsychotic drugs are known to alleviate symptoms associated with schizophrenia. Clozapine is a type of neuroleptic that does not produce side effects like those associated with Parkinsons disease. The medication is known to cause blood disorders. Neuroleptic medication is used to block the dopamine receptors though it takes time for the drug to lessen schizophrenic symptoms. Though neuroleptics help schizophrenics, only certain patients do benefit from the relief these drugs can offer. Schizophrenic patients suffering from hallucinations and incoherence react to the medication; however; schizophrenics suffering from cognitive defects are not affected. The NIH National Library of Medicine web site mentioned atypical antipsychotics have proven to treat symptoms for schizophrenia  with few side effects and is the best option for those suffering with schizophrenia. (NIH National Library of Medicine, 2008). A surgeon in the 1950’s and early 1960’s used a drug called chlorpromazine on patients to alleviate swelling prior to surgery. The doctor noticed that the medicine acted as a calming agent and recommended chlorpromazine to relax hard to control psychotic patients. Chlorpromazine did not assuage the symptoms of psychosis, but the medicine showed potential for easing some symptoms in schizophrenic patients. During the research process the side effects of chlorpromazine which are symptoms of Parkinsons disease were evident. Researchers concluded that people suffering from Parkinsons disease die from a minute level of dopamine. Schizophrenics display a high-level of dopamine. Therefore Parkinsons and Schizophrenia seem to be on the opposite end of the spectrum. A breakthrough emerged in the dopamine theory with Carlsson and Lindqvist. The duo studied the Chlorpromazine in relation to schizophrenia and revised the dopamine theory of schizophrenia. Chlorpromazine was found to block dopamine receptors instead of the original theory of reducing dopamine levels. Therefore, the duo concluded through research that schizophrenia was  not due to high-levels of dopamine, but with over activity at the dopamine receptors. (Pinel, 2007). Emotional disorders are another form of a psychiatric disorder. Emotional disorders include: bipolar disorder, depression, and mania. Depression is classified as a state of unbearable sadness. At some point in a persons life one will encounter a period of depression due to a tragedy such as loss of a loved one, poor health, or a series of bad luck. However, most people will break through the grip of depression and return to a normal life. Those with depression have a hard time seeing anything in a positive light. Depression ruins relationships at work and in the home; the disease also takes over the person making it difficult to engage in a normal day-to-day routine. Mania is the opposite of depression and is linked to high energy and impulse. A person suffering from mania appears to be full of energy or â€Å"hopped up† on energy drinks like Red-Bull and caffeine; they are filled with such enthusiasm, have boundless energy and talk fast. Though it sounds like an exceptional  thing to be constantly in a good spirits there is a negative side to the disorder. Impulsiveness is a part of mania and many suffers act on impulse not thinking before they do anything. The end result is unfinished projects, bills that cannot be paid, and relationships ruined. A person who suffers from manic episodes and depression episodes is diagnosed with bipolar disorder. There are two theories created to explain the causes of emotional disorders. According to Pinel (2007), The monoamine theory of depression holds that depression is associated with under-activity at serotonergic and noradrenergic synapses. It is based on the fact that monoamine oxidase inhibitors, tricyclic antidepressants, selective serotonin-reuptake inhibitors, and selective norepinephrinereuptake inhibitors are all agonists  of serotonin, norepinephrine, or both. The second theory is Diathesis-Stress model. The second theory focuses on genetic predispositions of a person as well as environmental factors that influence the disorder. This means that people who have stress early on will overreact to stressful situations later in life in turn causing depression. (Pinel, 2007). There are four types of medicine used to treat emotional disorders. Iproniazid is a Monoamine Oxidase Inhibitor (MAOI) initially used to treat tuberculosis but failed. On the contrary the patients did not have as many depressive thoughts about the illness. Iproniazid has severe effects when combined with tyramine rich foods. Imipamine is a tricyclic antidepressant which has proven to be more effective than MAOI’s. The next medication is Lithium which was shown to alleviate symptoms of mania. The discovery was made when a researcher tested guinea pigs and the results proved to calm them. Lithium is used as a mood stabilizer in bi-polar patients since it blocks the patient from transitioning between extreme highs and lows. The fourth medicine used more commonly in recent years is selective serotonin-reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs). The most common of the SSRI’s are Prozac, Zoloft and Paxil. The SSRI’s are reported to have few side effects and are able to treat multiple disorders. (Pinel, 2007). Anxiety is chronic fear that persists in the absence of any direct threat. (Pinel, 2007). Anxiety is accompanied by rapid heartbeat, heavy or difficulty breathing and high blood pressure. There are five  types of anxiety disorders including: general anxiety, phobias, obsessive compulsiveness, panic, and post traumatic stress disorder. Theories involving anxiety disorders presume the amygdala has a role in anxiety disorders. The brain’s involvement in anxiety is cloudy at best since each patient tested shows different results. (Pinel, 2007). Benzodiazepines and serotonin agonists are the most effective medications used to combat anxiety. Valium and Librium are two of the most commonly prescribed medications, though they tend to make the patient drowsy. The medicine is  also known to be highly addictive and is recommended only for short-term usage. Buspirone is a serotonin agonist which relaxes the body and causes sleepiness. (Pinel, 2007). Tourette’s syndrome is known for involuntary movements or sounds known as tics. The Cedars-Sinai web site notes that the tics can vary from body movements and vocal tics. The tics can be a little as involuntary eye blinking or more noticeable yelling of obscene words or phrases. Little is known as to the cause of Tourette’s, however there is speculation that the limbic cortex, association cortex and thalamus are connected to the disorder. (Pinel, 2007). With the cause still a mystery there is no cure for Tourette’s, but though counseling, relaxation therapy and hypnosis healthcare professionals can help treat the disorder. (Cedars-Sinai. 2008). Psychiatric disorders vary in many ways. Schizophrenia affects the brain and causes hallucinations, emotional disorders affect a persons mood in extreme ways, and anxiety causes fear and health issues, while Tourette’s causes tics ranging from subtle to severe. Over time psychological advances in research and treatment have been made allowing professionals in the field to effectively treat each disorder. References CEDARS-SINAI. (2008). Tourettes syndrome. Retrieved June 10, 2009, from http://www.csmc.edu/5540.html NIH National Library of Medicine. (2008). Medical Encyclopedia: Schizophrenia. Retrieved June 9, 2009, from http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/000928.htm Pinel, J. P. J. (2007). Basics of Biopsychology. Boston, MA. Allyn and Bacon.

The Aurora Borealis Essay -- physics space

The Aurora Borealis is made when storms on the the sun form solar winds, or large streams of charged particles streaming toward the earth.These streams could have upward of ten million megawatts of electrical power. That is enough power to light up Los Angeles. It generally takes about three days for these streams of particles to reach the earth's upper atmosphere, or ionosphere. When these charged particles hit the earth's atmosphere, they excite the atoms contained in the atmosphere. These excited atoms have a higher energy state that usual and so want to get back to a more normal energy state. The excited atoms give off excess energy in the form of heat, or the case of the Aurora Borealis, light. The trillions of excited atoms give off enough light so that we can see the light from where we live on the ground, 43-200 miles above us. The Aurora Borealis is most often seen in a striking green color, but it also occasionally shows off its many colors ranging from red to pink, blue to purple, dark to light. The reason that the aurora is seen in so many colors is that our atmosphere is made up of many different compounds like Oxygen and Nitrogen. When the charged particles that come from the sun hit the atoms and molecules of the Earth's atmosphere, they excite those atoms, giving off light. Different atoms give off different colors of the spectrum when they are excited. A familiar example is the Neon lights that we see on many business signs in our modern world. The Neon lights contain the gas Neon. These lights have electricity run through them to excite the Neon gas. When the Neon is excited, it gives off a brilliant red-orange color. The Neon lights are the same idea as the aurora, only on a lot smaller scale. Different ga... ... as a story from Scotland, tell of battles in the sky with showers of red blood. A story from the Northern Hebrides attributes the aurora to supernatural beings called Blue Men. During an active display of the aurora the Blue Men are called the Merry Dancers also known as na fir chlis (Gaelic for quick, nimble men). When the aurora moves rapidly, there is believed to be a battle going on between clans. The red light was attributed the the blood spilled during these battles. In Norse mythology, there is reference to Bifrost, or a bridge to the sky built by the Gods. This bridges was said to be on fire to keep the Giants out. In Medieval art, the aurora was dipicted as candles in the sky. In Greenland, it was said that the aurora represented the dead playing with the head of a walrus. No matter what the tale, they are all interesting and are worthy of reading.

The Occupation of Japan During 2nd World War

The occupation of Japan was, from start to finish, an American operation. General Douglans MacArthur, sole supreme commander of the Allied Power was in charge. The Americans had insufficient men to make a military government of Japan possible; so t hey decided to act through the existing Japanese gobernment. General Mac Arthur became, except in name, dictator of Japan. He imposed his will on Japan. Demilitarization was speedily carried out, demobilization of the former imperial forces was complet ed by early 1946. Japan was extensively fire bomded during the second world war. The stench of sewer gas, rotting garbage, and the acrid smell of ashes and scorched debris pervaded the air. The Japanese people had to live in the damp, and col d of the concrete buildings, because they were the only ones left. Little remained of the vulnerable wooden frame, tile roof dwelling lived in by most Japanese. When the first signs of winter set in, the occupation forces immediately took over all the s team-heated buildings. The Japanese were out in the cold in the first post war winter fuel was very hard to find, a family was considered lucky if they had a small barely glowing charcoal brazier to huddle around. That next summer in random spots new ho uses were built, each house was standardized at 216 square feet, and required 2400 board feet of material in order to be built. A master plan for a modernistic city had been drafted, but it was cast aside because of the lack of time before the next winter. The thousands of people who lived in railroad stations and public parks needed housing. All the Japanese heard was democracy from the Americans. All they cared about was food. General MacAruther asked the government to send food, when they refus ed he sent another telegram that said, â€Å"Send me food, or send me bullets.† American troops were forbidden to eat local food, as to keep from cutting from cutting into the sparse local supply. No food was was brought in expressly for the Japanese durning the first six months after the American presence there. Herbert Hoover, serving as chairman of a special presidential advisory committee, recommended minimum imports to Japan of 870,000 tons of food to be distributed in different urban areas. Fi sh, the source of so much of the protein in the Japanese diet, were no longer available in adequate quantities because the fishing fleet, particularly the large vessels, had been badly decimated by the war and because the U.S.S.R. closed off the fishing g rounds in the north. The most important aspect of the democratization policy was the adoption of a new constitution and its supporting legislation. When the Japanese government proved too confused or too reluctant to come up with a constitutional reform that satisfied MacArthur, he had his own staff draft a new constitution in February 1946. This, with only minor changes, was then adopted by the Japanese government in the form of an imperial amendment to the 1889 constitution and went into effect on May 3, 1947. The new Constitution was a perfection of the British parliamentary form of government that the Japanese had been moving toward in the 1920s. Supreme political power was assigned to the Diet. Cabinets were made responsible to the Diet by having the prime minister elected by the lower house. The House of Peers was replaced by an elected House of Councillors. The judicial system was made as independent of executive interference as possible, and a newly created supreme court was given the power to review the constitutionality of laws. Local governments were given greatly increased powers. The Emperor was reduced to being a symbol of the unity of the nation. Japanese began to see him in person. He went to hospitals, schools, mines, industrial plants; he broke ground for public buildings and snipped tape at the opening of gates and highways. He was steered here and there, shown things, and kept muttering, â€Å"Ah so, ah so.† People started to call him â€Å"Ah-so-san.† Suddenly the puybli c began to take this shy, ill-at-ease man to their hearts. They saw in him something of their own conqured selves, force to do what was alien to them. In 1948, in a newspaper poll, Emperior Hirohito was voted the most popular man in Japan. Civil li berties were emphasized, women were given full equality with men. Article 13 and 19 in the new Constitution, prohibits discrimination in political, economic, and social relations because of race, creed, sex, social status, or family origen. This is one of the most explicitly progressive statements on human rights anywhere in law. Gerneral Douglas MacArthur emerged as a radical feminist because he was â€Å"convinced that the place of women in Japan must be brought to a level consistent with that of women in the western democracies.† So the Japanese women got their equal rights amendment long before a concerted effort was made to obtain one in America. Compulsory education was extened to nine years, efforts were made to make education more a traning in thinking than in rote memory, and the school system above the six elementary grades was revised to conform to the American pattern. This last mechanical change produced great confusion and dissatisfaction but became so entrenched that it could not be re vised even after the Americans departed. Japan†s agriculture was the quickest of national activities to recover because of land reform. The Australians came up with the best plan. It was basis was this: There were to be no absentee landlards. A person who actually worked the land could own up to 7.5 arcers. Anyone living in a village near by could keep 2.5 acres. Larger plots of land, exceeding these limits, were bought up by the government and sold on easy terms to former tenants. Within two years 2 million tenants became landowners. The American occupation immediately gained not only a large constituency, for the new owners had a vested interest in preserving the change, but also a psychological momentum for other changes they wanted to ini tiate. The American labor policy in Japan had a double goal: to encourage the growth of democratic unions while keeping them free of communists. Union organization was used as a balance to the power of management. To the surprise of the American authorties, this movement took a decidedly more radical turn. In the desperate economic conditions of early postwar Japan, there was little room for successful bargaining over wages, and many labor unions instead made a bid to take over industry and o perate it in their own behalf. Moreover large numbers of workers in Japan were government employees, such as railroad workers and teachers, whose wages were set not by management but by the government. Direct political action therefore seemed more meani ngful to these people than wage bargaining. The Japanese unions called for a general strike on February 1, 1947. MacArthur warned the union leadership that he would not countenace a nationwide strike. The strike leaders yieled to MacArthur†s will. The re after the political appeal of radical labor action appeared to wane. The Americans wanted to disband the great Zaibatsu trust as a means of reducing Japan†s war-making potential. There were about 15 Zaibatsu families such as – Mitsui, Mitsubishi, Yasuda, and Sumitomo. The Zaibatsu controled the industry of Japan. MacArthur†s liaison men pressured the Diet into passing the Deconcentration Law in December 1947. In the eyes of most Japanese this law was designed to cripple Japanese business and i ndustry forever. The first step in breaking up the Zaibatsu was to spread their ownership out among the people and to prevent the old owners from ever again exercising control. The stocks of all the key holding companies were to be sold to the public. Friends of the old Zaibatsu bought the stock. In the long run the Zaibatsu were not exactly destroyed, but a few were weakened and others underwent a considerable shuffle. The initial period of the occupation from 1945 to 1948 was marked by reform, the second phase was one of stabilization. Greater attention was given to improvement of the economy. Japan was a heavy expense to the United States. The ordered breakup of the Zaibatsu was slowed down. The union movement continued to grow, to the ult imate benefit of the worker. Unremitting pressure on employers brought swelling wages, which meant the steady expansion of Japan domestic consumer market. This market was a major reason for Japan†s subsequent economic boom. Another boom to the economy was the Korean War which proved to be a blessing in disguise. Japan became the main staging area for military action in Korea and went on a war boom economy with out having to fight in or pay for a war. The treaty of peace with Japan was signed at San Francisco in September 1951 by Japan, the United States, and forty-seven other nations. The Soviet Union refused to sign it. The treaty went into effect in April 1952, officially terminating the United States military occupation and restoring full independence. What is extraordinary in the Occupation and its aftermath was the insignificance of the unpleasant. For the Japanese, the nobility of American ideals and the essential benignity of the American presence assuaged much of the bitterness and anguish of defeat. For the Americans, the joys of promoting peace and democracy triumphed over the attendant fustrations and grievances. Consequently, the Occupation served to lay down a substantial capital of good will on which both America and Jap an would draw in the years ahead.

Information technology and society Essay

Technology has now become ubiquitous in our everyday lives. In fact, looking at the well-documented history of technology itself, we realize that most of technology in human history, when it has found for applicability society and the various other modern aspects of culture, would immediately transformed society that it is in technology, as the definition of applicability of science, was in the 1st Pl. meant to do so. However, no time in human history has observed the way modern technology has evolved today. Because of the computer and digital age, technology has now taken a form not only as an application of various scientific theories, but then evolution of itself. From computers, to microprocessors, and even today in the large integration of the various services and features that the Internet has introduced in everyday standards of society, the ubiquity of technology is not anymore noticed by individuals exactly because of the fact that it is not anymore considered as a detached reality the charter integrated into the way we live today (Selwyn, Gorard, Furlong, & Madden, 2003). In fact, this trend is so much a part of culture and society that scientists — from anthropologists, to behavioral scientists, psychologists and sociologists, and even to modern economists — have come up with a totally new research and disciplines attacking and understanding the various significant human consequences of integrating technology in our daily lives. Such disciplines and studies, then, has now resulted into a large body of research which we shall consider in this paper. Here, with the literature and references available, together with a comic strip that has been provided for us, we shall be analyzing how technology has affected a person’s morality, behavior, and character traits. In the comic strip that was provided, an adolescent, Jeremy, was asked by an adult — perhaps his father — if he could be able to speak to him. Upon hearing this, there were boxes and parts of the comic strip where in Jeremy frantically typed or updated the various details in his computer and cell phone — his laptop what we could safely assumed to be a MacBook because the design — before telling adults speaking in that he should make quick because being outside and not being connected in his realm of perpetual connectivity where he is most comfortable. Interpretation of the comics, taking into consideration that we need to discuss are the effects of modern technology to everyday life — is fairly straightforward. Today, connectivity has become ubiquitous and has even transcended to become the need for society. The character of Jeremy in the comic strip is not a character that we rarely see but is in fact a character we could associate with many individuals in today’s society even including ourselves. From cell phones, to the Internet, and some other and other derivatives of modern technology like gaming device portable computers, our need for connectivity has become exactly that — something which we could not live without (Hallnas & Redstrom, 2002). In fact, in many cartoons and comics, what is the norm is that various everyday details and conversations are exaggerated in order to bring a heavy point on the concept that the comic strip artist is trying to deliver. However, in this instance, it is actually much more closer to real world scenarios that in artistic exaggeration. In fact, following with the traditional styles of comics or commentary, where in a teenager is idealized to be the one who is reflecting a different cultural framework from the cultural framework of adults, the reality is the need for connectivity — and eventual effects of such technology to everyday human behavior — transcends a certain age group. Such integration of technology now belongs to individuals much younger than the age bracket that is represented by Jeremy as well as does much older than him. The adult in the comic strip indeed showed a surpassed its face upon the comment of Jeremy, but even individuals in his age group are observed by research should be as much integrated into the use of technology in everyday life as the age group of Jeremy himself. As we have earlier claimed, researchers in behavioral sciences have indicated that technology has in fact significantly affected human behavior. For example, recent studies, behavioral analysts have shown that individuals who are able to access various types of modern technology such as constant connectivity to the Internet, mobile computing, smartphones, and those classified under this category of technology have showed significantly lower rates of patience as compared to generations who did not have access to this kind of technology (Druin & Laboratory, 2002). However, the researchers had admitted that such studies need further validation and proof because there could be many other variables that could influence the quality of patience from one generation to the next and there is a danger of correlating technology with such changes without first considering the other variables and giving them specific weights. However, in preliminary investigations, the same research has identified even if technology was not the most significant factor, the statistics and correlation tables that resulted in the studies show that such modern technology does indeed have an effect. Other researchers had also indicated that technology affects human behavior on information. There is a specific field and research subject in behavioral psychology that tries to capture human traits with regard to their need for constantly fed information (Manning, 2001). Here, researchers had indicated that individuals who did not have access to modern connectivity, the Internet, and various other recent derivatives if information technology are more able to stand information asymmetry and rely on traditional experts and reference materials in order to get such information — if indeed the time comes that they do collect such information (E. J. Johnson, Moe, Fader, Bellman, & Lohse, 2004). Comparing these individuals with another sample group who have wide access to the Internet and connectivity, these researchers had discovered that the latter group of individuals, when asked the question that would eventually lead to those individuals making use of want to or another in order to facilitate search, immediately think and prefer having Internet access in order to retrieve such information rather than rely on opinions and information from experts, traditional knowledge libraries, and even academic institutions (Peterson & Merino, 2003). Search is a continuously popular market especially in the Internet era, and what evidence of this is the popularity and large profits that are derived by the search giant Google as an industry leader in today’s information technology market (Holscher & Strube, 2000). The ability of individuals to search the Internet to various devices such as mobile phones and laptop computers is a deviating behavior from the traditional means that experts have associated with human need for this information and knowledge. Another commentary on how technology has significantly changed the behavior of individuals in today’s modern society, perhaps one of the best examples is the use of twitter — a micro-blogging platform where he individuals may be able to perform social network interactions and publish real-time in the Internet what they are currently doing. In fact, Facebook and twitter, two popular social network sites, are considered to be the leaders in modern communication technology and is gaining foothold in the market share Internet time use of individuals (Preece, 2000). Here, behavioral research is also indicating that individuals today are more keen on being able to constantly update to a specified for a specified audience what they are currently doing and therefore also be able to follow other people — be it their friends or people they do not know but wish to follow — which only reflects theoretical behavioral characteristics of human beings which claim they need to be able to receive information about other individuals in a society (Ellison, Steinfield, & Lampe, 2007). In fact, in the recent presidential elections, and even today after Barack Obama had won the United States presidential election, the president is one of the top individuals who have the most number of followers — and she in turn constantly updates as twitter feed for individuals that follow his micro-blogging platform to know what he is doing, thinking, or considering as head of state of the most powerful country in the world. Yet another real and documented effect of the Internet and modern technology on today’s culture is its way affecting morality. Morality, defined, are various social norms that are claimed in society to have positive and beneficial effects especially with respect to individual and collective welfare. One of the most popular uses of the modern Internet and communication technology is its ability to publish opinions — in the forms of blogs, websites, or even social networks and commentary posts — without any real censorship except of course for some cases and countries like China (Chase & Mulvenon, 2002). It has often been claimed by moral philosophers that morality and conventional behavior is a faith by popular theories that are spread by social philosophers. In order to do this, usually, the main tools that are used are books and other documents. In modern times, such moral values have been facilitated and distribution with the help of the three main tools for mass communication — radio, print, and television. In all these fast scenarios and methods, the commonality is that individuals — and more recently organizations and corporations — are able to control the flow of information and are therefore also able to impose a moral structure and convention through their own perspectives (Yang, 2003). In the popularity of blogs and the Internet, however, information and conventional publishing has transcended from the controls of these individuals and organizations towards anyone who is able to access the Internet and has the ability to control such technology. In this age of the Internet, because of decreasing costs both of hardware and Internet access, that includes a significant large population. Therefore, as a result, and has been documented by research about the effects of Internet weblogs and social networks on perception and conventional welfare opinions, the Internet and technology has become a tool in order for such moral values to be shaped not anymore by the organizations we have indicated above but by the opinions of collective weblogs (T. J. Johnson & Kaye, 2004). However, as is the logical succession of the effects of weblogs to moral values, the next question in difficulty that were faced by the researchers is that weblogs, although a perfect avenue for the discussions and distribution of welfare discussions and morality, have the problem of large numbers. Although the numbers are fast-growing, as of the last estimate, if there are 500,000 active weblogs in the Internet today. However, a more surprising number is the estimated number of individuals who read those blogs which amounts to in around 50 million individuals. However, even among the difficulties that are faced by measuring moral standards and how the Internet and technology affects it, one avenue for research that has attracted attention is that political opinion and policy analysis by the lecture all body is getting more critical. Now, the electoral body has the ability to be informed from all perspectives from the political arena and public policy formulation. Before, the electoral were most significantly affected by advertising campaigns and television media. In research that has recently been made, during election times, the page hits of weblogs that focus on political opinion and policy formulation increase up to 12 times, with nonpartisan weblogs that just try to deliver the information in use as it is about public policy and candidate qualifications to be the most popular among readers according to analytics. Here, we see that the significant effects of how we shaped moral values and moral opinions have been deeply changed by the Internet and its ability for mass public information distribution without organizational or partisan influence — at least most of it. Recently, mass collaboration trends have also significantly affected the corrector respects of individuals. Today, the Internet is not anymore and having you for static information gathering but rather a place in order for individuals from across borders, nations, and even race and religion to be able to mass collaborate on projects and information. In fact, racism, one of the most powerful character traits that has stuck itself in human convention for over 500 years has been significantly changed by the Internet because interaction and social media — as well as mass collaboration — allows for individuals to understand different races without the lens of hypocrisy and discrimination. Racism, being a very powerful character trait of human history and contextual experience, is surprisingly weak as compared to the great durability of modern Internet technology and online collaboration for individuals to work with one another (Beckles, 2001). Although of course there are loopholes — such as the fact that one significant reason for the decrease in racism in collaboration is that individuals do not know the race of people they are working with — the Internet and technology is well on its way in order to, if not eliminate, then significantly lessen racial discrimination. Highlighted in indicated in this paper are just some of the significant changes that the Internet and modern technology has made to behavior, moral values, and character traits of human beings.

Civil Disobedience Debate essays

Civil Disobedience Debate essays After having read Henry David Thoreaus Civil Disobedience and reading what Socrates says in Crito, I believe that the disagreement is only apparent. The idea of what is right and wrong between the men is very similar. However, I think that if Socrates lived in todays society that he would also intentionally violate the law because he believes that nothing is more important than morals, including laws. Throughout Thoreaus essay civil disobedience he talks about how our nation is unjust and how anyone who partakes in even paying taxes is doing an injustice, in which he did jail time for. Although I believe that Thoreau makes many good points and is right by what he says in many cases, but for anyone to actually live a just life in his eyes is not logical. For example, he throws out the idea that a person must sacrifice their values to support the government. For Thoreau this is not a just way of living. He believes that if individual compromises, negotiates, or passively accepts, it is the same as committing a crime. Thoreau also believed that the only laws he had to abide by were his own. Individualism was a main point in Thoreaus theories. He said that people only have to worry about the evil they created, and the evil they didnt create they didnt have to worry about. A person does not have to make the world a better place, but just does not have to make it any worse. In addition, Thoreau was very critical to democracy. He said that people who value democracy are moral sellouts. The fact that our country allows decisions to be made on a majority level is not just at all. So the question is, do we abide by the laws that elected officials that we vote for make for all of us and live unjustly, or do we live justly in a manner and spend our lives like Thoreau did writing essays and trying to make people see how this way of living will make the world a ...

Determining Outliers in Statistics

Determining Outliers in Statistics Outliers are data values that differ greatly from the majority of a set of data. These values fall outside of an overall trend that is present in the data.  A careful examination of a set of data to look for outliers causes some difficulty. Although it is easy to see, possibly by use of a stemplot, that some values differ from the rest of the data, how much different does the value have to be to be considered an outlier?  We will look at a specific measurement that will give us an objective standard of what constitutes an outlier. Interquartile Range The interquartile range is what we can use to determine if an extreme value is indeed an outlier. The interquartile range is based upon part of the five-number summary of a data set, namely the first quartile and the third quartile. The calculation of the interquartile range involves a single arithmetic operation. All that we have to do to find the interquartile range is to subtract the first quartile from the third quartile. The resulting difference tells us how spread out the middle half of our data is. Determining Outliers Multiplying the interquartile range (IQR) by 1.5 will give us a way to determine whether a certain value is an outlier. If we subtract 1.5 x IQR from the first quartile, any data values that are less than this number are considered outliers. Similarly, if we add 1.5 x IQR to the third quartile, any data values that are greater than this number are considered outliers. Strong Outliers Some outliers show extreme deviation from the rest of a data set. In these cases we can take the steps from above, changing only the number that we multiply the IQR by, and define a certain type of outlier. If we subtract 3.0 x IQR from the first quartile, any point that is below this number is called a strong outlier. In the same way, the addition of 3.0 x IQR to the third quartile allows us to define strong outliers by looking at points which are greater than this number. Weak Outliers Besides strong outliers, there is another category for outliers. If a data value is an outlier, but not a strong outlier, then we say that the value is a weak outlier. We will look at these concepts by exploring a few examples. Example 1 First, suppose that we have the data set {1, 2, 2, 3, 3, 4, 5, 5, 9}. The number 9 certainly looks like it could be an outlier. It is much greater than any other value from the rest of the set. To objectively determine if 9 is an outlier, we use the above methods. The first quartile is 2 and the third quartile is 5, which means that the interquartile range is 3. We multiply the interquartile range by 1.5, obtaining 4.5, and then add this number to the third quartile. The result, 9.5, is greater than any of our data values. Therefore there are no outliers. Example 2 Now we look at the same data set as before, with the exception that the largest value is 10 rather than 9: {1, 2, 2, 3, 3, 4, 5, 5, 10}. The first quartile, third quartile, and interquartile range are identical to example 1. When we add 1.5 x IQR 4.5 to the third quartile, the sum is 9.5. Since 10 is greater than 9.5 it is considered an outlier. Is 10 a strong or weak outlier? For this, we need to look at 3 x IQR 9. When we add 9 to the third quartile, we end up with a sum of 14. Since 10 is not greater than 14, it is not a strong outlier. Thus we conclude that 10 is a weak outlier. Reasons for Identifying Outliers We always need to be on the lookout for outliers. Sometimes they are caused by an error. Other times outliers indicate the presence of a previously unknown phenomenon. Another reason that we need to be diligent about checking for outliers is because of all the descriptive statistics that are sensitive to outliers. The mean, standard deviation and correlation coefficient for paired data are just a few of these types of statistics.

New product development process in the aerospace industry. the Essay

New product development process in the aerospace industry. the introduction of new process - Essay Example History presents several organisations that have ceased to exist simply because of their lack of innovativeness and new products. In the present global society where products become obsolete and services out of date very quickly, new products are the key to success for any business house, be it domestic or international (Lancaster, & Withey, 2007). On the other hand, it is also true that NPD involves huge costs. In fact it is one of the most risk-laden areas among all the operational activities. Moreover, new products are often found to be struggling to achieve the expected success in the market. Failure of new product is very likely to damage the company’s reputation. New product development process of any company is subjected to several barriers which vary from country to country. This literature review includes a discussion on the barriers to new product development process in the context of UK. However, prior to that it is very important to gain insight into the details of the fundamentals that govern a new product development process. The process of new product development involves several steps. The process starts from idea generation and ends with commercialisation. In between of these two, there are steps like screening, business analysis, development and test marketing. Success of a new product depends on the diligence with which a company has followed these steps. According to David L. Kurtz, MacKenzie and Kim Snow, â€Å"traditionally, most of the companies have developed new products through phased development, which follows the six step process in an orderly sequence† (Kurtz, MacKenzie & Snow, 2009). Responsibility regarding each phase moves first from product planners to engineers and designers. In the final phase it passes to the marketers. The phased development process is effective for those firms that dominate

PESTEL analysis for Embraer Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

PESTEL analysis for Embraer - Case Study Example PESTEL is an acronym for the Political, Economic, Socio-cultural, Technological, Environmental and Legal factors that contribute to the growth or decline of an organization. Embraer is the quintessential example of the success of neoliberal privatization of a government company. The political and social factors, to some extent, contributed to the growth of this company. The political environment of Brazil, despite being poor, has had little to no effect to Embraer. The privatization in 1994 excluded the government from the running of the company (Rothaermel, 2012). Similarly, the socio-cultural factors have had minimal contribution because this company does not focus on people. The company focuses on the building and selling of aircraft, which are bought by corporations and not bought by ordinary people. On the other hand, the economical and technological factors have contributed significantly to the prosperity of Embraer. Being based in Brazil, the company was at a unique position to benefit from the economic growth of the country (Rothaermel, 2012). Brazil is a world economic giant, ranked seventh, and is considered as the fastest growing economy in the world. Furthermore, the country is the largest economy in Latin America. This growth in Brazil’s economy has led to fertile economic environment for Embraer’s growth. There is availability of development capital in the country that led to the growth of the company. The government is a significant shareholder in the company giving it vast economic resources for gain. The Brazilian government was very instrumental in the present success of Embraer. After its inception, the Brazilian government gave the company license production contracts for the production of local aircraft. This contract was the catalyst for future growth because the company already had an available market (Rothaermel, 2012). The economical factors have had significant