Monday, September 30, 2019

Bias in Historical Description Essay

The article reviewed was Behan McCullagh’s Bias in Historical Description, Interpretation, and Explanation in which he gave a brief but thorough outlook on the manner to which historical accounts are peppered with biased analysis and his opinion on how historians would be able to diminish, if not fully obliterate, from the nature of recounting past events. Why History is Biased McCullagh started of his piece by constructing four reasons as to why he thought that historical writings are mainly biased. His first reason was that he believed historians misinterpreted evidences without properly asserting the truth about its justification. His second reason was that information may already have been omitted by historians in compiling such past accounts that cater to make their views balanced. The third reason was that he deems general description of any historical information may include certain facts that are possibly false due to the uncertainty of most available sources. Lastly, his fourth reason was in reference to causal explanations, concisely described in the article as events that substantially modify the likelihood of the event, which are usually focused on a few important causes that renders a misleading point of view in the reader’s comprehension of the process of events (McCullagh, 2000). McCullagh voiced out that historians who often make mistakes in incorporating biases in their interpretations are typically motivated rather than accidental. He also noted difference between personal and cultural biases, delineating that the latter is far more difficult to be rectified than the other as it is ingrained, yet maintaining that historians must still try to do away with personal bias. He then goes on to further illustrate the concept of bias in historical accounts (McCullagh, 2000). The concept of Bias in Historical Accounts: McCullagh elucidated on the point that historians choose subjects which are of interests to them, inevitably providing a more partial basis to their interpretation of historical information. Consequently, historians are said to be products of their environment or culture, which will naturally hold general notions about the past. Thus, written accounts by historians are subjected to the availability of information gathered and on the decisions made through constant debates on what gets included and what should be disregarded. Such process is said to most likely offer misleading descriptions of historical accounts that have a particular cause (McCullagh, 2000). However, McCullagh has held that preconceived notions about a historical subject that are not biased could be observed in occurrences that involves transformation within a country’s economy as well as social structures. Biases are only attached when selective causes are highlighted while others of equal importance are disregarded (McCullagh, 2000). The perception of biases in constructing history should be avoided as according to McCullagh it provides a deceptive account of the historical subject which may cause misunderstandings and unnecessary negative consequences in conflict-driven situations. McCullagh presented three reasons as to why there are some who think that there is no way to evade the prospect of bias in historical accounts. First was that the interests of historians are automatically considered in determining the historical importance of a subject, the information extracted and the word preferences to use. The second was that preconceptions of historians and their contemporaries have biased point of views and the third one is the reiterated thought that historians have ingrained cultural beliefs and principles (McCullagh, 2000). Overcoming Personal Bias: McCullagh presented his opinion on how historians could be able to avoid injecting biases in interpreting historical data. He stated that historians should be committed to standards of rational thinking that would bring about a justified description of the past. One way to impose this is through peer reviews so as to motivate historians to follow certain acceptable guidelines in rational inquiry. The role of the historian is an important factor in maintaining social responsibility and creating a fair account of historical events (McCullagh, 2000). He denotes that multiplicity in perspectives is another way to produce rational historical inquiry as it presents different views of witnesses which melds relevant information into one account (McCullagh, 2000). McCullagh also pondered upon the notion that for people to prevail over biases, historians must accept that historiography is limited within itself and that the end of the discipline should also be considered in interpreting the past in a postmodern view (McCullagh, 2000). Reference: McCullagh, C. B. 2000. â€Å"Bias in Historical Description, Interpretation, and Explanation. † History & Theory 39(1): 39 – 66.

Sunday, September 29, 2019

Erikson’s Psychosocial Development

Erik Erikson outlines eight stages in the psychosocial development of a healthy human being, in which the stages are characterized by conflicts. The ego is at the center of all these developments (Wagner, 2005). Infancy This stage is from birth up to 18 months. During this time, the child's ego develops trust and the central figure in his universe is his mother. How he trusts or mistrusts those around him will depend on his maternal relationship. The child's experience at this stage could help mold how he will interact with people in his adult life.In the movie â€Å"Psycho (1960),† Norman only had his mother since birth. They were very close that he considers her his only friend. Norman was not weaned from his dependence that he carried it all throughout his adulthood. When his parent found a new lover, it made Norman so jealous that he killed her. He resolved his guilt by keeping his mother's corpse in the house. Muscular-Anal The second stage in the psychosocial development is from 18 months to three years. At this point of a child's development, Erikson explains that there is a growing sense of independence that is being experienced by the child.It's important for parents to understand the child's need for support because it would tell him that you are there to help develop his capabilities. There would be constant conflict if the parent won't learn to give in to the child. The child experiences conflicting feelings of initiative and doubt at this point. Psychosocial Development 2 The movie â€Å"Baby Geniuses,† shows a bunch of toddlers who are being kept in a lab so that researchers would understand a universal secret. However, the toddler Sly is showing off his independence by wanting to escape from the lab, and to which he actually succeeds.His escape is just the start of a series of antics that toddlers have to do in order to stop the designs of an evil scientist. Play Age The child at this point, from three to six years old, is already l earning basic skills and how to master the things around him. The child displays initiative and the courage to complete tasks. He also shows the capacity to make decisions for himself. At the same time, he may also feel guilty if he is unable to complete something that he wants to do. When the result of his initiative is negative, this may make the child uneasy and resort to displaying aggressiveness or inhibition.The parents must balance the initiative and guilt by giving the child tasks that are appropriate for his age. In the movie â€Å"300,† Spartans shun deformities and anything that is not perfect in their eyes. As a young boy, Leonides was already trained to prepare himself to become king. Play for them involves fighting and brawling. Early on, he already knew that he must achieve certain tasks to prove his worth. He needed to survive being out in the wilds with only himself to depend on. Leonides was able to overcome the tests and he returned to Sparta as a man. Scho ol AgeIn the school age, from seven to 10 years old, a child has to find balance between doing too much and doing too little. If a child does too many complex tasks, he forgets to have fun like Psychosocial Development 3 other children. But when he gets to do very little, the chance for success is slim. This could result to inferiority. Adults around the child must strike a balance between industry and inferiority in order to mold the child into a competent individual. Without the proper balance, the child will grow up feeling inferior to his peers in terms of social skills.John Nash, the genius from the movie â€Å"A Beautiful Mind,† suffers from inferiority complex as a result of his being aloof during the school age. He preferred academic tasks rather than being with other kids his age. He was always alone. As a result, Nash didn't know how to be close to other people. Nash was not able to resolve the conflict on his own. He talked about his fears and frustrations concerni ng the opposite sex to his roommate. Adolescence Between 10 and 17 years of age, an adolescent is conscious of how others look at him.It is important that at this stage the adolescent is reassured of his worth as a person. An adolescent who receives good familial support will often behave better among his peers. This is the point when the adolescent will be aware of his sexual identity. The adolescent either develops his own identity or be confused about it. The movie â€Å"Boys Don't Cry,† is the story of Brandon Teena who was born a female but chose to become male in high school. This identity change was the result of a sexual assault that Brandon experienced at the hand of a male relative.No one, except his mother, knew that Brandon was female. He dated several girls in high school. Psychosocial Development 4 Young Adulthood The young adult stage, according to Erikson, is between 18 to 40 years old. This is the point where the adult chooses between intimacy or isolation. A t the early part of this stage, the person is interested in friendships and blending his identity with those of his friends. Later on, the young adult becomes ready for an intimate and close relationship with another individual.At the same time, the young adult must understand and not fear isolation because this would come handy in later years. Rejection, break-ups and being alone are things that a young adult must be able to handle. Andy Stitzer, a typical nerd in the movie â€Å"A Forty Year Old Virgin,† is a man who understands being alone. He has never been in an intimate relationship with another person. He was finally convinced to become intimate with a girl by his friends. This leads to Andy welcoming more people in his life and gaining new friends and acquaintances. Middle AdulthoodThe middle adulthood stage comes when a person reaches 40 years old and ends at 65 years old. At this point, the person is either driven by the need to become a guide to the younger generat ion or be complacent and let the years keep him in stagnation. Tony Starks, or the â€Å"Iron Man,† is a 40 something arms manufacturer who had a change of heart after his captivity. He became engaged in correcting the mistakes he made in the past to preserve the world for the future generations. Instead of making arms to increase his wealth, he turned into a superhero to save those in need.Psychosocial Development 5 Late Adulthood From 65 years onwards, the person enters the late adulthood phase. During these years, the person looks back on the past years and evaluates the kind of life he lived. From this, the person will either feel that he has live a life of integrity, or he will be in despair (Clifton & Davis, 1995) . If there is gladness for the good times, acceptance for what could not be, and forgiveness for mistakes, then the person will be at peace and become prepared for whatever the years are yet to bring.But for the person who does not learn to accept and forgive, he has a tendency to suffer depression. Edward Cole, a billionaire in the movie â€Å"Bucketlist,† had lived a life of eccentricity and isolation. But after he was diagnosed with cancer in his later years, Cole became friends with another cancer patient Carter Chambers. The two embarked on a life-changing journey, which turned Cole into a better person. By accepting his mistakes and doing something about them, Cole was able to enjoy the last of his days, free from guilt and other burdens. ReferencesChild Development Institute, LLC. Stages of Social-Emotional Development In Children and Teenagers. Retrieved August 24, 2008, from http://www. childdevelopmentinfo. com/development/erickson. shtml Clifton, A. , & Davis, D. (1995). Psychosocial Theory: Erikson. Haverford Home Page. Retrieved August 24, 2008, from http://www. haverford. edu/psych/ddavis/p109g/erikson. stages. html Wagner, K. V. (2005). Erikson's Stages of Psychosocial Development. About. com: Psychology. Retrieved August 24, 2008, from http://psychology. about. com/od/theoriesofpersonality/a/psychosocial_3. htm

Saturday, September 28, 2019

Advantages and Disadvantages of Payback Assignment

Advantages and Disadvantages of Payback - Assignment Example Payback period is also an effective capital budgeting technique whereby the break-even point for an investment proposal is calculated. When investment is made in a project, there are no profits earned in the initial few years of operation. Profits are earned after the business achieves break even, where the level of investment made in the project becomes equal to the inflow of cash earned over the years. If the initial investment made in a project $150,000 and the cash flows each year is $50,000. Then the payback period as per the above formula is 3 years. At the end of the third year, the company will be able to recover the entire investment that it has made in the project. From the third year onwards the company would be earning profits upon the project. In case of two or more mutually exclusive projects, the management is seen to select the one which has a lower payback period (Baker and English, 2011). Payback period is one of the simplest capital budgeting techniques to appraise a given project. It is easy to use and simple to calculate. Payback period helps managers to understand the time period required to attain liquidity in a given investment proposal. It also helps the management to analyze the risk factor in a given investment proposal. The longer the duration of the project, the higher is the risk factor. Payback period does not take into consideration the time value of money. This is because the method does not take into consideration discounting of future cash inflows to arrive at the present value of net inflow. Payback period helps in understanding the liquidity factor associated with projects ignoring the profitability factor completely. The system takes into consideration only the inflow of cash prior to the payback period and does not consider the cash inflows after it (Bierman and Smidt, 2007).

Friday, September 27, 2019

The US. V. Mexican War Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

The US. V. Mexican War - Essay Example In the end, it may be said that Grant's statement of an unjust war was either warranted, or not warranted at all. The purpose of this assignment will to do just what Grant addresses. Uncover whether or not, through the eyes of various sources, try and uncover whether or not the US v. Mexican, or also known as the Mexican-American, War was one which was just in occurring, or should not have occurred in the first place. In addressing this conflict, it is crucial to understand its roots. It would be during this war that Mexico would loose control over what we know as present day California, all the way to Texas. According to "The Us-Mexican War" website, the war would last between the two nations from 1846 until 1848. It is in this website which readers can view different details about various war participants, and hopefully be able to conjure up an opinion(s) of their own about whether or not Grant was right about whether or not this war was just or unjust. The first line of the Manifest Destiny section is very telling. It states, "No nation ever existed without some sense of national destiny or purpose," (Manifest: Intro). In a way alludes to the idea of a destiny being fulfilled for both Mexico, as well as the United States. As you can very easily learn in a high school history class, manifest destiny is a term which was used around the time of the mid 18th century by foreign leaders in describing the desire of the United States to expand it's territory. In a way, the US was creating its future through the actions of the present. As for US opinion was, the section goes on to say that, "The people of the United States felt it was their mission to extend the 'boundaries of freedom' to others by imparting their idealism and belief in democratic institutions to those who were capable of self-government. It excluded those people who were perceived as being incapable of self-government, such as Native American people and those of non-Europ ean origin," (Manifest: Intro). Here right from the start is the clue that some in power in the US, and even outside as well, would see this conflict as just in proving it's ability to control not only its own borders, but its neighboring borders as well. In gauging the rightfulness of the war, it is also important to point out any discord inside Mexico itself on the part of its people. The section entitled "The Divisions in Mexico during the War with the United States", author Miguel Soto of the Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico writes of how the country was battling all kinds of unrest in areas such as economics, as well as social. This was occurring, or had been occurring, during the time, which the country was moving closer to war with the United States. Like all countries that were given the opportunity, Mexico so desired its chance for independence from the colony, which governed it. In a double-edged sword type of move, the author talks of how when Mexico was given its independence, it came in a form of government which still had some of the same rules and policies that made it no different than when they were under colonial control. Goes on to talk of political issues and the alluding to have military rebellious behavio r being the norm for handling issues. Not too different than what you hear from those today who lived in Mexico as younger persons, but for one reason or the other came to the United States. After surveying the Mexican government, it now becomes

Thursday, September 26, 2019

Sustainablility practice Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Sustainablility practice - Essay Example nd, that the recent growth in tourist related number is adversely impacting not only the local culture endemic to the land, but is also causing irreparable harm to the environment. As such, sustainable tourism activities, such as the one describe herein, are essential to the future of the country, in addition to the necessity of meeting the current needs of the people and land. The objective of this report is to highlight sustainable tourism operations in Thailand and to illustrate the critical need to further develop this endeavour in order to protect both the land and the environment of this Southeast Asian nation. This objective was primarily accomplished by researching currently literature related to sustainable tourism in Thailand, as well as conducting an in-depth analysis of the Thailand Tourism Authority of Thailand’s website. It was discovered that, while sustainable tourism is on the rise throughout the nation, there is still far too much reliance on international projects, which are creating harm to the land, the people, and the culture. In the future, more focus is needed in terms of developing tourist operations that are directly impacting the people of Thailand, while doing little to no harm to the environment in which they live. Throughout time, tourism has been in a constant state of change, and along with it has come a consistent need to look towards the future. For tourism to be sustainable, and for it to have a positive environmental effect for future generations, companies must look for ways to protect the lands in which they operate. The average tourist today has different expectations that have been evolving over the years. While the tourist industry has struggled at time to keep up with global demand, it has largely performed brilliantly across various sectors (Hamzah & Hampton, 2011). The flip side of this, however, has bough about grave environmental concerns that, left unaddressed, will completely alter the tourist landscape of

Wednesday, September 25, 2019

Attributes that make multi-cultural organisation effective Assignment

Attributes that make multi-cultural organisation effective - Assignment Example The main attribute to the success of a multicultural organization is the equal share offered to the diverse cultures and perspectives with regard to decision making and making sure that the diverse cultures are reflected in the organization’s policies and practices (Cuyjet, Howard-Hamilton, & Cooper, 2011). Envisioning organizations that acknowledge and incorporate diverse cultures is hard; nevertheless, multicultural organizations require open-mindedness and flexibility to both employees and the organization. Therefore, the essential personal and organizational attributes that guide multicultural organizations include adaptability, fluidity and open-mindedness (Fine, 1995). However, for a multicultural organization to achieve these attributes it requires at least two things: individuals ready to develop multicultural literacy and the organization has to develop flexible policies and systems capable of responding in a quick way to the differences arising from employees (Fine, 1995). Individuals in multicultural organizations have to be willing to learn different cultures as well as their discourse and working with one another. Moreover, individuals in a multicultural organization have to search for their cultural biases in response to one another and enquire to make sure their interpretations of the other person’s actions and words is correct. Moreover in multicultural organization, managers are sensitive to the cultural differences within employees, which encourage them to learn different ways of analyzing problems and carrying out a task. In a multicultural organization, the organization’s perspective shift from objectivity to subjectivi ty by recognizing the veracity of various cultural perspectives instead of trying to standardize and automate policies and practices to ensure employees receive equal treatment (Hogan, 2007). Therefore, in effective

Tuesday, September 24, 2019

Lean Manufacturing--Mass Customization & Marketplace simulation Assignment

Lean Manufacturing--Mass Customization & Marketplace simulation - Assignment Example Knowing what the clients or rather what the customers want is very essential. Thus, the company should be in a position to understand the need for market segmentation. This is because, in today’s marketplace, it is necessary for a company to understand the need of market segmentation because of market fragmentation. In addition, the company should be in a position to explain how the marketers evaluate segments and choose a targeting strategy. In order to choose more segments and to target more clients, the company should be able to evaluate the potential for and success in the marketplace (Cagan, & Vogel, 2002). The process to which a computer producing company needs in order to have a good and continuous improvement is by knowing how much, and the quality and stability of computers the company supplies to the market. The computer company should be able to isolate and validate the goods they process, for instance: keyboards mouse, monitors, and processors among others. While in the market place target other markets. This particular computer company should not only focus on the current marketplace, and it should try to reach out to other markets for more profits. If the computer company invest in more designs and improve the quality and the designs of the machines it produces, it will be able to accomplish the market business stimulation it needs in the

Monday, September 23, 2019

Clever Marketing in the Luxury Fashion Industry Essay

Clever Marketing in the Luxury Fashion Industry - Essay Example Talented designers, nowadays, unlike their counterparts from before, can no longer merely rely on their talent. In fact, they are forced to share profits such as the Gucci Group and the LVMH in order to increase their sales through marketing. Without a doubt, the luxury fashion industry makes use of clever marketing strategies in order to keep the brand alive. It is then in relation to this that this research seeks to look into the concept of clever marketing and how this posed implications to the industry. Furthermore, this paper also examines the said strategies and how these affect the companies. In order to achieve this then, the researcher employs the questionnaire method in order to gain the perceptions of the members of Gucci, LVMH, and Richemont with regard to clever marketing and how these affect them. a Luxury, style, and elegance have traditionally been associated with the French way of life. In fact, the first so-called ‘grands against’ were found in their capital and these were associated with values of sensuality, luxury, innovation and premium service. Added to this was the manner by which the architecture conveyed senses of majesty and power thereby defining the shopping experience for the wealthy consumers. Hence, fashion becomes more than just a matter of clothes and accessories. Rather, it has been of vital importance and influence that structures the culture, identity, and lifestyle of a certain society, Okonkwo. Central then to this luxurious shopping experience is coveted products that are authentic, exudes quality and craftsmanship, and most importantly, demonstrate exclusivity.  

Sunday, September 22, 2019

Solar & Wind Energy Resource Assessment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Solar & Wind Energy Resource Assessment - Essay Example The buildings at Merchiston are a major part of Napier’s estate offering teaching accommodation for up to 2,000 students. An energy audit for the above buildings has been conducted using utilities bills. Utility bills from August 2007 to July 2009 (24 months) have been used for the assessment. Alternative systems have been considered to reduce energy use. The electricity consumed (kWh) for each month has been illustrated in figure 1. The units of electrical energy consumed have steadily declined over the years. Various initiatives have resulted in the development and use of energy efficient equipment, in addition to energy efficient practices. The energy cost for each month for electricity has been illustrated in figure 2. Despite the decline in energy usage, there has been a rise in energy cost. This is because of increase in the cost of production of electricity. The average electric energy unit cost during the period has been illustrated in figure 3. The increase in costs of electricity production has been passed on to the consumer. There has been an increase of over  £3 per kWh over the years. The units of energy consumed (kWh) for gas each month has been illustrated in figure 4. Seasonal influences play a significant role in the use of gas, which is primarily used for heating. Naturally gas consumption declines during summer months and peak during the cold winter months. The facilities consume 4198.55 MWh of electrical energy and 6005.35 MWh of gas annually. The electrical energy consumed results in average energy cost of  £393.3347K annually and gas consumed results in energy costs of  £172.1616K annually. Electricity and gas consumption at the facilities results in the release of 3.5KtCO2 each year. Scottish Building Standards Agency (SBSA) requires buildings to comply with legislation and principles of â€Å"Green Government† policy. The Scottish Government has set a target for 80% reduction of greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.

Saturday, September 21, 2019

Balanced Scorecard and Strategy Map Essay Example for Free

Balanced Scorecard and Strategy Map Essay Balanced Scorecard: Part of a system that translates strategy into action. Also, gives a balanced view in four perspectives of how well an organization is driving execution and how successful the results are. The four perspectives in the balanced scorecard and strategy map give executives a more balanced view of their organization. Strategy Map: Represents how an organization will execute its strategy. The Strategy Map shows the objectives needed to execute the strategy and casual links between objectives. It can also be a tool for clear communication and help identify the â€Å"critical few† metrics to monitor strategic execution. Examples: The first of the four aspects contained in the Balanced Scorecard is the Customers. Finding ways to appeal to your customers can be a tough task, but it is one that has to be assessed. For my company, we will have to differentiate between trying to be the broad differentiator or trying to be the low-cost leader. Customer complaints and concerns can also be an issue, so we will want to monitor and record all of those statements to ensure customer satisfaction. In order for us to succeed financially, we have to make sure that we are presenting ourselves well to our shareholders. Do we want to achieve a certain earnings per share or a certain income figure? Our goal this year may be to break even or reach a certain revenue level. Whichever the case may be, we will have to be firm in what we are trying to accomplish. The financial section of the scorecard looks at the company’s financial goals and how they are meeting the goals both currently and in the future. For my company, it will be the most important metric because we want to show our  shareholders the exact progress and growth of the company accurately. Our company will want to continue to grow and have the ability to adapt and improve. In order to do so, we will have to provide detail metrics to track our growth and expansion if there is any. Metrics may include employee retention rates or even the number of training hours for full-time employees. As an organization, it is necessary to adapt to a changing landscape through employee training, learning, and development. With these metrics we can look into the future of the organization, instead of taking a snapshot of how the organization is performing right now. To satisfy our shareholders and customers, we can either sell a large quantity of items at a low price or focus completely on a high quality product that comes at a premium price. Both strategies could be effective, but we will only be able to choose one to fulfill the vision of what we want the company to be in the future. The Strategy Map and Balanced Scorecard go hand in hand and are vital platforms that all companies need to be successful. I like to compare it to the checks and balances system that our government has had in place since its birth. The balanced scorecard monitors finances, performance, growth, and vision while the strategy map makes sure that all of these metrics are organized and focused towards achieving our companies’ goals. References Person, R. (2013). Accelerating Strategic Performace. In Balanced Scorecards Operational Dashboards With Microsoft Excel (2.nd ed., p. 6, 7, 8). Hoboken, N.J.: Wiley ;.

Friday, September 20, 2019

The Impacts of the Urban Tourism Industry

The Impacts of the Urban Tourism Industry Time has changed now, no one want be static people like to travel abroad to explore the world. It is in human nature to find more and more place to entertain him. The main reason behind this all revolution is; the life is becoming materialistic day by day. This trend is helping the many countries to grow their economic condition as well. Like in any country have historic places; now they are making these places more attractive to get more people visit those monuments. People visit different areas according to their on liking. Every city and country has various types of attraction for the visitors. As we can say people go to Egypt to see mummies. If we talk about London, London has lots historic and cultural places like museum, art galleries, monuments and forts. Keeping in accounts all these points tourism has become a growing industry now and every country is trying to promote its tourism industry. In this assignment we would try to analyse the definition of urban tourism and its impact. How the tourism industry is growing in the urban area. We selected the Edinburgh the city of Scotland. We would try to elaborate the history of tourism industry of Edinburgh. How they are planning to make it more attractive for future. We also tried to cover all the attraction of Edinburgh and all statistics regarding industry. Our main focus on the problem of tourism in Edinburgh. In this assignment, we shall try to find out problems and will give the conclusions and recommendations. 2. Urban Tourism:- The concept of urban tourism is very broad and it consists of all kinds of entertainment activities that are held in cities. The improvement of urban environment and the perfection of all kinds of services and facilities are all great attractions to tourists It consists of good and suitable transport links, well-blooming market, better trade and good atmosphere for shopping, latest and developed information and technology, great service and leisure, modern urban land rich urban culture. Therefore a lot of people decide different types of cities as a destination to spend their holidays and the urban tourism in those cities are well-known. (Zou and Tian, 2002) According to Colantonio and Potter (2006) the tourism that is held in urban area of the city is known as urban tourism. Urban tourism consists of different types of the activities. Different people visit urban cities for different purposes. They like to visit historical buildings, tourist attractions, landscapes, art galleries, special events, to see culture and heritage and for leisure purposes. Urban city also offers a lot of activities to increase tourism and attract the people. All those things are the characteristics of urban tourist. The image of the city is very important for all types of visitor, they (visitors) have a lot of expectations like the behaviour and attitude of the community. If it is positive, it attracts the visitors again and again. In this way, the tourism growth increases of that city. The cities change in public culture, architecture and design, education, urban planning, parks and leisure and public party which resulted from dramatic redevelopment of the citys central business and historic district. Urban tourism increasingly generates images of heritage and identify that are consumed as much by residents as by visitors. The cities where the tourism infrastructure and marketing are largely build up. (Chambers, 1997) 2.1 Impacts of Urban Tourism:- According to Law (2002) now a day, the urban tourism is growing rapidly in every country of the world. It is providing a lot of advantages to local people in many different ways. The tourism growth in urban areas has caused economic, socio cultural and environmental. They have both positive and negative impacts. According to Mak (2004) urban tourism has a wide range of economic impacts in urban areas. The community plays an important role to create more and more tourism in their city and in this their economies go up and they are the people who get benefits. The tourism and community depends on each other. When the growth of tourism increases, the more people who come to visit the city, they spend their money in different ways like accommodation, food, transportation, shopping etc. The positive impacts of urban tourism help to increase in local economy of the city and also increase the living standard of the people. The numbers of job created in local area in different sectors e.g. hotels, travel agencies, restaurant etc. It also helps to improve infrastructure of transportation and created much business opportunity in that area. There are some negative impacts of economy is in urban cities as well. In such type of city, it is very difficult to live because the living cost is too much because the rate of land and houses are very high. Sometime it causes the unemployment because of season tourism in urban city. People do not get minimum wages because of a lot of manpower is available. (Theobald, 2004) According to Holden (2008) when we talk of the environment, we talk of the surroundings such as soil, water, air, vegetation, wildlife and other scare resources. Everyday we are made aware of the environmental issues in the newspapers, on television or by observing our own surroundings. Pollution of the land, air, rivers and seas are just come of the issues that we are faced with. Tourism and environment are closely linked. When tourist visit urban area, they come to experience the environment and its natural beauty such as the sea, beaches, ancient sights, the wild life and the flora and fauna (vegetation). It makes sense to protect it. The positive impacts of urban tourism are as follows: All the natural environments attract the visitors to come in urban cities. The local authority tries to improve more and more natural resources in the city and improves the look of city as well. The negative impacts of environment on urban cities are given below: Every type of pollution increases in urban cities e.g. air pollution, noise distortion and water pollution. Natural lands are converted into the commercial areas; it is difficult to find landscapes and natural beauty. Shortfall of natural resources like water. According to Smith (2003) urban tourism has also impact socially. When a lot of visitors come to visit a particular area they leave social impacts on the region. The relation between visitors and residents get closer and when you go close to some one, you obviously influence to person which can be both positive and negative nature. The growth of tourism in urban city, attract but force as well to community to accept their culture and standard. The positive impacts of social and culture are as follows: It helps to improve living standard of people. The urban city provides a lot of attractions and well managed infrastructure of tourism. When tourists come to visit urban city they belong to different ethnicity and urban tourism provides a lot of resident opportunities e.g. get together with good and friendly people, to explore the knowledge about their countries or cities. The tourists encourage their historical sights and culture. Due to urban tourism, the local community learn a lot of positive things like the knowledge about world, different languages. Its helps people to understand different civilisation. The negative impacts of social and culture: In some countries drinking is not allowed but in tourism case people do drinking and it effect badly. It also indulges under age people in drinking. It disturbs the family structure of the place. Many negative changes take place in values and customs. Urban tourism also increases in crimes, usages of drugs and prostitution. 3. Edinburgh:- Edinburgh is Scotlands capital and most successful tourist destination. The Edinburgh is divided into Old Town and New Town. There are a lot of tourists attractions, rich museum collections, arts galleries. Edinburgh is the home to three national art collections and a number of galleries (Wordsworth, 2002). Edinburgh City (Source: www. travel.webshots.com) According to Shelby,(2007)Edinburgh is a beautiful and historical city of Scotland. Most of the traveller says that if you want to visit two cities of the Great Britain, one is London and second is Edinburgh. The city is known as for festivals. There is a lot festivals that held in the Edinburgh like films, books, comedy, drama, music, dance etc. Famous Edinburgh residents include Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling, who has become one of the best-selling writers in history and wrote her first book in one of the citys coffee shop. (Shelby, 2007) According to Parlett, Fletcher and Cooper (1995) Edinburgh is going through a process of change and centre of attention. This city plays a vital role in refocusing of tourism in Scotland. The main thing in Edinburgh is its attractions and heritage 3.1 Attractions of Edinburgh:- The main purpose of destination is to provide leisure and facilities to the visitors. A tourist destination needs to have variety of attractions, events and entertainment that are value for money and keep an eye on the requirements of the visitors. (Blackman and Stewart. 2005) Attractions have the ability to draw people to them and they are often the main motivation for travel. For example, if you think to about travelling to a destination, what is that makes it worth visiting? The beach? The shopping? All these examples of tourist attraction. There are many sightseeing attraction in Edinburgh that are given below; 1) Edinburgh Castle 2) National Gallery of Scotland 3) Royal Museum of Scotland 4) Edinburgh Zoo 5) National Gallery Complex 6) St. Giles Cathedral 7) Royal Botanic Garden 8) National War Museum 9) Scottish Parliament Visitor Centre 10) Our Dynamic Earth Calton Hill 11) Prince Street Garden 12) Georgian House 13) Museum of Childhood 3.1.1 Edinburghh Castle:- Edinburgh Castle Source: (www.michaelp.org, 2003) Edinburgh castle is situated in the centre of the city. Edinburgh castle is one of the most famous historic and most visited attractions. Ever year million of people come to see this historical attraction. If you go to Scotland and you do not visit this castle, it means that your trip is not complete. There are a lot of events held in this castle like fireworks, World Heritage Day and many more. (Wordsworth, 2002) 3.1.2 National Gallery of Scotland:- National Gallery of Scotland (Source: www.edinphoto.org.uk) This gallery is designed by William Playfair in 1850-1857. The gallery has a good collection of paintings, prints, drawing, photographs and books of history. The gallery displayed chronological are complemented by appropriate period furniture and sculpture. Everyday most of the visitors come here to visit this gallery. (Dailey, 2005) 3.1.3 Royal Museum of Scotland:- Royal Museum of Scotland (Source: www.nms.ac.uk) The royal museum of Scotland is one of the most visited attractions. This museum displays of arts and science in the grand victorian cast iron building. Exhibits include natural history, archaeology, costumes and decorative art from all around the world. There are some new galleries that provides the vast collection of Scotland and it people. (Blackman and Stewart. 2005) 3.1.4 Edinburgh Zoo:- Edinburghh Zoo (Source: www. travel.webshots.com) It was built by Royal Zoological Society of Scotland in 1913. Edinburgh Zoo is one of the most visited places in Edinburgh. There are lots of things to see inside the zoo like birds, mammals, reptiles and many more. The zoo has different types of animals that have come from different parts of the world. It attracts all types of age group. (Shelby, 2007) 3.2 Tourism Statistics of Edinburgh:- Edinburgh is the 2nd most visited destination in the U.K. every year a lots of domestic and international visitors come to visit Scotland and of course their first priority is to visit Edinburgh. Approximately 45% international tourists visit to Edinburgh if the come to Scotland. Many people visit Edinburgh because of its history and nearly 4 million people visit every year. The main reason behind this huge number of visitors the different type of festivals. Edinburgh is the second city in UK and fifth in Europe to generate revenue per room. Rooms to let in hotels are very high in UK is likely 76%. The tourism industry has a big contribution in the employment, the industry providing job approximately 31,000 people. (Source: www.edinburghguide.com. 15 April 2009) 3.4 The Edinburgh Festivals:- The Edinburgh festivals are well known in all over the world. It was started in 1947. There are a lot of festivals that held whole year. Million of people come to attend those festivals from all part of the world. (Whyte, 1998) According to Dailey (2005) the first three weeks of august is very important for international festivals. This month is filled with performers and entertainer that come from different areas of the world to perform and entertain the visitors in Edinburgh. Those festivals offer exhibitions, music, theatre and dance the famous musicians, artists, actors, singers, dancers and comedians come to Edinburgh to perform. Some of the most festivals are given below; The Festival Fringe Edinburgh Military Tattoo Hogmanay Science Jazz 3.4.1 The Festival Fringe:- Fringe festival is the world largest art festival. This festival held in August and presents dance, theatre and music shows that are preformed by good performers. The Fringe festival is a great gathering of artists, musicians, actors and comedians. 3.4.2 Edinburgh Military Tattoo:- Edinburgh Military Tattoo held in the castle Esplanade every year in August. It offers the music of the massed pipes and drums. Near about 0.2 millions people come to watch this festival. 3.4.3 Edinburghs Hogmanay:- Edinburghs second great festival is Hogmanay. The festival takes place Dec-Jan. Near about 0.5 million people attend this festival. It is the Scottish New Year celebration with a spectacular Fire Procession and fireworks, a carnival and open-air concerts running for several days. 4. Problems of Edinburgh:- There is no country or city in world that has not any problem. Those problems are directly affected to economy. The best way to sort out those problems and improve as much as we can. Edinburgh is a nice place to visit. It is a developed tourists destination Although Edinburgh has not too many problems but still some problems exist that are given below; 4.1 Edinburgh and Crime:- Security is very important for the growth of tourism. The regions where the tourism is very high, there would be also a negative aspect that it will also increase the criminality from. Prostitution, pick-pocketing, drugs and petty crime are very common problems in major tourist destination. Crime has always been a threat to travellers because people are vulnerable when they are away from their home. They may be carrying a lot of money and expensive things. They do not know too much about the area and surroundings. Tourist have always made easy picking for thieves, the thieves, know that when they will go back home, they will reclaim the theft on their insurance. (Blackman and Stewart, 2005) UK has many places to visit and Edinburgh is one of them. It seems very safe and quiet place for visitors actually, it is not that safe because it has lots of clubs and pubs in that area. It is safe to walk in this area but do not go in alley street. If you want to go there must be some people to around you. Ever tourist place has same negative factor with its all positive factors like Edinburgh. It is very clear tourism is a growing industry in Edinburgh, according to the statistics of Edinburgh tourism authority. But with the passage of time like other tourist place some fatal diseases are also coming to see. It is not only Edinburgh almost every tourist place. Like particularly. If we talk about Edinburgh people are being addicted to use of drugs. Due to open environment many other diseases like HIV also has been reported. Not only HIV been reported it is also going into dangerous figures. Moreover, the usage of cocaine and heroine has been come into records. There are well stable bodies who are managing all these activities. It is not only terrible for the people but also a challenge for the police as well to control all this. Source: (www.news.scotsman.com, 13 April 2010) According to Hanna (10 March 2010) recently, near about 60 people arrested which were involved in suspicious activities and the concerned bodies seized the assets of  £400.000 of those criminals. They had some drug and weapon too. The new town of Edinburgh is considered the high criminal area. This town is classified as the second in terms of crime in Scotland. It is situated behind the Amberdeen Union street. There are a lot of bars and nightclubs are increasing the numbers of crimes in this area. Due to high crime rate, 5274 offences have recorded in this area. Source: (www.edinburghhnews.scotsman.com, 14 September 2009) 4.2 Transport Problems in Edinburgh:- Transport plays very vital role in tourism industry. The good facilities of transport help to maximize the industrys potential. The transport links is very important in success of tourism product. The international visitors depend on the transport to get in the cities and attractions because they do not know about the destination too much. So, the first priority of the destination management is to provide good transport facilities and services. In this way they can explore more and more about destination. Most visitors have not too much time to spend in destination; they want to get in destination as quickly as possible. (Blackman, Smith, Rowe and Stewart, 2005) Infrastructure and transportation plays an important role in tourism of a particular area. Edinburgh is the second most visited city in United Kingdom. Every day a lot of people come to visit this city. The traffic growth is increasing day by day and it is creating more problems in Edinburgh. The economic growth of Edinburgh is increasing very rapidly from last a few years. This economic improvement has made a lot of positive and negative changes. The positive changes are, it created thousands of jobs, which are why lots of people travel to Edinburgh on a daily basis. They travel in cars and buses. The main roads of Edinburgh are very busy. Most of the travellers from different cities come to Edinburgh from different source of travelling like trains, cars, buses and aeroplanes. Most of them come in cars and buses which is causing congestion on the roads. That is why the congestion on the road has been increased and nearly it increased up to 60%. Source: (www.scottish.parliament.uk, 21 August 2002) The Scottish Govt took a step to resolve the diversion tram issues. This was a good step to handle all the traffic issues. But, there are some issues between the Scottish Govt. and the construction firm. The work has been suspended till the problem is resolved. All the utilities works mostly completed but the laying of tram are suspended. Source: (www.transportxtra.com, 10 March 2010) 4.3 Tourists Problems in August:- There is a lot of tourists attraction in Edinburgh. Tourists come to visit whole year. There is no particular time period for tourists. There are lots social and cultural festivals in the august of every year. These are very big festival and lots people come to attend these festivals form the whole world because of this massive attendance of people the tourism board of Edinburgh is unable to control the number of people that is why they close most of the tourist points and open them in Sundays. (Dailey, 2005) The second main problem is many people visit Edinburgh in August and they book the hotel and travel tickets. In the result the price of hotel rooms and tickets automatically goes up. Not only prices goes up but also unable to book room and travel ticket. The prices of other tangible item goes up as well. (Wordsworth, 2002) 5. Conclusions and Recommendations:- In conclusion and recommendations we need would focus to resolve the problem which the destination facing in the tourism industry. There are lots problem which need special attention to rectify for the enhancement of tourism. Although, tourism is growing in Edinburgh but the problems are also. The main problem is transport. The numbers of tourist are increasing day bye day but the transportation facilities are not enough to meet all the requirements. Infrastructure need to improve to provide better transport facilities. They can handle the traffic problem to apply the congestion charges on busy area. They should encourage visitors and local people to use public transport. The second main issue is crime, although, the crime is not high enough but when more tourist visit Edinburgh they have different nature and the nature can be any type. People are being addict of drugs. Tourists come to these places for maximum entertainment. When they come to these places they use alcoholic drinks and drugs. With all these issues the prostitution is also increasing and is becoming common. The pubs and night clubs open till late night and they cause problem for local residents. In August they arrange some international festival in Edinburgh and these event gives help to criminals to promote their activities. Edinburgh attracts the people to visit Scottish history. There are lots forts and monuments which represent the Scottish history. Every age group visit the Edinburgh like 10 to 70. There are many other attraction points are as well should be identified to visitors like Edinburgh castle and National gallery of Scotland. A big population of the world is consisting of senior people and they should do some thing to attract them as well. 6. Bibliography:- Whyte, D. (1998) Landmark visitors guide (Scotland), Landmark Publishing Ltd., Derbyshire Martine, R. (2008) Edinburgh, Apa Publication, Singapore Reid, D. (2002) The rough guide to Edinburgh, 3rd edition, Rough Guides Ltd., London Yeoman. I., Robertson, M., Ali, J. and Durmmond, S. (2003) Festivals and events management: an international arts and culture perspective, A Butterworth-Heinemann, Oxford Maclellan, R. and Smith, R. (1998) Tourism in Scotland, Thomson Learning, London Stevenson, R., L. (2009) Edinburgh, Bibliolife LLC, U.K. Howie, F. (2003) Managing the tourist destination, Thomson Learning, London Vanhove, N. (2004) Economics of tourism destination, Butterworth-Heinemann, Oxford

Thursday, September 19, 2019

Parallel Between Romeo and Juliette and Shakespeare in Love :: Free Romeo and Juliet Essays

During the part of Shakespeare’s life portrayed in Shakespeare in Love, he is writing the play Romeo an Juliet. He based his play on the things that happened to him during that time and therefore there are many comparable between the two films. Shakespeare had fallen in love with Viola, a royalty, but the fact that he was already married and very poor prevented him from marrying the rich Viola. Romeo was a Montaque and Juliet a Capulet. Because of the feud between the two families, Romeo and Juliet were not able to marry as well. Furthermore Viola’s father signed a sealed contract with Lord Wessex, promising Viola to him as wife so that they could have titled offspring. In Romeo and Juliet, Juliet’s father had also signed a contract with Paris and Juliet had to marry him. Lord Wessex had threatened to kill Shakespeare and, protecting himself, Shakespeare said his name was Christopher Marlow, his friend. Later on Marlow was killed and Shakespeare felt responsible. In Romeo and Juliet Romeo’s best friend, Mercutio is killed because he defended Romeo’s name. Shakespeare and Viola only made eye contact once during a play and later, when she was disguised as a boy, she played the leading role in his play and he was attracted to her, but he did not know it was her until much later. Romeo and Juliet fell in love at a mask-ball, therefore also unaware of each other’s identities at the time. Only later they discovered that they were from different families. In both films the nurse of Juliet and Viola respectively, served as go-betweens and knew everything about the secret relationships. Viola’s nurse stood watch at the door when Viola and Shakespeare were making love, Juliet’s nurse stood guard at the door when Romeo and Juliet were married in secret. In the beginning of the film Shakespeare is in a state because he needed a muse to be able to write and was involved with a Rosalyn, thinking she might help him restore his ability to write.

Wednesday, September 18, 2019

My Personal Leadership Philosophy Essay -- Leadership Essays

According to Webster’s Dictionary, leadership is the power or ability to lead other people, the act or instance of leading. I believe that Leadership is an art, the art to get others to follow and accomplish a common goal or task in a harmonic manner. A leader can be shown in all kinds of shapes and forms. To be a great leader many people believe it consists of modeling the way, inspiring a shared vision, enabling others to act, and encouraging the heart. Over the course of me learning how to become a better leader and being in leadership roles, I’ve learned that all these are very necessary to be a great leader. The person you least expect can be a leader in their on right. We have great world leaders such as our President Barack Obama and Hilary Clinton, but also we even have our small town leaders such has our sheriffs and mayors. Most importantly I’ve seen the greatest leader of them all and that’s been in my own household. My mother exemplifies all of these very great qualities she practices what she preaches, encourages me to be a better me, tends to my needs, and has ultimately won all of my trust to know she will never steer me in the wrong direction. Leading is a way of life, something that is a learning experience. With growth, lessons learned, and having confidence leadership is a task that all can obtain. My top five strengths include Faith, Integrity, leadership, teamwork, and communication. My number one weakness is ambition. I would have to say that my strength finder test was pretty accurate to what I already knew were my strengths and weaknesses. I actually found the test very helpful and it opened up my eyes to a lot of things. With anything you do in life you need faith. I have always struggled wi... ... we know it or not. Growth is inevitable and when there is growth there is new finding about life. Leadership is a growing process that is never ending. Even a leader is human. Learning from mistakes and showing ways to positively turn them around is one of the strongest leaders of them all. But one must realize you have to be follower in one time of your life to become a leader. The most creative geniuses are those who have followed. Stay humble, open-minded, and firm in your beliefs and know man should ever discredit you from being an extraordinary leader. Works Cited Summary." U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, n.d. Web. 13 November 2013. "Free Aptitude Test – Find Your Strengths & Weaknesses." Tools for Your Career Path. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Nov. 2013. "Leadership." Merriam-Webster. Merriam-Webster, n.d. Web. 14 Nov. 2013.

Tuesday, September 17, 2019

Greek Influences on Western Civilization :: essays research papers

Ancient Greek Contributions It is always important to look to the past in order to move towards the future. This was done in the formation of Western Society, and more specifically the formation of American society. The Greek culture served as a frame of reference for many aspects of Western life including government, architecture, math and the arts. Ancient Greek culture served as a very broad base for our society to be built upon. During the age of Pericles, the ideal form of government was believed to be a government formed by all of the citizens regardless of wealth or social standing. This was known as democracy, literally meaning â€Å" government of the people† [Document 3.] This government favored the many instead of the few. Athens was a direct democracy, meaning every citizen participated in debates. Western civilization used this philosophy of government by many, and created an indirect democracy where citizens elect officials to make and enforce laws. Geometry, a cornerstone in modern civilization, also had its beginnings in Ancient Greece. Euclid, a mathematician, formed many geometric proofs and theories [Document 5]. He also came to one of the most significant discoveries of math, Pi. This number showed the ratio between the diameter and circumference of a circle. Grecian architecture formed its own conventions in the ancient world, buildings in Greece were built with meticulous mathematic design. Great buildings were believed to be symmetrical, and perfectly proportioned [Document 7]. Another prominent aspect of ancient Greek architecture is the extensive use of columns. There were three basic types used, Doric which were plain capitals, ionic in which the capitals were fashioned after ram’s horns, and Corinthian which were made to mirror acanthus leaves. Greek Influences on Western Civilization :: essays research papers Ancient Greek Contributions It is always important to look to the past in order to move towards the future. This was done in the formation of Western Society, and more specifically the formation of American society. The Greek culture served as a frame of reference for many aspects of Western life including government, architecture, math and the arts. Ancient Greek culture served as a very broad base for our society to be built upon. During the age of Pericles, the ideal form of government was believed to be a government formed by all of the citizens regardless of wealth or social standing. This was known as democracy, literally meaning â€Å" government of the people† [Document 3.] This government favored the many instead of the few. Athens was a direct democracy, meaning every citizen participated in debates. Western civilization used this philosophy of government by many, and created an indirect democracy where citizens elect officials to make and enforce laws. Geometry, a cornerstone in modern civilization, also had its beginnings in Ancient Greece. Euclid, a mathematician, formed many geometric proofs and theories [Document 5]. He also came to one of the most significant discoveries of math, Pi. This number showed the ratio between the diameter and circumference of a circle. Grecian architecture formed its own conventions in the ancient world, buildings in Greece were built with meticulous mathematic design. Great buildings were believed to be symmetrical, and perfectly proportioned [Document 7]. Another prominent aspect of ancient Greek architecture is the extensive use of columns. There were three basic types used, Doric which were plain capitals, ionic in which the capitals were fashioned after ram’s horns, and Corinthian which were made to mirror acanthus leaves.

Chico Mendes

The life of Chico Mendes. Born: December 15, 1944 Xapuri, Brazil Died: December 22, 1988 (aged 44) Xapuri, Brazil â€Å"At first I thought I was fighting to save rubber trees, then I thought I was fighting to save the Amazon rainforest. Now I realise I am fighting for humanity. † Chico was many things, he was a steward to this earth, a unionist,an enviromental activist , a father, a husband and the list carrys on. This story starts with Chico being a rubber tapper. Following his father, he was â€Å"a seringueiro†, a rubber tapper.He farmed a small clearing, but relied on the sale of rubber from several hundred native rubber trees in the rain forest itself to provide income for him and his family. Chico inherited the land and the trees from his father who had begun tapping them in the 1930s. Two long v-shaped cuts made with care in the bark of each rubber tree would produce one or two cups of the rubber. Chico also collect other natural forest products, such as fruits a nd Brazil nuts, allthough this didn't make much of a difference to his income.There was approximately 100,000 other rubber tappers living throughout the rain forest, and this is what they do as well. It is sustainable harvest which does not destroy the forest. When Chico was a young boy, him and his father would go rubber tapping together because it was one of the very few job available. At that day and age, the rubber tappers were conned out of their money by the people who bought the rubber. Becaue of the little education they all recieved, they couldn't do basic things, like reading or writing.The man that bought the rubber would lie about how much rubber he was given and the price the rubber was worth. This was changed when Chico met a man called Wilson, Wilson came to the rainforest because he was told you could get rich from rubber tapping and told Chico that if he taught him how to tap rubber than in return, Wilson would educate Chico about things like, reading, writing and m aths. A union was later formed by Wilson. Because of this union it helped the people get a better a education aswell as protecting their rights.On the first speach Wilson gave, he told everyone about how if everyone sticks together, than they are stronger than if they are apart. Wilson demonstrated this by using sticks, he snapped the one that was seperated, easily but not the bundle of many sticks. Land speculators and large cattle ranching buisnesses are more interested in the short-term profit than the lively hood of all the rubber tappers so they wanted to cut and burn the rubber trees down so they could build a road and ranches, this of course was so the rich, could become richer. The didn't care for the poor.When the union found out about the plans they fought back and organised protests and speaches, the leaders of the operations didn't appreciate this and sent Wilson (who was the leader of the union at that time) a goats head, this was a death promise. Wilson and his union d idn't back down though, this was the cause of Wilson's death, he was shot in the head. The leaders of the companies thought this would scare the union, it did. The leaders of the companies thought that this would scare the union so much that Chico would back down, but instead he did the opposite, Chico lead the union from then on.Chico Mendes and the Union fought to end this destruction of the tropical rain forest. The made many political inroads, gaining influence with the public. His main enemy was Darli Alves da Silva, a cattle rancher who had begun acquiring forest land in Acre. Darli vowed that Mendes would not live out 1988. In one protest, a man thought Chico was going to be killed by a man with a chain saw, so the man stupidly stepped infront of the chainsaw and later the man had to have his arm amputated. This made the class laugh.In many of the protest Chico told the memebers of the union to sit down and not fight back, because if they fought back, their enemies would say it was â€Å"self defence† when they harmed the inoccent union memebers. The man that was buying the forest for ranches, ambushed the union and shot a boy dead, putting 9 bullets in his body. Chico later ran for governour, his wife did not approve and she begged Chico not to draw attention to himself. Chico didn't get enough votes to become govenour and his opponent was giving away free chainsaws which made Chico lose some votes from his once loyal friends.When Chico was already a father to one child, his daughter. His wife once again became pregnant to two boys, sadly only one of his sons survived, the other passed away. When Chico went to Miami, he become more well known, which showed people about how the companies wanted to exploit the rainforest. Because Chico was becoming a threat to the companies plans, people came to negotiate what was going to happen,†For a negotiation, there needs to be a give, and a take. † Explained one of the men. â€Å"Fine, give us back or land, and take away the chainsaws. † Replied Chico as he laughed at his own joke.The men, after alot of negotiating decided that the land would be reserved for the rubber tappers and each generation off them. When the negotation was over, Darli and his family were chased of the land. Darli, obviously he was angry about this and supposedly sent Chico a death threat, once again, it came in the form of a goat's head. Chico, his wife, and two policemen assigned to guard him were playing cards at his home on December 22, 1988. Chico stepped outside for a moment and was killed by a shotgun blast to the chest from a waiting assassin.The local police claimed no clues or suspects in the case, but local and international protests forced the Brazilian government to enter the investigation. Evidence led them to the ranch of Darli da Silva. In the summer of 1989 indictments for murder were handed down to Darli da Silva, his son Darci Pereia da Silva, and Jerdeir Pereia, one of da S ilva's ranch hands. Testimony indicated that Darli ordered the murder and that Darci supervised as Jerdeir carried out the plot. There is evidence that other prominent ranchers may have been involved in the plot, and they are currently under investigation.

Monday, September 16, 2019

Confessions – Aurelius Augustine

26 November 2007 The Measure of a Woman In one of his most famous works, Confessions, Aurelius Augustine maps out important details and happenings throughout his life in reference to his loved ones and his God. An undeniable aspect of his life is the influence of his mother, Monica, and her perspective on life, love, and death. If compared to another famous female figure in the Christian life, such as Rebekah, the mother of Jacob, Monica’s virtues of patience and eternal perspective shine through, revealing her Biblical view of marriage and her husband.Augustine commends his mother’s virtues and lifestyle, providing an example for women everywhere to carefully consider. Monica shows one of the most difficult qualities in life to possess-patience. She demonstrates patience toward her son, Augustine, in her continual prayer and intercession for his salvation. In his Confessions, Augustine describes his mother’s prayers mixed with tears as he sets sail for Rome (5. 1232). Despite his departure, she continues to seek God for His power in the life of her son. Her patience is rewarded years later when Augustine finally comes to know the Lord.When Augustine brings her the good news, she is â€Å"filled with triumphant exultation† (8. 1238). Ultimately Monica realizes that God has done more than she could ever imagine. In Carl G. Vaught’s The Journey Toward God in Augustine’s Confessions: Book I-VI, he presents the importance of Augustine’s relationship with his mother concerning his conversion. He proposes that because of his relationship with his mother Augustine â€Å"begins to move beyond Skellenger 2 space and time toward the positive relationship with God that Monica wants him to embrace† (68).No doubt Monica’s patience influences her son to embark on his journey towards the Lord. By the time her son is converted, Monica already has countless opportunities to develop patience in her life. Before her e nduring attitude touches Augustine’s life, she is able to influence both her husband and mother-in-law. Referring to his mother’s impact on the life of his grandmother, Augustine confirms that Monica â€Å"won her completely by her unfailing patience and mildness† (Confessions 9. 1243). Such a straightforward statement proves that he not only recognizes, but also admires the virtue of patience he sees in his mother’s life.In one of his other works, Encounters With God in Augustine's Confessions: Books VII-IX, Carl G. Vaught draws attention to the fact that â€Å"Monica’s victory in this case is an unusual feat in any culture† (122). Perhaps demonstrating patience towards her mother-in-law is one of a woman’s greatest accomplishments in life. If so, this would greatly substantiate Monica’s character. Another virtue that Augustine reveres in Monica’s life is her eternal perspective. This is seen in his account of her last few days before her death. He reports that to both of them â€Å"the world with all its delights seemed cheap† (Confessions 9. 245). Monica’s focus on the life to come causes her to disregard the importance of her physical body’s final resting place. She gives instruction that her body is to be buried â€Å"wherever it may be† at the time of her death (9. 1246). Vaught again comments on the life of Monica, suggesting that â€Å"she points beyond death and the need to place the body in a particular place† (Encounters 135). Monica’s ability to see past the temporal life on earth illustrates her faith and obedience to God’s Word, which encourages the believer in II Corinthians 4:18 to concentrate on that which is eternal.In comparison, Rebekah of the Old Testament is not as patient nor eternally minded as Monica. Rather than waiting on the Lord to work in the lives of her family members, Rebekah feels the need to make things happen for h erself. When Rebekah discovers that her husband Skellenger 3 desires to bless their two sons she wastes no time to command the younger of the two boys, Jacob, to trick his father in order to receive the greater of the blessings. Though Jacob attempts to warn his mother of the potential danger she disregards it replying in Genesis 27:13, â€Å"My son, let the curse fall on me.Just do what I say. † The reader virtually hears the impatience and haste in Rebekah’s voice. In Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary on the Whole Bible, he describes Rebekah’s response as â€Å"a very rash word† (162). He also points out the fact that if Rebekah would have walked in patience and trust, rather than impulsiveness and anxiety, Jacob could have received the blessing in a proper way since God had already promised in Genesis 23:25 that he would be blessed (164). Both Rebekah and Monica receive the things they are after, yet in contrast to Monica’s patience whic h produces peace nd harmony in her home, Rebekah’s impatience results in additional strife and dissension amongst her family. It also displays Rebekah’s earthly and temporal mindset. She is so concerned with an earthly inheritance for her son that she fails to remember that it is God who blesses and fulfills His Word in His perfect timing and way. The virtues a woman possesses can have a huge impact on her view of marriage. Particular virtues may also shape her understanding and belief about her responsibilities to her husband.While counseling her peers, Monica reveals her personal belief and view of marriage, calling it a â€Å"matrimonial contract†¦an instrument by which they became servants† (Confessions 9. 1243). She also sees her life and the institute of marriage as a way to reach others and bring peace. Her son calls her a â€Å"peacemaker between people quarreling and minds at discord† (Confessions 9. 1244). Monica considered herself a servan t within the realm of marriage. This concept consequently affects her opinion of what her responsibilities are to her husband. Augustine Skellenger 4 lainly describes Monica’s behavior towards her husband in Book IX of Confessions, writing that â€Å"she served him as her lord† (1243). Such behavior apparently touches Augustine so greatly that he takes the time to include these particular facts in his work. Elizabeth A. Clark also observes in her book, St. Augustine On Marriage and Sexuality, that Augustine â€Å"praises her for the meekly subordinate position she had assumed in relation to his father† (21). Not only does Monica desire to live as a humble servant, she also sees her responsibility to be a witness for Christ to her husband.Augustine goes on to say in Confessions that Monica â€Å"use[s] all her effort to win him† to the Lord and does so by â€Å"preaching†¦to him by her character† (9. 1243). What a beautiful picture of Christâ⠂¬â„¢s love shining through her actions and integrity. She understands the power of her pure and submissive conduct, as well as the negative influence words possess while spoken in uncontrolled emotion. As Vaught so beautifully articulates, Monica â€Å"is prepared to wait for God’s mercy to transform him† (Encounters 121).Her approach to her husband may appear backwards to her peers, yet Monica’s demeanor proves to have amazing influence in her husband’s life. In comparison to Monica’s submission and faithfulness to her husband, Rebekah chooses to act out of desperation and fear. Though she serves her husband and family for the majority of her life, the story of her and Jacob’s deception illustrates a time when she decided to be lord of her house, instead of submitting to the head of their home, Isaac. During that time she does not walk in integrity towards her husband as Monica did.On the contrary, she devises a plan found in Genesis 27:14 -17 to deceive Isaac by dressing up Jacob in order to appear as Esau, his brother. Instead of utilizing her position of wife and mother to promote peace she attempts to orchestrate a selfish and cunning plan. This is a complete contrast to Monica’s desire to be a witness and model of God’s love. Skellenger 5 Monica is a Godly woman, referred to by her son with same qualities found in the third chapter of I Timothy, such as making herself beautiful by submitting to her husband.Her perspective and conduct would be magnificent to see in today’s women. Perhaps her ways might be considered old fashioned, weak, or even a way of suppressing women’s power. On the other hand, Rebekah’s choice to take charge is widely accepted and viewed as powerful in society today. Yet by humbling herself, Monica receives God’s power, as well as answers to her many prayers, and in her supposed weaker state she has enormous influence and power that goes far beyond th e realm of Rebekah’s misleading strength. Skellenger 6 Works CitedAugustine, Aurelius, and Elizabeth A. Clark, ed. St. Augustine On Marriage and Sexuality Fathers of the Church V. 1. Washington, D. C. Catholic University of America Press, 1996. ; http://www. netlibrary. com. library. dbu. edu:2048/Reader/;. Henry, Matthew. Commentary on the Whole Bible Volume I (Genesis to Deuteronomy). Logos, Inc. 1706-1721. Christian Classics Ethereal Library. ;http://www. ccel. org/ccel/henry /mhc1. html;. The Holy Bible, New International Version. International Bible Society, 1894. ;http://www. biblegateway. om/;. Lawall, Sarah, and Maynard Mack, Eds. The Norton Anthology of World Literature. 2nd ed. Vol. B. New York: W. W. Norton ; Company, 2002. Vaught, Carl G. The Journey Toward God in Augustine’s Confessions: Books I-VI. Albany State University of New York Press, 2003. ;http://www. netlibrary. com. library. dbu. edu:2048/Reader/;. Vaught, Carl G. Encounters With God in Augustin e's Confessions: Books VII-IX. Albany State University of New York Press, 2004. .

Sunday, September 15, 2019

The Voting Rights Act of 1965

The 1965 Enactment By 1965 concerted efforts to break the grip of state disfranchisement had been under way for some time, but had achieved only modest success overall and in some areas had proved almost entirely ineffectual. The murder of voting-rights activists in Philadelphia, Mississippi, gained national attention, along with numerous other acts of violence and terrorism.Finally, the unprovoked attack on March 7, 1965, by state troopers on peaceful marchers crossing the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama, en route to the state capitol in Montgomery, persuaded the President and Congress to overcome Southern legislators' resistance to effective voting rights legislation. President Johnson issued a call for a strong voting rights law and hearings began soon thereafter on the bill that would become the Voting Rights Act.Congress determined that the existing federal anti-discrimination laws were not sufficient to overcome the resistance by state officials to enforcement of the 15t h Amendment. The legislative hearings showed that the Department of Justice's efforts to eliminate discriminatory election practices by litigation on a case-by-case basis had been unsuccessful in opening up the registration process; as soon as one discriminatory practice or procedure was proven to be unconstitutional and enjoined, a new one would be substituted in its place and litigation would have to commence anew.President Johnson signed the resulting legislation into law on August 6, 1965. Section 2 of the Act, which closely followed the language of the 15th amendment, applied a nationwide prohibition against the denial or abridgment of the right to vote on the literacy tests on a nationwide basis. Among its other provisions, the Act contained special enforcement provisions targeted at those areas of the country where Congress believed the potential for discrimination to be the greatest.Under Section 5, jurisdictions covered by these special provisions could not implement any ch ange affecting voting until the Attorney General or the United States District Court for the District of Columbia determined that the change did not have a discriminatory purpose and would not have a discriminatory effect. In addition, the Attorney General could designate a county covered by these special provisions for the appointment of a federal examiner to review the qualifications of persons who wanted to register to vote.Further, in those counties where a federal examiner was serving, the Attorney General could request that federal observers monitor activities within the county's polling place. The Voting Rights Act had not included a provision prohibiting poll taxes, but had directed the Attorney General to challenge its use. In Harper v. Virginia State Board of Elections, 383 U. S. 663 (1966), the Supreme Court held Virginia's poll tax to be unconstitutional under the 14th Amendment.Between 1965 and 1969 the Supreme Court also issued several key decisions upholding the const itutionality of Section 5 and affirming the broad range of voting practices that required Section 5 review. As the Supreme Court put it in its 1966 decision upholding the constitutionality of the Act: Congress had found that case-by-case litigation was inadequate to combat wide-spread and persistent discrimination in voting, because of the inordinate amount of time and energy required to overcome the obstructionist tactics invariably encountered in these lawsuits.After enduring nearly a century of systematic resistance to the Fifteenth Amendment, Congress might well decide to shift the advantage of time and inertia from the perpetrators of the evil to its victims. South Carolina v. Katzenbach, 383 U. S. 301, 327-28 (1966). Back to top The 1970 and 1975 Amendments Congress extended Section 5 for five years in 1970 and for seven years in 1975. With these extensions Congress validated the Supreme Court's broad interpretation of the scope of Section 5.During the hearings on these extens ions Congress heard extensive testimony concerning the ways in which voting electorates were manipulated through gerrymandering, annexations, adoption of at-large elections, and other structural changes to prevent newly-registered black voters from effectively using the ballot. Congress also heard extensive testimony about voting discrimination that had been suffered by Hispanic, Asian and Native American citizens, and the 1975 amendments added protections from voting discrimination for language minority citizens.In 1973, the Supreme Court held certain legislative multi-member districts unconstitutional under the 14th Amendment on the ground that they systematically diluted the voting strength of minority citizens in Bexar County, Texas. This decision in White v. Regester, 412 U. S. 755 (1973), strongly shaped litigation through the 1970s against at-large systems and gerrymandered redistricting plans. In Mobile v. Bolden, 446 U. S. 5 (1980), however, the Supreme Court required that any constitutional claim of minority vote dilution must include proof of a racially discriminatory purpose, a requirement that was widely seen as making such claims far more difficult to prove. Back to top The 1982 Amendments Congress renewed in 1982 the special provisions of the Act, triggered by coverage under Section 4 for twenty-five years. Congress also adopted a new standard, which went into effect in 1985, providing how jurisdictions could terminate (or â€Å"bail out† from) coverage under the provisions of Section 4.Furthermore, after extensive hearings, Congress amended Section 2 to provide that a plaintiff could establish a violation of the Section without having to prove discriminatory purpose. The 2006 Amendments Congress renewed the special provisions of the Act in 2006 as part of the Fannie Lou Hamer, Rosa Parks, Coretta Scott King, Cesar E. Chavez, Barbara Jordan, William Velazquez and Dr. Hector Garcia Voting Rights Act Reauthorization and Amendments Act. The 2006 legislation eliminated the provision for voting examiners.

Saturday, September 14, 2019

Erp System Implication

Analyzing Enterprise Resource Planning system implementation success factors in the Engineering-Procurement Construction & Commissioning Industry Introduction Back Ground Enterprise Systems (ES), also called Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems, are among the most important business information technologies to emerge in the last decade. While no two industries Enterprise Systems are the same, the basic concept of Enterprise Systems is focused mainly on standardization, synchronization and improved efficiency. ERP is basically the successor to material resource planning (MRP) and integrated accounting systems such as payroll, general ledger, and billing. The benefits of Enterprise Systems are very significant: coordinating processes and information, reducing carrying costs, decreasing cycle time and improving responsiveness to customer needs [ (Davenport, 2000) ]. MRP is limited to controlling the flow of components and materials, and does not lend itself to more complete production control and coordination. The next generation of manufacturing software, known as MRP II, was developed to address this shortcoming and to further integrate business activities into a common framework. MRP II divides the production control problem into a hierarchy based on time scale and product aggregation. It coordinates the manufacturing process, allowing a variety of tasks such as capacity planning, demand management, production scheduling and distribution to be linked together. [ (Mendelson, 2000) ] Conventionally, the EPC firms have been faced with the predicament of handling the mega projects. The issue always is to keep these multimillion dollar projects on schedule, under budget, and safe with the quality specified by the end user. Although the EPC firms are one of the leading contributors to the development of region, yet it faces the challenges of most highly fragmented, inefficient, and geographically dispersed industries in the world. In recent times the emergence of ERP Software has helped such firms to overcome the issues. EPC Companies in the present world are expanding day by day, moving across the globe to open new avenues of business and expand. These companies also seek diversification in their business and continuously changing and adopting technology to keep pace and maintain their competitive advantage in their prior and newly adopted business sectors. Managing these huge companies need special support of Information Technology to keep a track of activities and handle them accordingly. Companies like BHP Billiton, Nestle etc. have implemented ERP systems around the globe wherever they operate. In our part of the world i. e. Pakistan companies such as Packages, FFC, Raftan Maize and Descon etc. have all implemented ERP systems to handle their business in a more efficient manner with their growth locally and globally. ERP is a software architecture that facilitates the flow of information among the different functions within an enterprise. Similarly, ERP facilitates information sharing across organizational units and geographical locations. It enables decision-makers to have an enterprise-wide view of the information they need in a timely, reliable and consistent fashion. ERP provides the backbone for an enterprise-wide information system. At the core of this enterprise software is a central database which draws data from and feeds data into modular applications that operate on a common computing platform, thus standardizing business processes and data definitions into a unified environment. With an ERP system, data needs to be entered only once. The system provides consistency and visibility-or- transparency across the entire enterprise. A primary benefit of ERP is easier access to reliable, integrated information. A related benefit is the elimination of redundant data and the rationalization of processes, which result in substantial cost savings. [ (Mendelson, 2000) ]. Problem Statement Unfortunately for Nestle USA, they did not heed the failures of others. Throughout the implementation, Nestle USA made several large mistakes that almost doomed the project. When the project began a team of 50 top executives and 10 senior IT professionals was assembled to develop a set of best practices for all Nestle USA divisions. The goal was to develop these best practices for all functions of the organization. By the time the implementation began in 1999 Nestle already had problems with its employees’ acceptance of the system. Most of the resistance met by the project team was traced back to the fact that â€Å"none of the groups that were going to be directly affected by the new processes and systems were represented on the key stakeholder’s team†. This was only the start of Nestle USA’s problems. By early 2000, the implementation had turned into a disaster. Employees did not understand how to use the new system and did not understand the new work processes they were being forced to adopt. Divisional executives were just as confused as their employees as they had been left out of the planning and development of the new system and were less than willing to assist in straightening out the mess that had developed. The result of this was that morale plummeted and turnover skyrocketed [ (Dieringer, 2004) ]. Nestle learned the hard way that an enterprise-wide rollout involves much more than simply installing software. When you move to SAP, you are changing the way people work,† Dunn says. â€Å"You are challenging their principles, their beliefs and the way they have done things for many, many years. † [ (Worthen, 2002) ] While it’s true that successful implementation of an enterprise resource planning system is a task of Herculean proportions, it’s not impossible. If your organization is to reap the benefits of ERP, it must first develop a plan for success. But prepare to see your organization reengineered, your staff disrupted, and your productivity drop before the payoff is realized. In a recent survey, information technology managers identified three primary reasons for the failure of all IT-related projects: poor planning or poor management (cited by 77 percent), change in business goals during the project (75 percent), and lack of business management support (73 percent). Since ERP is an IT-related project, the above are valid reasons for explaining ERP implementation failures. For managers who have struggled with incompatible information systems and sub-optimum operating practices, the promise of ERP to solve the problem of business integration is enticing. But the price of securing the benefits of ERP may be high. The cost of a modest ERP implementation can range from $2 million to $4 million, depending on the size of the organization and the specific products and services purchased from vendors. The cost of a full-blown implementation in a large organization can easily exceed $ 100 million. [ (Umble, 2002) ] Research Objectives The objective of this research is to identify factors that influence ERP implementation, providing factors associated with the success of ERP systems in EPC firms. The research brings to limelight the factors associated with the success or failure of ERP implementation, and scrutinize these factors according to the level of significance in affecting the success of ERP systems. The primary research objectives: 1) Identify the factors responsible for the success or failure of ERP implementation? a. Identify factors that can motivate users to adopt the ERP System and make the project successful. b. Also to discuss relationship between these factors. ) What marks the success of an ERP implementation and how to avoid the failure of implementation? Literature Review EPC Companies such as Descon, Hyundai, Bechtel, Petronas and Foster Wheeler etc. face frequent challenges of managing project schedules, budgets, safety, and quality to meet requirements provided by the end user / customers across the globe. The proper utilization of internal and external resources is essential if construction companies are to make the best business decisions, maximize bu siness goals, and survive in the competitive environment (Shi, 2003). Recently, an appreciable number of major EPC companies decided to implement enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems, an integrated information technology IT solution, to better integrate various business functions and resources, particularly those related to project accounting procedures and practices (Boo Young Chung, 2008). Enterprise resource planning systems, also called enterprise systems ES are among the most important business information technologies that emerged during the last decade. While no two industries’ ERP systems are the same, the basic concept of ERP systems is focused on standardization and synchronization of information, and as a result, improved efficiency. The benefits of ERP systems include coordinating processes and information, reducing carrying costs, decreasing cycle time, and improving responsiveness to customer needs (Davenport, 2000). Major EPC firms are starting to recognize the benefit of ERP systems, however, they are often hesitant to invest and adopt these systems due to high cost and risks associated with ERP system implementation. Many factors must be considered for successful implementation, but construction firms have little to guide them in identifying key success factors (Boo Young Chung, 2008). The ERP Systems are not limited to just financial and accounting, they have the whole system embedded in them. The ERP modules such as SAP comprise of modules for Supply Chain Management, Human Capital Management, Material Management, Finance etc. The main modules of an ERP System are as follows 1. Finance & Controlling (FI & CO) 2. Quality Management (QM) 3. Material Management (MM) 4. Human Capital Management (HCM) . Project Systems (PS) 6. Production Planning (PP) 7. Sales & Distribution (SD) 8. Treasury (TR) 9. Plant Maintenance (PM) 10. Customer Relationship Management (CRM) Currently, many construction firms have implemented their ERP systems adopting a best-of-breed approach in which separate software packages were selected for each process or function rather than using full packages of major ERP vendors (Ta tari, 2007). EPC Companies selected different modules like material management, quality management from major ERP vendors and clubbed together with their customized software. The customization of these ERP Systems have been a major issue as all companies try to mend these modules in to their own processes which makes the implementation very difficult. For this reason, regardless of the agreed upon implementation approach, any integrated corporate system in which all the necessary business functions are pieced together for the company is considered the ERP system in this study. The main reason of using this approach is that construction processes are less standardized than manufacturing: each project has a different owner, is managed by a different project team, requires different specifications, etc. Therefore, success or failure factors and their significance for ERP implementation in the construction industry may be different from those in the manufacturing industry. (Boo Young Chung, 2008). We can classify ERPs benefits as: (1) improvement of information flow between sub-units by standardization and integration of activities, (2) centralization of administrative activities such as accounts payable and payroll, (3) reduction of IS aintenance costs and increased ability to deploy new IS functionality, (4) transformation enablement from inefficient business processes to accepted best-of-practice processes (Ayyub Ansarinejad1, 2011) Variables in the ERP Model The main variables in ERP Success model are * Output * Job relevance * Image * Result demonstrability * Compatibility * System Reliability * Internal Support * Function * Consultant Support * Subjective Norm * Perceived Usefulness * Perceived ease of use * Intention to use * ERP Benefits * Project Success / progress * Project success / quality Bibliography Ayyub Ansarinejad1, M. -S. A. (2011). Evaluating the critical success factors in ERP Implementation using Fuzzy AHP approach. Internation Journal of Academic Reserach , 65-80. Boo Young Chung, M. J. (2008). Anaylzing Enterprise Resource Planning System Implementation Factors in the Engineering-Construction Industry. Journal of Computing in Civil Engineering , 373-382. Davenport, T. (2000). Mission Critical : Realizing the promise of Enterprise Systems. Harvard Business School Press Boston . Dieringer, D. S. (2004). ERP Implementation at Nestle. Mendelson, H. (2000). ERP Overview. Graduate School of Business, Stanford University, Stanford, CA . Shi, J. J. (2003). Enterprise Resource Planning for Construction Business Management. Journal for Construction Engineering and Management , 214-221. Tatari, O. C. -L. (2007). Current state of construction enterprise information system: Survey Research. Construction Innovation , 310-310. Umble, E. J. (2002). Avoiding ERP Implementation Failure. Industrial Management, Industrial Management Society , 25-33. Worthen, B. (2002, May 15th). Nestle's ERP Odyssey.

Friday, September 13, 2019

Research and Opinion Paper- On Organizational Culture Paper

And Opinion - On Organizational Culture - Research Paper Example The aim was to help learners have a better understanding of the diverse organizational traditions. A set of semi structured questions on matters related to organizational culture and its consequences on the society were presented to different employees in the selected industries. The deductions discussed in this survey paper were made. Introduction Culture is defined as a set of traditions or beliefs that dictate the way of life of a group of people. On the other hand, organizational culture is the set of values that define the collective behavioral orientations of humans in a given setup (Hofstede, 2012). These components of organizational culture range from the institutions’ past to the contemporary issues. Most of the institutional traditions are based and established on common customs, attitudes and laws. It was, therefore, apt to conduct this cross-sectional research considering the said significance. Objectives of Organizational Culture Basically, organizational culture is normally established with the aim of improving the affairs of the company and defining its success. The institutional culture aims at maintaining and improving employee business conduct, as well as checking on better ways of employee treatment (Devis, 2007). The employee unit is a vital sector in each organization. The performance of the employees dictates the success of each company. A company that has an environmental culture which supports result oriented efforts is destined to thrive in its endeavors. It is, therefore, necessary to treat the employee cultural practices with a lot of care. Moreover, institutional customs also focus on defining proper channels through which authorities and information flow within the company. It also emphasizes on the importance of rewarding employees through promotions and salary increment based on their past performance records rather than social connections. Creating a culture that appreciates the employees’ individual efforts to impr ove company issues builds strong relations between the employees and their employees (Evans, 2012). This contributes to the overall performance of the industry. Moreover, it is encouraged to let the entire fraternity of a given organization to understand channels of communication and responsibility. Impacts of Culture on Various Organizations Organizational culture is one the most talked about issues in the contemporary world. In every field, there is always a given set of beliefs and customs that members have to bend to in order to thrive. Different fields have various cultural practices associated with them. In the school setting, there are a number of traditional practices that influence the performance and success of such institutions. For instance, students are subjected to a set of norms that dictate how they carry out themselves within the institution. At the same time, teachers and tutors too have preset norms to guide them in creating better learning conditions to the stude nts. It is the various composites of the schools’ customary practices such as the missions, visions and ways of operations that determine the institutional performances (Evans, 2012). The business realm is no exception. It is, for instance, based on capital generation and profit making as the cultural basis. Those who venture into the business field, therefore, have to put up with the traditions. In addition, there are