Definitions Week 1 - 2049 Words

Definitions Define the following terms using your text or other resources. Cite all resources consistent with APA guidelines. TermDefinitionResource you usedTime value of moneyA dollar received today is worth more than a dollar received in the future. Conversely, a dollar received in the future is worth less than a dollar received today.Titman, S., Keown, A. J., Martin, J. D. (2014).Financial Management. Principles and Applications(12th ed.). Pearson Education.Efficient marketWhen money is put into the stock market, the goal is to generate a return on the capital invested. Many investors try not only to make a profitable return, but also to outperform, or beat, the market.However, market efficiency - championed in theefficient market†¦show more content†¦Cash flow is the amount of cash that can actually be taken out of the business over this same interval.Titman, S., Keown, A. J., Martin, J. D. (2014).Financial Management. Principles and Applications(12th ed.). Pearson Education.Project managementProject management is the application of processes, methods, knowledge, skills and experience to achieve the project objectives.What is Project Management.(n/a).Retrieved on August 11, 2014 from HYPERLINK http//www.apm.org.uk/WhatIsPM http//www.apm.org.uk/WhatIsPM Outsourcing and offshoringOutsourcingrefers to an organization contracting work out to a 3rd party, whileoffshoringrefers to getting work done in a different country, usually to leverage cost advantages. Its possible to outsource work but not offshore it for example, hiring an outside law firm to review contracts instead of maintaining an in-house staff of lawyers. It is also possible to offshore work but not outsource it for example, a Dell customer service center in India to serve American clients.Offshore outsourcingis the practice of hiring a vendor to do the work offshore, usually to lower costs and take advantage of the vendors expertise, economies of scale, and large and scalable labor pool.Offshoring vs. Outsourcing.(n/a).Retrieved on August 11, 2014 from HYPERLINK http//www.diffen.com/difference/Offshoring_vs_OutsourcingShow MoreRelatedOi 361 - Week 1 - Definitions Paper825 Words   |  4 PagesDefinitions Paper What are creativity, innovation, and design, and how are these concepts important to meeting the objectives of an organization? To understand these concepts they must first be defined. Webster’s dictionary (http://www.merriam-webster.com) defines creativity as the â€Å"Ability to produce something new through imaginative skill, whether a new solution to a problem, a new method or device, or a new artistic objects or form. The term generally refers to a richness of ideas and originalityRead MoreProj 430 Course Guide Week 1 - 81230 Words   |  5 Pages430 Course Guide Week 1 - 8 Purchase here https://sellfy.com/p/pgnb/ Product Description (PROJ 430 Advance Project Management) PROJ 430 Week 1 Checkpoint Assignment PROJ 430 Week 1 DQ 1 Project Functional Manager Differences PROJ 430 Week 1 DQ 2 Projects and Organizational Structures PROJ 430 Week 1 Project Definition PROJ 430 Week 2 Checkpoint Assignment PROJ 430 Week 2 DQ 1 The Project Kick-Off PROJ 430 Week 2 DQ 2 Project Planning Documents PROJ 430 Week 2 Project OrganizationRead MoreIs4550 Week 5 Lab1611 Words   |  7 Pages------------------------------------------------- Week 5 Laboratory: Part 1 Part 1: Assess and Audit an Existing IT Security Policy Framework Definition Learning Objectives and Outcomes Upon completing this lab, students will be able to complete the following tasks: * Identify risks, threats, and vulnerabilities in the 7 domains of a typical IT infrastructure * Review existing IT security policies as part of a policy framework definition * Align IT security policies throughout theRead MoreHcs 533 Study Education on Your Terms/Hcs533Study.Com Essay866 Words   |  4 PagesHCS 533 Week 1 Individual Assignment Definition Worksheet (2 Answer) FOR MORE CLASSES VISIT www.hcs533study.com This Tutorial contains 2 Answers for each Question HCS 533 Week 1 Definition Worksheet Definition of Terms The health care environment is constantly changing, new systems arise every day with terminology of their own to reflect the changes. As a health care professional, it is important for you to stay up-to-date with the terminology and its proper use. Define each termRead MoreHCS 405 Week 1 Health Care Financial Terms Worksheet Paper1042 Words   |  5 Pagesï » ¿HCS 405 week 1 Health Care Financial Terms Worksheet Paper Introduction The HCS 405 week 1 financial terms worksheet throws light on some of the most basic concepts of the healthcare business. Understanding health care financial terms is a prerequisite for both academic and professional success. The health care business helps the nation by providing the building blocks that the citizens need to live a successful and healthy life. The worksheet is intended to ensure that the students understandRead MoreEssay on Definitions of Health1228 Words   |  5 PagesDefinitions of health It is fairly difficult to define health as there are no agreements between scholars. This is why many sociologists focus their research on the different issues and problems of ill health. Positive definition of health: positive health looks at the physical, emotional, intellectual aspects of a person’s wellbeing. This is in the way that they do not have any diseases or ailments. An example of the positive definition of health in a health and social care is a nurse in whoRead MoreProblem Shieet 21751 Words   |  4 Pagesanswers should show all steps but be concise and to the point. †¢ Your answer report should be prepared in WORD and printed in A4 or letter size sheets. Solve the following problems. (Numbered problems are from the textbook 8th edition.) 1. Mr. Smith would like to set up a package delivery service for 7 cities (Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, D.C., Los Angeles, New York, and San Francisco). If a flight line covers a round trip between cities, how many flight lines are needed to connect 7 citiesRead MoreHealthcare Information Systems1063 Words   |  5 PagesPost Week 1 Health Care Information Systems Terms HCS/483 Healthcare Information Systems - Week 1 Name: Guidelines: Please use this form to submit your assignment and NOT the one on the UOPX website. Define the following terms. Your definitions must be in your own words; do not copy them from the textbook. After you have defined each term in your own words, describe in at least 50 words the health care setting in which each term would be applied. Utilize a minimum of two researchRead MoreSymptoms And Diagnosis Of Measles, Mumps, And Rubella1658 Words   |  7 Pagesdiseases: (a) Mumps Organism: Virus: Paramyxovirdae Transmission: air Bourne droplets or by direct contact with the saliva of an infected person Incubation period: can range from 12-25 days but is usually 16-18 days Infectious period: ranges from 1 week to 9 days after the onset of parotitis Notification: To the local medical officer of health Prevention method: Measles, Mumps, and Rubella (MMR) vaccine. And cases should be excluded from early childhood services or school until 9 days after the onsetRead MoreNur502 All Weeks Discussions Latest720 Words   |  3 PagesNUR502 All Weeks Discussions Latest Click Link Below To Buy: http://hwcampus.com/shop/nur502-all-weeks-discussions-latest/ NUR502 Week 1 Discussion DQ1 DQ 2 Latest 2015 DQ 1 What comparisons can be found between the GCU Mission and Domains/CON Mission and Program Competencies (for your selected specialty track, links located in the Course Materials) with the AACNs Essentials for Masters Education for Advanced Practice Nursing (link located in the Week 1 Topic Materials)? Explain your rational

Life and Death in Frosts Stopping by Woods and Thomas...

Life and Death in Frosts Stopping by Woods and Thomas Do Not Go Gentle Robert Frosts Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening and Dylan Thomas Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night reflect deeply on both life and death. Frost interprets death as rest and peace from a hard and deserving life, whereas Thomas depicts death as an early end to an unfulfilled life. Contrary to Thomass four characters who rage against death because of its premature arrival, Frosts speaker accepts death but is inclined to live for promises; therefore both Frost and Thomas choose life over death, but for conflicting reasons. Robert Frosts deeply-rooted beliefs in nature influence him to view death positively. Through enticing images of solitude†¦show more content†¦Contrary to Frost?s peaceful, luring diction and images, Dylan Thomas uses forceful, irate words to deter death. No poet gives a greater sense of the feel of life as Thomas, who provokes the reader to rage against death (Ackerman 407). Thomas conveys a resistance towards death with images of fury and fighting, as in do not go gentle. Vivacious words as blaze and burn intensify desires to live on and to the fullest. With images of good night and dying of the light, Thomas conveys death as the end where only darkness prevails (Savage 381). He takes his stand within concrete, particular existence, he places birth and death at the poles of his vision (Savage 381). Life [for Thomas] begins at birth and ceases at death therefore leaving no room for a previous life or an after life (Savage 381). Excessive images of anger and rage towards dea th exemplify the passion Thomas feels for life. His villanelle repeats the theme of living and fury through the most forceful two lines, do not go gentle into that good night and rage, rage against the dying of the light. Contrasting images of light and darkness in the poem create the warmth of living and the coldness in death, so as to shun people from choosing the bleak, bitter frigidity of death. Where as Thomas equates coldness to death, Frost equates coldness to life. Frost?s traveler is weary and tired and only feels the numbness around him. He elucidates on one man with the wish to die butShow MoreRelated Life and Death in Thomas Do Not Go Gentle and Frosts Stopping by Woods 2066 Words   |  9 PagesLife and Death in Thomas Do Not Go Gentle and Frosts Stopping by Woods  Ã‚        Ã‚   Carpe Diem(seize the day) is a Latin phrase which has come to denote an important literary motif especially common in lyric poetry: the encouragement to make the most of present life while it lasts, or to live for the moment, (The UVic Writers Guide). Both Robert Frosts Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening and Dylan Thomass Do Not Go Gentle explore the idea that people should attempt to live life

Sarbanesâ€Oxley Act free essay sample

The section also imposes fines and imprisonment up to twenty years for knowingly destroying documents or falsifying records that impend a legal investigation (Sarbanes). The strict fines and penalties help to detour accountants and business employees from participating in fraud and other illegal activities. There are also many other parts of the Sarbanes Oxley Act that help protect investors and minimize corporate fraud. CEO’s and CFO’s are required to personally certify the accuracy of financial reports (Bumgardner, 2003). CEO’s and CFO’s that partake in falsifying statements also face strict penalties, up to ten years for knowing and up to twenty years if willing (Bumgardner, 2003). I think this part of the Act was in response to scandals such as Enron and Worldcom. The CEO’s and CFO’s of those corporations that participated in fraud were made examples of, but to keep CEO’s from participating in these frauds they made a law to detour them and to keep these type of people from having the legal defense of not knowing. Also to protect investors in these cases of fraud, any public company that makes a required restatement due to misconduct, the CEO can be forced to forfeit any bonuses or profits gained from selling company stock for a one year period ( Bumgardner, 2003). The Sarbanes Oxley Act also requires all material off the balance sheet transactions and special purpose entities be disclosed in annual and quarterly financial statements (Bumgardner, 2003). Previous to the Sarbanes Oxley Act off the balance sheet financing occurred to frequently and was not being disclosed properly, leading to financial tatements that were not fairly stated or true representations of a corporations finances. The establishment of the PCAOB, Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, was perhaps the most fundamental change made by the Sarbanes Oxley Act (Ernst amp; Young). The PCAOB inspects auditing firms. For firms that perform annual audits of more than 100 issuers the inspections are annual, for firms that perfo rm less than 100 the inspections are at least every third year (Ernst amp;Young). The PCAOB has enforcement power against auditing firms that violate laws, regulations, and professional standards. The board also imposed new auditing independence standards in response to Anderson’s audits of Enron may have been compromised by the fact the accounting firm was earning more from Enron from consulting services than for auditing (Bumgardner, 2003). Now an auditor is prohibited from providing services such as bookkeeping, appraisals, financial information systems design, and many more (Bumgardner, 2003). However, Congress did choose not to impose a complete ban on consulting services and still allow auditors to provide tax services (Bumgardener, 2003). Another important implementation is that SEC requires lead auditors and concurring audit partners to rotate off that client’s audit every five years (Bumgardner, 2003). The Sarbanes Oxley Act also expanded the responsibilities of audit committees, and requires the boards of companies listed on the US stock exchange to consist of audit committees completely separate from management (Bumgardner, 2003). One major issue to public accounting firms in response to the Sarbanes Oxley Act was the extra costs the firms would have to charge clients to keep within regulations of the Act. However, the benefits to the profession outweigh the costs in my opinion. The Act protects accounting firms and the clients they service. I believe that the accounting profession is better off being government regulated than self regulated. It is just simple logic that every successful group needs a leader. Without laws and punishments for breaking them their or no deterrents for committing crime. Also, before the Sarbanes Oxley Act was put into effect and the PCAOB appointed the accounting profession was losing creditability, and major changes had to take place to ain back the public’s confidence in the profession. A firms internal controls are only as good as the people implementing them. Guidelines had to be established to get internal controls to the point that they could prevent fraud. However, many accountants would argue with government regulation being the best alternative. An article, written by Michael Shaub, CPA argues that the profession has been self regulated for fifteen years of his career (Shaub, 2010). He argues that almost every financial scandal goes back to the CFO whom is almost always a CPA, for example Andy Fastow of Enron, Mark Swartz of Tyco International, and Scott Sullivan of WorldCom (Shaub, 2010). He goes on to say that it was them whom were not self regulated not the profession. He states, â€Å"They did not care about public interest, peoples pension plans, or parent’s dreams for their children (Shaub, 2010). † â€Å"Because they could not control themselves, because they were not self regulated, Congress made the entire profession pay the price (Shaub, 2010). My argument to Mr. Shaub is that although all of his points are very valid, often time the majority must pay the price for a few. Sometimes people get made examples of in order to detour further persons from engaging in the same activities. In fact almost all of the laws known to man came about from the acts of a few not the majority. So almost every argument against every law would be the same as his argument. I would like to say that I predict that corporate fraud will decrease based on the requirements of audits of publically traded companies as required by the Sarbanes Oxley Act. However, from my research it is not looking like this will be the case. A recent report from the PCAOB found that deficient audits performed by the Big Four accounting firms doubled in 2010, reaching a rate of about thirty three percent (Brehmer, 2012). Mr. Brehmer states, â€Å"similar in the way that auditing standards aren’t guaranteed to discover fraud; SOX can’t be relied upon to shine the spotlight on independence regulations (Brehmer, 2012). Mr. Brehmer is a former partner at one of the Big Four, and isn’t the least bit surprised that fraud hasn’t decreased. He admits that ten years ago when the SOX Act originally came about many firms were going exactly by the book, but now they seem to be creeping back in to their old practices. The bottom line is firms face pressure to increase profits. It seems auditing firms are using their audit influence to win work, after which they audit their own work (Brehmer, 2012). In years to come this will lead to more disasters. Brehmer also goes on to say, â€Å"That while the good parts of SOX are being eroded, the bad parts remain (Brehmer, 20120. Because the law has imposed so many regulations and requirements and thousands of questions to be answered audit reports are becoming thicker and thicker and even the competent CFO could overlook something. I have to say I agree with Brehmer. I think that SOX has good intentions but that has to be some way of simplifying some of this. The more complicated the law becomes for auditing standards the more costs involved and the more room there is for companies to try and find shortcuts, it’s human nature. Works Cited Brehmer, Thomas. November 30, 2012. Sarbanes Oxley Has Failed to Address the Problem of Audit Firm Independence. Retrieved from www. accountingtoday. com on May 20, 2013. Bumgardner, Larry. 2003. Volume 6 Issue 1. How does the Sarbanes Oxley Act Impact American Business? Retrieved from www. pepperdine. edu on May 20, 2013. Ernest amp; Young. The Impact of the PCAOB and Effect on Audit Committees. Retrieved from www. ey. com on May 20, 2010. Sarbanes Oxley Act 2002. Sarbanes-Oxley Section 802. Retrieved from www. soxlaw. com On May 20, 2010. Schaub, Micheal. April 21, 2010. What Self Regulation Look Like. Retrieved from www. maysbusiness. tamu. edu on May 20, 2010.

Murder In The Cathedral Essays - Murder In The Cathedral, Literature

Murder In The Cathedral Murder in the Cathedral I believe the conflict and change within the main character, Thomas Beckett, was very drastic. Thomas went from running away from his problems, to facing them and ultimate killing himself because of it. At the beginning of the play Thomas was running away from people that wanted to kill him or hurt him, because of his belief that the king didn't have power over the church. Throughout the play, Thomas questioned himself on why he was doing what he was doing, and in the end he decided that if death was coming he couldn't cheat it. I admire Thomas on how made his final decision based on what he truly believed. Thomas's final decision, was what he believed in. I think that if he was content with his decision and if he felt that it was the best choice, than I am happy for him and don't disagree that he should have waited for the knights to calm down. I think that the personification of the Tempters helped a great deal in the play. I feel that the tempters helped the reader understand why Thomas did what he did and they also helped the reader understand and put Thomas thoughts in order of importance to him. I liked it how they described how Thomas could have so much and be happy if he would just go along with the king, instead of against him. I feel that without the tempters, the play wouldn't have shown the reader the reason behind Thomas's decisions. I feel that the significance of the Christmas Sermon was to tell the people that he would probably be leaving them and it would be his last sermon. Thomas talked about how a martyr is a special thing and that only special people that will remembered forever receive that great honor. To me, it seemed as though he thought maybe he would be a martyr or that he might not because of his reasons behind the decisions he made, either way he wanted the people to remember him. I think that the reason why the playwright chose not to have the king appear, is because there was no real need for him. The kings thoughts and decisions were well spoken by other people that relayed messages for the king. Whatever the king wanted said or done, he could and would have others do it for him. I don't think that it would be believable for the king to visit Thomas, either. I think that a king wouldn't be dumb enough to go out among people that loved Thomas and confront him. I think that the chorus was very important, because they predicted the future. Like at the beginning, when they said someone will die and that the people did fine without Thomas. Also, toward the end of the play, they also foresee Thomas's death in the cathedral. Without the chorus, I think things would definitely have come as a shock to the reader and there would have been more to question. Overall, the chorus did help set some scenes up, but I think the play may have been more interesting without them. I think the reason for the knights explanation was very simple, to protect themselves and to help the reader understand that it was not necessarily a good thing they did even if it was their job. I also feel that they did it to explain that it was, in some ways, good for the people also. His death would bring everything divided together, because there would not be anyone against the kings plan. The knights also explained to the people that Thomas had a chance for a good life and harmony, but he through it away. They tell the people that Thomas is the one that messed with the harmony and changed things for the worse. Overall, I liked the play, but as I said earlier, it was to predictable and they almost told you what was going to happen before it did. I liked it how Thomas stuck to his beliefs and based his decisions on what he thought was right, no matter what happened. Finally, I also liked it, because it showed me why church and state should be separated. It put it into perspective and proved that it isn't a good idea. I think this story should be used as an example in history classes when discussing the separation of

The Inhibitory Effect Of Heavy Metals, Such As Hg, Cu and Ag essays

The Inhibitory Effect Of Heavy Metals, Such As Hg, Cu and Ag essays The Inhibitory Effect Of Heavy Metals, Such As Hg, Cu and Ag, on the Growth of B. Cereus, E. Coli, M. Luteus and P. putida For over two hundred years, since the beginning of industrialization, man has searched for effective methods of controlling diseases and the growth of bacteria in various different fields (for example, in the eutrophication of lakes). Heavy metals have been a common component used to control the spread of bacteria, some working to a greater extent than others on assorted types of bacteria. However, is there a heavy metal that controls a wide range of bacteria effectively, or must we continually use specific elements on select types of colonies in order to achieve near-sterility? The purpose of this lab report is to, if possible, identify one particular heavy metal that effectively inhibits growth of all the selected bacteria, or identify whether each type of bacteria has a specific heavy metal that has a more powerful effect in controlling growth. This study is important in that if one heavy metal can be found to inhibit the growth of bacteria most effectively, then antiseptic indus tries may choose to use one particular heavy metal over others in sterilizing solutions. Four types of bacteria will be focused on in this study: B. cereus, E. coli, M. luteus and P. putida. Each will have the effects of three heavy metals, which are in solution form, tested on them. The heavy metal solutions to be used will be mercuric iodide (HgI2), silver nitrate (AgNO3), and copper sulfate (CuSO4). Their effectiveness will be judged on the size of the zones of inhibition that form around the filter paper soaked in the solutions. I predict that overall the mercury compound will have the most detrimental effect (and therefore larger zones of inhibition) on the four selected bacteria types, since it is known that, in general, it has very harmful effects on other living organisms. A similar study conducted by Schmidt and Schlegel on ...

Iron Cage - Max Webers Theory of Rationality

Iron Cage - Max Webers Theory of Rationality One of the theoretical concepts that Max Weber, founding sociologist, is most well known for is the iron cage. Weber first presented this theory in his important and widely taught work,  The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism, however, he  wrote in German, so never actually used the phrase himself. It was American sociologist Talcott Parsons who coined it, in his original translation of Webers book, published in 1930. In the original work, Weber referred to a  stahlhartes Gehuse, which literally translated means housing hard as steel. Parsons translation into iron cage, though, is largely accepted as an accurate rendering of the metaphor offered by Weber. Understanding Webers Iron Cage In  The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism, Weber presented a carefully researched historical account of how a strong Protestant work ethic and belief in living frugally helped foster the development of the capitalist economic system in the Western world. Weber explained that as the force of Protestantism decreased in social life over time, the system of capitalism remained, as did the social structure and principles of bureaucracy that had evolved along with it. This bureaucratic social structure, and the values, beliefs, and worldviews that supported and sustained it, became central to shaping social life. It was this very phenomenon that Weber conceived of as an iron cage. The reference to this concept comes on page 181 of Parsons translation. It reads: The Puritan wanted to work in a calling; we are forced to do so. For when asceticism was carried out of monastic cells into everyday life, and began to dominant worldly morality, it did its part in building the tremendous cosmos of the modern economic order. Simply put, Weber suggests that the technological and economic relationships that organized and grew out of capitalist production became themselves fundamental forces in society. Thus, if you are born into a society organized this way, with the division of labor and hierarchical social structure that comes with it, you cant help but live within this system. As such, ones life and worldview are shaped by it to such an extent that one probably cant even imagine what an alternative way of life would look like. So, those born into the cage live out its dictates, and in doing so, reproduce the cage in perpetuity. For this reason, Weber considered the iron cage a massive hindrance to freedom. Why Sociologists Embrace Webers Iron Cage This concept proved very useful to social theorists and researchers who followed Weber. Most notably, the  critical theorists associated with the Frankfurt School  in Germany, who were active during the middle of the twentieth century, elaborated on this concept. They witnessed further technological developments and their impact on capitalist production and culture  and saw that these only intensified the ability of the iron cage to shape and constrain our behavior and thought. Webers concept remains important to sociologists today because the iron cage of techno-rational thought, practices, relations, and capitalism   now a global system   shows no signs of disintegrating anytime soon. The influence of this iron cage leads to some very serious problems that social scientists and others are now working to solve. For example, how can we overcome the force of the iron cage to address the threats of climate change, produced by the very cage itself? And, how can we convince people that the system within the cage is  not  working in their best interest, evidenced by the shocking wealth inequality that divides many Western nations?

Form a short story base on this conversation Essay

Form a short story base on this conversation - Essay Example He said it was just to see how the fields were coming along, but they both knew it was because she enjoyed the tractor rides. But a few months ago Uncle Vern hadn’t woken her up when he left on foot to check the fields. When she asked him about it he replied, â€Å"Oh I thought you might be getting too big for tractor rides.† Not only that, they had stopped asking about her homework. Aunt Marie always knew when report cards came out too, but this time she hadn’t asked to see it. A week later when Annelise was starting to wonder if she had truly become invisible she asked her Aunt Marie if something was wrong, because she hadn’t asked to see her report card. All she said was, â€Å"Well honey, you’re almost eighteen, you are responsible for your own grades.† Now she had begun to worry, The Eighteenth Birthday, the birthday when everything changes was here. Would she be kicked out of her home and expected to fend for herself? Was she no longer wanted now that she was â€Å"older?† As she walked down the stairs she pushed those thoughts aside and tried her hardest to smell coffee cake. Nothing. She saw her Aunt and Uncle reading the paper and drinking coffee. They looked up and said â€Å"happy birthday,† but then went back to reading. She made a bowl of cereal and stared at the Cheerios floating around in the milk. She began to wonder if things would have been different if her parents had lived. If the car crash had never happened would she be happier or in worse circumstances. Aunt Marie looked up from the paper. â€Å"Is something wrong Annelise?† â€Å"Well,† Annelise began, she knew an explanation was necessary, â€Å"it has kind of seemed like since I’ve been getting older the little things that I used to expect no longer happen.† All of the little things that had changed poured out of her at once, and her fears about what would happen after today tumbled out as well. When everything was out

Impact of Culture on International Marketing Strategy Assignment

Impact of Culture on International Marketing Strategy - Assignment Example From the international business perspective culture refers to the distinct way of living for the people of a particular society. The term culture includes but is not limited to values, beliefs, assumption, moral, ethics, religion, etc of a society. These factors of culture are gradually learned from the members of the society and are passed from one generation to others. It defines and determines the ways in which the people of a particular society live. In addition to this, the culture of a society also determines what is acceptable and what is unacceptable for a society (Helsen 2009). As the market of developed countries like UK are getting saturated, and because of high level of competition it become important for the organization to look for the new territories and markets (Doole and Lowe 2008). Markets of developing countries like India and China are in the state of evolution and their economy is booming, because of which there are good amount of opportunities are present for th e foreign organizations. This statement can be supported by the fact that sales rates for Coca-Cola get doubled every three years in the countries like India, China and Indonesia, whereas in developed countries its average growth rates are below 5% (Fletcher 2007). Thus it can be said that developing countries provides more growth opportunities in comparison to the developed countries. But to capitalize these opportunities it is important for the organization to adopt a strong marketing strategy for such international markets. Currently, companies like Coca-Cola are targeting the elite population of developing countries. Most of the firms having imperialist mindset, which made them to sell the same products without any change as per the needs of the new market and consumers. Most of the organization believes that with the increase in the income level, people will start using their products. But this approach of the organization will help them to utilize only a part of the total mark et. At this stage, the role of international marketing come into the act as it helps the organization to understand the different market drivers, through which organization can capitalize the market well. Different market drivers are technology, culture, competition, etc. (Giligan and Hird 1986)

Group Communications Essay Example for Free

Group Communications Essay Three videos of different group and team interaction will be reviewed for this paper. After they have been viewed they will be discussed on matters of the relationship between group members, member diversity and communication style. The first case study to be reviewed is: Helping Annie. In this video a school nurse has called a meeting with a psychiatrist and a social worker to discuss the case of a High school student, Annie, who possibly suffers from depression and an eating disorder. Right off the bat the school nurse is interrupted by the psychiatrist before she can finish giving the background information on Annie. He wants facts immediately not impressions. He makes a quick decision as to her problem and her treatment within minutes of their meeting and seems to believe that they are done, no more needs to be said. The Social worker does not agree with his decision and offers a counter solution but is again interrupted by the psychiatrist. The psychiatrist wants to use medication and the Social workers wants to first talk to Annie and see if they can understand what the teenager is going through. The psychiatrist sees this as a total waste of time. There does not seem to be any real facilitator of these meeting, and no one points out the psychiatrists constant interruptions of the social worker but the social worker herself. The school nurse is totally intimidated into silence by both of their behaviors. The psychologist seems to have the communication traits of what the test calls thinkers, and the Social worker has the traits of a feeler. According to the text, Thinks are task-oriented. They take pride in their ability to think objectively and logically, regardless of if those thoughts are correct. (Reeve, 2007, Ch. 3, pg.69, para.2) Feelers are people-oriented. The psychologist is very direct and analytical. He seems to want to remove any feelings or humanity from Annies case while the social worker is taking a more subjective, humane approach to Annies problems and is obviously more concerned with the girls well-being than a quick fix. The diversity that exists in this group is both gender and class. The group consist of two women and one older man, the older man, the psychiatrist,  seems to believe that the social worker and school nurse are not in the same class as he, his age, experience and profession making him superior to them on all levels, therefore, their opinions are not worth considering. This diversity is a hindrance in their communication because the psychologist is not listening to the two women and continues to interrupt them because he doesnt have much time here. If using a high context perspective the viewer could draw the conclusion that the psychologist does not agree with the social worker by watching his nonverbal behavior such as his gestures and facial expressions. In a high-context culture little meaning is expressed through words. Meaning can be conveyed through status such as age, gender, education or title. (Reeve, 2007) One method that could have been used to improve communications would have been to have a facilitator present to ensure that each party had the same amount of time to express his or her opinions. Another improvement would have been a change of setting from the informal setting to a more professional seating arrangement that may have helped foster communication between all parties present, such as a round table or face to face seating. The second video reviewed is: Planning the Playground. The group consists of three males and two females; three Caucasians and two minorities. The video case opens with two new members, one a younger male, Ray and one older woman, Betty, meeting the team for the first time. There seems to be two slightly awkward moments when Ray first only offers to shake the hands of the men at the table and when he has trouble pronouncing the name of the minority female Iesha. The moment was defused quickly when Iesha decided to make a small joke about her name to ease the tension and held out her own hand in greeting. Betty seemed uncertain about speaking and said she only joined the team to make friends. Communications between the team started out stiff and slow but by using team talk, (the nature of the language that group members use as they work together. Not only does team talk enable group members to share information and express opinions, but analysis of team talk also reveals where the team is coming from and where the team is headed.) (Reeve, 2007, Ch. 5 pg. 124, Para. 2), team leader David kept the discussion flowing and moved it to the reason they were there. The role the diversity of the group played in their communication was the different  experiences each had to bring to the discussion. Iesha obviously liked research and set numbers and offered not only a sound dollar amount to strive for but reasoning behind it. Ray countered that he thinks the amount should be higher but offered no real reason as did Phil who wanted the amount lower. After deciding to compromise they moved to fundraising. The immediate response to Bettys suggestion of having a Bake sale was obvious. They did not take her input seriously at all but again the team leader chimed in before their dismissive attitude could be considered rude and insulting. Di versity was also not a strong hindrance to the group even though the potential was there. Conflict management techniques were used by the group by expressing interest in solving the problem and keeping their tone and language non-threatening, using phrases like well, yes but lets look at it from a different angle or thats a good idea but may not be exactly what we need now.The use of team speak was a very effective communication tool that kept the team focused and on track. Another important tool that was used was nonverbal. The seating arrangement at the table permitted members to have their personal space but still be able to have direct eye contact. According to Reeve, each persons choice of seating position in groups has a direct effect on interaction and influence. A number of studies have demonstrated that group members prefercorner-to-corner or side-by-side seating for cooperative activities. Such an arrangement allows them to be close enough to share materials. (Reeve, 2007, CH. 5 pg. 138, Para 1) The team in this case study did show good communication skills on t he whole but the one improvement would have been to ensure that before the meeting took place, that each member understood what the reason for the meeting was. The last video reviewed is Virtual Communication. This video is a presentation of three people meeting as a team via conference call. The third unseen member is not listening to what is being said by the manager or his coworker. This is obvious because when they ask him a question he pauses or stutters, then repeats something that neither of the other participants actually said. Listening is important in any group so that you can be sure to get all the available information as well as know exactly what is  expected of you. This is even more so in the virtual business work when team members are not actually sitting face to face. Charlie is neither listening to what is being said or to the messages that were contained in Ellens email or voice mails to him. According to the text, Effective listening in virtual groups requires adapting to a different medium of expression Your only adaptation is making sure that your microphone is on or off at appropriate times. In an email discussion, however, you can neither see nor hear participants, but you still must listen to their messages. (Reeve, 2007, Ch.6, Pg,.168)The disadvantage of group meetings using a virtual medium is that you can fake listening by answering I agree or a non-committal sound. You can also pretend you didnt hear something that you dont want to address as Ellen does in this video when Charlie tries to place the blame on her. Charlie did not effectively use any of his listening skills while on this call. It was apparent by his distracted non-answers that he was not listening. The entire fault is not necessarily Charlies; it is not known if he ever fully understood what was expected of him from the first meeting. If he had at any time used one listening skill such as paraphrasing he might have had enough clarification to get his assignment done in time. Paraphrasing is a form of feedback that one lets the speaker know you are listening and gives them the opportunity to clarify their statement. Paraphrasing can be used for multiple purposes such as: To ensure comprehension before evaluation; to reassure others that you want to understand them; to clear up confusion and ask for clarification; and to help others reach their own conclusions. (Reeve, 2007) References Engleberg, I. Wynn,D. 2007. Working in Groups: Communication Principles and Strategies (4th ed.) Allyn Bacon Publishers. The Collaboration Tool Box. 2002-2003. MIT. Online resource. Retreived online January 12, 2009 from http://web.mit.e

Hiring Teachers :: Teaching Public Schools

Hiring Teachers Recruiting New Personnel Effectively Anyone interested in becoming a teacher? Please follow these basic procedures. First, you must go to the school board and picked up the teacher packet. It has to be filled out completely and turned in along with three references letters and all college transcripts. Secondly, you must set up an interview with a personnel person who will go over your qualifications and ask what grade or level you want to teach. Third, you must then set up an interview with the Personnel Director for elementary, middle, or high school. Fourth, you will receive a call to interview with the Principals at the schools that have openings for you. Fifth, you must wait until a principal calls and says that you have a position with them. Long and tedious would be the best words to describe this method of hiring personnel, yet, I know that even just four years ago these were the basic procedures that Duval County used for hiring teachers and other personnel. They did do some college fairs to attract attention and get a pool of people interested. I was hired through the local college fair, and the only step I was able to skip was step three. Other than college fairs there was no real recruitment that I am aware of, in my county. Many of these ancient ways of recruiting in modern times are not working. â€Å"The U.S. Department of Education has estimated that schools will need to hire more than two million teachers in the next decade† (Rodda, pg. 8) Not only will many teachers be retiring, but also many new teachers leave the field of education within the first five years for several reasons such as better money and better working conditions. How are schools to compete with the business world in recruiting qualified people who will teach and who will stay for the long haul? There are two schools in California who are using new methods to hopefully solve the problem to that question. Elk Grove is a district of 41,000 students outside of Sacramento. The first thing they have done is start recruiting â€Å"their own.† They are working with San Francisco State University’s Teacher Education Institute. By building a partnership the county is able to bring future teachers into the classroom and evaluate how they perform.

Describe the Limitations and Constraints of Marketing

P2-describe the limitations and constraints of marketing Limitations and constraints include; Sales of Goods Act 1979 Trade Descriptions Act 1968 Consumer Credit Act 2006 Data Protection Act 1968 Voluntary constraints Direct Marketing Association (DMA) Pressure groups and consumerism Acceptable language Sales of goods act 1979 The sales of goods act needs sellers to trade goods that are as they advertised and described. The good or service has to be of satisfactory quality.Effectively meaning that for an organisation like micro-soft, the goods and services must be described precisely when promoted because the company needs to be able to prove that the product can do what they say. Trading Regulations 2008 This act enables clients to equal treatment from businesses they deal with. Within this act, businesses can’t use fear to sell their products. Businesses can’t lie to promote products for example ‘closing down sale’ when they are going to stay open after t hem sale. So blackberry can’t advertise their products with features that they don’t have.The latest Blackberry boasts the best resolution screen of its kind, which then had to be verified and researched by an independent organisation to see it the statement, was true. Consumer Credit Acts 2006 These acts apply to businesses that offer goods or services on credit or companies that lend money to consumers. To be in this category, businesses must be licensed by the Office of Fair Trading (OFT), this would handle and include the method of calculating APR and the form and content of the agreement.The consumer credit act 2002 defends consumer’s rights when they purchase things on credit. When lending money, companies much have interest rates clearly identified and these can’t be changing them after. The Data Protection 1968 This Act means that any information taken by a salespersons can only be used for the reasoned mentioned when taken , it has to be precise and up to date, it can’t be taken for a longer period of time than the time mentioned when it was taken , and can only be taken properly and lawfully.It must be kept up to date because if someone dies it is put on the up date. Furthermore your information is protected from unauthorised use, and cannot be given on to other companies without your permission. Voluntary codes This is when businesses volunteers that they will never do something or they will always do something. This might include signing a code of practice mentioning specific behaviours and rules ethically, even though it can’t be legally enforced.

The Effectiveness of Celebrity Endorsement in Advertising

Advertising is one of the most effective strategies of non-price competition, that’s why it is closely associated and widely used in terms of monopolistic competition. Companies in monopolistic competitive market can not sell more of their differentiated product without lowering the price. Thus, advertising is a great instrument to gain more customers and increase the sales without cutting the price. Despite of different views on economic effectiveness of advertising, modern large companies in monopolistic competition spend millions of dollars for promotion of own brands, goods or services. It is a known tactic to employ celebrity endorsement for advertising own product. In particular, for many years Michael Jordan has been appearing in Nike ads, and the products of this company are associated with Jordan on global scale. Many companies use a celebrity or athlete for advertising its goods or services because celebrity endorsement attracts more attention of target audience, as well as it increases credibility and improves reputation of the brand in customers’ eyes, leading eventually to higher sales. Specialists comment that celebrity is already a known brand, and his/her endorsement of the product helps to make it more popular. â€Å"You have the core brand and then you have the celebrity brand, and, when that confluence is positive, the impact can be tremendous† (Storey, 2006). In my opinion, participation of professional athletes in ads of certain brands can be considered quite convincing and effective from two perspectives. First of all, only successful powerful companies, which offer mostly first-class quality products, can afford inviting famous sportsmen (like Michael Jordan or David Beckham) to advertise their goods. Besides, sport is a passion of people of different ages. Both children and adults around the world love sports very much, and that’s why target audience of such advertising is very large. Nevertheless, recently British specialists found out that currently the effectiveness of celebrity endorsement is firmly decreasing (BBC News, 2007). References Celebrity Ads' Impact Questioned. (2007, February 27). BBC News. The British Broadcasting Company. Retrieved February 25, 2008, from ;http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/somerset/6400419.stm;. Storey, L. (2006, October 12). Seeing Stars. The New York Times. Retrieved February 25, 2008.

Starting All Over essays

Starting All Over essays Ray Bradburys the Martian Chronicles is a futuristic story about space travel, invasion and planet colonization. Analyzing characters in this twenty-eight-chapter novel is extremely difficult because every chapter includes different characters, which are oriented to form the plot. Each chapters characters are used to show the founding of the planet Mars, the colonization of it, the destruction of Earth and almost the whole human race, and finally the rebuilding of the human civilization on Mars. The story starts off in the year of 1999 and ends twenty-seven years later in 2026. Ray Bradbury doesnt just tell his story from the point of view of the space travelers and the colonizers, but from angry Martians who were trying to kill the humans or Martians later on who were just having a conversation with a human about Mars, also people seeing the great colonial change happen. Captain Wilder was the captain of the fourth expedition to Mars from Earth. The three expeditions before had failed because either the Martians tricked and killed the earthlings or the earth people were thought of as mentally ill and sent to a hospital on Mars. Later on in the story when there are towns on Mars, the very few Martians are not discriminated against because the people on Mars were kind people who were in search of new things and seeing Martians was rare. Luckily the minor human sickness, chicken pox, had killed off most of the Martians accidentally. Captain Wilder and his crew explored the planet and responded to Earth to say that the missions were successful, and with only a few complications. Captain Wilder with his Crew of Jeff Spender, Hathaway, Sam Parkhill, Cheroke, Gibbs and a few other men help begin to portray the theme of the story, by finding Mars and seeing that it was safe (this was in the beginning of the story, but in the last several chapters they a ...

Ethics in the Workplace Essay Sample

Ethics in the Workplace Essay Sample Ethics in the Workplace Essay In order for a workplace to continue existing in harmony and have and a good dose of productivity, rules must exist. Ideally, these rules in itself must maintain the peace and are supposed to give the most optimal results possible. However, because the human factor is added to the equation, then additional systems must be put into place. Some of these systems are either encoded (or written) while others are simply understood without the need to be posted at all. All in all, these things which humans are supposed to observe and maintain in the workplace are called workplace ethics. An example of a written workplace ethic is dress code. In workplaces, corporate attires are usually considered â€Å"ethical† while your regular pajamas are not. However, as could be deduced from the statement above, some issues of â€Å"unethical behaviors† vary from workplace to workplace, since while others consider wearing corporate attires to be the ethical way of dressing when on company grounds, other companies would prefer their employees working in pajamas, or at least, in their t-shirts. Because some of the rules that guide human behaviors in the workplace vary from one to the other, most of these varying rules are coded in order for the employees to be constantly reminded of. However, there are also other workplace ethics which does not vary in between companies or workplaces. These ethical rules include respect, integrity, and honesty among others. Unlike the previous examples stated above, these ideas are what everyone inside of the workplace must imbibe an d not constantly reminded of. These ideas are essential not only for everyone, not only because they are required and expected to do so, but because it creates a better environment for everyone to produce the most optimal results without fearing that something unexpected is happening, or is coming up. To narrow down to these examples let me give one of each and describe them in a more specific manner. Honesty is one of the foremost examples of a workplace ethics. Without honesty, the workplace would simply not exist since information, data, and results should always be reported to the right channels in order to mitigate any risks or resolve any problems that might arise. Another example of an unwritten work ethic is integrity. Integrity refers to the having strong moral principles. What makes this important in understanding work ethics is that morality and ethics are very tightly knitted. Both of them came from mores (or rights) and therefore having one of these traits also means having the other one. Lastly, we have openness. This is also an important work ethics because openness also leads to better interaction and dynamics between every individual. Openness means being open to criticisms (constructive) and other ideas without prejudice which could affect ones objectivity. Following from these statements, a strong argument could be made about what constitutes a strong workplace. In order for the workplace to continually grow and succeed in reaching its goals, one could say that establishing operating rules and laws is not enough. Rules are usually for the technical and operational aspects of the company (e.g. delivery system) but are not enough to address human variable that exists in between the expected process. In line with this, it could easily be argued that an ideal workplace is one where the operating rules established are just coinciding perfectly with one’s workplaces ethics (both written and unwritten). A community where people know what to do both in their jobs as well as how to help others progresses and gains the most optimal results possible.

World Regional Georgraphy Unit 6 Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

World Regional Georgraphy Unit 6 - Research Paper Example When the British colonizers came in 1795, the laws became more powerful thus, further racial segregation. During this time, Africans were separated from the white settlers and were forced to live in different areas that were later referred to as reserves. Land Act of 1913 facilitated this separation further (Beinart & Dubow, 1995). The economic woes brought about by the World War II increased the racial segregation in South Africa. When National Party gained power in 1948, the new government enacted the apartheid law that ensured that the white race dominated. This law also ensured that the white lived in different areas from the Africans. South Africans were also divided along the tribal lines and their powers decreased. The Population Registration Act was enacted in 1950 and it required all South African races to be classified as black (Africans), whites or colored. Those who failed to adhere to this law were punished harshly. The Department of Home Affairs was responsible for this act. Another core of the apartheid policy was the Group Areas Act which was formed in 1950. This act marked the areas of land based on the race that occupy the areas. The other laws that placed more restrictions on the black South Africans were the Natives Urban Areas Act and the Natives Labor Act from in 1952 and 1953 respectively (Berridge, 1992). Some political parties were against this apartheid policy and they formed a movement to resist the policy. These parties included ANC (African National Congress) of 1912 and PAC (Pan Africanist Congress) of 1958. These two movements managed to ban the South African government through violent campaigns (Berridge, 1992). SASO (South African Students Association) which was formed in 1960 also joined the other parties in resisting the policy. Apartheid policy ended in 1994 when all adults were allowed to vote during that election. The late Nelson Mandela was voted as the

Written discussions and online discussions Personal Statement

Written discussions and online discussions - Personal Statement Example In the second written discussion, my involvement was in reading the comment on constructivist views of learning and weighing the contents of the post. Although I did not comment to it, my participation was intra-personal wherein I was weighing myself where I stood in the whole of things about skill and challenge and whether I was also getting bored; and if I was, how would I think in terms of rewards or promotions. I was also debating within myself about "enjoying if I reduced my skill" and when do I do that. I guess this means going down to the level of students, but not necessarily reducing my skill. The second point that came to my mind is how "the level of challenges would be increased for teachers." How is that going to happen By administration The post has greatly challenged my thinking. I have been a thinker rather than a talker in most discussions. I don't like speaking in front of many people. I learn the content I learn in class while listening to others verbalizes their ideas. Sometime, it's not clear whether I understand certain content, but after listening to others' personalized examples, it becomes clear. Explain: If there was a 4.5, my degree of enjoyment would be it. First, I cannot afford the face-to-face presence because of some concerns. Second, I don't very much like face-to-face set ups in conversing with other internationals where the language is not mine. c. the degree to which you felt the oral discussions contributed to your learning 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Contributed Contributed Contributed not at all somewhat greatly Explain: The contribution to my learning of oral discussions is only on the level of 4, considering what I had presented earlier. I don't have the luxury of time, and I am not given to mixing in set-ups with oral concerns. Section 2: For the next questions, consider the WRITTEN (bulletin board) discussions: 3. I am interested first in having you describe how you read and understand the written comments. In particular, describe what you typically do in terms of reading comments in a Blackboard discussion. With written discussions, I open to them and read all,

Assimilation of US Snipers back to the Society Research Paper

Assimilation of US Snipers back to the Society - Research Paper Example As the paper stresses it is important to undertake critical analysis of the psychological realignment that these people undergo when they are in this work and the complications associated with their transition from service back to the society. The nature of any job creates a new person in somebody and the military snipers are not exceptional. It therefore tend to take some process and time to get them assimilated back to the society after they retire or get their jobs terminated under some condition. Due to the type of the training they go through, their mentality gets altered towards some code of conduct and this significantly affects their interpersonal skills. Appropriate approaches of rehabilitating this special group of people who has served the nation to conform to the ordinary society system need to be investigated. This report declares that it is important to explore the personal attributes of a sniper which are partly acquired through training and partly by birth. One of the conditions to be a sniper is having worked as a government security agent or a military officer with in-depth prior knowledge of handling different types of guns and rifles. The concept of knowing the various concepts about the arms is not limited to use but should cover even the ability to understand their structural components. The training of a sniper is costly and requires perseverance of the highest degree with maximum self-discipline. This explains why a single sniper is worth more that several untrained rifle users. These people go through a series of thorough physical and mental training that steadily realign their perception about various issues within the confines of social order (Austin, 1992). Due to their critical role in the military operations, snipers are people with high intelligence that goes beyond shoot ing .They also have internal psychological understanding of any social environment and that is the reason they are able to camouflage and single out the target from a crowd without interfering with non-target (Perline & Goldschmidt, 2004). Their ability to take any angle and take into consideration the physical factors like wind and other environmental impediments that

Comparing The Faiths Of Deism And Puritanism Philosophy Essay

Comparing The Faiths Of Deism And Puritanism Philosophy Essay The 18th century and the age of the enlightenment was a period in American history which saw a proliferation of many new scientific ideas as well as an increase in religious tolerance. During this time many intellectuals explored new possibilities and interpretations of religion that were sometimes quite contradictory to the Puritanism that had been the standard religious practice since Puritans first settled the New England region. Deism, which was quite radical in contrast to the Puritan faith, came about during this time, and Benjamin Franklin, a famous enlightenment figure and a founding father of America, was one of its first spokespersons. The Deist doctrine he wrote as a 19 year old preaches a starkly different message from the writings of famous Puritans such as Mary Rowlandson, Michael Wigglesworth, and John Winthrop. While their works paint a portrait of God as a severe, demanding creator and man as a sinful, wild beast who must be restricted in his actions, Franklins piece on Deism portrays a more benevolent God who has released man into the universe to pursue his own goals without fear of Gods interference and wrath. It is these ideas of Gods intent and the nature of man which set these two religious philosophies and their writings apart.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The Puritan understanding of God as a vengeful and commanding ruler of men is one that dominates the writings of all of the most famous and widely read Puritan authors of the 17th and 18th centuries. Michael Wigglesworths poem The Day of Doom is particularly useful in highlighting this belief as its content focuses on Christs return to earth on Judgement day and how he deals with the sinners. He opens the poem with the quotes The Mountains smoak, the Hills are shook, the Earth is rent and torn, and Straightaway appears (they seet with tears) the Son of God most dread, (Wigglesworth, 3.) From the first lines of the poem there is a sense of helplessness and despair in the face of an angry God who is going to judge and punish his subjects on his terms. The descriptions of Gods destruction of the physical earth demonstrates his awesome power, and the use of the word dread to describe peoples perception of God is very telling of the Puritan bel ief. Even though they dread his second coming and his vengeance, they have a profound respect for his power and submit themselves to his will. The poem goes on to describe who is going to hell and why, and this passage serves to demonstrate the strict qualifications for getting into heaven that the Puritans believe God employs in his judgement of souls. Children who are too young to read the bible, Native Americans, and the mentally challenged are all unworthy of heaven in the eyes of God because they lack the ability to understand the Puritan faith (Wigglesworth, 4.) Along with these people unwelcome in Gods kingdom are all non-believers, sinners, and anyone who is simply not predestined to be saved by God. These harsh qualifications preached by Wigglesworth and other Puritans to a very accepting public are all strong testaments to the harsh nature of the Puritans God.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In contrast to the harsh God of Puritanism, Deism preaches that God is a benevolent, all knowing creator who does not find evil to punish in the world of men and can for the most part leave them to their own devices. Franklin outlines this idea at the beginning of his doctrine on Deism, A Dissertation on Liberty and Necessity, Pleasure and Pain, with the idea that If [God] is all-powerful, there can be nothing either existing or acting in the Universe against or without his Consent; and what he consents to must be good, because he is good; therefore Evil doth not exist. (Franklin 26.) This statement is radically different from the Puritan system of belief because it eliminates the existence of evil and therefore demonstrates a more pleasant interpretation of God. Rather than stressing the need for Gods constant exertion of authority over humankind and its evils through interference and punishment, Franklin asserts that since God made every thing and knows everything, there is no reason for him to even bother with the trivial affairs of humans, much less reprimand them. This is a very Deist concept of a God who is less involved in the daily business of man. The common Deist perception of God, which embodies this image of a wise and somewhat removed God, is often illustrated by the image of God as a clockmaker who has set the universe into motion to play out without his influence.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The idea of Gods constant interference in the lives of men, which Franklin refutes as unnecessary because Gods has already predetermined the fate of the entire universe and its inhabitants, is another cornerstone of the Puritan belief system. One of the best examples of this idea in Puritan writing is Mary Rowlandsons A Narrative of the Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson which describes the destruction of her town at the hands of a band of Native Americans and her subsequent captivity among them. This work gives a slightly more benevolent description of God as her protector through these hardships, but her easy acceptance and rationalization of the massacre as Gods will and punishment still alludes to the harsh nature of God and highlights his interferences in the lives of Puritans. One of the most telling quotes of the account, which Rowlandson uses to sum up her beliefs, comes in the final paragraph when she says, yet I se e when God calls a person to any thing, and through never so many difficulties, yet he is fully able to carry them through, and make them see and say they have been gainers thereby, (Rowlandson, 20.) Rowlandson cites Gods hand throughout the piece in every aspect of her captivity, and in this conclusion she makes it quite clear that it was God who put her through the terrors of these tribulations. The idea of God carrying her through her troubles and making her see and say that she is better for the experience not only indicates that God is responsible for what happened, but that he was actively focused on her for every instant of her captivity.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The nature of man is another key point of disagreement between the two religious beliefs, and the Puritan stance views man as a beastly creature whose primitive instincts must be controlled by the authority of God. John Winthrops famous essay On Political Authority and Liberty, which is both a description of Gods intent of how the people should be ruled and a pitch to be reelected as governor,   gives examples of this belief in mans unruly nature. Winthrop makes a point of driving home exactly how God feels about mans more primal, natural liberties when he says, This [kind of liberty] is that great enemy of truth and peace, that wild beast, which all of the ordinances of God are bent against, to restrain and subdue it. (Winthrop 1.) The kind of liberty that he is alluding to is mans freedom in nature to do whatever he wants. According to Winthrop, this freedom, which man shares with all beasts and other creatures leads to chaos and must be controlled. This concept of the natural evil in men and the fact that God must constantly restrain men pervades Puritan doctrine and directly carries over to the Puritan style of governing that stresses adherence to authority figures.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Unlike the Puritan idea of mans evil nature and his need to be controlled, Deism states that mans nature is inherently good and that control over his actions is unnecessary. Franklins writings illustrate this idea when he says, If a Creature is made by God, it must depend upon God, and receive all its Power from Him; with which Power the Creature can do nothing contrary to the Will of God because God is Almighty; what is not contrary to [Gods] Will, must be agreeable to it; what is agreeable to it, must be good, because He is good; therefore a Creature can do nothing but what is good, (Franklin, 27.) In this quote Franklin asserts his belief that since the all-good and almighty creator made man and gave him his nature and abilities, man must be naturally good. He also makes the point that all of mans actions are actions of which God made him able; therefore, man can make no natural action which is not inherently good. This idea of man as g ood from the start clearly breaks from the general Christian and especially Puritan belief of original sin, and this stark difference demonstrates the progressive nature of Deisms. The idea that man is inherently good removes the need for overbearing authority and allows for man to rule himself.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The overwhelming differences in the beliefs of Deism and Puritanism on the subjects of God and the nature of man illustrate a clear break in the religious ideas of 18th century America. The contrast between Franklins writings and those of his Puritan predecessors demonstrates the shift from the nearly uniform belief in religion of the 17th century to a more progressive atmosphere in the time which Franklin writes. The Deist beliefs of the goodness in God and man explore an alternative to the strict Puritan faith, and in both Franklins time and today they serve as a mode of beliefs which fit the understanding of many religious Americans.

John Steinbecks Of Mice and Men Essay -- Essays Papers

Of Mice and Men Do you have an unrealistic dream? In the book Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, the main characters in the story each had a dream in which they were unable to carry out. Taking place during the Great Depression era in the United States, these individuals struggled to survive. The theme "It is better not to have big dreams in life because they are too difficult to attain and you end up bitterly disappointed and unmotivated" was brought up and proven true by them. Lennie, Candy, and Curley's wife's dreams, like "the best laid schemes o'mice an' men gang aft a-gley, had been led astray. Lennie's dream had been shattered when his craving for soft materials caused him to commit a crime. Lennie dreamt of owning a farm and a little house with George, and most of...

Role of Human Capital in New Ventures

ROLE OF HUMAN CAPITAL IN NEW VENTURES 1. INTRODUCTION With the increase in the rise of entrepreneurial ventures, it is necessary to understand the factors that determine success or failure of these ventures. One of such factors that have been considered by researchers is human capital (Bruderl, Preisendorfer and Ziegler, 1992). This report considers the function of the human capital element in a startup business.Based on a collation and analysis of previous research works on human capital in the entrepreneurial field, it was discovered that the various aspects of founder’s human capital have a role to play in attracting venture capital and improving the performance of the venture. 2. LITERATURE REVIEW 2. 1 Human Capital Human capital refers to the skills, abilities, knowledge acquired through work and educational experiences (Baron and Shane, 2008).The concept of human capital has been underpinned by several theories among which the theory of entrepreneurship, resource-based t heory and human capital theory and these theories would be discussed. The theory of entrepreneurship places emphasis on the fact that the entrepreneur has the responsibility of decision making (Casson, 2005). Thus, the entrepreneur is to analyse relevant information which would be used in making business decisions (Ganotakis, 2012). The recognition of markets for the products and services are part of the decisions to be made and would therefore determine a firm’s progress and accomplishment.Casson (2005) further argues that entrepreneurs need to have the right professional skills and work experience as it is these competencies would impact upon performance. The resource based theory (RBT) places value on resources which is argued to be a source of competitive advantage for the firm (Barney, 1991). Human capital is identified as one of such resources. In particular, Barney (1991) argues that a firm’s management team can be indispensable, rare and imperfectly imitable an d has the capacity for producing a perpetual competitive advantage.Alvarez and Busenitz (2001) examine the relationship between RBT and entrepreneurship. They suggest that entrepreneurship necessitates the founder’s cognizance of opportunities, the ability to obtain the resources to utilize the opportunities and the ability of the firm to fuse homogenous inputs into heterogeneous outputs. They further identified that entrepreneurial awareness, perception, knowledge and the ability to organise resources as resources in their own right. These two theories therefore place significance on the capabilities and resources of the entrepreneur.A theoretical foundation of how these capabilities can be measured is provided by human capital theory which was pioneered by Becker in 1964. The theory implies that an individual’s human capital is the skills and knowledge that can be of use to an organization and as such, employees’ salaries/wages was viewed as a return on the in vestment in human capital. The theory provides claims that the entrepreneurial team who have more experience tend to perform much better than those with less experience (Shrader and Siegel, 2007).This theory categorises the characteristics of an entrepreneur into general and specific human capital. 2. 1. 1 General Human Capital General human capital refers to skills acquired through formal education, training and work experience which can be transferred to other jobs in the market. The educational level of founders has been considered to be vital for a firm’s performance (Ganotakis, 2012). Education can provide the entrepreneur with a professional foundation and greater self-assurance as it is supposed to provide scenarios which encourage creativity and problem-solving ability.However, other results showed a negative relationship with growth and performance (Haber and Reichel, 2007; Bosma et al, 2004 ; Dichon, Menzies and Gasse, 2008). According to Deakins (2005), education d oes not influence growth but it may assist in making critical decisions. As such, education could be assumed to be more important for younger entrepreneurs who may not have a lot of experience. It is argued by Shrader and Siegel (2007) that the experience of the founders would aid them in making informed choices. Experience is also seen to influence business ideas and increase efficiency (Deakins, 2005).In contrast, some research works have also found negative relationships between work experience and firm formation and also performance (Ganotakis, 2012; Diochon, Menzies and Gasse, 2008). Ganotakis (2012), claims that this could be as a result of an over-confidence of the founders in their knowledge restraining them from gathering more information. 2. 1. 2 Specific Human Capital These are those skills which are specific to a particular work context and thus it might not be transferred to other professions. As such, these skills can assist the entrepreneur directly with managing the new venture (Ganotakis, 2012).These include entrepreneurial experience, industry-specific experience, managerial capabilities and technical experience. Industry specific experience has been found to have a positive effect on performance and the development of new ventures (Bosma et al, 2004; Dimov, 2010; Gimmon and Levie, 2009). Capelleras et al (2010), claim that this experience positively impacts the creation of ventures, but has little influence on their growth. It is believed that founders with the same sector experience would have a better knowledge of the opportunities and can benefit from past business ties.Entrepreneurship specific experience implies that the entrepreneur should have a previous experience in starting a business, running a company or having membership of an entrepreneurial association (Bosma et al, 2004; Baron and Shane, 2008). This experience does not have a direct effect on new venture growth but can aid in the pursuit of opportunities (Dimov, 2010). Manage rial experience is usually linked with the ability to organise resources and make strategic decisions (Ganotakis, 2012). It has been found that there is a positive relationship between managerial experience and performance (Ganotakis, 2012; Gimmon and Levie, 2009).However, Deakins (2005) believes that those with prior managerial experience may have a higher level of income they desire and may be unlikely to set up their own business as there is an uncertainty of a constant income flow especially at the gestation stages of the venture. Technical experience is gained in a specialised field or profession. Though Shrader and Siegel (2007) placed emphasis on this experience as useful in strategy implementation, research carried out by Ganotakis (2012) revealed that technical experience did not have a positive effect on performance.Thus, such experience should be accompanied by managerial experience. 2. 2 Human Capital and the Entrepreneurial Venture The theoretical background and explana tion of key concepts above has provided an insight into the subject of human capital. From literature, the importance of human capital is highlighted and three roles of human capital in an entrepreneurial venture can be identified and these would be explored for this purpose of this paper. Firstly, human capital can enhance in making and executing strategic decisions.Secondly, human capital can improve the performance of the new venture. Bruderl, Preisendorfer and Ziegler (1992) argue that better human capital increases the ability of the firm to attract customers and capital. From this, a third role can be identified which is human capital can enhance venture financing. These would be discussed in relation to past research and relevant theories. 3. METHODOLOGY The research was carried out by reviewing and analysing past research works on the topic of human capital as it relates to entrepreneurial ventures.The selection criteria for the resource materials used were peer-reviewed sch olarly journal articles. The time frame selected was from 2000 to 2012. This criterion was used so as to get reliable and up-to date information on the subject matter. 4. DISCUSSION This section explores the three factors identified in the foregoing. Decision making is very vital to a new venture. The success of a firm depends on the decisions made. The strategies adopted by a firm would reflect its competencies and would determine its competitive advantage which is line with resource-based and theory of entrepreneurship.Industry specific and technical experience of the founding team is argued to be valuable in the formulation and implementation of strategies and as such, they can make more informed decisions (Shrader and Siegel, 2007). These aspects of human capital could enhance decision making as knowledge of the market and industry would imply that the founder(s) is conversant with the process of gathering the relevant information. This experience is likely to lead to faster dec ision making (Forbes, 2005). Managerial capabilities could also be said to influence decision making as the entrepreneur would have experience n managing a firm and identifying appropriate markets (Ganotakis, 2012). It is crucial for new ventures to acquire financing for their operations at the start of the business. A higher human capital has been believed to attract capital (Bruderl, Preisendorfer and Ziegler, 1992; Baum and Silverman, 2004). In particular high educational qualifications can give signals to venture capital investors (Behrens et al, 2012). The reason for this may be that the investors believe that the founders can use their educational knowledge in managing the company and therefore they judge that their prospects are better.Seghers, Manigart and Vanacker (2012) also found out that business education and prior experience in accounting and finance increases a founder’s knowledge of financing alternatives. As such, the founder is able to access different sourc es of funding based on such knowledge. Another factor that affects venture financing is the social network ties the founder has (Zhang et al, 2012). Such networks would enable the founding team encounter people who could give them the required funding. Industry-specific experience is also vital in developing broad networks.Investments in human capital are widely believed to impact performance (Unger et al, 2011; Bosma et al, 2004; Rauch, Frese and Utsch, 2011; Bruderl, Preisendorfer and Ziegler, 1992). An investment in industry specific and entrepreneurial experience increases the chances of success for a new venture. Entrepreneurship specific experience positively affects the profitability of the firm as the founder has acquired skills from previously owning a business and would be able to use these skills effectively in the new venture (Bosma et al, 2004).However, the research carried out by Haber and Reichel (2007) on high tech industries, highlights that education and previous e xperience had no effect on performance. As such, it may be argued that technical experience is more relevant to industries which use a more advanced technology as they require a high level of expertise and technical knowledge but as Ganotakis (2012) highlighted, technical experience should be complemented with managerial skills. Business education and management capability is thus very significant for the sustainability and survival of new ventures (Gimmon and Levies, 2009).Drawing on all that has been discussed, human capital characteristics especially industry specific and business skills would help in making more efficient strategic decisions which would also influence the venture performance. Business and finance skills could increase access to finance and good management of finance is crucial to profitability. Also, the social networks the founder has would enable him access finance and tap into knowledge of others which could affect the firm’s prospects. 5. CONCLUSION T his report examines the importance of human capital to the new venture.The contribution of this study is that it explored the effect of general and specific human capital attributes on the performance of new ventures, venture financing and strategic decision making based on review of past research works. An interesting finding is that industry-specific experience as opposed to general experience and managerial experience are found to play a major role in all three areas while education seems to be least relevant to decision making and performance but quite vital in attracting investors.The implications to prospective entrepreneurs are that they should enhance their business, managerial and commercial skills as this is vital to the survival of new ventures. Also, it is necessary for them to use their present organisation positions to build network ties as this can enable them tap into knowledge and gain access to finance. This study is limited as it focused on a narrow range of past research works and not only all human capital characteristics were considered. Future research should focus more on the impact of the all aspects of human capital most especially on strategic decision making.A meta-analysis of a wide range of research works could also be carried out. PERSONAL REFLECTION STATEMENT Entrepreneurship is an interesting subject and the reason for this is that at the core of entrepreneurship is the fact that something new is involved. It could be a new market or a new product. It generally involves starting a new business venture. I understood that in starting a new business venture, one of the first things to consider is the opportunities available. Opportunities arise from the environment and in this age, quite a number of them arise from advances in technology.It is necessary to consider the market for the product or service as for a product to sell in the market; it has to meet individual, societal or business needs. It is useful to take into considera tion the competitors that are currently there. Some ventures can be pushed out of the market by other stronger companies such as monopolies particularly in a mature market. One of the concepts I have come to appreciate is the personality of the entrepreneur. Firstly, entrepreneurs are risk takers.They are very determined and spontaneous individuals who are passion and vision driven. They require intelligence both practical and social. They should be social beings and have the ability to persuade others to commit to the venture. If a team of entrepreneurs wish to come together to create a new venture, they must have complementary skills and must be compatible. An entrepreneur would have to consider if there is a need to hire a few staff. They can take advantage of the opportunities that social networking presents in getting useful personnel and contacts.I learnt that finance is also a very important factor as one could start a business out of a brilliant opportunity and experience fi nancial shortages. An entrepreneur would need to consider if he has enough funding from the planning stage and actually taking the product to the market through to the product development. Also, there is the need to consider if the business would be profitable because many people start new ventures based on great ideas and inventions with delusions of grandeur without seeing the â€Å"business† in the ideas.There are some concepts that are particularly fascinating. One of which is the concept of effectual reasoning which opposes the usual entrepreneurship process and implies that entrepreneurs do not always have a predetermined goal but the goals are dependent on the resources available to them. This course was enlightening and transcends beyond just starting a new ventures. There are implications for me as a future manager because I am motivated to find new ways of solving problems and exploring opportunities that surround my organization.The concepts of business strategies and maintaining a competitive advantage are important not only in entrepreneurial startups but in other areas of business. Now I appreciate people as a crucial resource for both entrepreneur ventures and a rich source for identifying new markets, new processes, new ideas, new opportunities, new product that will lead to new and improved levels of productivity. References: Alvarez, S. A. and Busenitz, L. W. (2001) â€Å"The entrepreneurship of resource-based theory†, Journal of Management, vol. 7, no. 6, pp. 755. Barney, J. (1991) â€Å"Firm Resources and Sustained Competitive Advantage†, Journal of Management, vol. 17, no. 1, pp. 99. Baron, A. and Shane, S. (2008) Entrepreneurship A Process Perspective 2nd edn. South-Western Cengage Learning. Baum, J. A. C. and Silverman, B. S. (2004) â€Å"Picking winners or building them? Alliance, intellectual, and human capital as selection criteria in venture financing and performance of biotechnology startups†, Journal of Business Venturing, vol. 19, no. 3, pp. 411. Behrens, J. Patzelt, H. , Schweizer, L. and Burger, R. (2012) â€Å"Specific managerial human capital, firm age, and venture capital financing of biopharmaceutical ventures: A contingency approach†, Journal of High Technology Management Research, vol. 23, no. 2, pp. 112-121. Bosma, N. , van Praag, M. , Thurik, R. and de Wit, G. (2004) â€Å"The Value of Human and Social Capital Investments for the Business Performance of Startups†, Small Business Economics, vol. 23, no. 3, pp. 227-236. Bruderl, J. , Preisendorfer, P. and Ziegler, R. 1992) â€Å"Survival Chances of Newly Founded Business Organizations†, American Sociological Review, vol. 57, no. 2, pp. 227-242. Capelleras, J. , Greene, F. J. , Kantis, H. and Rabetino, R. (2010) â€Å"Venture Creation Speed and Subsequent Growth: Evidence from South America†, Journal of Small Business Management, vol. 48, no. 3, pp. 302-324. Casson, M. (2005) â€Å"Entrepreneurs hip and the theory of the firm†, Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, vol. 58, no. 2, pp. 327-348. Deakins, D. (2005) Entrepreneurship and small firms 4th edn. McGraw-Hill Education.Dimov, D. (2010) â€Å"Nascent Entrepreneurs and Venture Emergence: Opportunity Confidence, Human Capital, and Early Planning†, Journal of Management Studies, vol. 47, no. 6, pp. 1123-1153. Diochon, M. , Menzies, T. V. and Gasse, Y. (2008) â€Å"Exploring the Nature and Impact of Gestation-Specific Human Capital among Nascent Entrepreneurs†, Journal of Developmental Entrepreneurship, vol. 13, no. 2, pp. 151-165. Forbes, D. P. (2005) â€Å"Managerial Determinants of Decision Speed in New Ventures†, Strategic Management Journal, vol. 26, no. 4, pp. 355-366.Ganotakis, P. (2012) â€Å"Founders' human capital and the performance of UK new technology based firms†, Small Business Economics, vol. 39, no. 2, pp. 495-515. Gimmon, E. and Levie, J. (2009) â€Å"Instrumental Value Theory and the Human Capital of Entrepreneurs†, Journal of Economic Issues (M. E. Sharpe Inc. ), vol. 43, no. 3, pp. 715-732. Haber, S. and Reichel, A. (2007) â€Å"The cumulative nature of the entrepreneurial process: The contribution of human capital, planning and environment resources to small venture performance†, Journal of Business Venturing, vol. 2, no. 1, pp. 119-145. Rauch, A. , Frese, M. and Utsch, A. (2005) â€Å"Effects of Human Capital and Long-Term Human Resources Development and Utilization on Employment Growth of Small-Scale Businesses: A Causal Analysis†, Entrepreneurship: Theory & Practice, vol. 29, no. 6, pp. 681-698. Seghers, A. , Manigart, S. and Vanacker, T. (2012) â€Å"The Impact of Human and Social Capital on Entrepreneurs' Knowledge of Finance Alternatives†, Journal of Small Business Management, vol. 50, no. 1, pp. 63-86. Shrader, R. and Siegel, D. S. 2007) â€Å"Assessing the Relationship between Human Capital and Firm Pe rformance: Evidence from Technology-Based New Ventures†, Entrepreneurship: Theory & Practice, vol. 31, no. 6, pp. 893-908. Unger, J. M. , Rauch, A. , Frese, M. and Rosenbusch, N. (2011) â€Å"Human capital and entrepreneurial success: A meta-analytical review†, Journal of Business Venturing, vol. 26, no. 3, pp. 341-358. Zhang, J. , Souitaris, V. , Soh, P. and Wong, P. (2008) â€Å"A Contingent Model of Network Utilization in Early Financing of Technology Ventures†, Entrepreneurship: Theory & Practice, vol. 32, no. 4, pp. 593-613.

Agenda-Setting Assignment

5th of November 2012 Agenda-Setting Assignment In agenda-setting news outlets act as gatekeepers of information. Policy agenda is when the media sets their own agenda based on issues that they think are the most important. And when they decide on these most important issues, they give them the highest importance. The media highlights certain aspects because they believe that these aspects are what we should know; and if there is something they don’t mention, then that’s something that according to them, we shouldn’t know – whether for our benefit or theirs.Despite the simplicity of creating an agenda, every different news outlet has a different agenda, based on their interest or what they believe to be our interest. Something important however to bear in mind is that, even though the media draws our attention to certain issues, they can’t tell us how to think about them – at the end of the day, how you perceive an issue depends on you. To giv e examples on how differently agenda-setting can be used, I will talk about two different news sources, an independent one and a national one.As a national news outlet I will talk about â€Å"CNN†. CNN (Cable News Network) is both America’s first news channel as well as the first channel to offer 24-hour coverage. CNN in the United States is sometimes described as CNN/US to differentiate the American Channel from the International one. CNN/US was founded by Ted Turner in 1980, and since then has been one of the worlds leading news outlets. â€Å"The Independent† is an independent, British, morning newspaper owned by Alexander Lebedev with Chris Blackhurst as the current editor in chief.The Independent was first launched in 1986 and holds the title as UK’s youngest daily newspaper. To analyze different agenda-settings, lets look at two similar news items reported in both of these newspapers and compare their similarities and differences. Let’s take the picking of Egypt’s new pope as one news story. Both news outlets reported the story completely different. CNN told the story in a very short article that focused primarily on the fact that Christians in Egypt are a minority.If one were to analyze this article on the terms of Salience and Priming, one would notice very interesting facts. Firstly its very obvious that CNN’s priority is not to talk about the new pope, since he is hardly mentioned throughout the entire article. Instead the article focuses on the terms â€Å"Christians†. The fact that they are a minority is mentioned several times. They also mention that according to a few forums made, the Christian population in Egypt is between 5 and 9%. The church bombing attack that took place in January killing 21 people was also stated.However nothing is mentioned about the ceremony itself other than that a blindfolded boy picked one of the three potential popes through picking his name from a crystal bowl. Egypt’s former pope is also mentioned. His date and cause of death are also cited. In terms or Framing, it is obvious that CNN has given this story a big importance as it was in the â€Å"Top Stories† section. However the words used don’t really talk about the event itself but rather inform us about Christians in Egypt. Despite the fact that this event wasn’t in The Independent’s top news list, they gave the story a bigger importance.The article was a lot longer than in was in CNN and more importantly it focused on the event itself. They talked about the young boy who had to pick a name, about the thousands of cameras that were there, and about how big of an event this was for all 8 million Christians in Egypt. They also quoted many people that said that how important finally having a new pope meant to them and how because of Egypt’s current difficult political status, it’s good to have a figure that represents faith and hope.In term s of salience, priming and framing no words were repeated and the articles priority was to display how significant this event was for many people all around the world. This is just one example of how differently news outlets can report similar stories. Lets look at Superstorm Sandy as another example. Unlike the choosing of a new Pope in Egypt – CNN gave this story a lot of attention. Several articles were written with several images displaying just how big of a disaster has happened.They mention the difficult time that these people are having to go through – not to mention that right now there is another major event happening in the U. S, the elections. Not only are these people dealing with the loss of their homes and lack of electricity but it also seems that another storm will hit New York and northern New Jersey by Wednesday. The weather has decreased suddenly and according to Meteorologists it will continue to drastically decrease. Many people say that it is a ve ry difficult time for these American citizens that have to deal with so much at once.However it is also mentioned how construction work has immediately begun and how many have started working in the 9/11 ground zero sight that has been destroyed by the flood. Although they mentioned the same facts, The Independent, took a different approach in reporting the story. Firstly they mentioned the state governor Andrew Cuomo and how he is trying to quickly solve all of the problems that have suddenly arisen, such as the cold weather and lack of electricity hence lack of heat. There is also a problem with the lack of fuel and the inability to run back-up generators.The difficulty of housing and how many are living in â€Å"  homes that are uninhabitable†, is also a massive problem. Furthermore the article goes on to say that with this new approaching storm, the anger towards the government has increased, saying that they are â€Å"moving too slow†. The articles main priority is to mention all of the problems the people are facing and how the government isn’t very responsive. Words such as â€Å"fear, anger, threat, struggling† are used to display just how drastic of an event this is. Overall, the article is very informative and states clear information without using any repetition.I think by now its clearly obvious that each news source has a different agenda and a different way of reporting a story. The reason behind that varies. Before I mentioned the storm that took place in America, I mentioned a different neutral event. CNN would obviously have more interest in the storm since it’s a national event. Therefore I chose an event that both news outlets aren’t directly related to – Egypt picking their new pope. What I noticed however was extraordinary. CNN talked about it very generally.They didn’t mention any details of the event itself and rather focused on the terrorism attacks that have happened with the in tention of hurting Christians, the countries minority. They seemed to report the story in such a negative way instead of saying how beautiful and important this event was. The Independent on the other hand reported the story in a wonderful way. They said how important choosing a new pope was for the Christian population. They also said that how this event brought peace, joy, hope and love to many people around the world. Lets look at the storm as our second issue.Because CNN is directly –nationally- involved in this event it reported it very differently. It spoke about the difficult times that many are facing, bearing in mind that presidential elections are soon. They also mentioned how construction work has begun to take place quickly. On the other hand The Independent mentioned the lack of response from the government and how many citizens are afraid and aren’t sure what to do next. Unlike the previous story where CNN was slightly negative while The Independent repor ted the story as a positive event, now it’s the opposite.However due to both news outlets orientation its understandable. I mean how would CNN a national news outlet criticize their government for responding to the crisis too slow? It just wouldn’t make sense. That’s why we should play close attention to a news sources’ orientation because they usually create their agenda based on it. Based on their orientation and funding there are things they can and can’t say – that’s why every news outlet reports news differently then others. Through this, I believe that we should learn to be an active audience.We shouldn’t just limit ourselves to one media source, because that one source can be reporting news based on its agenda, and not on what we, the audience, need to know to create an informed decision on what to think about the event taking place. Furthermore we should not let a media outlet tell us what to thing – we should ta ke the information, and create our own opinion about it. Because at the end of the day we’re all human beings and we have the right to think in whichever way we see to be right. Sources: * http://www. independent. co. k/news/world/africa/egypts-ancient-coptic-christian-church-chooses-a-new-pope-in-elaborate-ceremony-8280938. html * http://us. cnn. com/2012/11/04/world/africa/egypt-coptic-pope/index. html? hpt=wo_c2 * http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/CNN * http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/The_Independent * http://us. cnn. com/2012/11/05/us/tropical-weather-sandy/index. html? hpt=us_c1 * http://www. independent. co. uk/news/world/americas/temperatures-approach-freezing-as-another-storm-looks-set-to-hit-new-york-in-the-wake-of-superstorm-sandy-8282360. html