Wednesday, October 30, 2019

INTOSANA GmbH internship report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

INTOSANA GmbH internship report - Essay Example During this year’s internship program, I was assigned to help in developing the marketing strategy of the company especially through online marketing promotion. In addition, I was tasked to perform a market analysis on a specific target group which turned out to be a vital source of information for the company. With these accomplishments, I did not only able to fulfill my duty as an intern but also contributed to the overall growth of the company. In fact, during the entire internship period, I was able to help them get 15 more clients through my work in marketing strategy. Having worked for eight hours a day in two months, I have fully performed my task and prepared to document my working journey. As such, the purpose of this paper is to primarily recount my internship experiences at Intosana GmbH – my role in the company, the contributions I have made, and the lessons learned from the internship experience. First, the description of the organization will reveal the co mpany’s organizational structure and the role I played in the company. From this, an analysis of my experience will showcase my learnings in business and management. Lastly, I will present a personal evaluation of my experiences to showcase my insights about the entire experience. As a nursing care service facility, Intosana GmbH is a company that primarily provides home care service to the elderly. Having started its operation only in November 2010, the company envisions to expand and to improve its services in Berlin and eventually all over Germany. The company’s growth revolves around its mission which states that it aims to willingly provide assistance and advice to its clients. On its website, the company promotes its reliability by providing â€Å"all levels of care† and cooperating with doctors, pharmacists, medical suppliers, and other service providers to meet the needs of its clients. Moreover, the company prides itself in having a nursing team that is â€Å"qualified, reliable, friendly, and motivated† to assure the clients of round-the-clock service, attention, and care. Specifically, it provides basic care such as meal preparation, pulse checks, washing and catering service. It also provides domestic assistance such as cleaning the client’s residence and home visits by doctors and medical personnel. Aside from medical care, it also organizes services such as contact with support groups, newspaper services, emergency call service and physiotherapy. According to the company, the selection process for their staff involves an emphasis of both technical and interpersonal skills that will contribute to the company’s growth. Also, these qualities are expected to boost the teamwork within the staffs and groups in the company. Additionally, it believes that every employee has â€Å"an independent personality† which means that the company deals with its staff individually. The company further emphasized its s taff being â€Å"courteous and friendly† to its clients. This is mainly attributed to Intosana GmbH’s belief that it treats an individual as a whole, and not as a sick person. My Work Description For two months, I worked eight hours a day at Intosana GmbH from March 1 up to April 30, 2012. My work task involves helping the company improve and develop its marketing strategy to attract more clients and expand its operation in Berlin. Specifically, my role

Monday, October 28, 2019

The Pepsi Carbonated Soft Drink Consumer Demand Promotion Essay Example for Free

The Pepsi Carbonated Soft Drink Consumer Demand Promotion Essay A strategic plan for PepsiCo North America is hereby proposed as follows for the geographical region of the national United States for the Pepsi Soda Product promotion to consumers between the ages of 12 through 18 years of age. It will utilize a pull strategy through the distribution channels to stimulate demand for the Pepsi carbonated soft drink to the end users as defined to maintain Pepsi’s younger generation of consumers over the next two decades. The strategic plan will consist of a strategic alliance with The Walt Disney Company coupled with a pop star endorsement by Hannah Montana and Kanye West with multiple promotion communication channels and strategies over the next two (2) years. The primary competitor, Coca-Cola, has been entrenched in the North American beverage market and is most commonly consumed by older generations. As such, Pepsi has been typically been targeted to a younger audience. As the ‘Pepsi Generation’ ages, PepsiCo North America should take proactive marketing action into the younger audiences to maintain the younger generations of soft drink consumption for decades to come. The Company History and Related Companies 1 PepsiCo (herein referred to as the ‘Parent Company’) was founded in 1965 via the merger of two major corporations, Pepsi-Cola and Frito Lay. Subsequently in 1998, Tropicana was acquired to add the family of brands under PepsiCo. In 2001, the Parent Company made yet another bold step in the merger with The Quaker Oats Company, which also then included the Gatorade Company. Notwithstanding the Parent Company being relatively young, several of the brand names under the PepsiCo umbrella have been in existence for over 100 years. Through the multiple brand acquisitions and developments PepsiCo is now a leading conglomerate owning significant market control and brand equity in consumer convenience foods and beverages. â€Å"PepsiCo brands are available in nearly 200 countries and territories and generate sales at the retail level of about $92 billion† (PepsiCo, 2007). Sales volumes are measured on the retail level to show success of the manufacturing due to the Parent Company utilizing a pull strategy for its multiple divisions and product lines with a combination of a push strategy. The current headquarters are located in Purchase, New York. The multiple corporations within the PepsiCo Family are Frito-Lay North America, PepsiCo Beverages North America, PepsiCo International, and Quaker Foods North America. Frito-Lay North America markets and sells to the subject geographical regions the following well known brands of convenience foods: Fritos, Lays, Cheetos, Ruffles, Doritos, Rold Gold, Tostitos, Sunchips, Munchies, Crackerjack, Go Snacks, Quaker Fruit and Oatmeal Bars, Quakers Corn and Rice Snacks, and even more. While Frito-Lay North America sells to business, its end user is a consumer who has demand for a snack food, or convenience food. These are typically found in grocery stores, gas stations, small markets, vending machines, public schools, and several other distribution channels. Several of these products are facing new market changes including a health conscious consumer movement. Thus, a great diversification of product lines within the PepsiCo Family is The Quaker Oats Company, merged in 2001, just on the cusp of the health conscious movement. Brands include Quaker Oats products, Aunt Jemima products, and Rice-a-Roni products. The Gatorade brand rights are legally owned by this Corporation, yet it is sold and marketed through PepsiCo Beverages North America. PepsiCo International markets and sells the North American product brands abroad, and in additional markets and sells the Mirinda, Walkers, Sabritas, Gamesa, etc. and several others in multiple countries (over 200). Each of these subsets of brands are developments of unique products tailored to each geographical culture it is marketed to. The focused Corporation of the subject strategic proposal is PepsiCo Beverages North America. This company was originally founded in 1898 by a North Carolina druggist. PepsiCo Beverages North America (herein referred to as the ‘Company’) sells several brands of consumer beverages in the United States and Canada. The various beverage products span through carbonated soft drinks, juices, readymade teas, isotonic sports drinks, bottled water, and enhanced waters. Several established brands include Diet Pepsi, Mountain Dew, Gatorade, Tropicana products, Aquafina Water, Sierra Mist, Mug, Propel, Sobe, and Dole. Refer to the Competitor Analysis section for in depth product information and listings. Outside of manufacturing and selling bottled products, the Company manufactures and sells concentrates for some of the above mentioned brand name beverage products to licensed bottlers. The Company has also established strategic partnerships with Lipton and Starbucks to create, market, and sell ready to drink Lipton tea brands and bottled ready to drink Starbucks Frappuccino drinks. These are two very powerful example of a co-branding strategic partnership. Industry Analysis of the Beverages Market 4. Soft drinks can be divided into carbonated and non-carbonated drinks. Cola, lemon and oranges are carbonated drinks category. The carbonated soft drink market has been challenged by a health consciousness movement within American consumers. Health consciousness is a very strong growing trend in America, and has created an organic movement within the drink and food industries. Within the last five years ending in 2006, the soft drink market in the United States has experienced 0. 0% growth due to this factor. Since 1975 the overall growth rate of soft drink market has been slowing. (Figure_1) As this provides a constraint on new market opportunities, it does not constrict maintaining a similar level of revenue or slightly improving it. As the current consumer market continues to age, it is expected there exists a certain level of retention to Pepsi consumption until a specific age when it is recommended by a doctor not to consume a soft drink. Given Pepsi’s position in terms of product placement within demographics, it holds the youth market when compared with Coke. As growth slows, the youth markets must continually be targeted to maintain the consumption level of Pepsi as new consumers enter the market of soft drink consumption, and other age out of it. This strategy will over a long period of time prove to gain market share of domestic soft drink consumption over Coke, while being offset by a slowing of the overall consumption. Figure 1 [pic][pic] The subject proposal is targeted to use a pull strategy through the distribution channels, and is therefore focused on the end user, or consumer segment of the market. Notwithstanding, the industry overall (primarily Pepsi and Coke as outlined herein below) does not only sell directly to consumers. A very prevalent distribution channel is through licensed bottlers and restaurant chains. A very strong business to business transactional distribution channel exists in the soft drink industry, and in fact 22. 6% of all soft drink volumes are sold in a syrup for fountain soda. This is 100% business to business within the scope of these transactions. The remaining 77. 4% of packaged soft drink volume comprises primarily of business to business transactions to retailer and bottling companies. (Figure_2) While PepsiCo Beverages North America does not directly sell to consumers primarily, the subject proposal will stimulate demand for the product at the end user level, and therefore result in more business to business sales in order to meet that demand. PepsiCo Inc. and Coke-cola Co. have dominated the carbonated soft drink industry in North America since they first entered this market. They continue to compete with each other for market share for centuries. Therefore, some experts conclude that the soft drink market is an oligopoly or even a duopoly between Pepsi and Coke. 5 By the year of 2006, PepsiCo has the leading share (26%) of U. S. liquid refreshment beverage market, followed by Coca-Cola which has taken 23% of market share as indicated in the left chart. Cadbury Schweppes, another big rival on the bottled soft drink shelves, obtained 10% by acquiring key brands in the US, namely Dr. Pepper, Seven Up, and Canada Dry. SWOT Analysis |Strength |Weakness | |Branding and packaging |Hard to enter markets occupied by Coca-Cola | |Appealing to young generation |Lack of novelty in advertising | |Superior Taste (in Blind Tests) | | |Many distributions | | |Opportunities |Threats | |Global markets |Health Conscious Consumer Trends | |Additional Youth Consumers entering the market |More substitutes | â€Å"Manifesting brand essence through packaging is powerful at retail,† declares Ron Pence, Pepsi Senior Marketing Manager for packaging innovation. Youth and vitality is the main idea that the Pepsi brand tries to express, and the bottle design helps the brand associate with teens at the age between 12 to 18 year old. Pepsi restyles its cans with a series of 35 new designs and different themes such as car culture, sport or fashion. On Pepsi website, each theme has its own video clips which can be downloaded for free and other features to attract consumers with the purpose of representing the â€Å"fun, optimistic and youthful spirit â€Å"of Pepsi. The natural tendency of young generation is to rival with old generations. Pepsi also use â€Å"music, which was traditional weapon of teenager to show their rebellion approach†. 7 Besides, a blind test conducted by Pepsi was performed in shopping malls, grocery stores and other public locations, in which consumers were asked to pick the soft drink they liked better, without knowing whether the cola they tasted was Coke or Pepsi. As results came in, 57% of testers chose Pepsi and only 43% chose Coke. It became apparent that Pepsi tastes better than Coke. 14 In addition, Pepsi products are distributed to many outlets. For example, supermarkets where Pepsi buys large shelf area and display areas so the customer can find them easier, Convenience stores, gas stations, restaurants, movie theaters and almost and other conceivable spot. Pepsi is now sold in more than 160 countries around the globe, but it still has a weakness in the international beverage market because it entered later into this arena than Coke. Pepsi has tried to enter this market by trying to do in three years what took Coke 50 years to do. Nevertheless, Pepsi has to spend years â€Å"to mature simply due to Coke’s dominance in the international market and the strong ties that Coke has developed with these markets and their governments. †15 Additionally, when marketing its products, Pepsi utilize celebrity endorsement mostly which bored some consumers due to lack of novelty. Conversely, the success of fresh and creative advertise has consistently helped Coco-Cola attract and retain customers. The world is becoming a smaller place with investors thinking in terms of sectors rather than geographic boundaries. Broad global markets, like China, India, can provide lots of opportunities for Pepsi. We may conclude from the tables on the right that in 2004, 63% PepsiCo’s profits come from the United States 8, and in the same year, the U. S. holds 30. 90% of the global market share under Europe (showed in the table below), which means Pepsi still has opportunities to compete globally. Moreover, as Pepsi targets young generation, additional youth consumers enter the market every year, which provides Pepsi adequate consumer base. For these decades, changing societal concerns, attitudes, and lifestyles become important trends that force the soft drink industry’s business environment to change. Growing health concerns for caffeine and sugar consumption threatens the carbonated industry. The large amounts of sugar, fat, and acid contained in cola will lead to heart disease, vascular diseases, osteoporosis or tooth decay. On the other hand, many other companies have tried to enter the carbonated industry, but they face high barriers, such as lawsuits and tough competition. Some of these companies end with searching for entering the noncarbonated soft drink industry for growth. Consequently, some consumers will turn to noncarbonated soft drink, such as bottled water, teas, instead of soda. Environmental scan of today’s carbonated beverage marketplace A quick glance at today’s beverage marketplace indicates an increasing amount of beverage alternatives in the market. As such, these beverage companies must understand the various factors that can help them succeed or fail. For instance, the increased awareness of the importance of health has significant influence on soft drink industry. Since most soft beverages comprises of unhealthy ingredients including High Fructose Corn Syrup, the beverage industry faces an incredible threat to their reputation and sales. Therefore, developing consumer-preferred products that can become an integral element in consumers’ daily lives has become an essential issue for beverage industry. Possible environmental factors are as follows:  ¦ Social environment ? In 2004, 28 percent of all beverages consumed in the U. S. were carbonated soft drinks. In the United States, 450 different types are sold and more than 2. 5 million vending machines dispense them around the clock, including in elementary and high schools. ? As consumers focus more on health and nutritional benefits of food items, it has sparked a key new driver in trends throughout the beverage industry. The result is the decrease in sales of carbonated beverages.  ¦ Competitive environment ? Monopolistic competition: PepsiCo. , The Coca-Cola Company, Cadbury Schweppes ? The entire beverage industry, including but not limited to bottled water, juice, other carbonated beverages, and ready-to-drink tea. ? Recent growth and demand of sports and energy drinks.  ¦ Regulatory environment ? In response to weight gaining and health concerns, the nation’s largest beverage makers including Cadbury Schweppes, PepsiCo. and The Coca-Cola Company agreed in May 2006 to halt nearly all soda sales in public schools. Beginning in 2009, elementary and middle schools will sell only water and juice (with no added sweeteners), plus fat-free and low-fat milk. High schools will sell water, juice, sports drinks and diet soda. Diet sodas use artificial sweeteners, which add little or no calories, though some, such as aspartame, have been embroiled in controversy for years over their questionable health benefits and even possible links to cancer. Obviously, Pepsi is facing not only the transition of customer perception but also the regulation stress. Besides, it always has it big and powerful competitor, The Coca-Cola Company. Under this circumstance, strategy and innovation become the top issue of Pepsi. 16 Competitor Analysis The table below displays the various brands between PepsiCo. and The Coca-Cola Company. It appears that for every product on the market from one company, the other company has an similar product to match it. This demonstrates the intense compeititve nature of both companies to keep up or outwit the competition. [pic] Differential Advantage The Coca-Cola Company has the distinct advantage of being the most recoginzed brand in the world. It is considered the classic beverage in the United States as well as in other countires. In fact, when Coca-Cola decided to change its forumula dubed â€Å"New Coke† in response to Pepsi’s emergence, public outraged roared throughout the nation. Fearing mass boycott, the original Coke formula was quickly reinstated to satisfy the demands of the public under the name â€Å"Coca-Cola Classic†. Revered as the classic beverage, Coke enjoys the stature of being the market leader. Coke appeals to a wide global audience in terms of demographics and popularity. One side effect of being the â€Å"classic† choice leads to a larger share of older consumers. PepsiCo. appeals to younger consumers with a more sweeter taste compared to Coke. Pepsi presents itself as the hip and cool alternative choice over Coke. This is edvient in the deep blue hues and patterns that Pepsi takes advantage of in its marketing compaigns. Pepsi’s younger image is also aided by celebrities endorsement touted by the teen market including Britney Spears, ‘NSync, along with popular rappers. Self-proclaimed as â€Å"The Choice of a New Generation†, Pepsi devised television commericials of younger consumers participating in blind taste tests. The participants frequently perferred Pepsi over Coke. Eventually, PepsiCo. began hiring popular celebraties to promote their products. Resource Analysis The Coca-Cola Company The Coca-Cola Company’s flagship product, Coke, is sold in stores, restaurants and vending machines in more than 200 countries. Originally developed as a medicine in the late 19th centry by John Pemberton, it has evolved into a dominating figure in the soft drink market throughout the 20th century. The Coca-Cola Company licenses worldwide bottlers who hold territorially exclusive contracts with the company. Cola cncentrate is sold to these bottlers who them produce the finished cola in cans and glass bottles while using filtered water and various sweeteners. The finished product is then sold, distributed, and merchandised to retail stores and vending machines. Coca-Cola Enterprises is currently the single largest Coca-Cola bottler in North America, Australia, Asia, and Europe. In addition to licensing to bottlers, the company sells the concentrate to major restaurants and food service distributors for use in fountain drinks. The Coca-Cola Company envision a world in which†¦ They improve the lives in every community that they touch. They replenish each drop of water that they use. Their packaging is no longer seen as waste, but as a valuable resource for future use. Workplace rights are protected and all people are respected. They work in partnership with others to provide good jobs, world class quality beverages and a healthy environment. PepsiCo The Pepsi Cola Company started in 1898 in Purchase, New York. It became known as PepsiCo when it merged with Frito Lay in 1965. PepsiCo owned Kentucky Fried Chicken, Pizza Hut, and Taco Bell up until 1997 when they were spun off into Tricon Global Restaurants – which eventually became Yum! Brands, Inc. In 1998 and 2001, PepsiCo purchased Tropicana and Quaker Oats, respectively. PepsiCo, a global American beverage and snack company, manufactures, markets, and sells a variety of carbonated and non-carbonated beverages, as well as salty, sweet and grain-based snacks, and other foods. PepsiCo also manufactures Quaker Oats, Gatorade, Frito-Lay, SoBe, and Tropicana. (Figure_3) In several ways, PepsiCo differs from its competitor, The Coca-Cola Company, having almost three times as many employees. The Pepsi Bottling Group was formed for distribution and bottling. Figure 3 [pic] Mission Statement: We aspire to make PepsiCo the world’s premier consumer products company, focused on convenient foods and beverages. We seek to produce healthy financial rewards to investors as we provide opportunities for growth and enrichment to our employees, our business partners and the communities in which we operate. And in everything we do, we strive to act with honesty, openness, fairness and integrity. Values: Sustained Growth is fundamental to motivating and measuring our success. Our quest for sustained growth stimulates innovation, places a value on results, and helps us understand whether actions today will contribute to our future. It is about growth of people and company performance. It prioritizes making a difference and getting things done. Empowered People means we have the freedom to act and think in ways that we feel will get the job done, while being consistent with the processes that ensure proper governance and being mindful of the rest of the company’s needs. Responsibility and Trust form the foundation for healthy growth. It’s about earning the confidence that other people place in us as individuals and as a company. Our responsibility means we take personal and corporate ownership for all we do, to be good stewards of the resources entrusted to us. We build trust between ourselves and others by walking the talk and being committed to succeeding together. [pic] [pic][pic] Based on the pie chart above, PepsiCo and Coca-Cola have roughly the same market share in the United States. Finacial Analysis Brief Overview [pic] Overall, PepsiCo trumps The Coca-Cola Company in many financial categories – largly in part from PepsiCo’s wide array of products throughout 4 divisions: ? PepsiCo International ? Frito-Lay North America ? PepsiCo Beverages North America ? Quaker Foods North America Egg Diagram [pic] Analysis of the Target Market Consumers 3 |Who are they? |Teenagers between age of 12 and 18 in U. S. | |What do they buy? |Teens want to buy something real, something from â€Å"corporations | | |that remind them of themselves†10. They don’t want things that | | |they are thought to like. They something that pushes the | | |boundary, different than what they had before. | |When do they buy it? |When teens find something they can identify with and have the | | |need that must be satisfied immediately. | |How do they choose? |They quickly dismiss the products that look like some 45-year-old| | |guy trying to sell them something. They easily recognize the old | | |product that was yesterday’s news. They can tell what’s being | | |â€Å"fake† and what’s being â€Å"real†10 | |Why they prefer a product? |They pick a product because they believe that product can express| | |themselves13. They can relate to someone like themselves through | | |this product. | |How they respond to a marketing program? |They respond to something catchy. For example those ads in | | |magazine are brightly colorful10, the flashy graphics suggest | | |that teens respond well to that type of ad campaign; in | | |cyberspace they respond to a space created uniquely for them12. | | |They also respond well to products on sales. | The target consumer market to stimulate demand within is the young teen market between the ages 12 through 18 years old, geographically located within the United States. This segment is compiled of the â€Å"Tween† market and the older high school teenagers. â€Å"Tweens develop sophisticated tastes beyond their years, with boys gravitating toward electronic, Internet, and video games, and girls preferring fashion and social interaction components† (Abernathy, 2004). With the technology age with computers and increasing demanding academic environment, tweens and teens have less disposable time, and therefore product advertising attention is often tuned out. â€Å"Tweens spend their own money today: on average, $9 a week. Some experts estimate tweens have close to $80 a week in disposable income available to them†¦ Overall, the tween market is valued at $43 billion† (Abernathy, 2004). Beyond the tween market, the teenage high school student will sometimes hold a part time job, and have more independent tendencies. All in all, the 2000 U. S. Census estimates the U. S. population between the ages of 10 through 19 years old to be approximately 40. 6 million individuals. The goal of researching the target consumer is to accurately pinpoint the consumer behavior in regards to our product. According to our finding, these teens and â€Å"Tweens† are constantly searching for identities at their age. The most effective way of appealing our product to them is to find a common ground. For example, there are various reasons why teens and â€Å"Tweens† idolize certain celebrity. One of them is that they can find bit and pieces of themselves in their celebrity idol. After all, who doesn’t like to see himself/herself being a celebrity? So no matter what the product is, as long as it possesses characteristic of the identity the teens and â€Å"Tweens† are searching for, they will make the purchase. The teens and â€Å"Tweens† are still very young. They have very vivid imagination and are highly visual. Therefore they are attracted to colorful pictures in the magazines. It is usual for them to just look at the pretty pictures in the magazine without reading the articles that supplement pictures. According to the finding, these target consumers prefer products that are â€Å"real†. By â€Å"real† they mean the manufacture genuinely create this product specifically for them, at least it should appears to be. Since Pepsi Cola is basically for everyone, making it appears to be special to teens and â€Å"tweens† are very important. These consumers prefer individuality. Such preference is reflected in the finding that they are constantly in search for a product that expresses themselves. The last thing these consumers wants is pressure or stereotype that sometimes appears on the commercial and magazine ads. Strategic Action Plan. The strategic alliance with Walt Disney will initially consist of (i) concert support of and promotions at several of Hannah Montana’s concerts throughout the United States, (ii) Pepsi promotion via seamless advertisement within the Hannah Montana aired shows by having characters refresh themselves with Pepsi and also have Pepsi signs in the background, and (iii) a sparingly aired Pepsi commercial endorsed by Hannah Montana to be promoted via the ABC channel network (a Disney owned network). A future alliance holds the possibility of future benefits through Disney media networks and consumption at theme parks and resorts. The concert support will come with signs at the live shows and events, Pepsi sales at the concerts, and Pepsi commercial promotions on the concert screens at intermission. There will also be a special promotional event of Pepsi Challenge tasting at the Pepsi center, which was previously near sell out for Hannah Montana. The seamless advertisement on the Hannah Montana show will consist of the characters drinking Pepsi as refreshment in a natural environment along with Pepsi signs in the background of the sets. This will continue for two (2) years during the strategic partnership, and be maintained on a very subtle level in the productions. Twice a year over the two (2) year period ABC (A Disney owned network) will air a Pepsi commercial of a music video of Hannah Montana singing the Pepsi Theme song. As part of the strategic alliance, Disney is giving a low market rate for airing over the network. ABC has been topping the charts with hit series and has been expanding viewer base considerably over the past decade. The Denver Post summarized the market impact this pop idol holds as: â€Å"When an episode of Hannah Montana followed the debut of High School Musical 2 this fall, the movie sequel got all the buzz, but the episode of Hannah Montana averaged 10. 7 million viewers the highest ratings for a regular series in the history of basic cable. The Disney Channels 90 million subscribers can watch Hannah Montana daily, sometimes as often as seven times a day. An average 2. 2 million viewers see each episode. The show also airs weekly on ABCs Saturday morning block, and is licensed in 177 countries. Of course HM is available around the clock as streaming video on computers and on iTunes. Compared to the ratings of all shows on U. S. television, Hannah Montana is second only to American Idol among kids 6-11 and tweens† 2 (Ostrow, 2007). Utilizing Walt Disney’s ‘tween’ star Hannah Montana for endorsement will provide awareness and positive associations with the Pepsi brand of carbonated soft drink. This pop star idle will build significant brand equity within the demographics of young females between the applicable ages of 12 through 15 years old. This will predictably improve vending machine sales at middle schools and high schools, as well as sales at grocery stores for their respective homes. It will also build repertoire with the respective mothers who also attend the concerts and watch the shows. The mothers of the daughters are in fact the ultimate purchasers (and also partially the ultimate consumers in some cases) of the product, while their daughters are the influencers and ultimate consumers. The daughters of families will typically have a greater influence over the parents as purchasers in American families more so than comparable aged boys. This is primarily due to the value system of the parents to typically spend more attention and money on the daughters of the family, as young females are seen to need more care. This depicts why Hannah Montana is a highly effective endorsement for Pepsi within this demographic. This strategic relationship with Walt Disney will provide the future potential for a stronger partnership with Walt Disney, thereby opening the possibility of Pepsi consumption within the theme parks and resorts, while opening a powerful media network to younger audiences for future promotion channels. Kanye West will build brand equity in the male teen market between the applicable ages of 14 through 18 years old. A male target of the upper teen years is deemed more effective, due to males in their teens practicing habits of independence and having allowances for spending. His aired TV commercial will be on ABC similar to Hannah Montana, however it will be aired three times a year over the two (2) year period. The commercial content will be his version of a Pepsi theme. Works Cited 1 Overview: Company History (2007). PepsiCo Corporate Website. Retrieved October 28, 2007 from http://www. pepsico. com/PEP_Company/Overview/index. cfm. 2 Ostrow, Joanne (Oct. 19, 2007). ‘Disney Wields Its Marketing Magic. ’ Denver Post. Retrieved October 29, 2007 from http://www. commercialfreechildhood. org/news/disneyweilds. htm. 3 Abernathy, R. W. (November, 2004). Tween Market 101. TD Monthly. Retrieved October 29, 2007 from http://www. toydirectory. com/monthly/article. asp? id=918. 4 The Beverage Marketing Corporation (August, 2007). 2007 Carbonated Soft Drinks in the U. S. Retrieved October 29, 2007 from http://www. beveragemarketing. com/reportcatalog3f. html. 5 Industry Analysis: Soft Drinks. Meghan Deichert, Meghan Ellenbecker, Emily Klehr, Leslie Pesarchick, Kelly Ziegler. Strategic Management in a Global Context February 22, 2006 from https://www. csbsju. edu/library/local/5thYear/zeigler_paper. pdf 6 PepsiCo. Performance with Purpose (2006). PepsiCo Corporate Website. From http://www. pepsico. com/PEP_Investors/AnnualReports/06/PepsiCo2006Annual. pdf 7 Kumar, Arvind. Finding weakness in the competitor strength. From http://business. articlesarchive. net/finding-weakness-in-the-competitor-strength. html 8 Murray, Barbara. (2006b). Pepsi Co. Hoovers. Retrieved February 13, 2006, from http://premium. hoovers. com/subscribe/co/profile. xhtml? ID=11166 9 Datamonitor (2005, May). Global Soft Drinks: Industry Profile. New York. Reference Code: 0199-0802. 10 http://www. inc. com/magazine/20001201/21117_pagen_3. html 11http://www. clickz. com/3334641 12www.ala. org/ala/pla/plaevents/nationalconf/program/thursdayprograms/mrbibliography. doc 13 www. marketingprofs. com/2/kewl. asp 14 Sampson Lee (Nov 21, 2007). Coke or Pepsi? From http://www. gccrm. com/eng/content_details. jsp? contentid=2073subjectid=101 15 Pepsi cola from http://www. freeessays. cc/db/11/bmu315. shtml 16 Larry West, What is the Problem with Soft Drinks? About. Com website, from http://environment. about. com/od/health/a/soft_drinks. htm |Team 5 | |Chen, Szuhua (Twiggy) | |Xiong, Xitao (Helen) | |Ma, Johnny | |Tsang, Man | |Dwyer, Michael | Figure_2.

Saturday, October 26, 2019

Abortion: I Am Pro-Choice Essay -- Freedom of Choice, Pro-Choice Essays

The foundation of the American Government is built on two ideologies; first, that the majority of the people govern through democratic election and second, that the power of the majority is limited to ensure individual rights. As defined by the American Heritage Online Dictionary a mother is a woman who conceives, gives birth to, or raises and nurtures a child. This paper will discuss the right of privacy of the mother versus the governments’ right to protect the unborn fetus in regard to Abortion. Every woman has the right to make any decision that involves her body. Our government has always respected the individual’s right to privacy. A woman’s reproductive system should not be regulated by the government. In the Supreme Court case, Roe v. Wade in 1973, the decision to make abortion legal came in effect (Frohock 1983). Before Roe, many women were pregnant were forced to weigh their respect for the law against their positivism that they were not ready to be mothers. Many women chose to break the law, putting their lives and futures at risk, and decided to get unsafe and expensive procedures. Many people who choose to get an abortion for several reasons. Some of these reasons are because they want to postpone childbearing, cannot afford a baby, had relationship problems, their partner does not want pregnancy, too young, risk to fetal health, risk to maternal health, incest, and or the person was raped. In a research done, the percentage of these reasons why people seek to get an abortion ranges from 2.1% because of rape and incest to 25.5% because these people want to postpone childbearing. Laws against abortion kill woman. Even though abortion may be illegal, that does not mean woman will not go thr... ...liberty, or property without due process of the law. The law already provides the right to privacy, liberties, and the freedom to choose unfortunately, the definition of privacy, and individual rights in this county are still in question. In conclusion having the right to choose to me is the best way to go. No one should have the right to tell another person what she should do with her own body. I am pro-choice. References Frohock, F.M (1983) Abortion: A Case Study in Law and Morals. United States of America: Greenwood Press. Retrieved on June 9, 2008. Messerli, J (2005, November). Should Abortion Be Banned (Except in Special Circumstances Like Saving the Mother's Life)? Retrieved June 8, 2008, from http://www.balancedpolitics.org/index.htm Pros and Cons of Abortion. Retrieved from http://tiger.towson.edu/users/bpahll/pros%20and%20cons%20page.html

Thursday, October 24, 2019

Blood And Excerise :: essays research papers

Blood and Excerise Type II muscle fibers oxidize lactate at a very fast rates. When muscle contraction produces a significant amount of lactate, it is then released into the central circulation of the blood, and within seconds it is made available to that muscle for energy. Therefore, 75% of the lactate produced from high intensity exercise is made available for energy production in type II muscle fibers. The remaining 25% of lactic acid is used for energy in the heart, the make up of liver glycogen, and the supply of energy to inactive muscles. A good example of this would be a runner who is exceeding his or her planned race pace in a 10k. The excess lactic acid accumulated in the contracting muscle from insufficient oxygen is then made available to inactive muscles (e.g., the arms) from the central circulation of blood. The remaining lactic acid that is not directly oxidized for fuels is sent to the liver, where it is stored as glycogen. In the process of exercise, glycogen is released into the blood stream to form glucose. Lactate is Good As coach and athlete you must learn how to teach the body to handle lactic acid. It is imperative, if you want successes in today's highly competitive field of athletics to train your muscles, body and mind to accomplish gains in performance even in the presence of lactic acid. Coaches and athletes should design training programs with this being a primary focus. This is done by two basic components of training. Long Slow Distance (LSD) training beyond the normal racing distance, will develop tissue enzyme adaptations that will rely upon the use of free fatty acids for energy production, which will result in less lactic acid being produced. LSD training will also increase the rate of lactic acid removal from the blood and muscles. During continuos steady state exercise, you increase capillary density and mitochondria function in skeletal muscle, These two peripheral adaptations brought on by LSD training will enable your body to handle lactic acid much more efficiency. High intensity training will develop the cardiovascular system to increase the rate of oxygen transport to the contracting muscles so there is less reliance on carbohydrate breakdown to lactic acid. High intensity training such as intervals., and variable pace workouts, will increase your functional capacity (Max VO2). This means that in actual competition you will produce less lactic acid, because your muscles are relying mostly on the use of free fatty acids for fuel. The lactic acid that is produce will be removed by the tissues that can use it as fuel, such as the

Wednesday, October 23, 2019

Wilfred Owen’s Anthem for Doomed Youth Analysis

Wilfred Owen's Anthem for a Doomed Youth is exactly that, an anthem ( a solemn song) to commemorate the innocent youth, whose lives were taken to soon by war. By using the word anthem, he calls to mind the glory and honor of a national anthem, however; he goes on to explain that there is no honor or glory in death, pairing the words doomed and youth together creates so much sorrow as well, it provides a woeful impression as it foretells of young people having no hope. Written in sonnet form, it is an elegy for the dead.The octave deals with auditory images of war and death and the sestet deals with more visual images. Wilfred Owen masterfully uses both imagery and figurative language to convey his lament for these young people who died. In the octet of this poem (the first eight lines), Owen catalogues all the images of death, such as â€Å"passing bells†, â€Å"anger of the guns†, rattle of guns, funeral prayers, â€Å"wailing shells†, â€Å"bugles and sad shir es†. Many of these images are personified as well, such as the rattling guns and wailing shells.These images will be the funeral that the boys get, not the real one that they deserve. This personification contributes to the harshness of the images and creates auditory images for the reader. The reader can hear the sensory images. However, these images are also set directly against religious imagery, to further emphasize the destructiveness of war. The passing bells, prayers, choirs, and candles emphasize the preciousness of human life. Owen may go so far as to suggest that even religion is helpless against such a powerful destructive force as war.This tone is suggested by the fact that prayers and bells are set against a word like â€Å"mockery†. Just the term â€Å"hasty orisons† has a somewhat disrespectful tone. Owen's use of both similes and metaphors further emphasize the meaning of the poem. The first line jolts the reader with the simile that these young p eople â€Å"die as cattle†. The description depicts multitudes of people being slaughtered and the nature of war to be full of mass deaths. The similes showing how the soldiers are no more important than cattle which are lead to the slaughter without feeling.Owen gives the sonnet a powerful, negative connotation from the very beginning. He implies with this phrase a dehumanization of the soldiers as well as the fact that war causes human beings to treat each other as less than human. In line three, the reader can hear the sound imagery of the â€Å"stuttering rifles' rapid rattle†. The word â€Å"anger† in line 2 also emphasizes the destructive hatred of war. â€Å"Choirs of wailing shells† is a powerful metaphor in line 7 contrasting the world of war and the world of God. For the rest of the poem various religious images abound.For example, the word candles would call to mind the church candles, but they also mean the candles lit in rooms where coffins l ie. â€Å"Holy glimmers of goodbyes† (line 9) combines religious imagery with the idea of death. In the pallor half rhyme of line 11, these two words combine in one line to show the seriousness of the situation. Young people are dying in war, and it is tragic. The â€Å"flowers† of line 11 are also a double-edged sword. Flowers are given on very happy, momentous occasions, but they are also in abundance at solemn occasions like funerals.Furthermore, Owen compares the events of war to traditional burial rituals and describes how those who die in war do not receive proper funerals. In the first stanza, Owen references the â€Å"monstrous anger of guns† to â€Å"passing-bells† and â€Å"rifles’ rapid rattle† to â€Å"hasty orisons†. Usually at funerals or ceremonies for the dead there are bells ringing and prayers being said, but Owen shows that in war there are only the sounds of guns being fired. In war, instead of honoring those who h ave fallen, more are being killed by the same weapons.The last line in the sonnet remains the most powerful in re-affirming the themes and images of death in this poem. The â€Å"dusk is slow† and the â€Å"drawing-down of the blinds† signifies the ultimate death. The use of a traditional form like a sonnet only serves to emphasize the seriousness of the subject. Wilfred Owen masterfully juxtaposes images of war and church in order to emphasize the solemnity of the death these boys had faced. He uses metaphor and simile as well as auditory and visual images in order to allow the reader to truly experience what these boys faced in death. Maddi Cameron-Clarke

Tuesday, October 22, 2019

William (Bill) Herron Essays - ECUK Licensed Members, Free Essays

William (Bill) Herron Essays - ECUK Licensed Members, Free Essays William (Bill) Herron CEng FIMechE Bill graduated in 1984 with a degree in Mechanical Engineering (1st class) Newcastle Upon Tyne and started his Engineering design career at Ferranti Defence Systems Edinburgh. Designing and developing airborne radar systems for Sea Harrier fixed wing aircraft and Lynx/EH101 helicopters. He then moved to Unisys Corporation in Livingston Scotland . Designing and developing high speed cheque reading machines for financial institutions. From there Bill joined British Gas in Cramlington Northumberland in 1991 as a Senior Mechanical Engineer responsible for the design and development of the complete range of magnetic flux leakage inspection systems. British Gas sold off the On Line Inspection Centre to Mercury Asset Management (MAM) in 1998 and MAM began to grow the company until it eventually sold off to GE Oil & Gas in 2002 Bill spent a total of approximately 22.5 years designing the various in line inspection systems as part of the main fleet and to bespoke client requirements. Managing teams of engineers (Mechanical, Electronics, Physicists , Designers UK , Stutensee Germany , Calgary Canada , Houston USA and Bangalore India. Employed as the Chief Consulting Engineer and Mechanics COE Manager for the whole business covering metal loss , crack detection, geometry measurement, cleaning , multi diameter and unpiggable pipeline inspection technologies. Bill is currently employed as Engineering Manager at IHC Engineering Business Northumberland and is a full time member of the SMT, responsible for all Engineering design for Mechanics, Electrical, Hydraulics, Draughting IHC EB designs, develops and supplies bespoke equipment for the subsea trenching/ploughing and Flex-Lay/Pipelay system markets worldwide and Bill holds a Resource budget responsibility of ~8.5M and technically influences a procurement budget of in excess of 40M on an annual basis. Bills management responsibilities include know how for the whole Engineering function.

Monday, October 21, 2019

Obesity in America Papers That Do Matter a Cost-Free Obesity Essay Sample

Obesity in America Papers That Do Matter a Cost-Free Obesity Essay Sample The American Obesity Association in partnership with Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report that an estimated 15.5 percent of adolescents aged 12-19 years and 15.3 percent of children aged 6 to 11 years are obese. OBESITY IS NOT A VERDICT Obesity is a rising global concern that has taken a toll on annual health costs across the country. Besides causing a huge health burden, the impact of obesity has contributed to decreased productivity and increased absenteeism among members of our society. It becomes necessary to sensitize the private and public sector partners, medical professionals as well as the public to adopt strategies that will make healthier choices easier to make. What Is Obesity? Obesity is a health condition characterized by excessive accumulation of body fat, usually over 20% of an individuals average body weight. It is associated with an enormous amount of health complications (high blood pressure, heart disease, stroke, type 2  diabetes, and cancer), disability and even death. Individuals with a Body Mass Index of more than 30 are considered to be obese and those with a BMI of 25-29.9 are deemed to be overweight. As the condition continues to become an increasing concern in the United States, individuals have developed an interest in a field of medicine dealing with the study and treatment of obesity otherwise known as bariatrics. Further, it is common fortudents to be asked to write argumentative essays (see How to write an argumentative essay) on obesity or other lifestyle issues during their academic career. You can sign up to buy your obesity essay online for an original, high-quality essay that is written from scratch by professional academic experts. Obesity Key Facts From a global perspective, the rise of obesity has been gradual but constant ever since 1980. The American Obesity Association in partnership with Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report that an estimated 15.5 percent of adolescents aged 12-19 years and 15.3 percent of children aged 6 to 11 years are obese. The condition has continued to increase over the years affecting 78.6 million people in the United States and more than 700 million people in the world. Among the 78.6 million people in the U.S, an estimated 112,000 deaths have been linked to obesity each year making it one of the leading preventable causes of death. As the cases of obesity continue to grow internationally, so are the annual medical costs for  an average of $147 billion being spent in the U.S. on the treatment of obesity and its related health problems. Why Do People Become Obese? The leading causes of obesity are overeating and lack of physical activity. When a person takes up more calories than he or she can consume (metabolize), the excess is converted to fats that pile up with time leading to weight gain. The imbalance between calorie intake and consumption is also influenced by age, gender, genes, psychological makeup, certain health conditions, socioeconomic and environmental factors. 1. Physical Inactivity.  Many Americans are not active and easily take in more calories than they can burn through physical exercise or normal daily activities. Some of the reasons that encourage inactivity include driving, fewer physical demands because of modern technology, longer TV viewing hours, etc. 2. Unhealthy diets.  Consumption of unhealthy meals containing high levels of calories like red meat, unhealthy fats, processed foods and sugary drinks plays a major role in obesity. People with eating disorders such as binge eating also develop obesity. 3. Lifestyle habits.  A sedentary lifestyle where people are stuck  in a routine of long working hours with little room for exercise, oversized food portions, inactivity, inaccessibility to healthy foods due to cost or advertising that sways people to buy high-calorie foods. 4. Genes.  The genetics of a person will determine if a person is likely to develop obesity. Genes play a significant role in metabolism efficiency, storage, and distribution of body fat. If one or both parents are obese, there is an increased risk of weight gain hence the need to maintain healthy lifestyles that can counteract these genetic effects. 5. Medical conditions.  Certain medical conditions such as Cushings syndrome, underactive thyroid (hypothyroidism) and polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) will contribute to obesity. Some medications are also linked to weight gain like some varieties of corticosteroids, antidepressants, and seizure medicines. Childhood Obesity Childhood obesity is defined in terms of BMI (Body Mass Index), a formula that takes into account a childs age and sex-specific percentile to determine body fat, health risk, and well-being. Obesity in children and adolescents is considered as a BMI greater than the 95th percentile. Obese children are more likely to have risk factors for bone and joint problems, sleep apnea, depression, low self-esteem, and stigmatization. Childhood obesity often persists into adulthood and could be associated with numerous chronic illnesses like cardiovascular diseases, type 2 diabetes, stroke, various types of cancer, and osteoarthritis. Top 5 Most Obese Countries Countries that show the highest obesity problems in the world are most exclusively found in the Pacific Islands. American Samoa (74.6%), Nauru (71.1%) and Cook Islands (63.7%) top the list of countries reported to have the highest proportion of people viewed as obese. Other countries like Tokelau (63.4%) and Tonga (57.6%) follow closely with the U.S. ranking at 18th position with 33% and the UK at 43rd place with 27% of the population being obese. What Is Worse: Obesity or Anorexia? Eating disorders like anorexia and obesity have detrimental health effects that could lead to death. Both obesity and anorexia are complex neurobiological disorders with metabolic consequences that have strong genetic and environmental underpinnings. While anorexics intentionally starve themselves even to death and have a fear of gaining weight, obese people are incredibly overweight. Anorexia may be a fatal psychiatric disorder due to its ability to lead to other mental disorders like schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and depression that could cause one to commit suicide. This isnt to say that anorexia is a more dangerous problem than obesity as both conditions pose as deadly health risks. Life Without Obesity It is important for individuals to maintain a healthy lifestyle with a steady body weight by eating healthy meals, engaging in physical exercise and making meaningful societal changes. Careful individualized treatment will often be required for individuals with overweight and obesity problems to help reverse the rising epidemic rates of these conditions. Reaching and maintaining a healthy body weight helps people to lower the risk of developing serious health concerns, boost ones self-confidence and gives more energy to enjoy life. Writing obesity research essays can be challenging for most students as it requires one to provide a comprehensive analysis of the role of nutrition and physical activity in tackling the obesity menace as well as analyzing the relationship between obesity and other health problems. Get a comprehensive obesity essay by placing an order with a professional essay writing service. Our knowledgeable writers offer top-notch quality service at affordable prices while providing a clear and concise response to your assignment instructions and requirements. If you need assistance with essay writing, feel free to contact our friendly support team or place an order and we will gladly help you.

Sunday, October 20, 2019

Using PHP and HTML on the Same Page

Using PHP and HTML on the Same Page Want to add HTML to a PHP file? While HTML and PHP are two separate programming languages, you might want to use both of them on the same page to take advantage of what they both offer. With one or both of these methods, you can easily embed HTML code in your PHP pages to format them better and make them more user-friendly. The method you choose depends on your specific situation. HTML in PHP Your first option is to build the page like a normal HTML web page with HTML tags, but instead of stopping there, use separate PHP tags to wrap up the PHP code. You can even put the PHP code in the middle if you close and reopen the ?php  and ? tags. This method is especially useful if you have a lot of HTML code but want to also include PHP. Heres an example of putting the HTML outside of the tags (PHP is bold here for emphasis): html titleHTML with PHP/title body h1My Example/h1 ?php//your PHP code goes here? bHere is some more HTML/b ?php //more PHP code ? /body /html As you can see, you can use any HTML you want without doing anything special or extra in your PHP file, as long as its outside and separate from the PHP tags. In other words, if you want to insert PHP code into an HTML file, just write the PHP anywhere you want (so long as theyre inside the PHP tags). Open a PHP tag with  ?php  and then close it with  ?  like you see above. Use PRINT or ECHO This other way is basically the opposite; its how youd add HTML to a PHP file with PRINT or ECHO, where either command is used to simply print HTML on the page. With this method, you can include the HTML inside of the PHP tags. This is a good method to use for adding HTML to PHP if you only have a line or so to do. In this example,  the HTML areas are bold: ?php Echo html;EchotitleHTML With PHP/title;EchobMy Example/b;//your php code herePrintiPrint works too!/i; ? Much like the first example, PHP still works here regardless of using PRINT or ECHO to write HTML because the PHP code is still contained inside the proper PHP tags.

Saturday, October 19, 2019

Examining a Business Failure Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Examining a Business Failure - Essay Example Two other recruitments to follow were that of Rebecca Mark and Jeff Skilling, both of whom were close accomplices of the CEO, and both of them strong enough to head new business lines of Enron. The CEO’s strong political back-up also helped the cause. While these new executives helped Enron spread its wings internationally into the energy market and energy financing, there was an unhealthy inter-personnel rivalry going on in the organization. The exit of Kinder as President fuelled the rivalry further, after Skilling was promoted as President of Enron. Mergers and acquisitions were a part of life at Enron, and soon the conglomerate, which started as a gas pipeline company, ventured into energy trading, and subsequently launched into new markets such as metals, paper, water and bandwidth. Enron was known as a â€Å"Takeover Tycoon† with a â€Å"Midas-touch†. However, most of these merger and acquisition decisions were taken not professionally, but for personal interests of the top executives who wanted to flex their own muscles within the organization to out power the other. Much to the surprise of the corporate world, the Enron ‘bubble’ burst in the year 2001, and investigations into this matter opened a can of worms, revealing that it was not only the Enron executives, but also the legal advisors, their accounting firm and security brokers were a part of the scandal. Keep a fair distance between political influence and business. Too much of political influence on business could prove hazardous. As for Enron’s case, their proximity to the political system helped them easily garner deregulations and other macro issues in their favor, much to the agony of the workers, pensioners and other stakeholders. Professional service providers such as that of accountants, lawyers, stock brokers, etc. should keep themselves away from ‘personal interests’ gained

Friday, October 18, 2019

Tottenham Hotspur Football Club Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Tottenham Hotspur Football Club - Case Study Example (Google Finance) Most of the revenues of Tottenham also known as Spurs are generated from TV broadcasting rights and ticket sales at its home ground White Hart Lane. Despite the efforts for expanding the team facilities and the stadium capacity the company is yet to make a breakthrough in this respect. The company is headed by Chairman Daniel Levy who controls 66 percent of the team by his investments through ENIC International. (Hoover) Based on the detailed financial performance analysed for the period from the fiscal year ending 30th June 2002 to 30th June 2006, the company has turned around its position during the fiscal year and has made remarkable improvement in the turnover and the pretax profits. The turnover has registered a growth of 28.95 million (2006: 74.14m) which is equivalent to 39.05 percent increase over the past year. The pretax at 27.72 m for the year 2007 shows an absolutely significant performance with the company making a loss of 15.75 m for the year 2006. This has resulted in a positive earnings per share of 4p per share (2006: (1.7p) per share). The company could pay a dividend of 4p per share while it could not pay any dividend in the year 2006 due to the losses the company made. The company's financial performance has been a turbulent one in the five years under review. The company could make some significant earnings in the year 2005, while the company had reported a net loss after interest and taxation for the year 2006. As seen above the company could reverse the position in the year 2007. There has been no consistency in the operations of the company which is evident from the varying ratios as indicated in the above table. Especially despite the higher turnover the company could not earn a good return for the shareholders. This can be seen from the ROE ratio over the last five years. Since the profitability of the company is largely dependent on the gate receipts for the premier league matches and the broadcasting rights which are very volatile depending on the class of matches and the quality of the players, there is bound to be a variation in the revenues for all the clubs. Moreover

Consumer Behaviour Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words - 3

Consumer Behaviour - Essay Example s the organisation has further divided them into categories: companion animals, vegetarianism, animals used for clothing, animal testing, and animals used for entertainment. Their print ads is composed of famous Hollywood stars that are vocal and committed members of the organisation such as Alicia Silverstone, Pamela Anderson, Eva Mendez, Sophie Monk and many others. The print ad used is for the vegetarianism category by Cloris Leachman wearing a gown of violet and green cabbage (www.peta.org 2009). The vegetarianism category is chosen based on several empirical studies included in the essay that was able to establish that health issues and environmental concerns affect consumer behaviour and are important factors for British consumers. A study determined the factors that affect the behaviour of vegetarians by conducting an online survey to respondents located in the United Sates, Canada and United Kingdom. The results showed that majority of the respondents are committed to environmental issues, while some for dietary and health reasons. There are also a few who intends to lose weight (Fox and Ward 2008). Studies showed that consumers have low consumption of meat, even those produced in a responsible way. By conducting the study they were able to determine the relationship between consumer behaviour and personal values. The study specifically determined that consumers who eat or consume less meat or none at all demonstrated values such as: controlled, not risk takers, reflective, and value a good conscience. The study found out that values affects and influences consumer behaviour although the universality of the result is still weak and questionable. Lastly, the study determined that consumers who value taste the most are less concerned with security and safety and they have an open mind on their food options (de Boer, Hoogland, and Boersema 2007). A study also evaluated the effect or appeal of nutritional values added in food products on consumer behaviour.

Thursday, October 17, 2019

My Reason for Becoming a Nurse Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

My Reason for Becoming a Nurse - Essay Example Caring for patients in their own environments is both rewarding and challenging. The many dynamics present in a home environment often require an interdisciplinary approach to issues and concerns. As I review my career, I realize my focus has been on teaching others - another reason I love nursing is that it allows me to do this. I get a great deal of personal satisfaction from helping patients, and from helping families care for their loved ones. This involves teaching them about disease processes, medication, and signs and symptoms of complications from terminal illness. Most important of all to me is to give my patients the best quality of life possible, and to show their families how they can help their loved ones. I am presently working as an Admission Nurse in a hospice. This work is unlike any I have previously experienced. Having now worked in the hospice for 18 months I have realized that you truly must have a calling to help others during such a crucial period in their lives. Many people are so overwhelmed that it is necessary to approach the patient from a holistic approach. I truly endorse the hospice philosophy because I feel that an interdisciplinary approach to health care is very important. This role is very challenging, and flexibility is essential in providing good care.

Alcoholic anonymous meeting Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Alcoholic anonymous meeting - Essay Example Bob Smith in Akron, in the year 1935. The program developed, involves Twelve Step spiritual and character development process which aids in the stabilization as well as growth of the alcohol addict. According to Ohio, "primary purpose is to stay sober and help other alcoholics achieve sobriety". Individuals belonging to such a self-help group can benefit themselves by learning and adopting diverse skills to build confidence and make amendments in behaviour which enable them to perform well in their social environment. Such an approach not only tapers their alcohol dependence but also enables them to motivate other new members of the group to overcome such awful inclination (AA Better Known as Alcoholic Anonymous; Wormer et al, 2007). Alcoholics Anonymous group offers independence concerning to group membership. One can attend the meeting weekly or as per his/her wish. The group does not possess any red-tape attitude, on the other hand acquaintance and friendships developed in the group do not have any bindings. This is one of the major reasons why such groups are emerging as the most preferred groups to overcome their addiction quandary (Wormer et al, 2007). The group members interact with each other, confess in front of the group that they seek a solution to the problem of alcohol addiction. The group members utilize their previous experiences to tackle the situation by asking all the details of the addiction trouble, the cause of distress, issues that paved the way for alcohol addiction. Members express their gratitude and formulate a plan to overcome their problem and support other individuals or the group members in tackling the situation (Wormer et al, 2007). Spiritualism is the sole motive that incites self renewal attitude in the person. The environment provided to the new comer is congenial and motivating. Group members discuss their personal stories of revival in details and then the session is open for

Wednesday, October 16, 2019

My Reason for Becoming a Nurse Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

My Reason for Becoming a Nurse - Essay Example Caring for patients in their own environments is both rewarding and challenging. The many dynamics present in a home environment often require an interdisciplinary approach to issues and concerns. As I review my career, I realize my focus has been on teaching others - another reason I love nursing is that it allows me to do this. I get a great deal of personal satisfaction from helping patients, and from helping families care for their loved ones. This involves teaching them about disease processes, medication, and signs and symptoms of complications from terminal illness. Most important of all to me is to give my patients the best quality of life possible, and to show their families how they can help their loved ones. I am presently working as an Admission Nurse in a hospice. This work is unlike any I have previously experienced. Having now worked in the hospice for 18 months I have realized that you truly must have a calling to help others during such a crucial period in their lives. Many people are so overwhelmed that it is necessary to approach the patient from a holistic approach. I truly endorse the hospice philosophy because I feel that an interdisciplinary approach to health care is very important. This role is very challenging, and flexibility is essential in providing good care.

Tuesday, October 15, 2019

The Fraud Act 2006 in the UK Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

The Fraud Act 2006 in the UK - Essay Example In the UK, the Fraud Act 2006 came into force during January 2007, and it substituted the deception crimes included in the Theft Acts 1968-1996 with a more general offence of fraud, which can be done in the following ways namely fraud by failing to divulge information, fraud by dishonesty or deceitful representation and fraud by misuse of position and authority. The offence under the Frauds Act 2006 is punishable if charges are proved with a fine or with an imprisonment of ten years or with both. It is punishable by a fine not in excess of the statutory maximum or sentence for a period of not exceeding six months or with both. Under tort of deceit, a person may claim damages if the fraud committed is resulted in injury to the affected party. On the ground of fraudulent misrepresentation, a contract may be voidable if it has been obtained by fraud. (Law & Martin 2009:240). Courts in England have not yet prepared to prescribe exactly what can be regarded as fraud. It is to be noted tha t the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) which was formed on the recommendation of the Roskill Report in 1984 had not taken into account the offence of fraud but recognised on an evocative manner, many fraud crimes which UK’s Home Office employs even today. (Ramage 2005:4). As on date, in UK, there exists no statutory offence of fraud and the Home Office of UK has set out some kind’s criminal activities that can be regarded as offences of fraud in â€Å"Counting Rules for Recording Crime.† According to a publication made by the Home Office in April 2003, describing the following as offences of â€Å"forgery and fraud.† Frauds by an individual include common law offence of conspiracy to defraud, under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002, fraudulent misappropriation of funds, obtaining a money transfer through credit card or cheque fraud under section 12 of the Theft Act 1987. (Ramage 2005:104).In Cronos Containers NV v Palatin, the defendants were Klamath Enterprises S A and Mr. and Mrs. Palatin. The shares of Klamath were owned by Mr. Palatin. In 1994, Mr.Palatin deceived the plaintiff by making five different payments from one of the Plaintiff’s clients, and the same was credited into Barclays bank account owned by Paladins. Then, such defrauded sums were employed by the defendants to renovate a property held by Klamath. (Ramage 2005:4). Conspiracy to Defraud Under Common Law It falls under consent to divest deceitfully somebody’s right or to abuse somebody’s property privilege. In Scott v Metropolitan Police Commissioner2, S agreed with workers of a cinema theatre to take copies of cinema screened in that theatre without the approval of the owner with an objective of commercial distribution held to be a conspiracy to defraud under common law. In Wai Yu-Tsang v R3, A acted in concert with bank employees to camouflage in the bank accounts the fact about dishonoring of cheques which the bank had already purchased so as to prev ent a bankruptcy by the bank, and A was held for the guilty of conspiracy to fraud. According to Lord Goff, conspiracy to fraud does not restrict to the notion of divesting somebody with something of value, but it also falls under deceit and fraud and if somebody may be discriminated in any way by the deceit or fraud. (Fionda & Bryant2000:154).  

Team role Essay Example for Free

Team role Essay Good teamwork is essential to creating a successful practice. This is because good teamwork creates synergy – where the combined effect of the team is greater than the sum of individual efforts. According Meredith Belbin, who is a British researcher and management theorist best known for his work on management teams, there were nine team roles and he categorized them into three groups: Action Oriented, People Oriented, and Thought Oriented. Each team role is associated with typical behavioral and interpersonal strengths and it brings its own perspective on what action shoud be taken. Belbin also defined characteristic weaknesses that tend to accompany each team role. Action Oriented Roles include shaper (SH), implementer (IMP) and completer-finisher (CF). For instance, a shaper is people who challenge the team to improve, while a implementer is people who get things done and a completer-finisher is people who see that projects are completed thoroughly. On the other hand, People Oriented Roles admit coordinator (CO), team worker (TW) and resource investigator (RI). For exemple, a coordinator is the one who take on the traditional team-leader role and have also been referred to as the chairmen, while a TW is the people who provide support and make sure that people within the team are working together effectively and a RI is innovative and curious. And Thought Oriented Roles let in plant (PL), monitor-evaluator (ME) and specialist (SP). The plant is the creative innovator who comes up with new ideas and approaches, while a monitor-evaluators is best at analyzing and evaluating ideas that other people (often Plants) come up with and a specialist is people who have specialized knowledge that is needed to get the job done. Diversity of roles is an essential element of successful teamwork because everyone has a clear understanding of aims and objectives and there is a good balance of skills, abilities and aspirations, team members have a clear understanding of each individual’s role in achieving overall team objectives.

Monday, October 14, 2019

Why Are Business Ethics Important?

Why Are Business Ethics Important? Nowadays for the company or the business man, making more money is not their only target because they should pay attention to other important issues .Therefore business ethics emerge as very significant for modern society and Modern Corporations. Further more, if they make decisions in business ethics, then these companies will have good reputations. This can be very helpful long-term. This essay focuses on how Apple company using business ethics and how Apple motivates their employees. In this essay, I have very clearly defined business ethics. Then it will talk about why business ethics and motivation are important. On the other hand, Motivation is a vital factor in an organizations success. It is defined as the energy that drives an individual to continue working on something. By developing motivation, the management is able to create a pool of workers who are passionate, hard working, ambitious, and committed not only to their jobs but also to the goals of the organization. Lastl y, motivation is encouraged by promoting needs such as pay, job security, interesting work environment, and healthy relationships among peers. This essay, which is composed of three parts: why business ethics and motivation are important, the literature review and some research of how Apple company using business ethics and how Apple motivates their employees. Why are business ethics important? Business ethics is currently a very prominent business topic, debates and dilemmas surrounding business ethics have attracted a lot of attention from various quarters. The only reason that business ethics is becoming more and more important and it has had a big impact on our communities. According to my research, there are many reasons why business ethics might be regarded as an increasingly important area of study. In summary, I can suggest the following reasons why a good understanding of business ethics is important. Firstly, the power and influence of corporations in society is greater than ever before. Evidence suggests that many members of the public are uneasy with such developments (Bernstein, 2000). For instance, one recent poll of more than 20 leading economic nations revealed that almost 75% of residents believed large companies had too much influence on the decisions of their government (Cywinski, 2008). Secondly, business has the potential to provide a major contribution to our societies in terms of producing the products and services that we want. It also provides employment, paying taxes, and acting as an engine for our world development. As a 2008 global survey conducted by McKinsey shows, about 50% of business executives think that corporations make a mostly or somewhat positive contribution to society, while some 25% believe that their contribution is mostly or somewhat negative (McKinsey Quarterly, 2008). Thirdly, business malpractices have the potential to inflict enormous harm on individuals, on communities, and on the environment. For example, the BP gasoline company, because it made a mistake, polluted large acreage of the Gulf of Mexico in 2010. Further more, few businesspeople have received formal business ethics education or training. Business ethics can help to improve ethical decision-making by managers or decision makers. The knowledge of business ethics can help them to correctly identify, diagnose, analyze, and provide solutions t o the ethical problems and dilemmas they are confronted with. Why are motivations important? First of all, the term motivation derives from the Latin word movere, meaning to move (Tansky, 2003). To be successful or even more successful, nowadays both private and public corporations need to maximize the use of their employees skills. Aslan (2011) said Employees were considered as solely one of the inputs during the factories production process in the initial stages of the industrial revolution. And further more, human resource management is the most critical part fororganizations in todays highly competitive business environment. Therefore, make the organization effective through motivating employees that is the primary task of any managers. It is obvious that motivation can be main factors that determines the work performance of employees. And therefore an organizations success mostly depends on the highly motivated employees. But how do we motivate our subordinate? Maslow need tneedsy already solved some of these problems. If we know what drives the people, then we are able to make them to do what we want (Owens, 2004; Eren, 2007; Ko?el, 2010). Moreover, Kulkarni and Chiniwar (2009) said the Hawthorne Studies began the human relations approach to management, and then the needs and motivation of employees become an important topic for managers. On the other hand motivation is a framework in so many aspects because people are usually motivated by different combination factors. Reinholt (2006) argues that the organizational science literature on motivation has been polarized into two main aspects; the organizational economic position focusing on extrinsic motivation and the organizational behavior position emphasizing intrinsic motivation any highly competive business environment. Therefore, make the organization effective through motivating employees that is the primary task of any managers. It is obvious that motivation can be main factors that determines the work performance of employees. And therefore an organizations success mostly depends on the hi ghly motivated employees.   But how do we motivate our subordinate?   If we know what drives the people, then we are able to make them to do what we want (Owens, 2004; Eren, 2007; Ko?el, 2010). Moreover, Kulkarni and Chiniwar (2009) said the Hawthorne Studies began the human relations approach to management, and then the needs and motivation of employees become an important topic for managers. On the other hand motivation is a framework in so many aspects because people are usually motivated by different combination factors. Reinholt (2006) argues that the organizational science literature on motivation has been polarized into two main aspects; the organizational economic position focusing on extrinsic motivation and the organizational behavior position emphasizing intrinsic motivations success mostly depends on the highly motivated employees.   Literature Review One of the keys to successfully achieving organizational goals is to have fully motivated employees. According to Edward Staren (2009), motivators who implements positive reinforcements are more likely to produce desirable outcomes as compared to those who use negative ones. He also argues that factors of motivation vary on the individual level, which means that an effective manager has to recognize the needs of every employee in order for them to drive towards satisfaction on their work. Richard Clark (2002) points out the issues in addressing motivation are different when it comes to individuals and team-based organizations. He furthered that satisfying motivations in groups is more complex because the management has to find a common interests or goals from the members of the group before addressing them as one. Work environment is also important in motivating people. Other motivators include fair compensation and sufficient benefits such as insurances and performance-based incentives. In a study conducted by Poornima (2009) on employees in the IT industry, he concluded that both monetary and non-monetary rewards are not only crucial but also crucial in building satisfaction. In his study on software development staff in India, Poornima found out that monetary rewards are not always an effective motivator especially if the employees have already achieved their physiological needs. Michael Pepe (2010), on the other hand, identified extrinsic motivational factors to c ontribute to decreasing employee job satisfaction and commitment to work. Using a combined sample of 46 managers and clerical staff at a supermarket store, Pepe found out that as employees increase their perception on Supervisor ¿Ã‚ ½Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½s support, their satisfaction towards work also increases. An empirical study by Mannenetr and Kaen (2010) conducted for the tourism industry of Thailand and Laos showed similar results of positive working behavior if accompanied by effective motivational factors. Upon drawing a sample consisting of 140 workers who came from both the hotel business and travel agencies, the authors supported their hypothesis by coming up with the following results: (a) that the working behavior of people working for travel agencies and hotel businesses had the same rank level, (2) that the work motivation of personnel working for travel agencies has a direct and positive relationship with their work behavior, and (3) the working attitudes of personnel in the ho tel business also had a positive relationship with their motivation at work. Their study showed that positive reinforcements will then result to positive motivation, thus exhibiting better and positive attitudes in the workplace. Similarly, a descriptive survey approach conducted by Joseph and Dai (2010) identified factors that stimulate employees to work at their workplace. The study is able to demonstrate through a sample of 143 participants that positive motivators identified were: good pay, appreciation of their work, and job security are drivers of employee motivation. To measure the impact of motivation at work, Tremblay, Blanchard, Taylor, Pelletier, and Villenueve (2009) used Work Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation Scale (WEIMS) to identify its value in organizational psychology. Their study was double purpose: first, to assess if WEIMS is an efficient tool in measuring motivation level and second, to assess factors affecting motivation among workers (military = 465; civilians = 192). Their findings found that WEIMS is reliable and practical in producing valid results in measuring motivation in organizational psychology setting. Houts, Keppler, and Kalfayan (2010), on the other hand, focused on motivation theory, corporate culture, and employment law in relation to organizational behavior, human resource management, and ethics. The case study researched a true-to-life lawsuit filed against a company due to inappropriate team building exercise implemented among the female employees. The authors have exemplified that motivational factors may be us ed in the wrong direction to exploit employees and cast aspersions on them. On the other hand, I have found some information about business ethics. In my opinion, business does not have just one single goal, which is adding economic value. Every company wants their business keep profitable, that means sustainability. Andrew and Dirk (2004) said sustainability refers to the long-term maintenance of systems according to environment, economic and social considerations. This is the best way or the only one way to make a business keep survive in the modern society. The concept of sustainability is generally regarded as having emerged from the environment perspective, most notably in forestry management (Hediger, 1999). The environment part is the basic principle of sustainability. It concerns the effective management of physical resources that are conserved for the future. Meanwhile, all biosystems are regarded as having the finite resources and finite capacity. As this reason, sustainable human activity must operate at a level that does not threaten the health o f those systems. That means we have to build a world for our posterity that can really enjoy the same living standards as us. So the Mine Companies, Oil Corporations, and steel manufactures should focus on this important issue. On the other hand, economic sustainability focuses on the economic performance of the corporation itself. For instance, the responsibility of management is to develop, produce, and market those products that can secure the long-term profitability of the corporation. That means management of the corporation should include the business ethics concepts, and the top managers or decision makers should understand what business ethics is. Because it definitely can help them make ethical decisions. The development of the social perspective on sustainability has tended to trail behind that of the environment and economic perspectives (Scott, Park, and Cocklin, 2000). The key issue in the social perspective on sustainability is that of social justice. Because corporati ons are the most important engines of economic development, so they have the duty to help people to establish the just and equitable world. Some of goals such as ensuring environmental sustainability, eradicating extreme poverty and hunger and achieving universal primary education. It is very difficult to achieve the goal, but all the companies have to try their best to do it. Secondly, corporate social responsibility still a big part for business ethics. Making a positive contribution to society might be regarded as a long-term investment in a safer, better and more equitable community, which subsequently benefits the corporation by creating an improved and stable competitive context in which to do business (Porter and Kramer, 2006). For a company, the social responsibility is really important, and this is the most significant issue in business ethics. Corporate social responsibility that includes economic, legal, ethical and philanthropic responsibilities (Carroll, 1991). Therefore, if a company accomplishes all the duties, then this company will have a very good reputation and it will help it get the long-term competitive advantage. First of all, economic responsibility is the most basic principle in corporate social responsibility. Because companies have their own shareholders who demand a reasonable return on their investment. And then, these bosses h ave their employees, so the employees want safe and fairly paid jobs. Both of them have customers who demand good quality products at a fair price. The legal responsibility of corporations demands that businesses abide by the law and never break the law or constitution. Carroll (1991) suggests that the satisfaction of legal responsibilities is required of all corporations seeking to be socially responsible. On the other hand, ethical responsibility obliges companies to do what is right, just and fair. Carroll (1991) argues that ethical responsibilities therefore consist of what is generally expected by society over and above economic and legal expectations. The last responsibility is philanthropic, this aspect of CSR addresses a great variety of issues, such as charitable donations, support for local schools or hospitals and taking more care about employees and their families. Lastly, ethical issues in the firm-employee relation. So its the ethics inside the company. Every company has its own staff, so all the bosses try to motivate their employees and therefore they will be working so hard. But if they do not have a good relationship, maybe a boycott will happen and it will be harmful for the corporation. So, the ethical issues in the firm-employee relation can assist with investors building a modern company. A first important area is the information policy of the corporation (Hopkins and Hopkins 1999). It can be contended that employees have a right to know about the reason for downsizing a company and redundancy. If the company fires the employees, the company should make the compensation package regular, because they become unemployed people, so they need enough money to bridge the time for finding a new job. Moreover, employees might take control of individual decisions relevant their own jobs, they are not only a pawn of the employers. Employees are also allowed to express their views on decision taken by employer. So a boss or CEO for the company, he is not the only one decision maker or dictator. Their staffs also have the rights to make decisions. Therefore, I think employees have a full and codified right to determine major decisions n the company. How Apple Company Motivates employees and business ethics Apple Inc. the one of the most successful multinational corporation, worlds third-largest mobile phone maker after Samsung and Nokia. Fortune magazine 2009 named Apple the most admired company in the United States in 2008, and in the world from 2008 to 2012. However, the company has received criticism for its contractors labor practices, and for Apples own environmental and business practices. But, as we all known nothing is perfect, so we can still learn some good stuffs about ethics and motivation from Apple Inc. Apple has been committed to the highest standards of social responsibility across its worldwide supply chain. It has been insist all of its suppliers provide safe working conditions, treat workers with dignity and respect, and moreover use environmentally responsible manufacturing processes. Well terminate our relationship with those suppliers which do not respect the code or they refuse to take corrective actions based on audits (Apple supplier code, 2012). To respect labor and human right. Apples suppliers must uphold the rights of their workers. Apple does not tolerate involuntary labor, underage labor, excessive work hours, or discrimination. And as a member of the Fair Labor Association, Apple is setting a new standard in its industry for transparency and oversight. Moreover, Apples suppliers must create a safe and healthy work environment for their workers. Safety equipment, proper ventilation, and emergency procedures are just the beginning. On the other hand, Apples suppliers must use environmentally sound processes, including managing hazardous substances, treating wastewater, and limiting air emissions. Its all part of a commitment that starts with product design and continues through manufacturing and beyond. Lastly, the most important part for Apple is fostering and enforcing ethical practices. Apple has established ethics training programs for managers that cover proper recruitment of foreign workers, record-keeping and documentation of business practices, worker ID checks and age verification, tracking of working hours, and general management responsibilities. Apple-designed training programs have educated more than one million supply chain employees about their rights as workers, local laws and occupational health and safety (Apple, 2012). Look at how Apple motivates employees. In relation to creative organizations like Apple it is argued that the key success factor is employees motivation and therefore Apple need to be rewards employees in order to foster creative thinking and sustain high motivation (Tiddand Bessant, 2009). On the other hand, Kaplan Norton (1993) said Apple makes a comprehensive employee survey for its departments every two years. The survey questions are only concerned with how well employees understand the companys strategy. Apple motivates people depend on the result of the survey. It offers, such as product discounts or insurances (Apple, 2010).This policy can retain more and more employees work for Apple. Moreover, Steve Jobs, Apples CEO, argues that the latter is the gravitational force that puts all the bright and creative people together (Burrows, 2004). By the way, money and gifts are both good things to motivate people. For example, Apples employees receive d a free iPod Shuffle or iPhone a s a thank you for their achievements (Apple Insider 2005; Meinck, 2007). So now we can easily to find that Apple has a good policy or systems to do motivate employees and doing ethical business. As far as I concerned, Apple will innovate more and more new high tech products and soft wares. Because Apples motivation policy will attract more knowledge people come to work for it. In the future, Apple will become a good example of business ethics, and then organizations will learn business ethics from Apple. Therefore, in my opinion Apple will lead our future. Conclusion Hope we can learn some about motivation and business ethic, and some good example from Apple. Motivation is a result of equally combined efforts of positive reinforcements and the personal goals of an employee. The literature review tells that there is a direct correlation between motivational factors and working behaviors of personnel. Theories such as Maslows Hierarchy of Needs, Equity Theory, and Goal Setting Theory help in understanding how motivation is formed and achieved through positive and negative reinforcements. It is also important for effective managers to realize that not all employees are aware that they are already unmotivated towards their work. On the other hand, business ethics is very important for the company in the modern society. Both developing and developed countries must focus on the theories and concepts. It is very difficult to make all the businesspeople doing ethical business, but I think in the future, it will be come true. Our human will build a perfec t world.

Saturday, October 12, 2019

Brent Staples A Brothers Murder Essay -- essays research papers

Brent Staples' A Brother's Murder A belief I feel very strongly about proposes that all problems faced by our society have solutions. If this belief is true, why do problems still face us today? The answer could be a result of either laziness by the people in our society in finding these solutions or just the fact that there are too many problems to solve. Maybe this belief I have is too far out of reach to be true. On the other hand, Brent Staples, a well-respected writer, seems to share this idea with me. In his works, he displays a great deal of motivation to solve particular problems faced by society. In "A Brother's Murder," he uses a personal account of murder within the streets caused by social placement to illustrate the problem within the lower class. After reading this article, I questioned the stability of our society, and the overall severity of this problem of murder in the streets. The inner streets of our nations' cities have, over the years, proven to be war zones. Gangs are roaming the streets to protect their territory, making gunplay an everyday task. The smell of fear, death, and misguided souls reek to the nose of the onlooker. Brent Staples does an outstanding job of describing the severity of these problems. His brother, Blake, leads a life molded by this street life. His official cause of death was murder. However, at the young age of twenty-two years old, they should have noted h...

Friday, October 11, 2019

The Effects of Sport on Levels of Mindfulness and Experiences of Flow:

The area of research that will be of focal concern is conscious awareness in relation to the concept of ‘mindfulness’. In addition to this, analogous research surrounding the topic area will be integrated, with particular attention being paid to an important aspect of sport psychology known as ‘flow’. Mindfulness has its roots in ancient spiritual traditions, namely Buddhism (Keng, Smoski, & Robins, 2011), and is commonly defined as â€Å"the awareness that emerges through paying attention on purpose, in the present moment, and non-judgmentally to the unfolding experience moment by moment† (Kabat-Zinn, 2003, p. 145). Definitions like the preceding are common in contemporary literature, however many authors have suggested that mindfulness is a somewhat elusive construct and that defining it in concrete terms is difficult (Brown & Ryan, 2004). It was recognised that the word ‘mindfulness’ had been used in array of contexts to describe a psychological trait, a state of awareness, in addition to a meditative practice, which together leave the concept ambiguous in nature. In an attempt to clarify its meaning, Bishop et al (2004) proposed a two-component operational definition, with the first component involving the self-regulation of attention, and the second involving the adoption of an open, curious, accepting awareness of experiences in the present moment (Anderson, Lau, Segal, & Bishop, 2007). ‘Being mindful’ can therefore be contrasted with ‘being mindless’ or ‘being on automatic pilot’, and is predominantly characterised by sustained attention on the present-moment experience (Keng, Smoski, & Robins, 2011). The relevance of the application and integration of mindfulness into psychological theory, and subsequently into practice (Sh... ...enhancement. Journal of Clinical Sports Psychology, 4, 291-302. Morgan, B. G. (2010). Review: Psychological skills training as a way to enhance an athlete’s performance in high-intensity sports. Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports, 20(2), 78-87. Shapiro, S. L. (2009). The integration of mindfulness and psychology. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 65(6), 555-560. The Melbourne Academic Mindfulness Interest Group. (2009). Mindfulness-based psychotherapies: A review of conceptual foundations, empirical evidence and practical considerations. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry, 40, 285-294. Thompson, R. W., Kaufman, K. A., De Petrillo, L. A., Glass, C. R., & Arnkoff, D. B. (2011). One year follow-up of mindful sport performance enhancement (MSPE) with archers, golfers, and runners. Journal of Clinical Sport Psychology, 5, 99-116.

We All Have Experienced an Embarrassing Moment in Our Life

Some of the embarrassing moments in our lives are worth recalling while others are so disgusting that no one would wish to recall or even be associated with them. That day will forever remain in my mind. I can recall with nostalgia an incident, which took place five years ago. Back at home, my parents would reward my brother and me for the good grades we scored in the term papers. On this one occasion, my mum rewarded me with two hundred dollars for the good grades in the end year papers. In order have fun; I decided to invite my best friends to a hotel for lunch.On arrival at the hotel, I told my friends to order as much as they wished to take. One after another, they placed their orders and immediately the waiters swung into action and started serving us. The food was very delicious just as the services. We all took to eating, talking and laughing at the jokes we made back at school. On finishing the food, the bill was placed on the table. I hurriedly reached my pocket to get the m oney but to my utter disbelief, the two hundred dollars were missing. After a thorough check in all my pockets, it dawned on me that I had left my dollars in my bedroom.I had been filled with joy and excitement when my mother gave me that I did not remember to put it in my purse. On waking up in the morning, I was late and so I prepared myself in a hurry leaving the money on the table inside my room. I thought of borrowing money from my comrades but none of them could offer any help. They did not carry any money, as we would be picked by the school bus from home in the morning and only come back in the evening with the same. I approached the waiter and narrated my ordeal but she was fuming with rage.She ordered me to explain to the director. The hotel director was a kind and understanding man. He listened to my rather unfortunate ordeal and allowed me to rush home and get the money but had to leave my school identity card with him just in case I did not to come back. I hurriedly wen t to the nearest telephone booth, called my younger brother, and requested him to deliver the money at the hotel. Ever since that day, I ceased to going to that hotel. I have this fear that some of the waiters might recall my countenance.It was the most embarrassing moment of my life. Since the events of that day, my friends have always made jokes regarding that fateful day and would all laugh at it. The other day when I was going to the cinema I met with an old good friend of mine who was there when all that happened while on summer vacation. We reminisced for quite sometime and he offered to buy me a drink. We hurriedly entered the hotel nearby only to find other two childhood friends. It was a fantastic but strange twist of events as we further talked about the good old times.Food and drinks were served and we started eating, as we talked oblivious of who had served us. When we had spent some good time inside there, we rise up to go when the bill was placed on the table. The wait er was anxiously waiting for the money. My friend got the money and it was only while he was paying that we realized it was in this same hotel and the same waiter who had held us at ransom. She also was recalling but this time she managed to smile at us. We looked at each other and all we could do was to laugh it was just fabulous. It is amazing how sometimes life can be.