Financial Reporting Question & Answers Assignment

Financial Reporting Question & Answers - Assignment Example It eliminates all the alternatives associated with financial reporting. There are various benefits of standardization: Standardization of accounting rules enable multinational firms in developed nations to create significant employment opportunities in the job market. Professionals in accounting and other fields find it easy to relocate to other countries as a result of globalization for there is a common language in preparation of financial reports and accounts. For instance, countries such as Hungary and India forward their accounting duties to companies based in developed countries (Iatridis 2010). These firms spend less time trying to be in line with a country’s accounting policy and strict regulations as most of the rules are adopted from International Accounting Standards. Moreover, adaptation of globalized standardized accounting standards has made it easier for firms to centralize their training in accounting and increase the number of financial care centers. Transpare ncy of unified financial standards has a boost in division of labor in the global market thus it enables smaller investors to invest in other countries. Standardization of accounting standards promotes innovation. These standards give rise to new markets and products hence, creating a significant enhancement for innovations (Hesser, 2006). Consequently, innovation result to improved sales. Minus these standards, there would be poor quality products that might limit the boosting of innovation since the remnants of the stock could not be transferable to other places. Furthermore, unified standards enlarge the scale of inventive products thus in absences of the standardized standards, these products are hardly obtained. In developed nations, the International Accounting standards assists to converge the systems of accounting and reports made available for investors. This would support global financial investments and innovations (Hal, Henock 2007). Standardized accounting standards enh ance the ability for firms to forecast profits. This is a reliable opportunity for investors because the transaction cost goes down when specific national accounting regulations disappear. Companies cut on the costs of external auditing and employment of experts for the purposes of global comparison reports. International Accounting standards initiate stiff competition in auditing that reduces the inescapable costs for auditing. Unified accounting standards reduce the costs of capital. Most domestic investors run their businesses within their countries since financial reports are prepared in line with the known worldwide accounting standards that could be easily interpreted. For international investors, the most preferred financial reports should be made using the international standards and not the domestic ones. This reduces the cost of investing in foreign countries since there is no variation in rules of accounting and cost of creating financial reports. Therefore, standardized accounting standards lower the cost of capital because investors are in agreement with lower returns from business securities and a decrease in investment risk. Who has to comply with accounting standards? Accounting standards refer to specific principles, bases, conventions, rules and practices applied by an entity in preparing and presenting financial statements. This implies that those who have to comply with the accounting stand

Genocide in darfur Essay Example for Free

Genocide in darfur Essay In 2003, a genocide began in the Darfur region of Sudan. According to the website, â€Å"World Without Genocide† the Sudanese government armed arab militia groups to attack ethnic affair groups. This has escalated to the mass slaughter of 480,000 people. The Sudanese government called this campaign â€Å"getting at the fish by draining the sea†. This is why countries around the world should open up their eyes and help a country that is going through a genocide. The genocide is occurring in the western region of Sudan. This area is referred to as Darfur. The area consists of about six million people from nearly 100 tribes. Some of them are farmers, others nomads, all of them are Muslim. The bordering countries around Darfur are Libya, Chad, and the Central African Republic. In 1989, General Omar Bashir took control of Sudan by military coup. Soon after conflicts increased between African farmers and many nomadic Arab tribes. The main reason the genocide started is because in 2003, two Darfuri rebel movements were created. The Sudan Liberation Army and the Justice and Equality Movement were created to inform the Sudanese government about the marginalization (to put or keep someone in a powerless or unimportant position within a society) of the area and the failure to protect sedentary people from attacks by nomads. This angered the Sudanese government who soon unleashed Arab militias known as Janjaweed, or â€Å"devils on horseback†. These militias attacked hundreds of villages throughout Darfur with help from the Sudanese army.. Over 400 villages were completely destroyed and millions of civilians were forced to abandon their homes. All of the thousands of lives taken by the Janjaweed are mostly to be blamed on the Sudanese government. Sudanese President Omar al Bashir is to blame for the massacre that has been created. He allowed The National Islamic Front to inflame regional tensions. This caused a flow of weapons into Darfur straight to the Janjaweed. The Janjaweed leader Ali Kushayb is also to blame for leading his militia group to murder thousands of people. Two of the biggest countries in the world are to blame. Russia and China have blocked off any resolutions, sent by the United Nations, to please the Sudanese government. They are doing this because China exports all military equipment to the Sudanese military and they invest heavily into the Sudanese oil. Russia protects the Sudanese government because they Sudan’s strongest investment partner and political ally in Europe. Another big country is trying to help the Darfuri citizens, even though Russia and China are trying to stop them. Britains Prime Minister Tony Blair wrote a letter to the members of the European Union calling for a unified response to the crisis. He supported the United Nations Security Council Resolution in 2007 authorizing the deployment of up to 26,000 peacekeepers to try to stop the violence in Darfur. British Prime Minister Gordon Brown said in a speech to the United Nations, that the Darfur crisis was the greatest humanitarian disaster the world faces today. He has also endorsed the International Criminal Court’s ruling regarding Sudanese president Omar al-Bashir and has urged the Sudanese government to co-operate. The United Nations (an intergovernmental organization established to promote international co-operation) and the UNAMID (United Nations – African Union Mission in Darfur) have been the main supporters. The U. N. authorized up to 26,000 troops and police for the new hybrid force. Although only 60% are on the ground, they are still trying there best to protect the citizens of Darfur. The UNAMID has been unable to adequately protect civilians on the ground because of the obstructionism on the part of the Sudanese government and lack of supplies, funding and equipment by the international community. With the proper supplies and support from other countries, the UNAMID would be a lot closer to ending this genocide. People around the world are clueless about this issue. A mass murder is going on everyday and they have no idea about it. If they were to open their eyes and see the various support groups the they could help fund they could make a difference in this world. Doing this would have a greater impact than expected. You would be helping stop one of the greatest humanitarian disaster the world faces today but, you could also help show the big countries controlling the Sudanese government and helping them get away with this massacre that what theyre doing is wrong.

Leaders in Business Essay -- essays research papers

The business sector in today’s society is increasing rapidly, and with this increase comes the need for more people to manage and lead growing companies. This growing need also raises some potential questions: Can anyone become a leader or a manager? Is there a difference between the two? Can people be trained to become leaders or managers? Just like many other questions that might be asked in business; these questions have no one, definite answer. Let’s begin first by acknowledging the definitions of the two root words; the word â€Å"manage† means to handle, where as the word lead means to go. Similarly as the two words have different definitions, they also have different purposes. To help individuals increase their potentials in business, an internationally recognized motivational speaker by the name of Marc Sanborn has developed certain â€Å"theories† that, much like in science or art, prove some things to be more true than others by providing suppor ting facts to prove the validity of certain ways of thinking. Many of Marc’s theories validate the fact that in general, good managers tend to be good leaders, but good leaders are not always good managers. It is said, "Any company that cannot imagine the future won’t be around to enjoy it." Therefore before any manager or leader can affect changes in their business they have to do what Marc describes as visioning; they must mentally â€Å"look† into what they want to see as the potential outcome of any given situation. Managers are concerned with the problem at hand; they focus on what has to be done. Leaders on the other hand, notice what has to be done, but spend their time figuring out how to get it done. Marc states â€Å"managers vision the destination, leaders vision how to get there†. To be an effective leader it is important to focus on the gritty details of a situation, look for opportunities and how to achieve them. Visioning cannot be taught but can be developed. Marc suggests people start from the end and work backward, or think to themselves â€Å"what will this team accomplish because of me?† Leadership is all about taking an organiza tion to a place it would not have otherwise gone without you, in a value-adding, measurable way. When you vision, you think your way into a situation and it is the approach in visioning that separates managers from leaders. Visioning however is not the only method that separate... ...by now that there indeed is a difference between managers and leaders and it is eventually the approach taken upon certain methods that is the determinant of your leadership role. Marc Sanborn explains that managerial power is positional power; it is power over people whereas leadership is supportive power, and it is power with people. Whether you vision the destination, or the transportation there, whether you try to be efficient or effective, and whether you focus on the speed or the path all come into play as your leadership quality level. These qualities can be improved and developed, if they are all focused on the right things. That is why good managers tend to be good leaders, because they can focus on getting tasks done efficiently and also do it right at the same time. Managers are good disciplinarians; they are able to manage certain objectives while being efficient. However good leaders are more supportive and creative and might sometimes lack the disciplinary quality o f getting the right thing done as efficiently as possible. For the most part, there is a very fine line between good managers and good leaders, but good leaders just aren’t and do not want to be, managers.

Course Objectives and Learning Outcomes Essay

Online gaming is big business these days, with thousands of people connected to each other every minute. Games like Call of Duty and World of Warcraft connect massive numbers of players, sending both data and voice communications back and forth in real-time. In a 1-2 page paper, discuss HOW the data gets sent from a computer or gaming system to the computer/gaming system of all of the people with whom one is playing. Specifically, focus on the local exchange interfaces – access, regional, metro, long haul and ocean networks. Include in your paper a diagram showing the communication, labeling any important stops along the way (central offices, repeaters, etc.) Note: You don’t have to list EVERY repeater you’d need, but be creative and show that you understand the process. Submission Requirements Submit a 1-2 page Word document; double-spaced; Times New Roman 12 pt font. Cite all sources used. Local Exchange Online gaming is big business these days, with thousands of people connected to each other every minute. Games like Call of Duty and World of Warcraft connect massive numbers of players, sending both data and voice communications back and forth in real-time Considering that video game consoles are almost computers; then it is clear that they can communicate as  computers does; and that is through TCP/IP networks. Therefore, it is possible to exchange data between gaming consoles. But let’s examine the aspects that are involved on this process. First, there is a physical connection running between two computers that want to connect. This could be phone lines that run from houses to switches to other houses that the phone company lets dial to each other. Or it could be network cables going to hubs and other computers. Or it could be cable lines running to fiber optic lines, through routers. Or it could be radio waves that computers can broadcast and receive. Second, there is a physical device that connects the computer to the network of lines he is communicating over. It could be a modem, a network card, a radio transmitter, or a router. Third, there is a set of software that allows the computer to send data across this network. There are a lot of layers to this software. At the top level, the computer sends some type of â€Å"packet† of data to the device and across the network. Typically, this is a TCP/IP packet. This basically tells you what the format of the data has to be, and what pieces of software computers need to have to send this kind of data. Finally, at the game layer, the game determines what other computer it needs to connect to, sends a request to the network device to establish the connection, and then sends data to the device so it can be sent. The network layer, when it receives data on a given connection, doesn’t just store it, it sends it on to the application who has the connection. So the connection is essentially between two applications. Focusing on the physical access; the possibility that data can be send to players around the globe is all thanks to the infrastructure of telecom companies. Starting with the local access, which is provided by the local telephone companies (Local Exchange Carriers). These entities are responsible for ensuring the necessary access to the network and the reliable transportation of the information. The Local Exchange Carriers provide the interface for  the users to connect to the internet. Behind the scene, the network access plays a vital role in this process; which is the part of the network that reaches the end users and â€Å"connects them†. This services are brought to the consumer through a cabling link between the consumer and the Local Exchange. This network pf cabling is also referred as â€Å"Distribution Network† At the transportation level, the data is handled by the regional/metro networks (MAN) is responsible for aggregating information from the local exchanges of a specific service provider and sending that information to the regional and long haul/core network. A regional network is responsible for aggregation of information from metro networks. It is typically the last point before information traffic is put onto the core network. Core network is responsible for transporting large amounts of information from metro and regional networks in one part of the geography over very long distances to the regional and metro networks of another part of the geography. An important part of the infrastructure are the ocean networks; these are the most demanding and technically advance networks in existence. There are a multitude of optical fiber cables underwater connecting continents and countries together; therefore, vital for internet communications. As you may imagine, there a multitude of devices and equipment involved within each network to make all this process (data exchange) possible.

Disguise Is Often Presented as a Cruel and Painful Practice. to What Extent Do You Agree That Disguise Is Used to Create Comic Moments in Twelfth Night?

Disguise is often presented as a cruel and painful practice. To what extent do you agree that disguise is used to create comic moments in twelfth night? Shakespeare incorporates the technique of disguise in the twelfth night to create comedic elements in the play; however some may argue that the concept of disguise is often cruel as it creates confusion and misconceptions that could lead to serious consequences. In Shakespearian times the role of women was restricted to usually their own homes and this was the case on the stage in Shakespeare’s plays.All of the actors were men even in the women roles. This could be one of the first techniques of disguise that Shakespeare used that could portray comedy as a man in a feminine role is comedic however, it also puts across confusion especially in plays like the twelfth night where characters like Viola plays a role as a male persona. Viola is the main and obvious element of disguise in the twelfth night. She creates the comic aspec t of the play as dramatic irony is depicted because none of the characters know that Cesario, the person who she has created through her disguise, is really a woman.Her character creates a sort of love triangle between her, Olivia and Orsino but she can reveal nothing in fear of exposing her identity, â€Å"whoe’er I woo, myself would be his wife† (Act 1 Scene 4). The cruel and painful practice is uncovered through this as Olivia doesn’t know that the person she is falling for is in fact a women and Viola can do nothing to let her know this, leading Olivia on into something that can’t happen. This is also the case with Viola as she can’t proclaim her love for Orsino.Shakespeare creates torment mainly in the mind of Viola as the fate is ultimately in her hands but the disguise has restricted her. The constraint of her identity is a problem or arguably the comedic side of the twelfth night. In act 3 scene 4 Sir Toby create a duel between Sir Andrew a nd Viola against both their wills, â€Å"Sir Andrew and Viola draw their swords†. The disguise has gone against her as all the on looking characters believe that Sir Andrew is fighting a man when it is actually a woman which no one would consider fair, another example of where the hidden identity leads to a cruel practice.The idea of Viola dressing up as a man in the first place could also be considered a cruel practice as it shows that she is aware that her being a women she may be disregarded socially which is why she takes on the disguise in the first place, this highlights the patriarchal society in Shakespearian times that reflects on the play. Malvolio is another character who takes on some sort of disguise in the hope of pleasing the supposed wishes of his lady Olivia, â€Å"I thank my stars, I am happy!I will be strange, stout, in yellow stockings, and cross gartered, even with the swiftness of putting on. Jove and my stars be praised! † (Act 2 Scene 5). Maria, Sir Toby, Sir Andrew and Feste all trick Malvolio into wearing the clothes that lady Olivia hates and Malvolio being naive and arrogant falls for this. The outcome was meant to be comedic for Maria and her friends and the audience also share the laughs simply because of foolishness of Malvolio and the new dress sense he takes.The way in which this comedy came about however, came from a very malicious plan orchestrated by Maria as the idea of trickery was involved which caused Malvolio to believe that Lady Olivia loves him. The audience who also share the comedy can’t help but feel some sort of remorse for Malvolio. Malvolio putting on the cross gartered yellow socks lead him to being put away in the so called prison. Feste takes the role of Sir Topas the priest in order to trick Malvolio into thinking that he has gone insane, â€Å"Sir Topas the curate, who comes to visit Malvolio the lunatic† (Act 4 Scene 2).The room in which Malvolio is locked into is dark so he cou ldn’t see if it were actually Sir Topas even though we know it isn’t. Feste didn’t have to take the disguise of Sir Topas but rather just sound like him, this shows the effect of a disguise as he chooses to dress like the priest to possibly get into character to portray the character more clearly. This is very cruel as Feste uses trickery and confusion to show Malvolio to be something he’s not and also make him believe that a Priest is consulting him.Ultimately the technique of disguise is often used to create a hidden identity and confusion between characters, Shakespeare however, uses this technique to create comic elements as well. As brought up before we find that the sexual confusion love triangle between Olivia, Orsino and the Viola/Cesario character creates comedy. Olivia as we know falls for Cesario who’s a women, but we also find that Orsino may be attracted to Cesario in a way, in plain terms this is acceptable as she’s a women but he addresses her as a male which raises the question of what Shakespeare is trying to outline.This is shown â€Å"That say thou art a man: Diana's lip Is not more smooth and rubious; thy small pipe Is as the maiden's organ, shrill and sound, And all is semblative a woman's part† (Act 1 Scene 4). Shakespeare may be trying to achieve something more than comedy by saying that disguise may bring out other elements. The other aspect of comedy was explored when Malvolio was tricked by the letter into wearing the disguise which consequently caused the imprisonment of him, which could then be argued is a painful practice.The disguise of Viola also causes the cruel treating of Antonio as he claims to have been with Viola/Cesario for 3 months and that they were together when they came to the town and Orsino and Viola clearly know that she has been working with Orsino, the confusion between Viola and Sebastian because of the disguise is evident; â€Å"Today, my lord and for three mont hs before no int’rim, not a minute’s vacancy, both day and night did we keep company† (Act 5 Scene 1).When all disguises from Viola’s to Feste’s and the reason behind Malvolio’s disguise is all revealed Shakespeare once again brings order after all had gone astray. There is no comic factor when all is exposed but there is in fact a sense of sorrow for Malvolio as everyone is happy apart from him. This could show that there is no positives in disguise and eventually it will lead to a cruel ending in this case Malvolio suffered the consequences.

Advances in medical technology Essays

Advances in medical technology Essays Advances in medical technology Essay Advances in medical technology Essay Advances in medical technology continue to transform the healthcare delivery system. And although the benefits resulting from new technological innovations profoundly enhance our lives, the cost to acquire, provide and maintain the new technologies increasingly place a strain on the health care system. These rising costs are an important reason why the number of uninsured has soared. So what factors influence the growth of new medical technology? One factor is the demand on citizens for top quality care. In other words consumer demand is a major influence. Another is hospitals via for newer top of the line innovations to entice physicians and patients, bringing in an increase of revenue. This in turn forces the closure of many smaller hospitals that cannot afford these newer products. Geographically,this causes many in rural areas to seek alternate care and are not able to access these newer advances in technology. In comparison to other countries, the United States spends more money on technology than any other country. Many countries wait until the U. S. Develops new technology and then implement the new technology into their own system. As a result of this practice, European and other economies get a free ride on U. S. Biomedical R D and obtain nearly all of the benefits of U. S. Medical technology at much lower health care costs. If technology development was slowed by a modest amount in the United States, it would likely have serious health consequences globally. Patients demand these newer innovative services. And knowing that insurance will cover the cost, many physicians will not hesitate in delivering these services. Ultimately insurance premiums continue to rise and the rate of uninsured citizens as ell. Also the hiring and training of personnel to operate these new systems contribute to the cost. In addition, facilities may require refurbishing to accommodate the new equipment. All factors that contribute to the cost of newer technology However not all technology increases health care costs. In fact many have actually reduced costs. Some have indirectly eliminated costs by reducing the amount of stay in a hospital, reduced the amount of procedures and any further testing. Others have allowed doctors to access and apply patient care through the internet. Remote lath services ( RASH) involve patient care interactions that are geographically disparate and enabled by telecommunications, information technology, and sensor technology. And yet advances in medical technology also raise moral and ethical concerns. Nowadays, however, we have the technology to keep life going. This reality necessitates that doctors and families make difficult decisions about when to pull the plug. And since f inances are always an issue, these decisions become more difficult. When do you allow a patient to die naturally and when do you allow

How to write a great two-page resume

How to write a great two-page resume For decades, there were some hard-and-fast rules about how you should write a resume: good-quality stationery, a rigid reverse-chronological format, only one page long. But as hiring and applying have changed over the past 10-15 years by going digital, so have those rules. What the â€Å"rule† now comes down to is this: your resume should be a lean, mean snapshot of your professional life. Most resumes are read either by robots or people using different devices, so the length is now much less of an issue. After all, an applicant tracking system doesn’t care how long your resume is- it cares about what’s in it. So let’s walk through some strategies for crafting a great two-page resume.4 steps to writing a long resume to get you hired1. Focus on content over lengthUnless you’re making an academic CV or an IMDB page, you don’t need to include everything you’ve ever done. That said, one page can feel like an artificial constraint. The happ y medium is expanding slightly to go in-depth where necessary (like your skills or your work experience) without having to obsess over fractional font sizes and margins that end up looking ridiculous. Tailor your work experience bullet points to the job you’re applying for now, including only relevant information.With two pages you have a bit more space to play with, but you should still give careful consideration to which elements you want to include. For example, two pages may give you more space up front to craft a significant summary statement instead of a pithy one-line objective. Use your extra space to make your narrative even clearer.2. Use the extra space to your advantageToo much white space can make a resume look skimpy, but some white space is also key for readability. Even if your resume goes through automated system to identify it for further rounds of review, it will (ideally) make it to a pair of human hands at some point. This means it has to be functionally good, but also presentable. Use your two pages to create a clear outline, with well-defined bullet points that are concise and easy for any reader to follow.Resumes that look like solid bricks of text often end up in the â€Å"I don’t have time for this† pile, so an eye-catching, highly readable format will help you position your resume well. Remember that the average hiring manager spends mere seconds looking at a resume to start, so you want to grab and keep attention any way you can. Boosting readability is an easy way to do this.3. Make your resume a cohesive documentYou don’t need to put your full contact info on each page, but it’s not a bad idea to include page numbers in a footer or a header, with your email address on the second page. That way, if your resume gets printed but the pages are somehow separated, the reader won’t be left mystified about why your work experience suddenly leaves off in the middle of 2015.4. Make sure you’re telling a storyYou’re asking the reader to stick with you through more than one page of text, so it’s important to stay on message and make sure you’re using every inch of that space to sell yourself. Start your resume by setting a clear message (again, a summary statement or an objective really helps here), and make sure that every section of your resume supports that story.A two-page resume is an opportunity to expand on your experience and achievements, and declutter your crowded one-page resume. As long as you pay careful attention to what you’re including and how, it can be a great asset for your job hunt.

Geography of the Korean Peninsula

Geography of the Korean Peninsula The Korean Peninsula is an area located in Eastern Asia. It extends south from the main part of the Asian continent for about 683 miles (1,100 km). As a peninsula, it is surrounded by water on three sides and there are five bodies of water that touch it. These waters include the Sea of Japan, the Yellow Sea, the Korea Strait, the Cheju Strait and Korea Bay. The Korean Peninsula also covers a total land area of 84,610 miles (219,140 km).The Korean Peninsula has been inhabited by humans since prehistoric times and several ancient dynasties and empires controlled the area. During its early history the Korean Peninsula was occupied by a single country, Korea, but after World War II, it was split into North Korea and South Korea. The largest city on the Korean Peninsula is Seoul, the capital of South Korea. Pyongyang, the capital of North Korea, is another large city on the peninsula.Most recently the Korean Peninsula has been in the news due to growing conflicts and tensions between Nort h and South Korea. There have been years of hostilities between the two nations but on November 23, 2010, North Korea launched an artillery attack on South Korea. This was the first confirmed direct attack on South Korea since the end of the Korean War in 1953 (there are also claims that North Korea sunk the South Korean warship the Cheonan in March 2010 but North Korea denies responsibility). As a result of the attack, South Korea responded by deploying fighter jets and firing lasted for a short time over the Yellow Sea. Since then, tensions have remained and South Korea has practiced military drills with the United States. Topography and Geology of the Korean Peninsula About 70% of the Korean Peninsula is covered by mountains, although there are some arable lands on the plains between the mountain ranges. These areas are small however so any agriculture is confined to certain areas around the peninsula. The most mountainous regions of the Korean Peninsula are the north and east and the highest mountains are in the northern part. The highest mountain on the Korean Peninsula is Baekdu Mountain at 9,002 feet (2,744 m). This mountain is a volcano and it is located on the border between North Korea and China.The Korean Peninsula has a total of 5,255 miles (8,458 km) of coastline. The south and west coasts are also very irregular and the peninsula thus also consists of thousands of islands. In total there are about 3,579 islands off the coast of the peninsula.In terms of its geology, the Korean Peninsula is slightly geologically active with its highest mountain, Baekdu Mountain, having last erupted in 1903. In addition, there are also crater lakes in oth er mountains, indicating volcanism. There are also hot springs spread throughout the peninsula and small earthquakes are not uncommon. Climate of the Korean Peninsula The climate of the Korean Peninsula varies highly based upon location. In the south, it is relatively warm and wet because it is affected by the East Korean Warm Current, whereas the northern parts are usually much colder because more of its weather comes from northern locations like Siberia. The entire peninsula is also affected by the East Asian Monsoon and rain is very common in midsummer, and typhoons are not uncommon in the fall.The Korean Peninsulas largest cities, Pyongyang and Seoul vary also and Pyongyang is much colder (it is in the north) with an average January low temperature of 13ËšF (-11ËšC) and the average August high 84ËšF (29ËšC). The average January low temperature for Seoul is 21ËšF (-6ËšC) and the average August high temperature is 85ËšF (29.5ËšC). Biodiversity of the Korean Peninsula The Korean Peninsula is considered a biodiverse place with over 3,000 species of plants. Over 500 of these are native only to the peninsula. The distribution of species over the peninsula also varies with location, which is mainly due to the topography and climate throughout it. Thus the different plant regions are divided into zones which are called the warm-temperate, temperate and cold temperate. Most of the peninsula consists of the temperate zone. Sources CNN Wire Staff. (29 November 2010). Seoul Warns: Dear Price if North Korea Attacks Again. CNN World. Retrieved from: cnn.com/2010/WORLD/asiapcf/11/29/koreas.crisis/index.htmlCNN Wire Staff. (24 November 2010). After North Korean Strike, South Korean Leader Threatens Retaliation. CNN World. Retrieved from: cnn.com/2010/WORLD/asiapcf/11/23/nkorea.skorea.military.fire/index.html?hptT1Wikipedia.org. (28 November 2010). Korean Peninsula - Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Korean_PeninsulaWorldAtlas.com. (n.d.). Korean Peninsula Map, Map of North and South Korea, Korea Information and Facts - WorldAtlas.com. Retrieved from: worldatlas.com/webimage/countrys/asia/koreanpn.htm

The Blank Slate Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

The Blank Slate - Essay Example The most important chapter in this book is Part IV â€Å"Know Thyself†, Chapter 12 In Touch With Reality and Chapter 13 Out of Our Depths. One of the highlights discussed in these two chapters is about discrimination. According to Steven Pinker, â€Å"Mental images are not really images at all, but instead consist of complicated opinions, positions, doubts, and passionately held convictions, rooted in experience and amendable by argument, by more experience, or by coercion. Our mental images of black men, white judges, the press, and so on do not take the form of pictures of the kind that you can hang up (or â€Å"deconstruct†) on a museum wall.... Hitler did not hate Jews because there were pictures of swarthy Semites with big noses imprinted on his cerebellum; racism does not exist in America because the picture of O. J. Simpson on the cover of Time is too dark. The view that visual clichà ©s shape beliefs is both too pessimistic, in that it supposes that people are helplessly imprisoned by received stereotypes, and too optimistic, in that it supposes that if you could change the images you could change the beliefs†(Pinker 217). ... Pinker supported this view by saying that it is only man himself who is building a wall or division among others. The human desire within him creates the conflict because in his mind, he knows what is right from wrong. We think, feel and learn from our daily experiences as we continue to explore life. This conclusion may be drawn in correlation from this statement, â€Å"Our understanding of life has only been enriched by the discovery that living flesh is composed of molecular clockwork rather than quivering protoplasm, or that birds soar by exploiting the laws of physics rather than defying them. In the same way, our understanding of ourselves and our cultures can only be enriched by the discovery that our minds are composed of intricate neural circuits for thinking, feeling, and learning rather than blank slates, amorphous blobs, or inscrutable ghosts†(Pinker 72). Man only draws out a concept based on the images he sees. This conventional formulation of conclusion based onl y on the physical attributes to embody the holistic essence of a person is also known as stereotyping. We should not look only at the physical aspect of things or persons that are presented before us. What we may see outside may be false or misleading. We should dig deeper and use our minds to decipher a concept as we look beyond what is only seen on the outside, but also on the inside. To support this impression, Pinker stated that â€Å"Also, people's ability to set aside stereotypes when judging an individual is accomplished by their conscious, deliberate reasoning. When people are distracted or put under pressure to respond quickly, they are more likely to judge that a member of an ethnic group has all

Devil's Knot Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Devil's Knot - Essay Example They arrested the three teenagers only on the basis of doubt and items possessed. Interrogation was done without the presence of any of the parents of the three teenagers or even the attorney. The crime seen was repeatedly changed and re recorded from the three teenagers to suite the situation and the time of the murder so that the post mortem report should also match the same time as recorded by the police. At one point the boy said they skipped the school and the murder took place in the afternoon, which did not match the murder time, and so they were encouraged to change the time of the murder. The crime sent shock waves to the entire Arkansas City and terrible tragedy what these three little boys went though before their deaths had to be painful terror. The stepfather of one of the accused was very abusive and always lied and was very much ready for the cameras always and the Press thought that this stepfather was involved with the police. The police than to accept the crime that they never committed left the three teenagers with no option. As the interrogation continued the case caught a wild fire by the press and the media and always featured as breaking news by the TV and new paper. Feeling the pressure the police had to bring the accused before the press show every body that they are already on the job.

The Lack of benefits available to soldiers returning from the Middle Term Paper

The Lack of benefits available to soldiers returning from the Middle East with mental and physically disorders - Term Paper Example It has been projected by some that close to fifty percent of current Middle East conflict veterans will seek medical treatment from the Veterans Administration. More than sixty percent of these injured veterans will seek short-term treatment, defined as medical care that lasts less than five years, but the other approximately forty percent of them will remain in the Veteran's Administration health care system for the rest of their lives (Patsner, n.p.). Unfortunately for these brave men and women, the resources available to treat injured and disabled veterans are currently severely lacking in quality. There are many reasons for the current situation. Among them are the sheer number of injured veterans returning from these conflicts and the cost of treating them, the type of injuries that are returning home, the number of veterans already in the system that also require care, the inadequacy of the existing system to handle patient transfers when a veteran moves from one part of the sy stem to another, and the lack of preparedness by primary care physicians outside the Veterans' Administration system to deal with war-related injuries. Many Americans are aware of the extremely high costs of the Middle East conflicts, as these operations have resulted in a continuous presence of American military members in that theater since the September 11, 2001 World Trade Center attack. As of the end of the 2010 fiscal year, the United States federal government had spent seven hundred and fifty-one billion dollars in Iraq and three hundred thirty-six billion dollars in Afghanistan (Belasco, p. 1). However, many people are not aware of the costs incurred after the injured veterans of these conflicts return home. One projection states that the costs of life-long medical care, disability benefits, and social security and pension benefits for veterans of the current Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts could eventually total over seven hundred billion dollars, which is more than the over all cost for the first five years of the conflict (Patsner, n.p.). Additionally, up to forty-five percent of Gulf War veterans may apply for long-term disability benefits. Over eighty-eight percent of those applying will be at least partially eligible to receive some form of disability payments. These disability claims could potentially add another three hundred fifty-five billion dollars to the total cost of health care for injured veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts (Patsner, n.p.) The Department of Defense and the Veterans' Administration have been ill-prepared to deal with the flood of injured service members and veterans returning from these conflicts. In 2001, before the current Middle East operations had begun, the number of backlogged Veteran's Administration cases was near one hundred thousand. As of April 2008, the number of unprocessed cases had jumped to over six hundred thousand. This means that not only are the currently returning veterans not being treated efficiently, resources are being re-directed from older veterans and reducing their access to care as well (Kenneth & Burris, 2330-39). This backlog of untreated cases, as well as the complexity of the application process for use of the Veterans' Administration medical resources, can lead to more issues of aggravated injuries for those veterans that are not adequately and quickly treated for their injuries. Due to the lack of screening as veterans separate from active

Judiciary Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Judiciary - Essay Example Judicial restraint is the antonym of judicial activism (Ringhand & Collins, 2010). The discussion between judiciary restraint and judicial activism started in the early days of the United States of America and has proceeded to the present. A number of renowned Supreme Court justices such as John Marshall have supported the judicial activism view, the belief that it’s the role of the judges to chart new constitutional grounds as well as make bold policy decisions. Supporters of legal activists are to judicial restraint that supports that the judiciary should leave the policy formulation and decisions making process to the executive and legislative branches (Ringhand & Collins, 2010). For decades, Republican Party leaders have decried judicial activism and championed for judicial restraint. Republican politicians have associated judicial restraint with a commitment to judicial deference, stating that judges who support judicial activism disrespect the will of many people. The debate has continued to warrant close inspection as a result of the deployment of judicial activism by Republic politicians during the Supreme Court confirmation of Judge Sonia Sotomayor as well as in the 2008 presidential elections. The senators were utterly aghast that Sonia’s experience and background might affect her decisions and that she may be an activist. The Sotomayors emphasized that justices make no laws and policies but merely apply those laws that are in existence (Davis, 2009). It is uncontroversial to indicate that only chief Justice Scalia and Justice Roberts Alito and Thomas belong to the number of judges who are in the political circles of Republican. Justice Alito a nd Roberts were nominated by Bush and were considered Republican favorites. The two were however not democrat’s favorites, and President Obama was not ready to vote

Integrated And Interdependent Global Economy Essay

Integrated And Interdependent Global Economy - Essay Example This report declares that though globalization has succeeded in making the people aware of the need of collective growth, still political problems, terrorism, internal agitations and political concerns have retarded the progress of collective economic growth. Most of the left parties all over the world are still looking suspiciously at the interdependence of economies since they are afraid of some kind of a hidden agenda in this concept by the capitalist countries. They believe that globalization and liberalization policies are implemented by these capitalist countries in order to exploit the wealth of poor countries. But in reality the China like socialist countries were blessed immensely by globalization compared to capitalist countries like America and Britain. As countries become increasingly interdependent, we must all turn our attention toward further integrating economies and making the benefits of growth inclusive, so that nobody is left behind. The end of cold war era though helped super powers to concentrate more on economic terms, increased terrorism and conflicts between countries definitely retarded the growth towards an economically prosperous world. This paper makes a conclusion that Interdependence of economy and economic integration is a subject still at its early stages of development. Though theoretically economic integration or economic interdependence concepts are believed to be the best solution for the economic development of the world as a whole, it needs to be studied more based on practical experiences in future.

Judiciary Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Judiciary - Essay Example Judicial restraint is the antonym of judicial activism (Ringhand & Collins, 2010). The discussion between judiciary restraint and judicial activism started in the early days of the United States of America and has proceeded to the present. A number of renowned Supreme Court justices such as John Marshall have supported the judicial activism view, the belief that it’s the role of the judges to chart new constitutional grounds as well as make bold policy decisions. Supporters of legal activists are to judicial restraint that supports that the judiciary should leave the policy formulation and decisions making process to the executive and legislative branches (Ringhand & Collins, 2010). For decades, Republican Party leaders have decried judicial activism and championed for judicial restraint. Republican politicians have associated judicial restraint with a commitment to judicial deference, stating that judges who support judicial activism disrespect the will of many people. The debate has continued to warrant close inspection as a result of the deployment of judicial activism by Republic politicians during the Supreme Court confirmation of Judge Sonia Sotomayor as well as in the 2008 presidential elections. The senators were utterly aghast that Sonia’s experience and background might affect her decisions and that she may be an activist. The Sotomayors emphasized that justices make no laws and policies but merely apply those laws that are in existence (Davis, 2009). It is uncontroversial to indicate that only chief Justice Scalia and Justice Roberts Alito and Thomas belong to the number of judges who are in the political circles of Republican. Justice Alito a nd Roberts were nominated by Bush and were considered Republican favorites. The two were however not democrat’s favorites, and President Obama was not ready to vote

Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 26

Essay Example Also, when Gregor has turned into a bug, we find the family to be self-sacrificing as well. Even though it distresses her to do so, Gergor’s sister feels a sense of duty to him, and she makes sure he is fed. When at first he cannot eat his favorite meal, his sister does everything that she can in order to find food that he will eat. She loves him, and out of a sense of duty she tries to feed him and keep him alive, even though he no longer resembles the person that he used o be in any way, shape, or form. The family has to sacrifice some of their own food money so that Gregor can eat, and this shows that they love him, even though they can’t stand to look at him. In Robert Frost’s â€Å"Home Burial,† we see two different conceptions of love through the act of mourning. In the poem, a married couple’s child has died, and the grave is on their property. The husband and wife have very different ways of coping with the loss of the child. The wife, Amy, stands at the window and stares at the grave. She is in a constant state of sorrow, and she can barely do anything because she has been so greatly affected. Because of her love for her child, she has grown distant from her husband, who is grieving in a different way. She doesn’t understand this, as she says â€Å"If you had any feelings, you who dug/ With your own hand—How could you?—his little grave† (72-73). To her the only appropriate way to grieve is to show it constantly, to be living it at all times. The husband is still obviously grieving for his child, but he can’t seem to show her that he is. He still loves his child and is in mourni ng, but he doesn’t do so in the same manner as his wife does: â€Å"You—oh, you think the talk is all; I must go—/Somewhere out of this house. How can I make you—â€Å" (112-113). He doesn’t talk about it the way that she does, or

The Speckled Band Essay Example for Free

The Speckled Band Essay There has been a great deal of famous detective stories that have been written by many authors, all of which are very interesting and exciting. Some examples of very good, successful detective stories are:  The murders in the Rue Morgue written by Edgar Allan Poe in 1841. This book was Edgars first story and it was very successful.  The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins which featured Sergeant Cuff and a stolen gem. This was written in 1868.  Another set of detective stories was Sherlocks Holmes written stories, which were written during the 1880s. As you can see detective books have been going on since the mid 1800s as well as in the 1900s.  1920s onwards Agatha Christie starts to write her very famous and very successful detective stories with Hercule Poirot and Dorothy L. Sayers with Lord Peter Wimsey, both of the upper class.  1970s P.D. James and Ruth Rendell start to write. In their recent books they feature corrupt policemen. In P.D. James last three books the murder has not been convicted, either because they died or due to insufficient evidence.  1990s There has been popularity shown by the number of films and T.V series e.g. Inspector Morse, Taggart, Frost, Dalziel and Pascoe and so on. From the above you should notice that there has been a lot of well known detective stories about and I will be comparing and contrasting two types of detective stories. To support my points I will be using quotations and close references. In each section I will compare the stories and clearly explain the difference. I will be covering the following factors in detail, detectives, crime and motive, clues and red herrings, methods of investigation, the setting location social conditions and the creation of suspense. In The Speckled Band written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, the detectives are very polite to each other and speak Queens English. When they talk to each other they always address each other a my dear friend, Dr Watson, Mr Holmes or Madam never by there first name. Sherlock Holmes in The Speckled Band comes across as being very clever and witty. You know this because at the very beginning of the story Dr Watson is saying he was going over his and Sherlocks seventy odd cases that they have done in the last eight years. If Holmes were not clever he would have completed all of those cases. Another part of the story where Holmes shows his cleverness is when Helen Stoner has come to see him and he notices that she has come by train and dog-cart. Holmes knows that she has firstly come by train from the ticket stub in Helens hand and secondly he notices that she has come by dog-cart from the splattered mud up her arm, I observe the second half of a return ticket in the palm of your left glove. You must have started early, and yet you had a good drive in a dog-cart There is no vehicle save a dog-cart which throws up mud in that way.  Holmes also notices that Helen is shivering and orders her a cup of hot coffee. When Sherlock is observing the Stoke Moran notices a lot of clues, which no one else had seen before. I will go into this more when I talk about clues and red herrings.  Sherlock Holmes is always cool and collective in dangerous situations. E.g. when he hears the hissing he lashes out at it very quickly and takes action whereas Watson sits there not knowing whats going on and he panics a bit but Holmes stays calm. Holmes also keeps calm when Dr Grimsby Roylott comes to visit him. I have heard a bout you before. You are Holmes the meddler.  My friend smiled. (Sherlock Holmes)  Holmes the busy body.  His smile broadened. (Sherlock Holmes)  Holmes the Scotland Yard Jack-in-office.  Holmes chuckled heartily.  Sherlock Holmes comes across as not at all being scared. You know this because he is not scared in more than one occasion. He was not scared when Dr Grimsby Roylott barges in and threatens him, he keeps very calm and another place where he keeps his cool is when he is approaching the Stoke Moran place and sees the baboon. Although he knows the Dr Roylott keeps a cheetah he doesnt become scared and he carries on as normal. Holmes is also not as weak as you think he is because when Dr Roylatt comes to Holmes house he bends the fire poker to try to scare Sherlock but Holmes just bends it straight again.  my grip was not much more feeble than his own. As he spoke he picked up the steel poker, and with a sudden effort straightened it out again.  Sherlock Holmes really enjoys his work and loves to solve new cases. You know this because when Helen Stoner comes to him and she tells him what the case is about. She tells Holmes that she wont be able to pay him a lot of money and he replies saying that money is not a problem and as long as she pays for his expenses. E.g. transport fees and accommodation. Sherlock Holmes comes across as being a hero in The Speckled Band because Helen Stoner travels miles and miles to seek out this famous detective. When she finds him he gets straight on the case and solves it within a days work whereas Helen has not had the slightest clue how her sister died for two years.  Another detective in The Speckled Band is Dr Watson. Dr Watson is Sherlock Holmes assistant, he is also very polite when he talking to people, he always addresses people as sir, madam or by their last name never by their first name. Holmes, I cried, I seem to see dimly what you are hinting at.  Dr Watson comes across as being a clever man but not as near as Sherlock Holmes. He has always assisted Holmes crimes all of which he has helped to solve the case. Watson also enjoys his work at solving cases with Sherlock and he has always accompanied Sherlock, you can tell Watson enjoys the cases when he says he wouldnt miss the case.

Analysis for Expansion of Starbucks

Analysis for Expansion of Starbucks Introduction: The history of Starbucks starts in Seattle in 1971.Three friends Jerry, Zev Siegal, and Gordon Bowker who all had a passion for fresh coffee, opened a small shop and began selling fresh roasted , gourmet coffee beans and the brewing and roasting accessories .The company did well, but things began to change in 80s. First Zev Seigal sold out in 1980.Yet at that time, Starbucks was largest roaster in Washington with six retail outlets. In 1981 a plastics salesmen noticed the, number of drip-brewing thermoses that Starbucks was buying from Hammerplast, the manufacturer that he represented. A brief history of Starbucks: Starbucks has always been the place to find the worlds best coffees. But in 1971, you would have had to travel all the way to out first-and at that time, only store in Seattles first Pike Place Market. 1970s : The first Starbucks opens. The name comes from Herman Melvilles Moby Dick, a classic American novel about the 19th century whaling industry. The seafaring name seems to be appropriate for a store that imports the worlds finest coffees to the cold, thirsty people of Seattle . 1980s: Howard Schultz joins Starbucks in 1982. While on a business trip in Italy, he visits Milans famous espresso bars. Impressed with their popularity and culture, he sees their potential in Seattle. Hes right after trying lattes and mochas, Seattle becomes coffee-crazy 1990s: The demand for great coffee allows Starbucks to expand beyond Seattle, first to the United States, then further a field. After becoming one of the first companies to offer stock options to its part-time employees, Starbucks becomes a publicly traded company. 2000s: The Starbucks phenomena continues. At the time of writing Starbucks has more than 15,000 locations across the globe. In addition to our excellent coffees and espresso drinks, people now enjoy Tazo tea and Frappuccino and ice blended beverages. Howard Schultz: In 1982 Baldwin hired Schultz as a new head of marketing and shortly thereafter sent him to Milan to attend an international housewares show in Italy. Schultz went to Verona and had his first cafe latte. But he observed something more important than the coffee. The cafe patrons were chatting and otherwise enjoying themselves while sipping their coffees in the elegant surroundings. It was an aha moment as inspiration struck. A great idea : Schultz describes that moment as epiphany, why not create community gathering places like the great coffee house of Italy in the united States? Could the old world meet the new world? If it succeeded , it would be marketing genius. By 1983 the marketing manager had a vision of recreating the magic of romance behind the Italian coffee bar and wanted to test out the concept of selling the espresso by the cup. II Giornale and Starbucks go their separate ways : When Starbucks coffee is opened its sixth store in downtown Seattle, the coffee was a hit , it was an immediate success. Schults, however branched out on his own and opened a coffee house named Italys largest newspaper , The Daily or II Giornale., Two months later , the new store was serving more than 700 customers a day , and it was selling 300 percent more than the Starbucks locations. Sell out : This is my company now. In 1987 the owners of Starbucks coffee company decided to sell their coffee business , along with the name, to a group of local investors for $3.7 million. Schultz raised the money by convincing investors of his vision that they could 125 outlets in the next five years. He also changed the II Giornale bare- breasted mermaid logo into a more socially acceptable figure. The company name changed from II Giornale to Starbucks, and finally he converted the six existing Starbucks, roasting shops into elegant , comfortable coffee houses. The era of growth : Starbucks coffee history was just beginning to take shape. Starting from a base of 17 store in 1987, the company expanded rapidly to other cities: Vancouver, Portland and Chicago. By 1991 Starbucks has also expanded into the mail-order catalogue business and licensed airport stores and further into the state of California. In1992 the company went public, and after the intial offering of public Starbucks continued to grow at a phenomenal pace that no one had ever seen in the coffee world before. By 1997 the number of Starbucks coffee stores grew tenfold, with location in United States, Japan, Singapore. Other business extension : Not satisfied enough with just a store house coffee, Starbucks expanded several other products and brand extensions. Offering Starbucks coffee on United Airlines flights Selling premium teas through Starbucks own Tazo company. Using the internet to offer the people the option to purchase Starbucks coffee online. Distributing whole bean and ground coffee to supermarkets. Producing premium coffee ice cream wit Dreyers. Selling CDs in Starbucks retail stores. The Starbucks shows how the once small regional roaster, selling coffee beans, became an international corporation with with more than 9000 locations in 34 countries serving 20 million customers or more a week. In fiscal 2004 , Starbucks reached a record 1,344 stores worldwide. 2. Objectives And vision: Commitment to safety and customer service. Low unit cost. Strong branding. Strong corporate culture. To increase the loyalty with the average customer visiting the company at least twice a week . By the year 2011 the consumer under thirty years of age should account for 35% of total sales. Increase in the target market without detracting from older consumers. To become the preferred coffee house established for the age group of the under thirties. To increase the net profit margin to 12.5 %. To increase the profit level by 15% per annum over the next ten years. Mission Statement: Establish Starbucks as the premier purveyor of the finest coffee in the world while maintaining our uncompromising principles as we grow 3. Features Of Starbucks : Instant Coffee: This is not instant coffee as you know it .this is a rich , flavourful Starbucks coffee in an instant . Starbucks had found a way to offer a truly great cup of coffee that u can prepare by just adding water. Other instant coffees taste flat and lifeless. Its made with the highest quality, ethically sourced 100% Arabica beans. The magic is in a proprietary, all natural process that we spent years perfecting. We micro grind the coffee in a way that preserves all of their essential oils and flavour. No other company takes this step, and it makes all the difference. Sales And Expansion: Starbucks always choose beautiful location and atmospehere where people can enjoy their coffee. It opened its first locations outside Seattle waterfront station in Vancouver, British Colombia and Chicago, Illinois, that same year. At the time of its initial public offering on the stock market in 1992, Starbucks has grown to 165 outlets. International Expansion: Starbucks is serving for all the coffee lovers in many countries in the world. Currently Starbucks is present in more than 55 countries across the globe. Fair Trade: In 2000, the company introduced a line of fair trade products of the approximately 136,000 metric tons (300 million pounds) of coffee Starbucks purchased in 2006, about 6 percent was certified as fair trade. 4. Marketing Strategy Of Starbucks: Starbuckss marketing strategy involves positioning the local Starbucks outlet as a third place(besides home and work) to spent time, and the stores are designed to make this easy and comfortable. The cafe section of the store is often outfitted with comfortable stuffed chair. There are ample electrical outlets providing free electricity patrons using or charging their portable music devices or laptop computers. Most stores in U.S and some other markets also have wireless internet access (although this access is not free, as it is in some independent coffee shops). The company is noted for its non-smoking policy at all it outlets, despite its prediction that this would never succeed in markets such as Germany, where there are otherwise few restrictions on smoking. Outlets in Vienna and Mexico city, which have smoking rooms separated by double doors from coffee shop itself, are the closest company has come to making an exception. According to the company, the smoking ban is to ensure that the coffee aroma is not adulterated. The company also asks its employees to refrain from wearing strong perfumes for similar reasons. Starbucks generally does not prohibit smoking in outside seating areas. Starbucks generally does not offer promotional prices on its products. It has a reputation for having pricey drinks, though as of early 2006 Dunkin doughnuts charged even more for a large cup of coffee ($1.95 vs. $1.80 at Starbucks). In late 2006, Starbucks announced that it would raise prices by $0.05 USD, at the beginning of new fiscal year, October 2, 2006. 5. SWOT Analysis: Strengths Revenue targets: Starbucks corporation is a very profitable organisation, earning in excess of $600 million in 2004. The company generated revenue of more than $5000 million in the same year. Brand Awareness: It is a global coffee brand built upon a reputation for fine products and services. It has more than 10000 cafes in almost 55 countries. Leading company: Starbucks was one of the top Fortune Top 100 companies to work for in 2005. The company is respected employer that values its work force. Strong Ethics and Mission: The company has strong ethical values and mission statements as follows, Starbucks is committed to a role of environmental leadership in all facets of our business Locations: Starbucks coffee shops locations are at convenient places like library, shopping malls and etc. Weakness Pricing: Pricing of Starbucks are higher as compared to the competitors. Business spreading: The organisation has a strong presence in the United States of America with more than three quarters of their cafes located in the home market. It is often argued that they need to look for a portfolio of countries, in order to spread business risk. Lack of internal focus: Starbucks lacks in internal focus as its focuses too much on its expansion. Control on stores: Starbucks have less control on stores outside the U.S, and also ever increasing number of competitors in the market. Dependant on retail market: The organisation is dependant on a main competitive advantage, the retail of coffee. This could make them slow to diversify into other sectors should need the arise. Opportunities Added opportunity: Starbucks are very good at taking advantage of opportunities. In 2004 the company created a CD-burning service in their Santa Monica (California USA) cafe with Hewlett Packard, where customers create a own music CD. Fair Trade Products: New products and services that can be retailed in their cafes, such as fair trade products. Market penetration: Entry into Asian market like Pakistan, India, Bangladesh and also this market penetration is done even in several International countries. Global Expansion: The Company has the opportunity to expand its global operations. New markets for coffee such as India and the Pacific Rim nations beginning to emerge. Co-Branding: Co-branding with other manufacturers of food and drink, and brand franchising to manufacturers of other goods and services both have potential. Threats Coffee cost: Starbucks are exposed to rises in the cost of coffee and dairy products. Customers Choice: Who knows if the market for will grow and stay in favour with customers, or weather another type of beverage or leisure activity replace coffee in future? Copy cat brands: Since its conception in Pike Place market, Seattle in 1971, Starbucks success has lead to market entry of many competitors and copy cat brands that pose to potential threats. Coffee pricing: Starbucks have variation in coffee prices in developing countries Security: Security risk at crowded places can also be one of the major threat. 8. Porters Five Forces The food or beverage industry is one of the growing industries today. A company need to analyse both macro and micro-environmental factors. Porters five forces ,model helps the companies to have an edge over rival companies and help to better understand the current market. Porters five forces are the internal factors that have a direct impact on the current market and helps to affectively compete in the market place. The threat of intensity of industry rivalry The threat of the entry of new competitors The threat of substitute products or services The bargaining power of Suppliers. The bargaining power of customers (buyers) The threat of intensity of industrial rivalry: Small speciality coffee shop chains and independent coffee shops Costa, Nero in Europe; Caribou coffee, Van Houtte, Peets Coffee and Tea company in Canada and USA. McDonalds McCoffee Dunkin Donuts Nestle? The threat of new competitors: Starbucks has a very strong brand name which is built over a period of time. Any new competitor into coffee business need to invest lot of money for advertising and marketing to get set in the market. Economies of scale high economies of scale are required to compete with the already established companies. Distribution channels the top retailers have established powerful global distribution channels. Well known brand names and difficult distribution. The threat of substitute products or services: Choosing less expensive alternatives than the luxury coffee that Starbucks offers. Other substitutes of the coffee are the caffeinated soft drinks. The bargaining power of suppliers: Fair Trade. It ensures that the coffee farmers would be paid fairly for their crops Increasing number of speciality coffee buyers. Supply and price can be affected by multiple factors in producing countries, including weather, political and economic conditions. The company buys coffee using fixed-price and price to be fixed purchase commitments, depending on the market conditions, to secure and adequate supply of quality green coffee. Expansion: The Starbukcs will have power on its suppliers by how much the Starbucks expansion is done The bargaining power of buyers: Buyers play a significant role in the Porters forces and this scenario has a great advantage. Buyers are the individual consumers who do not buy large quantites and do not have any influence over the price. Presence of substitutes. No switching costs. High risk of backward integration. 7. Marketing Mix Strategy The Starbucks brand, marketing mix is kept value with very good upshot. The steadiness of the product goes well with its price for very good products, the place are known as beign very comforting for customers apart from if the free way is next door. The atmosphere is so peaceful for customers. The product, price, place, promotion show evenness in the reputation of being a clean and upmarket coffee shop. Price: The amount of money a buyer must give to the seller for a specific quantity of the product is the price of that product and usually consumers use this as an indicator of quality (Dalrymple parsons, 1986). Price and quality determines the value of the product. When launched, Starbucks was expensive and was positioned in accordance with that. They always tried to deliver the high value promised to the consumers. They bought the quality beans, gave effective and efficient training staffs, and moreover, made an atmosphere to enjoy coffee, meet fellow people and take a break from the busy life. These all justify and their pricing and show how price supported their positioning. Product: Starbucks tried to positioned themselves as a premium product in the coffee industry by creating a high standard, introducing innovative products and providing excellent service. Schultz knew how perishable the coffee was and they take care on coffee control, and hence carefully they monitored each step of coffee production. Usage of non-fat milk and introduction of Frappuccuino made a significant presence in the balance sheet of Starbucks. Moreover, they provided seasonal offerings such as strawberry and cream Frappuccuino in summer and ginger bread latte in Christmas, were introduced. Gradually food items such as cookies, pastries, salads, sandwiches made they way into the stores. Place: Distribution channels link the organisations product or service to its consumers; and in a producer consumer channel, as in the case of Starbucks maintaining personal relationship with the customers in significant (Brassington pettitt 2000). As demand grew, these store clusters made them able to manage the increase traffic and to keep their competitive position. In the same way they took care about the service provided in the stores. Howard Schultz aimed to unlock the romance and mystery of coffee in coffee bars, and he knew how important the role of baristas in achieving that. Baristas experience in engage the customers was the heart of Starbucks experience. Thus they differentiated in the market by constantly providing higher quality service. Promotion: All marketing activities that attempt to stimulate buyer action or sales of a product can be considered as a promotion (Shrimp, 1977). Starbucks used to organise a big community event prior to the opening of its stores. Artworks are designed to boast the each citys personality and it was used on commuter and T-shirts. They also recruit local ambassadors from new partners and to customers to promote their brand. They dint use advertising but they used those funds for acquiring key locations. Starbucks tried to establish a national dominance before other speciality coffee bars into the picture. 8. PESTLE Analysis: PESTLE analysis stands for Political, Economical, Social, Technological, Legal and Environmental analysis. PESTLE analysis provide macro-environmental factors that a company has to tale into consideration. It is useful as strategic tool for understanding maket growth or decline, business position and direction for operations. Legal and Political factor: The factors that include the stability of country in which Starbucks purchases its coffee and other raw goods. Coffee is grown in some pretty dicey areas. Also they proclaim to be environmental friendly, so they have to cosider how to protect the brand aspect in everything they do form increasing the shade of share grown and organic coffee, for providing a living wage that makes it to individual farmers, to have production techniques with low pollution rates. Right now, Starbucks has two action suits pending since 2001. The law suits entitled Carr Vs Starbucks and shields Vs Starbucks are challenging the status of Starbucks California store managers and assistant managers as exempt employees under California wage and hour laws. Starbucks also only imports all their coffee beans, so possibly threats could include a change in import laws. The change in the status as far as imports could greatly affect numerous areas of production for the company. For example if it cost more to import or the process is made more difficult the result could ultimately change in price, which would affect the level of consumption for Starbucks coffee. Economic factors: Economic factors are an important aspects that concerns the nature and direction of the economy in which the firm operates. Since the relative affluence of various market segments will affect the consumption patterns, companies must take this into consideration when planning its strategy. The companys net revenue increased from $1.3 billion fiscal 1998 to $ 1.7 billion in fiscal 1999 due primarily to the companys store expansion program and comparable store sale increases. As a part of its expansion strategy of clustering store in existing markets, Starbucks has experienced a certain level of cannibalization has been justified by incremental sales and return on new store investments. This cannibalization, as well as increased competition and other factors, may continue to put downwards pressure on the companys comparable store sales growth in future periods (www.Starbucks.com). Social Factors As a result from the economic factors Starbucks closely following their objectives, the company has installed a list of principles that further outline the companys willingness to make sure that its affect on the environment is as positive as possible. These principle are stated as: Understanding of environmental issues and sharing information with our partners. Developing innovative and flexible solutions to bring about change. Instilling environmental responsibility as a corporate value. Measuring and monitoring each our progress for each project. Encouraging all partners to share in our mission. Recognizing that fiscal responsibility is essential to our environmental future. The importance of these guidelines is further illustrated by the companys mission to show leadership towards environmental issues. Starbucks does not just rest on its laurels, it demonstrates through participating and organising activities such as neighbourhood clean-ups. Further examples of the companys action towards friendliness include the recycling and reusing of resources in order to enhance the lives of the people around the world (www.Starbucks.com). This illustrates the integrity of the company as they can sometimes sacrifice the opportunities if they dont follow the company stands for. In addition to the waste reduction, Starbucks also aims to reduce energy usage and once again demonstrates this by doing energy audits and then using the result to change store design or procedures so that they save as much as energy possible. Technological factor: Starbucks has developed a web-site that allows its customers to buy speciality items and coffee directly through internet. Consumers can also research products, look up current financial info, current Starbucks store location and also see answers to some of the sites most frequently asked questions. Coffee in Starbucks is made with 4 special but simple fundamental steps, firstly, use the right proportion of the coffee to water. Second the brewing process is short: third, use flesh, cold water heated to just off the boil; fourth, use fleshy ground coffee. Customers besides having coffee and flesh food in the shop. Starbucks also provides to go service and bottled which have different tastes like hazel nut, mocha, vanilla, caramel, etc. All those beverages are flesh food are handcrafted and may be customized. Environmental Factors: Starbucks has a wide range of business activity. These activities help company to use numerous channels of product distribution. With the company operating in many locations worldwide environmental factor plays a major role in marketing decisions. Each distribution channel affected differently and the companys flexibility in the marketing plan allows the company to adjust their strategies to meet the needs of the environmental factors. Starbucks provides a work environment treating others with respect and dignity. The company embraces diversity as an essential component in the way Starbucks does business. Starbucks believe that the company should enthusiastically satisfied customers all the time and contribute positive to our communities and our environmental and recognise that profitability is essential to our future success (Starbucks.com, 2008). Starbucks owns and operates its own facilities, warehouses and retail stores giving the company control of product design, shipping and receiving. The companys strategy is to sell premium products and pricing the products as high as the market will allow. Starbucks brand awareness is very important and by introducing new products developing new distribution channels. Starbucks is one of the leading company in sales of coffee and coffee products in the domestic and global markets. The companys management policies have allowed Starbucks to grow and prosper as an organisation. 9. Ansoff Matrix Ansoff matrix allows companies to explore ways to grow business with existing products or services and new products in existing and/or new markets. This helps companies decide what action should be taken. Ansoff matrix has four combinations: Market Penetration Product development Market development Diversification Market penetration: Market penetration is done when a company penetrates a market with the current products. It is important to know that the market penetration strategy begins with the existing consumers of the organisation. Market development: This occurs when the market you are analysing make some sort of change or advancement. Using the Starbucks example, market development has occurred over the past couple of years as customers are becoming more health conscious. Preferences are moving toward different types of teas/drinks and customers are demanding more healthy alternatives. These factors have aided to market development, with different franchise popping up, such as Argos tea, which become direct competitor to Starbucks. Product Development: In response to the market development mentioned above, Starbucks is introducing new product developments in order to compete with companies aiming to offer customers more health conscience drink options. Enter the new product, Skinny lattes and low fat/calorie syrups at Starbucks. Diversification: Due to the saturation of U.S. coffee market, and the decreasing of their gross profit margin, Starbucks has started to move from having a concentrated business strategy to a diversification strategy. Starbucks has realised that once a market matures that it is too risky to b concentrated, and we agree that they should keep diversifying their business product lines in an effort to stay profitable, and competitive. They should diversify into products such as candy, bagels, and other food related products. Conclusion Starbucks has been increasing its debt every year, and at a pace that is faster than their assets are growing. This is why we chose the firm to slow down its expansion and its focus more on marketing their products. In such a saturated market as the one that they are in Starbucks needs to focus on increasing consumer awareness and to decrease debt as much as possible. In closing we believe that Starbucks can become even more profitable if they slow down their expansion and concentrate on the stores that they already have open. Starbucks, its brand and products are at the maturity stage of product life cycle(PLC). Change in a more and more competitive market is essential The Perfect Blend will give Starbucks a new, unique and future oriented brand image. (www.docstoc.com) 9. Starbucks Future: Name president for European operations Mark McKeon will be responsible for strategic entry and growth into Europe. Plans to open at least 400 stores during 2000. Enhancing information systems Starbucks submitted plans to build or renovate at least 10 stores around the world. These store are designed or redesigned around green building principles. This puts Starbucks in line to meet its mandate to have all new stores be LEED certificate by the end of the year. The company began converting all lights in its stores to LED technology in 2010. Starbucks estimates that 1,000 stores have undergone the lighting retrofit. The company expects this change significantly reduce its energy consumption. Starbucks bought enough renewable energy certificates to have 25% of its electricity generated by clean energy sources. The company has a goal having a 50% of electricity produced by renewable energy in 2010. 10. Recommendations Revamp the employee reward system Large percentage of staff are under the age of twenty. Benefits package focuses on medical, dental, and vision care, as well as employee stock options. Outside of hourly wage, and semiannual raises, there are few monetary rewards. Tighten focus on creating the Third Place environment. Site has a very high employee turnover rate Manager Promoted to a another site in hopes of improving their poor performance Site has very poor handicapped accessibility Conditions of restroom in each of our visits was poor and no baby changing area. Focus Profitability Measures On More Than Just Staffing Store is underperforming some high margin product segments Too high focus on minimizing direct labour as a key to achieve profitability Focus on high-margin items and profitable add-on sales By increasing pastry sales by 33%, store would realise a $16K increase in contribution.

The Taming of the Shrew Essay: The Taming of Katherina -- Taming Shrew

The Taming of the Shrew: Katherina - the Woman Formerly Known as Shrew    The Katherina that gives the final speech in The Taming of the Shrew is quite a departure from the Katherina we were introduced to in Act I. This new Kate is modest, quiet and obedient. All of these qualities were not present until Act V. Such a profound personality change prompts the questions how this happened and what purpose do her changes serve?    The answer to the first question, how did this happen, is simple to answer: Petruchio has tamed her. His taming tactics are comparable to that of a military officer and a patient mentor: He is ruthless and unwilling to bend the rules in order to make her learn, however, he is content to let her learn at her own pace. The text for his lessons is Kate's own temper, actions and words. By spewing her deeds back into her face at an unrelenting pace, she is forced to see how ridiculous she has been acting, and it is at this point that the transformation begins.    Due to the nature of Petruchio's teachings, The Taming of the Shrew can be see...

Relationship Between Humans and Objects

CUL341 INDIVIDUAL REPORT Indeed, there is a powerful relationship between humans and objects in today’s society. An object is a tangible something that one can take hold off with their senses. Some objects have the power to create social relations between humans, for example there is the trident and the wand that changes the image of a person who utilizes the object. Indeed, such are objects that allow the power of symbolism to give meaning to human activity.The trident is one of these objects that have the great power to create social relations. A trident is a long stick usually having a small double-u (w) looking symbol at the top of it. It’s a three-pronged spear known for giving social power to a person or vice versa, a powerful person in the society carries it and utilizes it to express their power. Although the object has many other uses such as fishing and also as a weapon, there are several examples in history where it would be carried just to symbolize power.In Hinduism, their God Shiva and the Roman God Neptune too are both are known for a trident being clutched to them most of the time. The trident gives a different image of one who carries it; it expresses their power to the society. In Roman myth, God Neptune used it to create earthquakes and other natural disasters as it was indeed a powerful object, and hence created social relations between the Gods and their worshippers as it allowed them to see the power it has.Today we obviously don’t see powerful people carrying it around; however, it is still seen in animated TV shows and movies to give a meaning to the character. It is seen in the little mermaid where King Triton bears it on him to convey his power to the rest of the creatures of the sea. Also in the Lion King, the monkey who is characterized to be an influential persona popping up when someone needs advice amongst the animal kingdom bears the trident on him at all times. Thus, again the object is able to create social relations amongst the characters.Another object that was discussed is the wand. The wand is a thin stick made from wood, of even sometimes metal. They are known to give a magical sense to one who bears it. The wand indeed also creates social relations amongst people as when one utilises a wand, he is will be known to be a person who performs magical spells. The wand is used to perform magical spells so therefore, the one who bears it is conveyed by the society to have great power as wands can only be owned and used by a fairy, wizard, witch or a sorcerer.Wands are known to have also created social relations in historical myths and legends. In Roman myths, Mercury also beared a wand that allowed the worshippers to have a powerful view of Mercury amongst the society. In fairy tales and other science fiction, the magic wand is used to do many powerful acts used for good and evil. Evil acts include defeating or transforming people into animals and good acts can include used for protect ion or other useful acts like opening a locked door.Some fairytales in which the wand is used widely is Cinderella where the fairy godmother would have the power to perform good acts such as make Cinderella beautiful and grant her clothes to go to the ball. Furthermore, in today’s world we most often exposed to wands and their magic in popular fiction novels and movies/TV shows. A well known novel plus movie is Harry Potter. Harry Potter is a wizard who studies at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. His aim in the movie is to defeat his enemy Lord Voldemort who killed his parents.Everything in the fictional movie is pretty done through the power of the wand. The good acts, the bad acts by wizards and witches gives viewers insight to how a single object can create such social relations in a society. Indeed, a single object can have the power to shape ones image of a persona. Indeed, in the modern world, the relationship between objects and humans has developed to becom e a great influence on the view one has for another in the society. It is evident that the triton and the wand both are very good examples of such objects enhance their powers to create social relations amongst humanity.A Trident has been used in history and even today in fiction movies to allow a view of a persona to be great and powerful. Similarly, the wand also creates social relations amongst a society where one can be seen as a normal person and just by bearing a wand; he will be seen to be a wizard whom can perform magical spells. Indeed, Objects can enhance the power of symbolism and give a different meaning to a person. REFERENCES http://www. ehow. com/about_4759212_magic-wand-stories. html http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Trident

Great Depression

Mrs. Russell Cause and Effect Essay English 101-80 Great Depression What caused the Great Depression, the worst economic depression in US history? It was not just one factor, but instead a combination of domestic and worldwide conditions that led to the Great Depression. The causes aand effects of the Great Depression was huge across the world, here are three top causes and effects of the Great Depression. Stock Market Crash of 1929 was one of the major causes that led to the Great Depression.Two months after the original crash in October, stockholderzs had lost more than $40 billion dollars. By the end of 1930, the stock market tried to regain some of its losses but it was not enough and America truly entered the Great Depression. Throughout the 1930s, over 9,000 banks failed. Bank deposits were uninsured and thus as banks failed people simply lost their savings. Surviving banks was unsure of the economic situation and concerned for their own survival, stopped being as willing to cr eate new loans.This exacerbated the situation leadig to less and less expenditures. When the stock market crashed, and the banks failed and unemployment levels reached higher and higher pointsw people understandably stopped spending money, which also deeped the economic crisis as demand for products and services slowly stopped. First effect is Stock Market and Banking regulations, after the stock market crash of 1929 and collapse of more then 40% of American banks, strict trading and banking regulations put in place.For financial protection newly formed Securities and Exchange Commission and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation for financial protection. Second effect is when Franklin D. Roosevelt’s introduced programs between 1933 and 1930, designed to help America pull out of the Great Depression by addressing high rates of unemployment and poverty. FDR and Congress introduced regulationzs and subside: the cornerstones of the New Deal wetre the Public Works Administrati on and the National Recovery Administration.Third effect is when many people learned some valuable things about managing their money and doing the best they could with what they had. Children grew up to be very imaginative and inventive. They appreciated the things they had access to in their life because they never forgot just how little they once had. The Great Depression ended in the 1939 as the world increased the production of the war materials with the outbreak of WWII. War production increased jobs and hence large amounts of money were reintrodu ced to circuklate in the economy. Great Depression Steinbeck teaches us that as humans, loneliness and the desire for companionship is inevitable and in this cruel world where we are all set again t one another as rivals for the resources needed to survive, true friendships are to be cherisher d for they are hard to come by. As humans, we are all subject to loneliness at some points in our lives, and we all desire companionship, no matter how indifferent we may act to mask that desire. In by John Steinbeck, Curler's wife is incredibly lonely as the only woman on the ranch and is often isolated from the ranch hands who view her as trouble.She is often see n prancing around the ranch in the pretense of searching for her husband and often attempts to engage other ranch hands in friendly conversation. During her conversation in the stables with Car kooks, Candy, and Leonie, she remarked, ‘Effendi I don't like to talk to somebody ever' once in a w hill? Think like to stick in that house all time? â€Å"‘ (Steinbeck, 77). This was particularly imp rotary as it displays her loneliness and desire for companionship. However, her friendly sees is often seen as flirtatiousness to the other men, and this results in their view of her as an unfed dutiful and dangerous woman.Crooks, just like Curlers wife, suffers from loneliness as w ell, though his isolation results from his race instead of his words and actions. As shown during Eng his conversation with Leonie in the stables, Crooks remarks that â€Å"if he sees something', he don't know whether its right or not† and he has no one to ask and â€Å"nothing to measure by† (Steinbeck 73). He had also cried that if â€Å"a guy gets too lonely an' he gets sick† (Steinbeck 73). This was IM portent as well for it showed just how desperately we desire companionship.If we had no on e besides us, we get so lonely and desperate that we became sick due to the lack of company. The desire for companionship and loneliness are inevitable parts of human li fe that we all ex pertinence from time o time, though we may all deal with it in various methods, with some acting more indifferent than others. In this world with a population of around 7 billion and extremely limited ores urges, we are born into a dotage world. The competition for resources took a turn f or the worse when the Great Depression hit in the asses. Futures this harsh reality in which men are set against each other in a competition for the sparse jobs and machined De money, which was then used to purchase a piece of land. This was the dream of every men, but alas, in a world of worsening economy, very few saw their dream to fruition. As Curlers wife had observed in the novella, if she engaged one man in a conversation, they'd get along just if en and have a nice chat. However, if she attempts to engage a group of men in a conversation, the eyed all be too scared of each to talk to her, they'd be too scared that the others may â€Å"get so meeting' on them.This observat ion shows the hostility hidden beneath the pretense of friendly sees the men have with one another. The minute the rest â€Å"gets something† on one of the men, the eyed eliminate him so they'd have less competition for the resources, in this case, money and job s. When Candy, George, and Leonie were first entertaining the idea of owning a stake together r, George had warned them not to tell a soul for ‘they liable to can us so we can't make no SST aka† (Steinbeck 61 This warning displays the distrust among the men.Perhaps this is why true e friends pips are cherished and mourned when lost, for in this hostile world, it is difficult to co me by, but a great blessing in times of hardship. The world is cruel and hostile, and men are all says out to get one another. Loneliness and the desire for companionship is inevitable, we will all expire once it in our bedtime at one point or another, and it will only teach us to cherish our comma onions more.After all, true com panions are hard to come by in this harsh reality in which we are all born as rivals battling for the same limited resources we need to survive. Steinbeck had, thro cough his profound use and command of the English language, taught us, to put it in the simplest way, how to understand one another better. The key to communication and relations ammo Eng people is the understanding of each other, and through , Steinbeck has taught us just how we can begin to understand one another. Great Depression Mrs. Russell Cause and Effect Essay English 101-80 Great Depression What caused the Great Depression, the worst economic depression in US history? It was not just one factor, but instead a combination of domestic and worldwide conditions that led to the Great Depression. The causes aand effects of the Great Depression was huge across the world, here are three top causes and effects of the Great Depression. Stock Market Crash of 1929 was one of the major causes that led to the Great Depression.Two months after the original crash in October, stockholderzs had lost more than $40 billion dollars. By the end of 1930, the stock market tried to regain some of its losses but it was not enough and America truly entered the Great Depression. Throughout the 1930s, over 9,000 banks failed. Bank deposits were uninsured and thus as banks failed people simply lost their savings. Surviving banks was unsure of the economic situation and concerned for their own survival, stopped being as willing to cr eate new loans.This exacerbated the situation leadig to less and less expenditures. When the stock market crashed, and the banks failed and unemployment levels reached higher and higher pointsw people understandably stopped spending money, which also deeped the economic crisis as demand for products and services slowly stopped. First effect is Stock Market and Banking regulations, after the stock market crash of 1929 and collapse of more then 40% of American banks, strict trading and banking regulations put in place.For financial protection newly formed Securities and Exchange Commission and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation for financial protection. Second effect is when Franklin D. Roosevelt’s introduced programs between 1933 and 1930, designed to help America pull out of the Great Depression by addressing high rates of unemployment and poverty. FDR and Congress introduced regulationzs and subside: the cornerstones of the New Deal wetre the Public Works Administrati on and the National Recovery Administration.Third effect is when many people learned some valuable things about managing their money and doing the best they could with what they had. Children grew up to be very imaginative and inventive. They appreciated the things they had access to in their life because they never forgot just how little they once had. The Great Depression ended in the 1939 as the world increased the production of the war materials with the outbreak of WWII. War production increased jobs and hence large amounts of money were reintrodu ced to circuklate in the economy. Great Depression If someone went to prison in 1989 and was released in the year 2000, he would probably be surprised by how drastic change can be in ten years can bring. When 1990 started, people were still communicating through letters and the telephone. The Bible was still the greatest bestseller and people used the word â€Å"terror† to describe how scared they were of their neighbor’s dog. By the end of 1999, however, children were engrossed with a new book. People were sending e-mails to their loved ones, and our idea of terror has been redefined.The 90s was shaped by things we could not have imagined, things that have brought about major changes in our lives. Though the decade was made of numerous and note-worthy events, this paper will zero in on three factors that best define the 1990s in America: the story that mattered to the young, the technology that changed the face of communication, and the heartbreak that we suffered as a nation. In trying to define the 1990s in America, it is important that we take a look at the decade’s popular literary works. Literature is an important indicator of the times.By reading the popular literature of the early 1920s, we see a generation dried out by the. If we read the poetry and fiction of the Beat writers, we see a carefree generation of the late 50’s ready to break into the sexual revolution of the 60s. I’ve always thought of literature as a reflection of a people’s state of mind. It is, after all, the collection of stories of people. And people only write stories of the things that truly matter to them. Ironically, in the 90s, the most popular story ever told could not have happened to anyone.That would just be silly. No 11-year-old boy could have found out that he was a wizard and then went off to wizardry school. But that is exactly the premise of the most popular book of the 90s —Harry Potter. The premise does sound pretty simple, but author JK Rowling managed to craft intricat e storylines of various adventures, with mysteries being deliciously unraveled along the way. The result? The highest selling children’s book in history. No other children’s book has ever made much of an impact as â€Å"the boy who lived†.From then on there were several other books written about magic, wizards, vampires, robots, things not of this earth. And I think this is indicative of what we as a people are ready for. We are a generation ready to be bewildered, to consider things outside our immediate reality. Wiktorin, in his paper about how the Harry Potter books relate to contemporary life, states that â€Å"constructing a world different to the ordinary one and marketing this, can certainly be a very lucrative enterprise† (2). This is exactly what Harry Potter and all the fantasy books of the nineties have offered us.A constructed world so different from our own, but governed by the rules and emotions that are quintessentially human. This readines s to consider things outside our realm went hand in hand with the explosion of the internet in the nineties. In 1984, if you were a lonely kid in school, you went home and dealt with it. In 1998, a nerdy 13-year-old who probably feels ill at ease with his schoolmates can log in on the internet after school and find an online community of people to talk to. In the 1990s, the internet was really primarily used for communication.The e-mail and the chat functions were the most popular internet activities. A study conducted by Axel Franzen shows that email increases social involvement and regression analysis shows that Internet users have 24% more friends (Lesnard, 4). The world got a lot smaller, and getting in touch was just a few clicks away. The amount of information that the World Wide Web has brought to individuals cannot be emphasized enough. If Harry Potter led us to believe or consider things that are outside our realm, the internet allowed us to think of the things that existed beyond our personal reality.It allowed us to be tolerant of differences, because these differences are no longer miles away from us. We hear about it a few clicks away. The things that we can see on the internet can also be seen by people with internet in China. It equalizes us somehow and allows us to interact in astounding ways. As much as Harry Potter brought about a considerable amount of whimsical escape and the internet allowed us to be more aware of others’ cultures and differences, certain events of the 90s unfortunately gave us first-hand experience of evil.In the middle of the decade, America experienced its first terror attack through the Oklahoma Bombing. Despite the number of wars that have been fought by our country, a terror attack was so surprising because it just didn’t make sense. The Oklahoma bombing wasn’t an unfortunate result of any military operation. It wasn’t the work of some psychotic man. It wasn’t an accidental occurren ce. Rather, it was a carefully calculated plan with the sole purpose of terrorizing people. The perpetrators were apprehended and convicted, and the reasons behind their actions was said to be disappointment with how the U.S government handled past issues. Instead of letting their opinions known through protests, they took a course of action as arbitrary as it is terrorizing. The Oklahoma Bombing killed 108 people, including babies on daycare. This terrorist attack reminded us of the need for security, to protect our nation from people who are on the mission to destroy it. When it comes to vigilance against terrorism, â€Å"unlike most other enterprises, success and failure are measured according to the number of lives saved and lost† (Manzi, et. al. , 10).We cannot afford to lose the war against terror, as it will mean losing precious lives. After the Oklahoma bombing, the government implemented tighter security measures and that has stopped numerous other terror attempts. H owever there still continues to be groups of people who vehemently disagree with what America stands for as a nation. So much so, that they are willing to kill thousands of people just to show their hatred and defiance. Sadly, they succeeded again in 2001, when we found ourselves dealing with the horror that is 9/11.Every year we learn something new. Every decade stands for something. But during 1990s, aside from learning the Macarena and wearing baby doll dresses with high cut boots, aside from thinking that boy bands were actually cool, we grew a lot as a nation. The internet has shown us that the world as we know it could be perceived as an entirely different world for others. And it is important to be tolerant of differences, to respect differences. Terror attacks have shown us the extreme effects of our intolerance.Even the preferred choice of reading material shows that we are ready to tolerate changes, unlike Harry Pottter’s human family who can’t accept the fac t that he’s a wizard. There is still so much to be learned, so many virtues to put into practice, and knowledge to be put in use. But I’d love to believe that the experiences we had in the 90s helped us a lot. And in retrospect, I hope that I will also consider this decade as great as the one it preceded. Works Cited: Lesnard, L. †Social Change, Daily Life, and the Internet†, Chimera Working Paper, 2005-07: Retrieved on 17 November 2008, http://hal.archives-ouvertes. fr/docs/00/04/46/29/PDF/CWP-2005-07-Lesnard-Social-Change. pdf Wiktorin, Pierre. â€Å"Constructing a Distinct Other: Harry Potter and the Enchantment of the Future† 17 May 2005. Retrieved on 17 November 2008, http://www. anpere. net/2007/12. pdf Manzi, Powers, & Zetterlund. â€Å"Critical Information Flows in the Alfred P. Murrah Building Bombing: A Case Study†. The Terrorism Studies Series. Retrieved on 17 November 2008. http://www. mipt. org/pdf/murrahcasestudy. pdf