Accounting Research Paper

Accounting Research Paper Dr. Pepper Snapple Group vs. The Coca Cola Company Amanda Herring Tarleton State University Declaration Statement I hereby certify that this paper constitutes my own product, that where the language of others is set forth, quotation marks so indicate, and that appropriate credit is given where I have used the language, ideas, expressions or writings of others. Amanda Herring ID #000078948Zip Code 76707 Table of Contents Title Page1 Declaration Statement2 Table of Contents3Abstract4 Purpose & Objective5 Introduction6 Statement of Problem7 Financial Analysis8 SWOT Analysis13 Decision16 Implementation & Monitoring17 Conclusion18 Bibliography19 Appendix21 Abstract This paper will discuss the financial differences between the Dr. Pepper Snapple Group and the Coca Cola Company, two drink manufacturing companies. It will take into account all of the financial information for 2010 and 2011 for each company, as well as current trends found for both of the companies.F inancial statements for both companies will be included, as well as analysis of both companies’ financial situations. A decision will be made at the end to determine which company is best suited to add to an investment portfolio and an explanation will be given as to why this company has been chosen. Purpose & Objective Dr. Pepper Snapple Group and The Coca Cola Company were chosen because of their sizes and product lines are relatively similar. They are both drink manufacturers with a wide array of different drink products under their label.It is hoped that with this research, one of these companies has a better market position than the other so that it can be recommended to the reader as an addition to their investment portfolio. Introduction The world is currently in a crisis like no other when it comes to the state of the global economy, as is the United States economy. There is always a need to analyze the current situation of companies so that investors and company exec utives know what is going on with the financials and what type of leverage the company currently has, as well as what type of leverage they will have in the future.There is also always a need to compare one’s company to that of similar companies who are competitors in the industry. The purpose of this paper is to compare and contrast Dr. Pepper Snapple Group and The Coca Cola Company, both drink manufacturing companies, so that a decision can be made about which one to invest in. â€Å"The Coca Cola Company (NYSE: KO) is an American multinational beverage corporation and manufacturer, retailer and marketer of non-alcoholic beverage concentrates and syrups† (Wikipedia. org) and was â€Å"founded and headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia† (Cooper, Ford, & Stephens, 2007). In 1886, pharmacist John Pemberton created the soft drink Coca-Cola by combining soda water, lime, cinnamon, coca leaves, and Brazilian shrub weeds. The drink was originally sold in Atlanta in Jacobà ¢â‚¬â„¢s Pharmacy for five cents a glass as a soda fountain drink† (Cooper, Ford, & Stephens, 2007). â€Å"Today Coca-Cola’s reach spreads far beyond Georgia and even the United States; the company has become one of the world’s most recognizable corporations† and â€Å"the Coca-Cola brand is one of the five most recognized symbols† while the company â€Å"has early 400 brands in over 200 countries† (Cooper, Ford, & Stephens, 2007). The Dr. Pepper Snapple Group (NYSE: DPS) is â€Å"an American soft drink company, based in Plano, Texas† that was â€Å"spun off from Britain’s Cadbury Schweppes† who â€Å"in 2006 and 2007†¦purchased the Dr Pepper/Seven Up Bottling Group† (Wikipedia. org). They are â€Å"the leading producer of flavored beverages in North America and the Caribbean† with their success being â€Å"fueled by more than 50 brands that are synonymous with refreshment, fun and flavor† having â€Å"6 of the top 10 non-cola soft drinks, and 11 of 14 leading brands are No. in their flavor categories† (investor. drpeppersnapple. com). Along with their â€Å"flagship Dr Pepper and Snapple brands†, their â€Å"portfolio includes Sunkist soda, 7Up, A&W, Canada Dry, Crush, Mott’s, Squirt, Hawaiian Punch, Penafiel, Clamato, Schweppes, Rose’s and Mr & Mrs T mixers† (investor. drpeppersnapple. com). Problem Statement The problem is deciding which of the two companies to invest money in their stock. With so many different stocks to choose from, there is a need to get the most out of investments these days.In order to come up with this decision, research is pertinent. Extensive research must be done by looking at both companies’ financial information in the form of statement analysis, ratio analysis, financial leverage, and comparative analysis, along with a SWOT analysis of both companies and comparing their strategies. The problem is havi ng two very similar companies to choose from, and deciding which is going to be worth investing in the short and long term. Financial AnalysisCommon Size Income Statements & Horizontal and Vertical Analysis Table [ 1 ]: Coca Cola Company Income Statement Analysis (dollars in millions except for per share data) Year Ended Dec 31,| 2011| Vertical Analysis| 2010| VerticalAnalysis| 2009| % Change 11/10| % Change 10/09| Net Operating Revenues| $46,542| 100%| $35,119| 100%| $30,990| 33| 13| Cost of goods sold| 18,216| 39. 1| 12,693| 36. 1| 11,088| 44| 14| Gross Profit| 28,326| 60. 9| 22,426| 63. 9| 19,902| 26| 13| Gross Profit Margin| 60. 9%| | 63. 9%| | 64. 2%| | |Selling, general and administrative expenses| 17,440| 37. 5| 13,158| 37. 5| 11,358| 33| 16| Other operating charges| 732| 1. 6| 819| 2. 3| 313| | | Operating Income| 10,154| 21. 8| 8,449| 24. 1| 8,231| 20| 3| Operating Margin| 21. 8%| | 24. 1%| | 26. 6%| | | Interest Income| 483| 1| 317| 0. 9| 249| 52| 27| Interest Expense| 417 | 0. 9| 733| 2. 1| 355| (43)| 106| Equity income (loss) – net| 690| 1. 5| 1,025| 2. 9| 781| (33)| 31| Other income (loss) – net| 529| 1. 1| 5,185| 14. 8| 40| | | Income Before Income Taxes| 11,439| 24. | 14,243| 40. 6| 8,946| (20)| 59| Income taxes| 2,805| 6| 2,384| 6. 8| 2,040| 18| 17| Effective tax rate| 24. 5%| | 16. 7%| | 22. 8%| | | Consolidated Net Income| 8,634| 18. 6| 11,859| 33. 8| 6,906| (27)| 72| Less: Net income attributable to noncontrolling interest| 62| 0. 01| 50| . 001| 82| 24| (39)| Net Income Attributable to shareowners| 8,572| 18. 4| 11,809| 33. 6| | (27)| 73| Net Income per share| | | | | | | | Basic net income per share| $3. 75| | $5. 12| | | (27)| 74| Diluted net income per share| $3. 69| | $5. 6| | | (27)| 73| Retrieved from The Coca Cola Company’s 2010 and 2011 10k Reports The Coca Cola Company has seen an increase in revenues since 2009, though they seem to have higher prices when it comes to selling, administrative, and general expenses during the 2011 accounting period. This seems to be the trend throughout the world, though, as the economic situation has become sour again and prices seem to be rising on all products and services. The cost of goods sold is also higher in the year that has the highest revenues, though this can be attributed to the economic situation once again.The problem with the cost of goods, selling, administrative, and general expenses being so high is that net income has turned out lower, for the 2011 year thus causing the per share income to be significantly lower than that of 2010. Table [ 2 ]: Dr Pepper Snapple Group Income Statement Analysis (dollars in millions except for per share data) Year Ended Dec 31,| 2011| VerticalAnalysis| 2010| VerticalAnalysis| 2009| % Change 11/10| % Change 10/09| Net Sales| $5,903| 100%| $5,636| 100%| $5,531| 5%| 2%| Cost of goods sold| 2,485| 42. 1| 2,243| 39. 8| 2,234| 10| 0. 5| Gross Profit| 3,418| 57. 9| 3,393| 60. | 3,297| 1%| 3| Gross Profit Margin| 57 . 9%| | 60. 2%| | | | | Selling, general and administrative expenses| 2,257| 38. 3| 2,233| 39. 6| 2,135| 1. 1| 4. 4| Depreciation and amortization| 126| 2. 1| 127| 2. 3| 117| (0. 1)| 8| Other operating charges| 11| 0. 2| 8| 0. 1| (40)| 27| 84| Operating Income| 1,024| 17. 3| 1,025| 18. 2| 1,085| (0. 1)| (6)| Operating Margin| 17. 3%| | 18. 2%| | | | | Interest Expense| 114| 1. 9| 128| 2. 3| 243| (12)| (89)| Interest Income| (3)| (0. 1)| (3)| (0. 1)| (4)| | | Loss on early extinguishment of debt| -| -| 100| 1. 8| -| | | Other income (loss) – net| (12)| (0. )| (21)| (. 04)| (22)| | | Income Before Income Taxes & Equity| 925| 15. 7| 821| 14. 6| 868| 13| (5)| Income taxes| 320| 5. 5| 294| 5. 3| 315| 8| (7)| Income before Equity| 605| 10. 2| 527| 9. 4| 553| 13| (5)| Equity in earnings of unconsolidated subsidiaries| 1| -| 1| -| 2| | | Net Income| 606| 10. 3| 528| 9. 4| 555| 13| (5)| Net Income per share| | | | | | | | Basic net income per share| 2. 77| | 2. 19| | 2. 18| 26| (. 01) | Diluted net income per share| 2. 74| | 2. 17| | 2. 17| 26| (. 01)| Retrieved from Dr Pepper Snapple Group 2010 and 2011 10k ReportsThe Dr Pepper Snapple Group definitely sees a significantly lower revenue standard than The Coca Cola Company, which can be seen as a bad thing because it means their market share isn’t near what Coca Cola Company’s market share is. Even though these companies are in the same industry, it seems that Dr Pepper Snapple Group just isn’t being able to keep up with the larger company that the Coca Cola Company is. Yes, Dr Pepper Snapple Group is also seeing the same added expenses in the cost of goods sold, selling, administrative, and general expenses, but nearly at the percentage rate that he Coca Cola Company is. This means that their net income and their per share net income has grown considerably from 2010 to 2011, but remained around the same the year before that. Comprehensive Financial Ratio Analysis Valuation Ratios| DPS| KO| I ndustry| Earnings per share| 2. 79| 3. 78| | P/E Ratio| 16. 37| 21. 17| 20. 9| P/E High| NA| NA| 2. 6| P/E Low| NA| NA| 0. 8| Price to Book| 4. 27| 5. 72| 5. 51| Price to Sales| 1. 63| 3. 87| 2. 93| Price to Cash Flow| 11. 3| 16. 8| 15. 4| Market Cap| 9. 60B| 180. 10B| | Dividends| 1. 21| 1. 88| |Dividend Yield| 2. 98| 2. 55| | Financial Ratios| | | | Current Ratio| 0. 92| 1. 05| 1. 2| Quick Ratio| 0. 7| 1| 0. 8| Leverage Ratio| 3. 9| 2. 6| 2. 9| Book Value per share| 10. 9| 14. 34| 13. 53| | 24. 3| 17. 08| | Total debt to asset| 29. 17| 35. 72| | Lt debt to equity| 99. 69| 43. 17| | Total debt to equity| 119. 66| 90. 31| 108| Operating Metrics| | | | Return on avg assets| 6. 67| 11. 29| 8. 9| Return on avg equity| 25. 67| 27. 37| 25. 74| Return on investment| 8. 13| 15. 77| 13. 7| Margins| | | | Net profit margin| 10. 25| 18. 55| 14. 16|Gross margin| 57. 9| 60. 86| 55. 48| EBITD margin| 20. 85| 27. 06| | Operating margin| 17. 35| 23. 06| | Retrieved from www. google. com/finance & www. investing. money. msn. com The Coca Cola Company has a higher return on investment percentage than Dr Pepper Snapple Group, which means that Coca Cola Company is generating more wealth out of the investments they are making. Both companies’ revenues are growing, though it seems that Coca Cola Company is again winning out in the growth category because they are growing at a larger percentage.Within the past two years Coca Cola Company’s revenue growth has been 13% and then 33%, which seems to mean that even through economically tough times, Coca Cola Company is still able to see larger revenue than the year before. The Coca Cola Company is trading at approximately four times their price/earnings ratio, which shows that it is a strong company which shareholders expect the price to go up. Although Dr Pepper Snapple Group is trading for around three times their price/earnings ratio, shareholders also agree that they have a strong company.If you look at all of the anal ysis ratios, The Coca Cola Company is outperforming the industry in a number of different ratios. These include, but not limited to, the average return on equity, average return on assets, book value per share, the quick ratio, the leverage ratio, net profit margin, and gross margin, just to name a few. It seems that because of this, barring something unforeseen, The Coca Cola Company will remain the leader in their industry, and a good solid investment for any investor. If you are just looking at these ratios, The Coca Cola Company would definitely be the investment choice you would want to go with.However, there are other factors to be considered still. The Coca Cola Company 5 year Stock Valuation Chart Retrieved from www. thecoca-colcompany. com Dr Pepper Snapple Group 5 year Stock Valuation Chart Retrieved from www. nasdaq. com In analyzing the two stock charts above, both are showing results for the past five years, it seems that the trends in both stocks are about the same. Th ere is a drop in October of 2009, which was the financial crisis that made all stocks drop, though both have bounced back up. Dr Pepper Snapple Group has seen an extremely higher stock price since before the crisis, though it s still not valued at what The Coca Cola Company’s stock price is valued. The Coca Cola Company’s stocks have bounced back up, as previously stated, though not at the expansive amount Dr Pepper Snapple Group has since the devastating financial crisis. The Coca Cola Company is valued more than the Dr Pepper Snapple Group because â€Å"although we think there may be a better time to dabble in the firm's shares based on our DCF process, the firm's stock has outperformed the market benchmark during the past quarter, indicating increased investor interest in the company† (Why Coca-Cola is worth, 2012).However, there is some estimation that â€Å"if recent commodity price trends hold over the next quarter, Dr. Pepper Snapple (ticker: DPS) should demonstrate significant earnings leverage in 2013 – well in excess of current Wall Street estimates† (Gerberi, Herzog, & Metrano, 2012). SWOT Analysis Strengths â€Å"Coca-Cola’s key strategy is its excellence in emerging markets. It has secured strong anchorage in emerging markets and in the event that the American market plummets, it will have a good fallback position† (Bazil, 2012).This is a great thing, along with the fact that they are a global company. This gives them a position to be at the forefront of the beverage industry and allows them to see better revenues than others in the beverage industry. Dr Pepper Snapple Group, on the other hand, has a strength in the fact that they have seen a smaller increase in the cost of goods sold and other expenses than The Coca Cola Company. This is a strength because it means that the company has been able to control costs, yet they still have the same quality of beverages they always have. WeaknessesDr Peppe r Snapple Group has continued to be an American-centric beverage company and could use a more global outlook to add to profits and up their stock performance. This is a weakness because The Coca Cola Company is already out in the global market and has become the face of the beverage industry from the United States. They are well known, and if Dr Pepper Snapple Group can’t keep up with this, they will never be able to achieve the same financial situation that The Coca Cola Company has. The Coca Cola Company has seen a weakness in the fact that they haven’t been able to control costs throughout the economic down recently.They are seeing more revenues, but revenues are not all that matter in the business world. The Coca Cola Company should try to maintain a lower cost structure so that they have a better advantage, and a larger net income. Opportunities Dr Pepper Snapple Group has a huge opportunity to go global with their beverages. They are currently thinking relatively small in the grand scheme of things and could use a global perspective to raise revenues and become a more comparative competitor to The Coca Cola Company. The Coca Cola Company has the opportunity to try to control costs.They need to be able to do this so they can see a larger net income and save money during these economically hard times. Companies that are not able to control costs will eventually not be able to make it in the business world because they will be paying prices that they sales cannot keep up with. Threats The Coca Cola Company has a big threat that could potentially affect them in the long run. If more of their competitors enter the global market, they could see huge competition in this market than ever before.They are the main beverage company that has a large global presence, but other beverage companies will be looking, if they already aren’t, into getting into the global market so that they compete with The Coca Cola Company revenue wise, and see the sa me larger revenue that global companies start see when they branch out to different areas of the world. Dr Pepper Snapple Group could see a threat of all others within the beverage industry catching on to their cost controlling methods. These methods would help other companies be able to compete better because they will be saving money and hopefully seeing higher revenues as well.This cost controlling, though now a competitive advantage, could very well become an industry norm in the future. Decision I feel that both companies should be invested in. There seems to be a relatively good stock market valuation for The Coca Cola Company and Dr Pepper Snapple Group, as well as good return on investment percentages relative to the beverage industry average. I think that half should be invested in The Coca Cola Company because it has a global presence and sees higher revenue and has a larger stock valuation, as well as a larger per share net income because of the larger revenues than that of Dr Pepper Snapple Group.I also think that the other half should be invested in Dr Pepper Snapple Group. I feel that this manufacturer only has greater heights to attain, seeing as they have yet to have a huge global presence since they are centered on their United States market. I feel that investing in their stock now, before they truly go global (which will happen because every company should start thinking on a global scale), would be the best case scenario because once they do start making a larger revenue due to global sales, they will probably see a higher return on investment, as well as a higher stock valuation.Implementation & Monitoring To implement this, you should contact your financial advisor. Your financial advisor will able to help you further assess the situation which I have laid out in this report. They will also be able to connect you with a stock broker, if you already do not have one. The stock broker will then help you invest your money in the way I have ex plained above. Then it would be advisable, in order to monitor your investment, that you also use your financial advisor who can better monitor the progress of your stock investment.If this is too expensive, then you could monitor the stock yourself through websites such as www. investing. money. msn. com, www. google. com/finance, or www. finance. yahoo. com. These, plus many more websites, are very helpful in monitoring your investment in the stock market. It is up to you whether you want to monitor it every day, once a week, twice a week, or once a month. Whichever you choose, make sure that you keep up with it and don’t fret when stock prices take a slight drop. Pulling money out too early, or when the stock is currently falling is never a good plan. ConclusionsWith this paper, I have learned that, contrary to my belief, The Coca Cola Company are not comparative in size when it comes to revenue, or even the amount of different beverages they sell. They both, though, have comparative ratio analysis. They both are around the industry average, sometimes one is a little above and the other is a little below and vice versa, but for the most part they are relatively close to the industry average. It seems that Dr Pepper Snapple Group has been able to control costs a little more effectively than The Coca Cola Company, but The Coca Cola Company has seen better revenues than the Dr Pepper Snapple Group.Both of these companies are on upwards trends in the stock market, even though they are not comparable by price. There is definitely a need to invest in both of these companies because each has their unique competitive advantage. The Coca Cola Company’s competitive advantage is the fact that they are the leaders in the global beverage market, while Dr Pepper Snapple Group’s competitive advantage is that is able to control costs more efficiently. They each have a large product line and could both benefit from learning from the other in different a spects of the business.Bibliography Bazil, M. (2012). Coca-Cola’s secret weapon. Retrieved from http://www. gurufocus. com/news/183815/cocacolas-secret-weapon. Coca Cola Company Form 10k, 2010. (2011). Retrieved from www. sec. gov. Coca Cola Company Form 10k, 2011. (2012). Retrieved from www. sec. gov. Cooper, L. , Ford, W. , & Stephens, W. (2007). Coca-Cola case study: An ethics incident. The Archive of Marketing Education. Retrieved from www. marketingpower. com. Dr Pepper Snapple Group. (n. d. ). Retrieved from www. wikipedia. org.Dr Pepper Snapple Group Form 10k, 2010. (2011). Retrieved from www. sec. gov. Dr Pepper Snapple Group Form 10k, 2011. (2012). Retrieved from www. sec. gov. Gerberi, J. , Herzog, B. , & Metrano, B. (2012). Beating the global heat with Dr. Pepper Snapple. Retrieved from http://online. barrons. com/article/SB50001424053111903857104577462982562697696. html Graph Data. (2012). Retrieved from www. google. com/finance. Graph Data. (2012). Retrieved from www. investing. money. msn. com. Graph Data. (2012). Retrieved from www. hecoca-colacompany. com. Graph Data. (2012). Retrieved from www. nasdaq. com. Graph Data. (2012). Retrieved from www. yahoo. com. Investors. (n. d. ). Retrieved from www. investor. drpeppersnapple. com. The Coca Cola Company. (n. d. ). Retrieved from www. wikipedia. org. Why Coca-Cola is worth $70 per share. (2012). Retrieved from http://seekingalpha. com/article/755581-why-coca-cola-is-worth-70-per-share? source=marketwatch Appendix A – Accounting Research Paper Supporting Files PDF Files Word/Rich Text Files

Ethnic Foodways or Ethnic Globalization Essay

Globalization has indeed been a global osmosis of culture that includes dress habits, language and food habits. The melting pot that is often used as an analogy for globalization best describes what happens when several different cultures meet. Each adds its own flavor to local culture and what results is an amalgam that includes elements from all contributing cultures. Globalization results in the movement of factors of production through capital transfers and labor migration. Migration gives rise to a transfer of cultural elements. What has been seen in the recent past is the fast paced globalization through the multi national firm. In the cultural context, this global mix has been seen in the migration of culture through large clothing chains, retail supermarkets and food products. Phillips (2006) talks of how the increase in labor mobility has helped cuisine and food transfer across borders. In the nineteenth century itself, the movement of indentured labor for work in plantations in the West Indies and the Pacific enabled the movement of food habits from Asia to North America. Even earlier it was African cuisine that had gained a foothold in the US. The multinational food chain now ensures that similar food is available in each of its outlets across the world. MacDonald’s USP is indeed that the Big Mac would taste the same in each of its 25000 locations across the world. However, with this standardization is also the need to cater to local markets and take advantage of the local raw material to satisfy local tastes. Sometimes large multinational food chains have to localize to be able to gain larger market shares and that is the reason. In other cases, local tradition dictates nutrients that restaurants may choose and may avoid. Hence the MacDonald outlet in the Middle East does not serve ham while it avoids beef in India. Therefore one can see that globalization results in a two way exchange of cultures by way of food habits and tastes.

Self Reflection on Decision Making

Problem Solving and Decision Making Workshop: A Self Reflection I found the workshop on Problem Solving and Decision Making not just useful but also interesting. When we graduate and find work in organizations as Human Resource (HR) managers, we will be faced with many situations on a daily basis that will require us to make sensible, accurate and fair decisions. It could deciding which person to hire, which supplier to use, or which strategy to pursue, but the ability to make a good decision with available information is vital.To be able to do this we need to understand the processes of decision-making and how one can try to eliminate bias while doing so. Over the course of the day, I learnt that in order to make good decisions, the ability to reason logically and sift the accurate information from the corporate jargon is very important. When we were taught the various steps involved in decision-making process I realized that sometimes I arrive at a decision without considering some of the options. Being creative was another skill I picked up during one of the exercises. Some of the best solutions come from thinking innovatively.We were asked to be part of thought showers and come up with different uses of screwdriver, it was amusing to see what a group of 7 girls could come up with. It also showed me how insightful some of these events could be as we came up with ideas I couldn’t possibly think of by myself. Many organizational decisions we will be required to make will never have clear-cut solutions and it is important we think out of the box sometimes. I also picked up different techniques to solve problems like drawing up a matrix to simplify complicated information, fishbone analysis as well as using decision trees that we later applied to the group case study.The session on ethical decision-making struck a cord with me, as it is probably one of the most challenging tasks of managers today. Ethics can have a different meaning for everybody hence it is even more important to follow some universally acceptable ethical practices while making decisions. As it is rooted in context, there needs to be a good match between personal ethics and organizational ethics for an employee to be satisfied with the job. This principle will definitely help me understand and evaluate the type of companies I want to work with in the future. When I considered what I value most, it is self-respect.No job can be satisfying if you do not believe in yourself and your abilities. Being ethical and giving the task at hand my best is what constitutes self-respect for me. This is a virtue I would not want to give up and I hope to maintain that even while working in the corporate world. As an area for development, I need to talk less and listen more so I understand the whole situation before I offer an opinion. I recognized that during the case study on ethical decision-making I was quick to judge the solution and that half-baked information can be quite dan gerous.Until Carol handed us the lawyer’s advice none of us had thought of other possible scenarios and we had to revise our plan taking that into consideration. Decision-making is a key skill in the workplace, and is particularly important if you want to be an effective leader . HR managers have a great task of simplifying complex information and deducing facts especially while interviewing and selecting candidates. Even though HR does not take too many strategic decisions, they do have the task of laying out all the information so that people in charge can make better-informed choices.Sometimes these choices relate to the jobs of people, for example, redundancy decisions or new market expansions. Adair (1999) suggests 5 steps for effective decision making which include defining the objective, collecting relevant information, generating feasible options, making the decisions and also evaluating it (so we know if it was a good or a bad decision). It is therefore very importan t that decisions are not made intuitively but follow a logical and rational approach like the one mentioned above. According to Jackson (1975) the first step to making decision is problem detection.Once this is done, identifying the facts and relevant information is crucial to make this process a success. When we reach the stage of selecting the appropriate option, we have another vague problem of rationality. What is â€Å"best† to one person may not be to another individual. Rationality also takes into account ethics in decision-making. Not everyone follows the same ethical principles. According to Robbins (2010), there are three ethical decision criteria namely utilitarianism, focus on rights and focus on justice.These can help solve some of the vagueness associated with the decision making process. In a large organization with multiple stakeholders, assuming that everyone will have the same viewpoint on the issue at hand is unrealistic to expect. David Jennings & Stuart W attam suggest a soft systems methodology, which stresses on the need to recognize the diversity of values and viewpoints that may occur in a problem situation. In most organization decisions are not made independently, but in groups/teams hence it is very important to follow the above methodology.Hartnett's Consensus-Oriented Decision-Making Model is another useful tool when group decisions need to be made based on complex and unclear material. By using the model, everyone gets involved in developing a solution, so that each person feels ownership of the final decision. This can also help build a more productive and committed team. Sometimes group decision making is subject to groupthink and risky shift, which is where groups make more risky decisions than individuals. Being aware of these limitations of group decision making can help HR managers.As a final point, I understood that most decisions come with a set of organizational constraints and we take shortcuts to reach a conclusi on within the set time frame. We usually are biased evaluators and let our perceptions get the better of us. Some common ones Robbins (2010) points out are anchoring bias, overconfidence bias and hindsight bias. As HR people, we are also responsible for many other people in the company and sometimes what we say/decide or forecast can affect the business and the people in many ways.Hence, it is important to be careful in the decision making process. Personal Developmental Plan * Over these next 10 months, I would want to improve my decision making skills by analysing all possible options before I make a decision. I have a tendency to go with the first solution that arises but after this workshop I realised that the best ideas come after considering all possible opportunities. I think this will really help me once I graduate and start looking for a job. I need to decide what I need from the job and if the organization culture fits with my personality.For this I need to be more geared to make sensible decisions than just look at the location and pay level. * Apart from the learning’s I take from this workshop, I plan to be part of thought showers with my course mates to understand how different people think and arrive at a conclusion. This will help me not just in the decision making process but will also help me recognize individual difference among cultures, ideas and thought processes. Being in an HR department it is essential to get a feel of what people think and how they evaluate the same information. Watching the TED talks online and listening to the way some companies have used the art of problem solving and decision making to come out of turbulent times is another way I plan to get a more practical insight into these areas. * Attending CIPD member group meeting and reading the website for updates in these fields is something I plan to do on an ongoing bases to keep myself abreast with its implications in the workplace. * For my coursework and case studies, I plan to use the techniques of problem solving that were taught in the workshop.I believe this will help me analyse questions more accurately and respond in a more logical sequence considering all the information presented. References: Adair, J. (1999). Decision Making and Problem Solving. London: CIPD Bazerman, M. (1998). Judgment in Managerial Decision Making. 4th Edition. Chichester: John Wiley ; Sons. Jennings, D. ; Wattam, S. (1998). Decision Making: An Integrated Approach. 2nd Edition. Harlow: FT Prentice Hall. MindTools (1996) Hartnett's Consensus-Oriented Decision-Making Model. Available at: http://www. mindtools. com/pages/article/codm. htm (Accessed on: 14th November 2012).

Why it is important to differentiate the curriculum for gifted Essay

Why it is important to differentiate the curriculum for gifted learners in schools - Essay Example (1993) identify the ten roles of the teacher as being, â€Å"director, facilitator, adviser, teacher, guide, critic, freedom giver, supporter, manager and examiner† (p.31-32). There are many other educational writers who suggest various other dimensions of teaching and the essential teaching skills within these dimensions. Kyriacou (1998) lists the essential teaching skills as â€Å"ethos, direct instruction, management of materials, guided practice, structured conversation, monitoring, management of order, planning and preparation and written evaluation† (p.6). These skills are imperative in the direction of gifted students in order to tailor the curriculum to their accelerated learning needs. This is why educators of the gifted value the benefits of ability grouping for advanced learners. The availability of some forms of homogeneous grouping for these learners has been strongly advocated by proponents of gifted education (Allan, 1991). Educators of the gifted are also concerned about a lack of emphasis on differentiated instruction for academic diversity in heterogeneous classrooms and reject a one-size-fits-all approach to educating students as varied as those who inhabit the average classroom. Thus, it is necessary to abandon these practices that homogenize instruction by permitting and in some cases, even encouraging a â€Å"one-size-fits-all† approach to instruction (Kaplan, 1979). Instead, it is necessary to emphasize appropriately differentiated instruction in heterogeneous classrooms In order to cater for giftedness, a curriculum must be developed which creates opportunities to optimize students’ potential (VanTassel-Baska, 1993). A goal in gifted education is to reach the ‘optimal match’ of curriculum with the needs of gifted students. (Hoekman, McCormick and Gross, 1999). Curriculum should be complex, fast-paced, rigorous and match the abilities and interests of gifted students (Gross, 1994,1997,2001, Sawyer, 1988, VanTassel-Baska, 88, 91, 92,

The Fashion Channel Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

The Fashion Channel - Case Study Example The essay "The Fashion Channel Case" concerns The Channel and Fashion. Encouraged from the success of TFC, networks like Lifetime and CNN have begun to add fashion-related programs to their line-ups. Some recent market surveys indicate that Lifetime and CNN perform better than TFC in terms of customer satisfaction, awareness, and perceived value. According to a recently published Alpha research on customer satisfaction with cable networks, TFC achieved a rating of 3.8 (on a scale of 1 to 5) on customer satisfaction whereas CNN scored 4.3 and Lifetime gained 4.5. In terms of awareness, CNN achieved 4.6 and Lifetime a 4.5 while the TFC’s rating was 4.1. In case of perceived value, the scores of TFC, CNN, and Lifetime were respectively 3.7, 4.1, and 4.4. Evidently, TFC’s declining performance adversely affected their two major sources of revenues- advertising revenues and cable affiliate fees. In order to strengthen the TFC’s market position and to improve its compe titiveness, the organization is currently planning some strategy changes. TFC is mainly thinking of increasing the price for a unit of advertising so as to improve its financial stability. In order to increase or hold the advertisement price, it is essential for the organization to make its network’s content appealing to a critical mass of viewers who in turn would attract advertisers. In order to address this market condition, Dana Wheeler, senior vice president of marketing, has framed three alternative solutions.

Self Portrait Journal of Rembrandt Research Paper

Self Portrait Journal of Rembrandt - Research Paper Example In 1659, I painted my self-portrait, following the struggles of the financial crisis, after years of success as an artist. The main reasons for the self-portrait and the choice of the art type had a lot to show about my experiences, and pointed to a change of subject, from those reflected in previous works. In order to understand the reasons for painting the self-portrait, it is important to note the events of my life that had come before the painting of the work. After years of success as a writer, I suffered a financial crisis and failure, and the painting was the reassurance that I needed for myself, and also one that would keep the faith of my audiences high. After losing a house and other valuable properties through an auction, I painted a self-portrait looking into the eyes of the viewer, as an expression of dignity and strength, despite the loss. Further, as a person, I felt that I needed to reassure myself through the painting that I still had the strength and the dignity that I needed to remain relevant in the area of art. In the self-portrait, the illumination of the head and the shoulder was intentional. It was meant to show a posture of confidence and power, in the eyes of all viewers and among my peers in the field of art. The appearance of clasped hands was another indicator of the poise that I still commanded in the field of art and in other circles as well. Further, the self-portrait drew a lot from the inspiration of a portrait done earlier in Balthasar Castiglione, which was also an expression of a highly experienced painter. Through the quality and the poise of the figure in the painting, I wanted to project the aptitude of a highly experienced and learned painter.

Business Analysis using PESTEL Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

Business Analysis using PESTEL - Essay Example The main part of the report has used PESTLE framework to identify the factors that are important to be considered by the electric car manufacturers. The listed factors are then classified as highly relevant and less relevant. An impact analysis is then performed on the highly relevant factors to arrive at the most important trend to be considered. The trends as identified by the impact analysis are Government spending, Government deficit, Economic Growth, Research spending, Innovations, Safety regulations and Environmental awareness. Based on the analysis of the above factors, it is identified that the main opportunity for the electric car companies in the next 5 years is the increased environmental awareness among the people. Similarly, the main threat for electric car markets is the uncertainty about government policies. Sl. No. Topic Page No. 1 Introduction 4 - 5 2 Main body 2.1 PESTLE Analysis 2.2 Analysis of four trends 6 – 10 10 – 15 3 Conclusion 15 – 16 1. Introduction Developing a powerful battery for electric cars is a challenging task for all electric car manufacturers due to the various challenges associated with it. Those main challenges will be discussed here in this report. The topic is â€Å"A new type of battery that can extend the range of electric cars between charges from about 100 miles to about 500 miles.† This study will deal specifically about the electric car market in UK. The various aspects that are relating to the UK car market are dealt in detail in this report. The objective of the study is to identify and analyse the four key factors that are important for the electric car market in UK. A very comprehensive PESTLE analysis is done in order to identify the key factors affecting the UK electric car segment. Before getting into the core area, it is important to have an idea about the UK electric car market. British automobile industry is one of the most established and fastest growing automobile industries in the world. UK shows good growth figures for all car segments. The trend until some years back has been the small car segment. But now, the trend is getting shifted to the electric cars irrespective of whether it is big or small. The main motivating factors for such a shift in trend is the continued awareness regarding the ill effects caused by vehicle emissions and the low cost of operations. Due to this high potential that exists in the region, companies from across the world are targeting to introduce electric cars for the UK market. This is evident from the fact that the even the super luxury car maker Rolls Royce will unveil the electric version of their Phantom in the 2011 Geneva Motor Show. As of 2008 electric cars represented around 0.004 percent of cars on the UK roads. The committee on climate change then expected this figure to reach around 40 percent by 2020. (Webster, 2008) (Ref. 1). The following chart gives the electric car growth estimate by region. (Reed, 2010) (R ef 22) To make things easier for the car manufacturers as well as the potential buyers, the UK Government is very keen on supporting the segment through their subsidy programme and other policies. The government has planned to provide subsidy of up to ?5000 to those who acquire an electric car in future. (House of Commons, Page 40) (Ref. 2) But when it comes to the sales of electric cars, government support is not the only factor that works out. The practicality of the car is the most important success

Fashion Retail Marketing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

Fashion Retail Marketing - Essay Example The essay "Fashion Retail Marketing" discovers the fashion retail marketing. This online retail brand has emerged as one of the favourite destination for youngsters, looking for fashionable and affordable brands. This report analyses the brand value and the strategies followed by the company. This section discusses the company objectives and the ethical policies it follows. In the next topic the financial details of the company are given. The company’s large product range has been highlighted. The positioning strategies of the company are discussed and analyses of their impact on the company’s operations have also been discussed. To find out the macro environment of the retail brand, PEST analysis is done. This will give a clear understanding of the current economic, social, political and technological changes within the country and how it has impacted the operations of the company. Value chain analysis gives a detailed layout of the flow of raw materials and other prod ucts from suppliers, to the warehouse, manufacturing and operational process and finally delivery of products to the customer doorsteps. The report also throws light on the marketing campaigns and strategies followed by the company. Though the online retailer has maintained a continuous growth in the online marketing sector, there are certain risks and challenges that lie ahead. Very retailer is one of UK’s prominent online and home shopping brands. It is an arm of One Shop online retailer which has a customer base of over five millions. and an annual turnover of over 1.7 billion pounds (Very, 2013). Very online brand was launched in the year 2009. The online retailer deals with categories such as apparels for men women and children, home and electrical appliances. The website of Very retailer in designed keeping high internet users in mind. The website provides customers with the opportunity of shopping across a range of product areas, from footwear and fashion to home and e lectrical and other accessories. To gain competitive advantage, Very online retailer has introduced a number of interactive marketing services, and innovative online marketing strategies to engage the customers on mobile channels (Wang, 2005). The retail brand believes in creating a workplace having a perfect balance between hard work and having fun. The company’s preferences lie in putting the customer first. The brand believes in treating its customers as well as employees well and making a difference by keeping things simple. The online retail brand thrives on four major brand values. Deliver- The retail brand thrusts upon getting results which satisfies the customer expectations as well as fulfils the organisational needs. Innovate- To make the business better, the company develops innovative ideas in the field of marketing campaigns, innovative advertising and branding ideas, inventing new categories and product range to meet the changing customer preferences. Courage- C ourage means doing activities which are of best interest to the company and challenging a process because it is not correct. It can be any process from finance to the supply chain process. Enthuse- The Company believes in creat

Legal relationships Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Legal relationships - Essay Example The there are various types of lease contracts and with different terms and conditions. The lease involved in this instance is the lease of real property. However, various issues are associated in the transfer of a piece of real estate. According to Pfeiffer, Timmerbell, Johannes Dotter and Idwell, the legal consequences associated with the transfer of leased piece of real estate property is dependent on the application of the civil code (2009). If there is the application of the civil code to the lease contract, it offers the possibility of the acquirer to terminate existing lease contract under the terms and provision offered by the law. This is done within fourteen days if not agreed upon and the seller has the obligation of compensating the lessee. The transfer of the contract by the lessee is possible through a sublease or if the lease contract contains provisions allowing the transfer. However, there are various provisions and it is advisable to review each case individually. Conclusively, it is possible to transfer the lease to another prospective investor if an individual is unable to continue financing the lease contract. It requires that a person follow the outlined formalities in order to facilitate the transfer of the lease contract. This assist to ensure that the transfer of the piece of real property is conducted appropriately without creating potential problems that can be faced. Pfeiffer G. F,   Timmerbeil Sven, Johannes dotter  F&  Tidwel K. L. (COL). (2009).International asset transfer: an overview of the main jurisdictions : a practitioners handbook .New York: Walter de

Anishnabe homeland Personal Statement Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Anishnabe homeland - Personal Statement Example The Anishinabe is one of the dominant native tribes in North America that occupies the greatest geographical area. Indeed, the Anishinabe ancestral homeland entails five American States and three Canadian Provinces (Minnesota Historical Society 1). The Anishinabe still live in this ancestral homeland. However, this ancestral land has since reduced after the coming of the Europeans. Accordingly, this native tribe claimed that it originated from the northeast and settled by the great sea. Notably, wars, migrations, and trade influenced the Anishinabe homeland. The Anishinabe valued their expanse homeland and referred it as a reward from their ancestors. The ancestral homeland belonged to all Anishinabe people. The Anishinabe guarded the homeland with pride and resisted all attempts aimed at removing them from the land. Apparently, the initial ancestral homeland of the Anishinabe was huge since it stretched from the northern reaches of the plains to the southeastern shores of the Great Lakes (Minnesota Historical Society 2). Specifically, sub-Arctic tundra bounded the homeland from the north while the Mackenzie River bounded the homeland from the west (Minnesota Historical Society 2). The Mississippi River bounded the Anishinabe homeland from the south while the seaboard bounded the homeland from the east (Minnesota Historical Society 2). Anishinabe homeland extended from Central Saskatchewan to southern Ontario (Minnesota Historical Society 2). Moreover, the Anishinabe homeland entailed the northern Minnesota, northern Dakota corner, and dominated Michigan City (Minnesota Historical Society 2). Currently, most Anishinabe people are farmers and ranchers who live in reservation communities in northern Minnesota and Wisconsin (Minnesota Historical Society 2). The Anishinabe have subdivided into four groups according to their location. The plains Anishinabe reside in Saskatchewan, western Manitoba, North Dakota, and Montana while the northern Anishinabe reside

Why does Mackie think we need an error theory Do you think he is right Essay

Why does Mackie think we need an error theory Do you think he is right to believe that we need it - Essay Example The error theory suggests that morals are not absolute, that what is morally right or wrong vary from one society to another. It is a theory that states that morals are judged, not by the universal moral norms, but according to the society within which a circumstance calls for moral clarification (Dorsey 2006, p.495). When one considers the definition above, it can be stated that the morals are no longer absolute in different societies because of the fact that they have evolved over a long period, changing considerably from one society to another. A good number of the proponents of this theory, such as John Mackie, believe that morality was an invention of societies to maintain control over its members, and it is because of this that morality varies. If, for instance, morals and social norms were universal in all the societies, in the world, then there would have been no differences in morals, and as a result, the error theory would not have been developed. The error theory states th at the idea of morality or the adherence to morals depends on the assumption that they exist; this assumption being false because morals are not based on the reality of the situations being judged. Error theory can be considered a viewpoint where there is the belief that morality is dependent on the norms of the cultures, which practice it. It is these societies which determine whether the actions of individuals is morally right or wrong and those who propagate this theory believe that there is nothing that can be said to be the absolute truth concerning morality because what is considered to be right in one society may not be considered the same in another. If one were to consider Mackie’s statements concerning the error theory, the fact that what is considered morally right in one society may not be so in another show that morality is not a universal norm. There are often chances where what is considered morally right in one culture may be considered wrong in another, an ex ample being the situation of homosexuality. While, in the western world, homosexuality is an accepted norm in society, in other parts of the world, especially in Africa and Middle East, one would find that this practice is frowned upon, and those found in the act tend to be severely punished. Therefore, when it comes to the concept of the error theory, the opinion of what is right or wrong is not judged by norms that would be considered universal because of the fact that it cannot be measured nor do the said morals exist (Delapp 2009, p.8). Morals, if one were to follow Mackie’s argument, are made up by the societies, which put them in force and because of this, these societies become slaves to concepts, which are logically nonexistent. Among the main advantages of using the error theory when considering morals is the fact that a broad range of views concerning morals is taken into consideration. Since there is a wide variety of cultures and practices, it is easier for one to adapt to any situation that one may encounter through the understanding of the motivations behind the development of various cultural norms as well as look upon such morals in an objective way. Moreover, it can be said that the error theory can be used towards the development cultural understanding, which ensures that people are judged, not according to the opinions of other cultures, but according to that of their own cultures and societies. It recognizes that fact that morals are nonexistent and this creates a situation where societies can be studied on an equal footing. Since it is the society which judges what is right or wrong, the people within it have a clear understanding of what is

Causes of the Arab-Israeli Conflict Essay Example for Free

Causes of the Arab-Israeli Conflict Essay The origins of the conflict between Arabs and Israelis lie deeply in religious and historical times. The aftermath of World War Two instigated the rise of Zionism and Arab nationalism, escalating the religious and cultural differences between the two nationalities. Foreign interference from western nations negatively intervened in the tensions between Arabs and Israelis. The decline of the Ottoman Empire gave opportunities for Britain to impose the Mandate System which increased hostilities between Arabs, Israelis and the Western world. Conflict between the Arabs and the Israelis were mainly due to the rise of Zionism and Arab Nationalism. Following the Holocaust and other events in WWII, Jewish people were even more displaced and were encouraged by Herzl and Weizmann’s Zionist movement to migrate back to the homeland, modern day Palestine. This was perceived by the Arab inhabitants as an invasion. The Jewish brought with them international expertise to boost the economy, dominating the finance and agricultural industries. Arabs reacted with violence, attacking Jewish settlements of Tel Aviv and Haifa in 1920. The Jews in response created the Haganah, the Jewish Defence Force dedicated to maintaining the security of the settlements. Another factor was the shared religious interest in Jerusalem and the Dome of the Rock, which is a central focal point in the conflict over borders. The Arabs mobilised very slowly but eventually the Arab Nationalism movement was founded, their aim to establish Arab rule in the Middle East, directly contrasting with Zionism thus inevitably leading to conflict. Their strong religious and cultural differences were crucial to the Arab-Israeli conflict. International interest in the nature of the Arab-Israeli relationship was counterproductive to reconciling the differences between the two ethnicities. Early attempts by interested parties to make agreements ended in failure and abandonment due to contradictory and inconsistent promises. The Hussein-McMahon Correspondence of 1915 was a series of a letters between the Arabs and the British. The correspondence promised British support for an Arab independence if the Arabs revolted against the Ottoman Empire family. This alliance however, was juxtaposed by the next agreement, the Sykes-Picot Agreement of 1916. Made between Britain, France and Russia, it discussed the division of the Middle  East with Arabia as an independent state while Palestine would be jointly ruled by the three co-conspirators. The revelation reinforced the determination of the Arabs to be independent. The Balfour Declaration of 1917 complicated the situation further since it appeared to be promising the establishment of a Jewish National State in a letter between the British and the Jewish. The UN Partition Plan in 1947 gave the opportunity for Zionist leader Ben Gurion to declare the establishment of the State of Israel and was the catalyst for the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, one of many violent conflicts that would perpetuate as the conflict continued to be unresolved. The uncoordinated, duplicitous and irrational efforts by the western world to intervene in the Arab-Israeli conflict were weaknesses clearly thought to be necessary and instead increased the tensions between the two nations. The collapse of the Ottoman Empire left the fate of the Middle East to the League of Nations. They implemented the Mandate System, a form of governance designed to assist the fractured Arab community to establish independence by administering regions until they were ready for self-governance. However, their ulterior motives to maintain access to key resources in the area, mostly oil deposits and the Suez Canal prevented both Arab nationalist and Zionist aims. The actions of these nations were detrimental to the relations between Arabs and Israelis and contributed to the Arab-Israeli conflict. The major causes of the Arab-Israeli conflict were foreign interference, nationalism and the collapse of the Ottoman Empire. These factors were critical to the development and escalation of hostilities between the two nations torn over one land.

Features Of Connected Speech In English English Language Essay

Features Of Connected Speech In English English Language Essay Blurred boundaries, sounds and even words that are completely swallowed up, chewed and mangled words that force you to listen with all your acquired knowledge and a general sense of hopelessness that you are never going to manage this foreign tongue are but the most common frustrations expressed by the ESL learners I have taught. L2 users educated in a system that prides in teaching the most precise and appropriate pronunciation leaves them bewildered when they hear English (even snippets of conversation) as spoken by L1 users. They suffer a devastating diminution of phonetic information at the segmental level when they encounter normal speech (Brown, G.1990, p.60) Connected speech is not a familiar feature to even fluent speakers of English in India and so they tend to fully form the words even in informal situations, giving the impression to L1 speakers and other L2 speakers that, hes so arrogant about it all (Crystal and Davy 1975,p.8) In this essay I would analyse the features of connected speech in English, the problems they cause to L2 learners in India. In the first section I will examine the features of connected speech and move onto the challenges they cause to L2 speakers especially Indian ESL learners. I would also like to analyse my own and the prevailing attitude and practice towards learning and teaching connected speech. Finally I would like to identify the criteria that I would apply in deciding the different aspects of connected speech suitable to my learning/ teaching environment. Connected speech Underhill A (1994) defines connected speech as a flow of sounds which are modified by a system of simplifications through which phonemes are connected, grouped and modified This simplification is an unconscious process and most of the L1 speakers are often unaware of this as they practise it. (Collins B, and I. Mees 2008). The goal of connected speech is to reduce the articulatory effort required to send the message. Even though whole chunks of phonetic details are left out by the L1 speaker to maximise the ease of communication, native listener decodes these messages using the different types of support knowledge in his repertoire. This reduction often takes place within words or words in a stream of speech (Dalton C. and B. Seidlhofer, 1994), where word boundaries get blurred. Words flow seamlessly, allowing the L1 speaker to make use of the stress system to emphasise the content of the message. In this flow adjacent sounds are modified to resemble each other- Assimilation-; sounds are completely left out of words Elision-; and certain sounds maybe inserted between the words to fuse the words together at boundaries- Linking-. Features of connected speech Assimilation L1 speakers speak at a pace of 350 syllables per minute in formal speeches and 400- 450 words in informal speech. (Crystal.D 1992; 1999) When the tongue has to move from one articulating position to another at this pace, only an approximation of the phoneme can be produced. Thus all phonemes occurring within a word or in a stream of speech influence one another and adjust with the phonemes of their neighbours (Brown, G.1990). Underhill (1994) summarises assimilation as the natural result of the various speech organs cutting corners as they perform their complex sequence of movementsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Though any sound can influence any other sound theoretically assimilation is limited to a few phonemes (Dalton C. and B. Seidlhofer, 1994) Alveolar consonants /t/, /d/ and /n/ at the end of a word often assimilate to the place of articulation of the consonant at the beginning of the next word (Underhill, 2005, p.60) EÉ ¡Ãƒâ€¹Ã‚  Great Britain / greÉ ªtbritÉâ„ ¢n / / greÉ ªÃƒÅ Ã¢â‚¬ pbrÉ ªtÉâ„ ¢n / Wont come / wÉâ„ ¢ÃƒÅ Ã…  ntkÊŒm / / wÉâ„ ¢ÃƒÅ Ã…  nʆkÊŒm / Down by law / daÊÅ  nbaÉ ªlɆ: / / daÊÅ  mbaÉ ªlɆ: / Good girl / gÊÅ  dgÉœ:l / / gÊÅ  ggÉœ:l / Elision When the speech effort is reduced for maximum efficiency, the articulation of individual phonemes gets weakened. When these phonemes are minimised markedly they are dropped from connected speech. Elision is the process of dropping a sound (a vowel or a consonant), from a word when it is uttered as part of connected speech. RP sounds short and clipped to L2 speakers and speakers of other varieties of English due to elision of the schwa (/Éâ„ ¢/) sound. The most commonly elided sounds in English are /t/, /d/ and /Éâ„ ¢/. The consonants that are elided almost as frequently as these are /v/ and /ÃÆ' °/ /t/ First three fÉœstÃŽÂ ¸ri fÉœsÃŽÂ ¸ri Last year lÉ‘stjiÉâ„ ¢ lasjiÉâ„ ¢   /d/ ground pressure É ¡raÊÅ  ndpreʃÉâ„ ¢ É ¡raÊÅ  mpreʃÉâ„ ¢ Banned for life Bà ¦ndfÉâ„ ¢laÉ ªf Bà ¦mfÉâ„ ¢laÉ ªf /Éâ„ ¢/ Chocolate tʃɆ kÉâ„ ¢ lÉâ„ ¢t tʃɆk lÉâ„ ¢t Vegetable vɆºÃƒÅ Ã‚ ¤Ãƒâ€°Ã¢â€ž ¢ tÉâ„ ¢ blÃÅ' © vɆºÃƒÅ Ã‚ ¤ tÉâ„ ¢ blÃÅ' © /v/ Weve been considering WivbinkÉâ„ ¢nsideriņ¹ WÉ ªbÉ ªnkÉâ„ ¢nsideriņ¹ Needs of the NidzÉâ„ ¢vÃÆ' °Ãƒâ€°Ã¢â€ž ¢ NidzÉâ„ ¢ÃƒÆ' °Ãƒâ€°Ã¢â€ž ¢ /ÃÆ' °/ I think that was aÉ ªÃƒÅ½Ã‚ ¸Ãƒâ€°Ã‚ ªÃƒâ€¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¹kÃÆ' °Ãƒâ€°Ã¢â€ž ¢twÉâ„ ¢z ʌΠ¸Ãƒâ€°Ã‚ ªÃƒâ€¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¹kÉâ„ ¢twÉâ„ ¢z Went the way of the WentÃÆ' °Ãƒâ€°Ã¢â€ž ¢weÉ ªÃƒâ€°Ã¢â€ž ¢vÃÆ' °Ãƒâ€°Ã¢â€ž ¢ WentÉâ„ ¢weÉ ªÃƒâ€¹Ã‚ ÃƒÆ' °Ãƒâ€°Ã¢â€ž ¢ Vowel reduction Unstressed vowels in the stream of speech are shortened and are often centralized to a schwa (/Éâ„ ¢/) sound. An unaccented diphthong in a similar setting can lose the length of the vowel glide or could even be reduced to a monophthong. Must mÊŒst mÉâ„ ¢s There ÃÆ' °eÉâ„ ¢ ÃÆ' °ÃƒÅ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢Ãƒâ€¹Ã‚  Strong and weak forms Function class words in unaccented positions are reduced to their weak forms in connected speech. The degree of reduction depends on the rate of speech delivery; the faster the speech, the greater the reduction of vowel sounds. StronÉ ¡ Weak And à ¦nd Éâ„ ¢n Of É’v Éâ„ ¢v To tʆ¹ tÉâ„ ¢ Linking Dalton C. and B. Seidlhofer (1994) describe linking as the consequence of two vowel sounds meeting at a vowel boundary. In such situations an extra sound is inserted to mark the transition between the two vowels. Linking / r/ In RP /r/ is not realised in pronunciation except when it is followed by a vowel. In connected speech /r/ is articulated when the following word starts with a vowel. Sooner suË nÉâ„ ¢ sooner or later suË nÉâ„ ¢rɆÃƒâ€¹Ã‚ leÉ ªtÉâ„ ¢ Sure ʃɆÃƒâ€¹Ã‚  sure enough ʃɆÃƒâ€¹Ã‚ rÉ ªnÊŒf Intrusive /r/ Some speakers insert a /r/ even when there is no /r/ in the spelling. Intrusive /r/ carries a certain social stigma and educated L1 speakers often deny having an intrusive /r/ in their connected speech. The presence of intrusive in connected speech is quite frequent among non-rhotic L1 speakers. Idea aÉ ªdÉ ªÃƒâ€°Ã¢â€ž ¢ idea of it aÉ ªdÉ ªÃƒâ€°Ã¢â€ž ¢rÉ’vÉ ªt Intrusive /w/ and /j/ When a word ending in a vowel is followed by another vowel, L1 speakers insert a consonant sound that is nearer to the sound of the first vowel. É ¡o out É ¡Ãƒâ€°Ã¢â€ž ¢ÃƒÅ Ã¢â‚¬ ¹waʆ¹t I am aÉ ªjam She is ʃiË jis Catenation In connected speech, L1 speakers tend to connect the last consonant sound in a word with the first vowel sound of the next word. Keep out kiË p aʆ¹t Key pout kiË  paʆ¹t A name Éâ„ ¢ neÉ ªm An aim Éâ„ ¢n eÉ ªm Connected speech- Teach Reception and or Production? Challenges to L2 learners and teachers An awareness of connected speech features is essential to facilitate listening comprehension in an ESL learner. A lack of these features does not affect intelligibility drastically and the decision of how much (the degree) and when to convert the declarative knowledge to procedural knowledge should be left to the L2 learners. Jennifer Jenkins (2000) argues that the assimilatory process will be acquired naturally if learners progress in their knowledge and control of the language is sufficient to enable them to speed up the rate of their speech. Thus we understand that a learners acquisition of knowledge in one area would positively affect his performance in another area, and that even though most if not all of this is eminently learnable with exposure to an L1 atmosphere, it is not always teachable. The criteria for teaching connected speech would be arrived at by observing the teachability- learnability scale. What the L2 learners need at this point could be a simulation of the mate rnal speech to children à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ mothers alternate between clarified and distorted forms and this seems to enable the children to develop rules of correspondence between the model and distorted forms they will normally encounter (Ratner 1984). Exposing the L2 learners to both careful colloquial speech and rapid colloquial speech could help them to understand these varieties at a declarative level and thereby position them for a procedural development at their own pace. Indian learners of English (ILE) are unfamiliar with the connected speech feature assimilation. In my anecdotal experience I have noticed that the educated speakers in India (for that matter even the uneducated speakers) utter each word in a sentence almost as though they are articulated in isolation. This syllable timed articulation is carried forward even when they speak a stress timed language like English. This trait becomes problematic at the reception level as ILE listeners expect the same vocal and phonemic clarity even when they are listening to English. Gillian Browns (1990) observation that an L2 listener suffers a devastating diminution of phonetic information, in such situations aptly summarises the confusion and panic they feel. So I believe that L2 learners of English should be made familiar with the assimilation features, so that they can understand the content of the discussion/ interaction without having to decode language features each and every time. In my teaching practices I think I have been unconsciously following the suggestions that Gillian Brown (1990) proposes: I have already suggested that I do not approve of teaching students to produce assimilated forms and elided forms. Sophisticated students who have been taught to be aware of these forms will introduce them into their own speech in a natural context when they feel able to control them Assimilation becomes a problem at the production level only when the L2 speakers interact with the L1 listeners, but then L1 listeners are mostly aware of this difficulty of the L2 speakers and make necessary adjustments to their linguistic and emotional responses. As an L2 user and as a teacher I believe that a few words uttered painfully slow to achieve connected speech would create more confusion to the L1 speaker than a total absence of assimilatory/ connected speech features. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ slower speech made to incorporate features of connected speech is reduced to gibberish (Crystal D. 1992;1999). One of the major arguments that exist against this stand is that an absence of assimilatory features would prevent the L2 speakers from using intonation patterns and rhythm and would lead to loss of fluency. (Underhill A. 1994) and he suggests exposing ESL learners to rapid colloquial speech as a useful activity for improving listening comprehension. Even though elision is a feature that is present in most Indian languages, the Indian ESL learner may struggle to understand and participate in a conversation with an L1 speaker employing rapid colloquial speech. This is because elision is not a feature that is taught in Indian classrooms. Moreover, elision carries a certain social stigma among educated Indians and so they might actively resist adopting elision in their speech practices as well. Dropping sounds is equated with a lower social class and could also be interpreted as a sign of poor education. As with assimilation, elision can cause confusion at the reception level for the L2 listener, if he has always been exposed to correct and fully articulated speech. An L2 speaker trying to include elision in a slow speech would confuse the L1 listener. As demonstrated by Crystal in his experiment the sentence I wouldnt have been able to in fluent speech may become /Éâ„ ¢ wÊÅ  bmpÉ ªneÉ ªblÉâ„ ¢/. Spoken more slowly by a learner who is being encouraged to use the various features of connected speech, it could come across like this: /Éâ„ ¢ wÊÅ  bÉâ„ ¢m pÉ ª neÉ ª blÉâ„ ¢/,with each syllable being carefully articulated. In this case it would at best sound ridiculous and at worst would be rendered completely incomprehensible. (Jennifer Jenkins, 2000) Another contentious area is the teaching of weak forms. As pointed out by David Brazil (1994) the contradiction of focusing in the classroom on a feature whose quality is precisely the result of speakers not focusing on it. This pedagogic focus may then, paradoxically, impede the later acquisition of weak forms in learning outside the classroomà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ (Jennifer Jenkins, 2000). Jennifer Jenkins challenges the notion of the need to weaken an unimportant sound to highlight an important one and points out that if the important sounds are stressed then the meaning would become clear to the listener. Reading about this approach and thinking further on it has convinced me that this is the way to go forward. The hours of drilling that I have been forcing on my students might have been counterproductive. I feel that this is another area where declarative knowledge should be allowed to mature to a procedural knowledge at the students own pace. Listening comprehension and thereby communication is enhanced by dissimilatory practices rather than assimilatory processes, as they give primary importance to the hearers needs by subordinating the speech strategies of a speaker. I would still like to believe that the assimilatory features are what give the English language its identity. But for learners at a transactional level with L1 speakers or with other L2 speakers conquering these features could be daunting and unnecessary for everyday communication. As David Crystal (1999) suggests The possibility of L2 learners becoming competent in both syllable and stress based speech and being able to shift effortlessly from one to other, depending on the need of the circumstance, either to proclaim a national identity or to improve international intelligibility, is not an improbability and that is what I would like to strive for and encourage my learners to aim for.

A Muslim Experience Of Going To Church

A Muslim Experience Of Going To Church This week I visited the St. Bernard church located on 143rd and Parker Rd in Homer Glen, IL. My friend came with me, she is also Muslim. We actually visited it twice. The first time it was like 6 pm, and it was dark out. We thought it would be open because our mosque is always open. So we went and as we were pulling up, we got scared. It was dark, and all I saw was crosses, and when I was getting ready to open the door to see if anyone was there, I just freaked out and left. I dont know why, but it looked to us as if it was closed. I really thought there would be someone sitting there or something. But then my friend and I went the next day in the morning. As we arrived at the church the next morning we saw a lot of families, and people getting together. They all seemed so happy. At first I was all excited with my pen and notebook, then I was kind of shy and scared to walk in, I really dont know why. Everyone was really nice, so we walked in. The first person that came up to me was a girl that my friend knew from high school she was really surprised to see us there, so she stuck with us and made it less awkward for us. She said Sabreen the first thing you need to know is Catholic means universal that should be a great way to start your essay. I liked that, I never knew that. It was pretty loud in there. Everyone was talking and laughing. I was very surprised to see how loud it is; because I always thought that a place of worship would be quiet. In my place of worship, the mosque, it is really quiet and everyone whispers. We consider it to be very inappropriate to be loud, unless everyone is ready to go home. But I noticed when the prie st started talking everyone became quiet; similar to the mosque when the Sheikh gives a lesson/lecture everyone becomes quiet. The gathering was motivating. The melody was a bit loud and from time to time it completed me to feel awkward again I mean it was one atmosphere I have by no means existed in. At Mosques, there truly are not any melodic gadgets and as I mentioned it is a lot calmer. Anyway as I walked in I had to say the WOW. There was stained glass everywhere. I mean everywhere. It was so beautiful. And there were people around the holy water they started dipping their hands in there. It was so cool. Ive heard about holy water before. We Muslims also have Holy water our Holy water is ZamZam. It is only located in Mecca, Saudi Arabia. But there are bottles of ZamZam now where we can buy at some Islamic stores. We consider it to be so pure. And everyone that goes to do pilgrimage goes by the holy water and starts drinking and also dipping their hands in it. There were many sc ulptures of diverse volumes and forms. In Islam, There are no sculptures because it is an offense. It is also an offense to have any images in spite of of what they describe in a Mosque, where the church was fully enclosed in pictures. The pictures were so beautiful; I cannot even describe them they were just outstanding how they were made. I have learned a whole lot from this experience. I talked to many people; many of them were very nice, and willing to share with me about the Catholic Religion. I learned that Catholics consider with the intention of Christ is the messiah of the aged proofs called Messianic prophecies. In an occasion recognized since the personification, the Church educates people on that, throughout the control of the sacred strength, the lord developed into joint by means of soul natural world as soon as Christ was considered in sacred Virgin Mary. Christ is understood, so, to be in cooperation entirely delightful and completely being. People follow Christs teachings and his wisdom. Similarly to Muslims we follow Prophet Mohammads teachings and wisdoms. It is so interesting how hopes and dedications for Virgin Mary are a division of Catholic faithfulness but are different from the devotion to God. The Church embraces Mary, as an everlasting virgin and as a mother of God. So what I understood was that Virgin Mary was so important to them it was more of respect then worship towards her their beliefs consist of her clean and tidy formation with no blemish of a sin and physical supposition into paradise at the finish of her existence. Catholics believe Christ rose from the dead on Easter Sunday, they believe in the rebirth the spirit of Jesus was joined up to His corpse by His individual heavenly authority. Muslims believe that When Jesus was on the cross, he never died, and that Alllah (God) took him up to heaven and put a person that looks like him instead. We believe that Jesus is up in heaven with Allah right now, Also that when Jesus comes down one day, that will be on the Day of Judgment. Some people thought I was thinking of converting, this religion is really interesting but I dont think I will convert. I mean I grew up knowing all about Islam, and in this class I have learned about many other religions. But I am sticking to Islam, because I feel like it is the right religion for me, more like I know it is the right religion for me. After I went home many of my friends and family thought I was going to get into an argument with someone about being wrong or something. I tend to be a very defensive person. But I really wanted to understand the different religions out there. I really want to go to a Jewish synagogue one day and see what the Jews believe; I mean you dont believe it till you see it right? I read all these essays, and the books, and researched about many religions, but I really want to start experiencing them. This experience was beyond awesome. Sabreen

Essay examples --

Introduction The development of the internet has led to various milestones in the world of marketing. It has made it possible for people to defeat the challenge of physical distance. This idea is very useful for business people who are in the field of marketing their products. Cambria et al (2011) observes that there have been increased costs as far as the traditional advertisement is concerned. In addition, traditional ads only reach a limited number of people. In cases where such advertisements are made in international media stations such as the CNN, huge costs are involved. Internet marketing has come to resolve this challenge once and for all. For people or businesses that may not have the money to advertise in the traditional media such as the television and newspapers, social media is the best place to go. With the advent of hand held devices such as the smart phones and tablet computers, it is very easy to take pictures or photographs and actually share them with the world at the comfort of one’s home. This paper is focused on the whole idea of social media marketing and how photographers can optimize the opportunities that come with it. It will also address the advantages that make social networking sites more attractive than the traditional media. Social networking sites offer photographers with cheap, effective and robust chance to display their work to people across the entire globe; a property that the traditional media offers at a very high expense. Social Media Marketing â€Å"Social† media is distinct from traditional media. The former includes virtual places where people â€Å"meet† to share experiences. In this view, internet is the most impressive human discovery that ever exists. Through the support of internet, it has b... ...tional advertising. It reaches more people; it is cheap, convenient, flexible and effective. However, one condition must be fulfilled: the photographer must be ready to invest time in it. In other words, one should be active online. If more than two social media platforms are involved, this could mean that the person spends up to 6 hours in a day just promoting the product. Moreover, the effort is worth it. Strategic social media marketing could yield better results, in many cases, than the prospects if traditional advertising. Significantly, while traditional media advertisements are short-lived, social media platforms could stay as long as the post, discussion or article or is visible online. In the final analysis, photographers should be enthusiastic about the opportunity that social media and the internet provide as far as marketing of photographs is concerned.

Settling a New World Essay -- essays research papers fc

The very survival of the early settlers to the New World would depend much upon the generosity of the Native Americans. Had the natives not been so helpful and had instead violently resisted the newcomers, European settlers might not have been so eager to come settle this new land. Both Jamestown and Plymouth would depend upon the goodwill of the native people for their initial survival while establishing their settlements. The Indians not only introduced the area’s indigenous food sources but also their agriculture techniques to the settlers. The settlers would depend upon these for their survival in a new and unfamiliar land. Being able to provide their own food would be the first step in successfully establishing the new colonies, once the settlers were able to do this their numbers grew. With that growth in population came a desire for more settlement territory, it would be this desire for more land that would lead to unrest between the Native Americans and the settlers. Upon their arrival to the New World in May 1607, the newcomers built a settlement and established it as Jamestown. Of the 104 settlers, many were â€Å"gentlemen† and ill suited for the tasks ahead. The area was swamp†¦ warm, humid and riddled with mosquito infested malarial bogs of water and parasites carrying numerous other diseases. In their haste to find wealth and the Northwest Passage to Asia, the men neglected to plant crops to replenish their food supplies, which were dwindling rapidly. Within eight months of their arrival only thirty-eight colonists were still alive. A young captain, John Smith, would become the settlement’s new leader. He enforced a policy decreeing, â€Å"He that will not worke shall not eate.† Under his leadership the colony was revived but when injured by a gunpowder explosion in 1609 he was sent back to England. John Ratcliffe was elected to take his place and under his command the settlers would experience what would come to b e known as â€Å"the starving times†. Come the end of winter only sixty survived and many of those only did so by consuming their dead neighbors. Along with the difficult situation of food shortages, there were also skirmishes with the local Native Americans. Legend holds that in 1608 Captain John Smith’s life would be spared only due to the pleas from Indian leader Powhatan’s young daughter Pocahontas, who brought food and clothing to the colonis... ...rs to this New World ultimately succeeded due to the generosity of the local natives, and due to the fact there was no unification of the local native tribes. Had the Indian natives never helped the settlers learn top plant native crops and provided aid during times of starvation, the settlers’ success would have been limited. Many times settlements were saved from the brink of extinction upon Indian intervention. If Indian tribes had been able to unite together when the settlers first began to arrive, they might have been able to join forces and win a battle against the new arrivals while the colonists numbers were still few. Had the new colonists been faced with an organized fighting force that killed them upon arrival, the European’s might have been too frightened to continue to send new arrivals for fear of slaughter. In the end it would be the English settlers who would prevail†¦ their vast numbers, superior weapons, and unified forces would overcome India n resistance. Bibliography: The World Book Encyclopedia (1999) www.jamestown.org Agriculture, Indians, and American History – www.cals.edu/aagexed/aee502/indians.html The American Journey, A History of the United States

Abraham Lincoln and Huckleberry Finn

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is a novel that was written by Mark Twain. The novel was published in 1884 in England and a year later in the United States. The book chronicles the adventures of Huckleberry Finn, a boy running away from being â€Å"sivilized† and Jim, a runaway slave. The book follows them as they travel down the Mississippi River. As the novel progresses and Jim and Huck become closer friends, we begin to see Huck’s inner struggle. He is torn between two different moral commitments- to the slave society he has grown up in and his friendship with Jim.Huck has been trained to tolerate and support slavery, and his friendship with Jim enables him to see the injustice of the institution. Completing my part of the PIOP, Abraham Lincoln and the Emancipation Proclamation, enabled me to see the similarities in the beliefs of Abraham Lincoln and Huck. Both grew up in a time and place where slavery was considered acceptable and racism was ever-present. As the two grew up, or in Huck’s case spent time with a slave, their views began to gradually change. It took Lincoln a while longer to believe that slavery was morally wrong, but for most of his life he advocated for the abolishment of slavery.My part of the project gave me an opportunity to research one of the greatest reformers, orator, and president this country has ever seen. Abraham Lincoln’s humble beginnings in a one-room log cabin in Kentucky gave him the ability to empathize with the common man and those less fortunate than him. From the beginning of his political career until his assassination, Abraham Lincoln advocated for the abolishment of slavery, at first saying it would benefit the United States economically and then on the basis that it was morally wrong. Even though his point of view made him unpopular in the South, he was still elected president in 1860.Abraham Lincoln being president guaranteed slaves and free blacks that they had someone on their side; s omeone to advocate on their behalf. When southern states began to secede from the Union and the Civil War broke out, Lincoln was presented with an opportunity to free the slaves once and for all as a war tactic. On January 1, 1863, Lincoln issued a preliminary Emancipation Proclamation that freed all slaves in rebellious states. Although Lincoln maintained that his duty was to â€Å"save the Union, and is not either to save or destroy slavery,† emancipation is argued as one of his greatest achievements.Lincoln was the first president to combat the issue of slavery head-on. Even though the Emancipation Proclamation didn’t as work as well as he hoped, it paved the way for the passage of Amendment 13 which outlawed slavery in the United States. Mark Twain wrote The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn twenty years after the Civil War and the Emancipation Proclamation. Slavery had been abolished and the North and South were somewhat getting along. Why would Twain publish a novel about morals about an institution that was no longer in place? Legally, blacks and whites were equal, but there was still a problem with racism.

Ways to Improve Academic Experience

Ways to Improve Academic Experience in KDI School Reem Salah Academic Writing March 9,2010 Regular exercise is a critical part of staying healthy. People who are active live longer and feel better. Feeling better will make you more encouraged to study and achieve your goals. Also, it is a way to release tension that we are subject to in KDI . Thus, encompassing Physical Education as a core course and expanding the gymnasium is truly a way to improve academic experience in KDI. By encompassing physical education students will exercise and by expanding the gymnasium area more students will be able to go to the gym and exercise. Ultimately resulting in an improved academic experience in KDI. Exercise has positive effects on the brain. Exercise has been found to increase levels of â€Å"brain-derived neurotrophic factor†. This substance is thought to improve mood, and it may play a role in the beneficial effects of exercise†¦ help brain cells survive longer; so this may also explain some of the beneficial effects of exercise on dementia (Holmes, 2006). Demonstrating that by exercise not only on the long run students will not be prone to dementia but also their mood is improved. Mood improvement will result in students working better, feeling better and enhancing their creativity . Encompassing physical education as a core course thus will truly improve the academic experience. KDI School offers comprehensive and rigorous academic programs (School, 2007) . One way to reduce the tension and stress caused by these programs is physical exercise. Research has shown that physical exercise is the best tension reliever (ICBS, 1998). This illustrates that exercise can be a solution to release the tension which KDI students are subject to due to the rigorous academic programs. Also the rigorous programs in KDI require a lot of sitting in front of a computer or a desk all day. By exercising that built up energy and tension which have accumulated throughout the day can be released. It is a better way to channel your energy than letting it turn into anger or negativity. Strongly pointing out that incorporating physical education as one of the core courses will improve the academic experience. To encourage students to continue exercising the gymnasium has to be expanded. Entering class each year is approximately 200 Korean students for the Master’s Degree program and around  160  international students (School, 2007). Illustrating they are 360 students at KDI. To ensure that most of them are encouraged to exercise by going to the gymnasium, the gymnasium area has to be expanded. In an interview conducted B. K Lee (personal communication, March 09, 2010) noted that the gymnasium area is approximately 10 meters and KDI campus area is approximately 10 kilometers. Having 360 students in KDI with a gymnasium that small will discourage students from going there. Since the campus is 10 kilometers in area there will be no problem in expanding the gymnasium area. By doing so, more students will be encouraged to go to the gymnasium, exercise which will result in improving the academic experience in KDI. In conclusion, Exercise has positive effects on the brain. Release built up energy and tensions. Making us work in a better environment. Physical exercise has many benefits and should be a regular part of almost anyone’s life (Association, 2010). By making physical education as one of the core courses will no doubt improve academic experience in KDI and also the health of all the students. In addition expanding the gymnasium area will encourage students to go there often, exercise resulting in improved academic experience. References: Holmes. (2006). Mental health. About. Com. Retrieved 09/03/2010, from http://mentalhealth. about. com/od/depression/a/howexercise. htm ICBS. (1998). Exercise. Stress Management. Retrieved from http://www. holisticonline. om/Stress/stress_exercise. htm KDI School. (2007) Mission and Purpose. KDI School of Public Policy and Management. Retrieved 09/03/2010, from http://www. kdischool. ac. kr/ KDI School. (2007) Questions of the Academic Programs. KDI School of Public Policy and Management. Retrieved 09/03/2010, from http://www. kdischool. ac. kr/ American Heart Association. (2009). Excersice is for everyone. Physical Activity and Excersice. 10/03/2010, from http://www. americanheart. org/presenter . jhtml? identifier=11081

Diary of Lady Murasaki Response Questions

Diary of Lady Murasaki Response Questions 1. Drawing evidence from the text, describe Lady Murasaki. Who is she? What is important to her? How important is she politically? Why do you think she keeps her diary? What are her frustrations with life at court? How typical/atypical is she as a woman in Heian Japan? Lady Murasaki was a Japanese poet at the Imperial court and served under Empress Shoshi. She writes this diary during her experiences at court and she finds the life of a lady-in-waiting, or a servant that has social certainty, and the events that are unfolded in court are important. She describes in her diary how she feels helpless at court and she is unhappy with her low rank in society compared to others in the Fujiwara clan which frustrates her, but makes her more inclined to write about it and keep a diary. She is a pretty typical woman in Heian Japan, but she often writes about how the other court women were less educated than her and that she was stronger-willed. 2. What does the text reveal about the political world of Heian Japan? What is the role of the emperor? What is the role of the regent? Which is more ‘important’? How do people gain and maintain political power? What happens to those who lose political power? During the Heian period of Japan the land was controlled by family clans and whoever was the most powerful family held the most importance. Within the family there is also ranks of political power branching down from the Emperor and Empress, but most of the other ranks are all related to each other through the family clan. The Emperor is the head of the family clan is said to be in that position by a heavenly right, while a regent is more of a governor addressing political issues. Both are important, but while the Emperor is the symbol of the people and their unity, the regent sparingly makes the differences in how the people get to live. 3. What does the text reveal about the roles of men in Heian Japan? How are they identified? What is their role in the family, in politics, in religion, in military? How much power and what type of power do men have? What do you find surprising about what is considered important/unimportant for men during Heian Japan? Why? Men controlled the majority of society as like any culture during this time period. The military was solely inhabited by men as was the political power, but women were allowed to be present in court and other social events. They had a good education and if they were in a political position they learned Chinese because it was used for legal documents and record keeping. 4. What does the text reveal about the roles of women in Heian Japan? How are they identified? What is their role in the family, in politics, in religion? How much and what type of power do women have? What do you find surprising about what is considered important/unimportant for women during Heian Japan? Why? Women during this time were surprisingly better off than in other centuries. They were excluded from public affairs, but involved in court as we can see in the diary. They were also educated and involved with events around the palace such as ceremonies, weddings, and poetry reciting. Women had to know how to dress correctly, but once they did they were expected to learn to dress very formally and elegantly. 5. What does the text reveal about social classes and social mores in Heian Japan? What are the differences between the social classes? How does social class affect the way people live and the political power they wield? What are the social expectations for men and women? What is good behavior/what is bad behavior? Does any of this surprise you? Most of Japan’s social class was in agriculture and lived outside the city walls and never entered the palace. Within the palace there are a separate set of social classes. The Emperor and Empress will always sit at the top of the ladder, but amongst everyone else there are strict guidelines to follow. Passages in the diary describe the uses of colors in clothing and how some colors shouldn’t be worn by certain social classes. The diary also accounts hat giving presents alter throughout social class. Nobles get the best gift and then the different ranks of courtiers, first rank being the highest and sixth rank one of the lowest. What does the text reveal about religion in Heian Japan? What is the role of religion? What type of religion do you see represented? What are the religious concerns of Lady Murasaki? What do her religious concerns reveal about life in Heian Japan? The religion of Shintoism can be seen with the heavenly right for the Emperor to rule over the people within his family clan name and to protect the imperial family. During the birth of Fujiwara no Michinaga, towards the beginning, Murasaki writes about the Buddhist priests coming and performing exorcisms and warding off evil. Lady Murasaki later writes that she â€Å"immerses [herself] in reading sutras for Amida Buddha†, which shows what kind of religious practices she participates in. All of these religions being present throughout the diary tells that religion is at a point of uncertainty in Heian Japan and there are many influences that come with them.

Multimedia History Essay

Conformity Following World War II America saw an extreme decade of both conformity and nonconformity. A strong post-war economy meant there was money to spend. Settling down, raising a family, and owning a home were the established goals of the American dream. Many tried to attain the ideal family depicted on TV shows such as Leave It to Beaver and Father Knows Best. Deviating from this popular culture was the â€Å"Beat Generation.† The post-war economic boom of the 1950’s in the U.S. resulted in overwhelming prosperity in comparison with the rest of the world. This economic boom produced a white, middle-class consumer culture in which that population had more money and time in which to pursue leisure activities such as television viewing and movie-going. These leisurely pastimes produced a conforming American popular culture. We define conformity as behavior in accordance with the expectations of a social group or adherence to societal and cultural norms. In the 1950à ¢â‚¬â„¢s, these strict social norms were communicated primarily through television. Between 1952 and 1958 the amount of households owning a television set tripled from 3 million to 9 million. TV advertising created new consumer markets and TV sitcoms from the 1950’s portrayed the conservative values and mores of the ideal American life. â€Å"Domestic† comedies were very popular and portrayed the stereotypical suburban white family in neighborhoods seemingly unaware of racial discrimination and ethnic problems, and where mothers never desired or were expected to work outside the home. During a Father knows Best episode it seemed that any problems facing the family could easily be solved in a 30-minute time slot. Shows like this promoted honesty and always had a strong moral lesson to end the program. Westerns were also extremely popular. The pioneering idea of cowboys living in the wild and woolly west where good and bad, right and wrong, were evident was very popular during this era. On the other hand, Dobie Gillis appealed more to teenagers as one of the main characters, Maynard G. Krebs, belonged to the â€Å"beat generation.† Writer Jack Kerouac coined the term â€Å"beat generation† which signified artists who were â€Å"beat down.† Members included a loose-knit group of writers, musicians, painters, and other artists. Centered around New York City and later San Francisco, the Beats were the first to introduce drug use and heavy drinking into this underground society. They enjoyed and incorporated African-American music, such as jazz and blues into their works and they attended late-night clubs. These people were the real non-conformists of the 1950’s. Beats became exiles within the American culture as they denounced middle-class materialism, racism and dullness. They were a reaction to the â€Å"Silent Generation† of the 1950’s. In â€Å"Howl,† poet Allen Ginsberg explains the Beats were merely answering the à ¢â‚¬Å"calls for the unleashing of basic human needs and desires.† However, this deviance from the popular norms may, in effect, be seen as conformity to that particular subculture. The beats had different views of American society. They experimented with new sexual lifestyles, helping to usher in a sexual revolution. During the 1950’s, teenagers experienced a new sexually charged phenomenon. In 1948, Alfred Kinsey caught the world by surprise when he published Sexual Behavior in the Human Male, the first bestseller about sex. Women had always been expected to wait for sex until marriage, and adults considered Kinsey’s work a social upheaval. However, it actually opened up a lot of people to the topic of sex who really knew nothing about it. With the cold war in full force during the 1950’s, U.S. citizens lived in constant fear. Many feared the possibility that World War III with atomic weapons could start at any time. To take precautions, children were taught to â€Å"duck and cover† in case of a bombing. In reality this was little defense against an atomic bomb. The cold war greatly influenced 1950’s society as Americans sought to protect themselves from the Soviet threat. The people were open to a hero, and one emerged in senator Joe McCarthy, or so they thought. Joe McCarthy was desperate to gain fame, so during a speech he declared the Dep artment of State was full of communists, and he knew their names. His anti-communist crusade struck hard at the film industry and literature. Although senator McCarthy was never able to convict any communists, he influenced books and movies greatly as many actors and writers of that day were maligned, blacklisted from work, or self-exiled to Europe. Alex, add info on (in you own words from the popular culture site): Teenagers adapting to rapidly changing times = own new fashions, music of rock and roll which integrated black and white Americans considered a fundamental generation gap with the music of their parents, rebelling against sexual boundaries and questioning authority. Epitomized in the persona of actor James Dean in the movie Rebel without a Cause and the leading character of the anguished and ultimately mentally ill main character in f J. D. Sallinger’s book, Catcher in the Rye. Resulted in the baby boomers seeking major societal changes in the 1960’s.