Abortion and Nurse's Conscientious Objection Essay

Abortion and Nurse's Conscientious Objection - Essay Example The question of this essay is regarding legality of abortion and nurse’s right of objection. Two Roman Catholic nurses recently won the right not to work in an abortion clinic, which is not new considering the right of conscientious objection to abortion on religious or ethical grounds, was written in an act of 1967. "No person shall be under any duty, whether by contract or by any statutory or other legal requirement, to participate in any treatment authorized by this act to which he has a conscientious objection."(The Gaurdian,2011) But this statement is modified in the cases where mother’s life is at stake. There are several conceptions of conscience. Some are religious and some are secular. According to some conceptions identify conscience as a faculty that discerns moral truth or makes ethical judgments. For some it has no importance when it comes to the decisions already made by law or Governmental rule.(The Gaurdian,2011) Abortion is however, one of the most ethi cal dilemmas faced by the society for decades. There are many strong arguments about the issue for those who are in favor or against it. Abortion is a pregnancy termination, an ending of a life that has just begun. Social and personal issues are the main causes of abortions. Such as more then 60% of abortions are caused on single woman. Arguments which takes place mostly against abortions are that growing embryo is living being with a heart beat and it is unmerciful to kill an unborn child whereas, abortion is not a solution for the financial problems of mothers, adoption is the relevant solution for that. According to an obstetrician nurses don’t need to be bothered by the rightness or wrongness of abortion, it is the decision taken by physicians and nurses do as they are told. Why should they discuss the pros and cons of abortion when the decision lies in the hands of church or other Governmental organization? So if an abortion is decided then nurses have no right to object to the decision. These are the reflections of some of the attitudes of health care professionals. However, as a health care professional, nurses have a right as well as responsibility to judge their attitudes towards abortion, both personal and professional integrity relies on them that they provide, on the basis of their knowledge and integrity, participate in care of patient only in therapeutic ways.(Bosek,2007) According to the  Abortion Law Reform Bill 2008  legalized abortion in the State of Victoria, Australia. Section 8,  of the bill demands that physicians, who object to abortion for reasons of conscience must refer a woman to a colleague or another physician, who has no such objections in order to facilitate with the abortion procedure, and requires physicians to perform abortions if necessary "to preserve the life of the pregnant woman."   Many physicians who object to abortion also object to transfer for abortion on the grounds that to refer or otherwise facilita te the procedure makes them ethically complicit in it. A number of individuals and groups have spoken out against the bill, often for a combination of reasons. (Legal Commentaries.2008)). Not only physicians but also nurses have a responsibility in this scenario and there are a number of reasons why they can not ignore the question of abortion. Conscientious objection in medicine is the idea that a health care provider can refrain from offering certain types of medical care with which he/she does not personally agree. These include services which are although legal and medically appropriate such as abortion or sterilization. On one hand ANMC code of ethics state that nurses are to respect the wishes of their patients as long as they are

Examining The Philosophers Mahatma Gandhi And Socrates Religion Essay

Examining The Philosophers Mahatma Gandhi And Socrates Religion Essay As philosophers Mahatma Gandhi and Socrates have approached a moral life differently because of different perceptions held by each. Socrates was one of the great Athenian philosophers. In childhood he worked as a sculptor because he did not belong to a rich family. He is described as an ugly, poor, and unwashed man who was more concerned with moral purity than external appearance. Some of the characteristics of Socrates include ignorance, and thoughtful. Socrates was one of the influential thinkers in the fifth century whose enthusiasm to careful reasoning changed the entire enterprise. Socrates in his forties, tried to answer some of the difficult questions about the world around him. Some of the questions he asked such as what is virtue? What is justice? and what is truth? Socrates looked at these questions with a different perspective compared to other people. Socrates believed in civil obedience. On the other hand, Mahatma Gandhi believed in civil disobedience. Mahatma Karamchand Gandhi was from a small state in western India Porbandar, also known as Sudamapuri. Due to the sacrifices Gandhi made for Indians the people in India called him Mahatma Gandhi. Mahatma means great soul and Gandhi means grocer. Grocer was Gandhis family occupation in the early days. Gandhi belonged to the religion Hinduism. Some of the characteristics of Mahatma Gandhi include patience, tolerance, and honesty. He was a shy person and never talked to anybody in his school. He was an honest person, as exemplified by a school incident. One day, the educator inspector came to his school to inspect the students education. He gave some spelling words to write down on paper. Since Gandhi misspelled the word the instructor asked him to copy the right answer from someone else. However, Gandhi did not like to copy. He never did copying in his life; these incidents represented his honest and truthful nature. Socrates and Mahatma Gandhi not only differed in personal characteristics but they als o have a different perspective in trying to answer difficult question about the world around them. For instance, in order to gain rights Socrates follows civil obedience and in contrast Mahatma Gandhi follows Civil disobedience. In comparison to Mahatma Gandhi Socrates tried to answer the difficult questions about the world in different ways. Socrates questioned people about the world around them and on the other hand Gandhi made some philosophical quotes in order to help Indian people gain their rights in India. For instance, Socrates has a foundational place in the history of ideas in spite of not having written anything. He is considered one of the philosophers who have altered how the philosophy itself is envisaged. Socrates did not write anything because he believed that knowledge is something which is living and a thing that can be shared by interacting with people. The method of Socratic philosophical inquiry consisted in questioning people and proving to them that their original assertion is wrong and making them work through questions into a contradiction on the positions they have asserted. Plato was the student of Socrates who has written the book The Apology of Socrates. In Greek the title is cal led Apologia Socratous. It is the oldest existent document of Greek Philosophy. With the title, many readers refer to it as an apology however the title is ambiguous because in Greek apologia means defense. Socrates simply defends the way he lived his life but does not apologize for anything he has done during his lifetime. In the text The Apology of Socrates the Socrates says First, then, its right for me to make my defense, Athenians, against the first of the false accusations made against me and against my first accusers, and then against the later ones and the later accusers. Many have accused me before you, and have done so for a long time now, though they didnt say anything thats true (43b). In 399 BC Socrates was charged of refusing to recognize the gods which was recognized by the state and for corrupting the young Athenians. In other words, people believed that Socrates was trying to corrupt young Athenians about god. He was stood before a jury which consisted of five hundred people of his fellow Athenians. In the text, he is defending himself in front of 500 Athenians saying that many people have accused me, but no one said anything which was true. With the Socratic Method he offended many great powerful Athenians. Since he created a lot of powerful enemies they brought him to trial thinking that they could make him beg for mercy. It did not work out but instead Socrates ended up insulting the jury by elucidating how ignorant they are, Socrates was mean, ugly, and outspoken but like Mahatma Gandhi he always wanted to be truthful. Socrates looked at the things in the world differently compared to other people. In the trial for the life of Socrates he astounded the listeners by being found guilty and destined to death in spite of his energetic defense. In the text The Apology of Socrates the Socrates says And so, members of the jury, you should be optimistic about death and think about this one truth, that no harm comes to a good man in life or in death, and his problems are not neglected by the gods (65d). Since Socrates held different perceptions about the world. He says that nothing can harm a good man neither in life and death. After hearing both sides the jury asked the members to vote on the guilt of Socrates. Since a lot of people voted for him that he was guilty he was sentenced to death. Socrates was given a chance to determine his penalty but Socrates wanted to be punished for his actions. Therefore, the jury sentenced him to death. According to Athenian law, they prescribed him to drink a cup of hemlock. Hemlock is like poison. While dying he believed that dying now and escaping from the problems was good for him. On the other hand, Gandhi was not like Socrates. He was calm, thoughtful, and observant. After finishing his studies, he returned to India for a short period of time. Again he went to South Africa because he was unable to obtain a job in India. At first, he traveled in the train, because he was not prepared for the racial intolerance. Since his color was black he was thrown out of the train. An incident in the train shaped his actions for years. During that period of time British controlled South Africa. He was abused, and all Indians suffered similar treatment. Gandhi stayed in South Africa for twenty one years to fight for his civil rights and won many concessions for his fellow Indians. He believed that if they can gain rights with nonviolence then why be violent and harm others and ourselves. In order to fight for truth and gain rights he gave rise to Satyagraha. Satyagraha is divided into two words which Satya and agraha. Satya means truth and agraha means to follow the principl es of truth. Satyagraha was a tool used for nonviolence and civil rebelliousness which is the appropriate methods for obtaining political and social goals. In the text Mahatma Gandhi- Selected Political Writings the Gandhi says Satyagrahi does not inflict pain on the adversary; he does not seek his destruction. A Satyagrahi never resorts to firearms. In the use of Satyagraha, there is no ill-will whatever. Satyagraha is pure soul-force. Truth is the very substance of the soul. That is why this force is called Satyagraha (52). According to Mahatma Gandhi a person who is Satyagrahi does not harm the opponent with violence. Since Mahatma Gandhi believed in non-violence he gave rise to satyagraha and ahimsa. In the book Mahatma Gandhi-Selected Political Writings Mahatma Gandhi also says Our shastras seems to teach that a man who really practices ahimsa in its fullness has the world at his feet, he so affects his surroundings that even the snakes and other venomous reptiles do him no harm (40). The word Ahimsa symbolizes non-violence. In the soul of every human being there are many things that we have to fight against such as fear, ignorance, anxieties, and stress. But according to Gandhi the outer fight should be avoided. In the Bhagavad-Gita the holy book which belong to the religion of Hinduism. Lord Krishna asked Arjuna to fight in order to deracinate ignorance. However, fighting is necessary only on some occasions when it is the explicit will of god. According to the text any person who practices ahimsa w ith truthfulness nothing can harm them not even harmful creatures such as snakes and reptiles. If a person is a follower of ahimsa then the person should love their enemy. Ahimsa is non-violence but also includes truth and courage. During the lifetime of Socrates he questioned people about the world around them and died because of his ignorant behavior. Socrates chose death because he did not wanted to break the law of the city and also held a belief that since he was a good man nothing can harm him. On the other hand, Mahatma Gandhi fought for the rights of Indian people without spreading violence and practicing Satyagraha and Ahimsa. He did not die of ignorance instead he was assassinated by Nathuram Godse. He killed Gandhi because according to him Gandhi was betraying India by negotiations with Pakistan to stop the war which was going on. He was the great soul that will live among Indians. Both Socrates and Mahatma Gandhi not only differed in personal characteristics but also they have a different perspective in trying to answer difficult question about the world around them. Socrates was ignorant but he always believed in truthfulness as Mahatma Gandhi. Both philosophers approached a different moral life. Gandhi died for the people and Socrates died because he wanted to without breaking the law of the city.

Beowulf The Epic Hero :: essays research papers

Beowulf the Epic Hero What does it mean to be a hero? Like anything else in this world, the definition of the word hero can be argued. Some may say that a hero can be passive, that is if he or she refrains from doing a certain action it makes them heroic. Others would argue that to be truly heroic the character must never turn tail and always face the obstacle head on even though he or she may die in the process. So is Beowulf a hero? Yes, Beowulf is a great epic hero, but his greatness comes only from his sword and not from his mind. In order to be a hero in an epic poem there were certain qualities you had to possess. First of all you had to be a male. It is rare to see any woman in epic poems taking on the role as hero. Women were usually only minor characters who are often not even named. Second of all you had to be a man of noble birth. Meaning that the hero had to be either a king, prince, knight or some other high-ranking person in society. Beowulf satisfies all of these requirements. He is the nephew of the king of the Geats, and son of a great warrior. As was common in literature up until recently, Beowulf’s mother was not named as well as Grendel’s mother. The slave character was not named too, which in my mind would indicate that women had little more status than slaves or property during the times of the Vikings. Fittingly enough, Beowulf’s sword even got a name, for it is by his sword that he earns his eternal fame and glory. However, besides the fact that Beowulf was of noble lineage and that he was a great warrior, he has some other noble qualities. On the plus side for Beowulf we can say that he was a pious warrior. Although he was from being a modest warrior, for he was anything but modest when it came to his great deeds of valor on the battlefield, he did credit Jesus for every success he has come across. This is not really a revolutionary idea for epic heroes, as we see the heroes of the Iliad, Odyssey, and the Aenied constantly praying to the gods for glory on the battlefield. The main difference is that they are pagans, and Beowulf is a Christian, which does not even really make sense because he was a Viking warrior and the Vikings were not Christians.

Barriers To Goal-Setting And Planning

Planning is a good process for a company because it helps management think through all the issues in advance. It gives them an opportunity to work with co-workers, employees, investors and family and to make use of all their ideas, resources and perspectives. And it sometimes, when one is lucky, it helps to discover hidden traps that one might otherwise have stumbled into had one not had the foresight to plan ahead. But planning itself can be a trap of nearly fatal effect.Many people (and companies) spend so much time planning, so much time getting ready, so much time finding things that have to be done, have to be discovered, decided—that they never actually do anything. A company may have so much time planning and budgeting that by the time they decide to do the product, it was already too late. There are competitors, and their new, wonderful precisely planned feature set and product introduction are too little. The amount they had spent on planning, considering, staff meeti ngs and worrying was more than they would have spent to launch the product and see how the market would respond.A major opportunity lost to analysis paralysis. Planning and organizing projects usually entails working with employees to clarify broad objectives, discuss resource allocations and agree to completion dates. Thus, Lew Platt, of Hewlett-Packard describes what his workday is like as he puts it this way, â€Å"Basically, the whole day comes down to a series of choices. † To help him hone his planning and administration competency, Platt hired a consultant to analyze his day and help him reshape his management approach.Platt instinctively knew that information gathering, analysis and problems solving are important and that customers are a rich source of useful information—but they can easily eat up a whole day. The consultant helped him understand that some types of customer phone calls were something he could delegate in order to leave 20 percent of his time fo e meeting directly with customers. For instance, in Australia, there is a present need to respond to the increased demands of consumers.There is also a need to control costs to be competitive, and the need to reduce risks including price, quality and quantity of products included in giving incentives for the establishment of the agribusiness chains. This is the new era in doing business. Australian companies are now very conscious about the increasing international competition and the need for real planning and goal setting. But in wanting to be competitive, the coordination, goal setting and planning must be well executed in order for companies to succeed. The Australian agribusiness sector lacks these skills and is obliged to change their business ways (Sainsbury).In this business, there is a need for planning and organizing which usually means that employees must be assisted in clarifying broad objectives and resource allocations. (Sainsbury). Planning is a task. Managers are ass igned to detect and identify areas that are in need of a revamp, and then to successfully implement a program that will address the perceived gap. Although it sounds quite simple and perfunctory, Jones, Aguirre and Calderone (2004) suggested that the reality is far from easy, as every attempt to plan and do goal setting instigates â€Å"people issues† in the political realm of the workplace.Because of the ubiquitous presence of managers who proffer their expertise to organizations, planning and goal setting has also become an area of professional practice. These experts follow principles and theories; they developed their know-how after studying the actualities of the organization. Hence, planning is a body of knowledge. Planning is a control mechanism because it entails the application of certain processes and procedures. An effective planning is governed by standards that need to be accomplished (Nilakant & Ramnarayan, 2006). Every organization needs to sustain its competit ive advantage in order to survive.According Don Hellriegel and John Slocum (1996) companies such as Handy Dan Home Improvement Center, Grey Hound, Pan Am, Herman’s Sporting Goods, and a number of savings and loans corporations were bankrupted and cleared out of the competition because of the failure to adapt to changing market demands. They were the leaders in their fields once, the paragon of success for succeeding corporations but they failed to maintain their winning edges when they did not listen to the market’s call for new approaches or for novel commodities. Complacency has its price.Simply, a company cannot live long enough while immobile in a single spot. They need to plan their company objectives. There must always be a movement to grow, to expand, and most especially, to innovate. The seed of change is inherently embedded in every organization, even in bureaucratic ones. Leaders only need to be sensitive to the extant trends in the organization, and more imp ortantly, to the budding threats and opportunities. Unlike the companies mentioned earlier, organizations the likes of Hewlett-Packard, Merck and Compaq are constantly releasing new products in the market, (Hellriegel and Slocum 1996).They exemplify the aphorism, â€Å"internal stability spells disaster† (Nickols, 2006). Every innovation project of these companies is a part of a strategy for planned change. The planning process is the place to start assessing one’s status. The key is not to get paralyzed in the planning process. One must try to avoid making everything dependent on one or two deductions. The barriers to goal setting and planning are some of the following: – The plan is so general and there are no directions. One way to remedy this is to break plans into phases and rather than doing one sweeping plan, managers must do a lot of little plans.One must determine a general direction, then sit down and plan in tiny chunks. Then, when one is finished, a small chunk-plan, one can begin executing it. There is no reason one cannot execute one miniplan while planning the next phase. – Time element – If one is an obsessive planner, one may find that the only way to get beyond the planning stage is to set a deadline. Or example, one must give himself one full month to do planning. Then, when that month is over, regardless of how finished, the plan is to get started on making things happen. One can always refine the plan as he goes.– No planning sessions – If one goes through planning withdrawal, one must allow a small, regimented time period for planning. A good way to do this is to schedule a day off-site for senior managers once every quarter. Communication among the parties will improve, one will get a change of scenery, those who are obsessed with planning can get a regular fix and short regular planning sessions allow one to change, duck, and weave according to market conditions. – Not recognizing unknowns. Many plans would be completed much earlier except planners wanted to make sure every issue was examined and every possibility accounted for.Sometimes, plans are never valid for more than a few minutes after they are completed. So, instead of trying to resolve all unknowns in the plan, one can just make a list of what one does not know, consider that list to be a part of the plan and move on. (Stalker). Planning is also like change management because it deals with the why and how of organizational changes, management of innovation â€Å"refers to the understanding of the way innovation processes develop within organizations and the creation of conditions to support these processes† (Institute for Governance Studies, IGS n.d. ). Therefore, if change management is concerned with the conception, development and implementation of change, management of innovation tackles the same processes but in relation to innovation instead of change. Further, management of innovation aims to discover how to create the conditions conducive to innovative practices. Management of innovation is a handy know-how for managers when there is an effort to develop new products or services, new production and service processes and organizational conditions.The first condition is called â€Å"product or service innovation,† the second is â€Å"process innovation† and the last is broadly referred to as â€Å"organizational innovation† (IGS, n. d. ). In this regard, it can be seen that goal setting involves tools to keep the organization from becoming stagnant or stunted. Indeed, this is necessary for growth. Innovation is a form of change. The only difference between these two is that change may be any alteration in the organization either as a response to a threat or opportunity or as an anticipatory move to a future change.It is a simple transition or movement from one point to another, regardless of the direction. Innovation, on the other hand, is an activity that requires â€Å"creative capacities† to deliberately invent new ideas (Van de Ven, Angle & Poole, 2000). New products, processes and approaches are all forms of change, but most importantly, they are innovations. They are the outcomes of unique or creative ideas that were developed and implemented by designated individuals to achieve a desired outcome (Van de Ven, Palley, Garud, & Venkataraman 1999).In this regard, it can be seen that goal setting involves tools to keep the organization from becoming stagnant or stunted. Indeed, this is necessary for growth. Innovation is a form of change. The only difference between these two is that change may be any alteration in the organization either as a response to a threat or opportunity or as an anticipatory move to a future change. It is a simple transition or movement from one point to another, regardless of the direction.Innovation, on the other hand, is an activity that requires â€Å"creative capacities† to deliberately invent new ideas (Van de Ven, Angle & Poole, 2000). New products, processes and approaches are all forms of change, but most importantly, they are innovations. They are the outcomes of unique or creative ideas that were developed and implemented by designated individuals to achieve a desired outcome (Van de Ven, Palley, Garud, & Venkataraman 1999). Innovation, like change, may also be threatening.It can be remembered that during the industrial revolution era when the assembly line was just newly developed, some workers were against further mechanization and automation, fearing that they would lose their jobs. Yet management of innovation, like change management, must also replace employee resistance with acceptance and participation. It would be helpful to remember the idea developed by George Stalker and Tom Burns (1994) that â€Å"technical progress underlies every kind of change in the social order† and alternatively, â€Å"technical progress is the outcome o f changes in the institution of society.† Because of the fast-paced world of business and enterprising, organizational leaders must always be set to implement changes and to innovate for their organization’s betterment. Implementing policies regarding change and innovation, however, must be properly planned and must aptly consider the human side of change. Change management and management of innovation are related to each other primarily because both are tools that an organization can use to address pertinent issues.These two management styles are both expected to deliver results in that the old system is replaced with a better one, or where a novel product, process or culture is enforced to bring about positive outcome to the organization. Further, these two management styles are also the necessary ingredients to continuously promote growth within the company and to prevent stagnation and degradation. Uncertainties in the environment, however, make people generally app rehensive of change and innovation. Their stable niches and comfort zones are threatened.It is human side of management, therefore, that must handle the resistance of the people. There are several ways of controlling and directing the reactions of the employees, but what is importantly is that they would all eventually become a part of the proposed change so that they can become fulfilled and appreciated members of the organization. Indeed, mapping out all the changes that will be necessary to complete the reinvention process is often impossible, especially since planning needs to go on every day, for the rest of the life of the company, But it is possible to outline goals and guidelines governing reinvention.One should be careful about how to set goals and guidelines. Some goals are highly subjective, almost ethereal and certainly long term. Others are tangible, tomorrow-oriented goals. During its start-up phase, the primary business goal is simple: consistent solvency. It is a sim ple goal, but it allows one to understand that the mission, initially was to get the company running and keep it running. There are no fancier goals for many years. REFERENCES Change management. (2007, January 19). In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved April 1, 2007 at:http://en.wikipedia. org/w/ index. php? title=Change_management&oldid=101816085 Hellriegel, D & Slocum, J (1996). Management. Cincinnati, Ohio: South-Western College. Hine, Alison. Mirroring effective education through mentoring, metacognition and self Reflection. University of Western Sydney, Nepean School of Teaching and Educational Studies Retrieved April 1, 2007 at: http://www. aare. edu. au/00pap/hin00017. htm Sainsbury, John. Cooperating to Compete in the Global Environment. Retrieved April 1, 2007 at: http://72. 14. 253. 104/search? q=cache:6ccSQXBzoF8J:www. affa. gov.au/corporate_docs/publications/rtf/social_science/countrymatters/sainsbury. rtf+barriers+planning+and+goal-setting+in+Australian+compani es&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=12&gl=ph Nickols, F. (2006). Change Management 101: A Primer. Distance Consulting. Retrieved April 1, 2007 at:from http://home. att. net/~nickols/change. htm Nilakant, V. & Ramnarayan, S. (2006). Change Management. Sage. Stalker, G. M. & Burns, T. (1994). The Management of Innovation. New York: Oxford UP. Van de Ven, A. H. , Angle, H. L. & Poole, M. S. (Eds). (2000). Research on the Management of Innovation. New York: Oxford UP.

Quantitative Methods for Finance and Investment Essay

University of Bristol – School of Economics, Finance and Management QUANTITATIVE METHODS FOR FINANCE AND INVESTMENT (EFIMM005) Review Questions Question 1: Concepts a. Deï ¬ ne a stochastic process. Give an example in Finance of a quantity that can be modelled as a stochastic process. b. Deï ¬ ne a stationary stochastic process. c. Consider a stochastic process {Yt , t = 1, .., T }. Deï ¬ ne the partial autocorrelation function (pacf) associated to this process. d. Explain the diï ¬â‚¬erence between estimator and estimate. e. Let {Ut , t = 1, .., T } be a mean zero white noise process. What is the value of pacf at lag 2 for the process Yt = .5Yt−1 + Ut ? f. Explain the diï ¬â‚¬erence between the autocovariance function and the sample autocovariance function. Question 2: Application The capital asset pricing model (CAPM) can be written as E(Rjt |Rmt , Rf t ) = Rf t + ÃŽ ²j (Rmt − Rf t ), where Rjt is the net return of security j at period t, Rmt is the return on a market portfolio proxy, and Rf t is the return on a risk-free proxy. The coeï ¬Æ'cient ÃŽ ²j is the CAPM beta for security j. Suppose that you have estimated ÃŽ ²j by ordinary least squares and found that the estimated value was 1.37 with standard deviation 2.6. based on 3665 observations. a. A city analyst has told you that security j closely follows the market, in the sense that security j is equally risky, on average, to the market portfolio. Perform a 5% signiï ¬ cance level test of hypothesis to determine whether data support the analysts claim. b. Are hypotheses tested concerning the value of ÃŽ ²j or its estimated values? Question 3: Techniques Consider the moving average process: Yt = ÃŽ µt + ÃŽ ¸1 ÃŽ µt−1 + ÃŽ ¸12 ÃŽ µt−12 with {ÃŽ µt }T a mean zero white noise process with variance ÏÆ' 2 > 0. t=0 a. Calculate the mean of Yt . b. Calculate the variance of Yt . c. Calculate the autocovariance function of {Yt }T . t=a T =120 d. Assume that {yt }t=1 represents the monthly tons of ice cream sold in the UK between Oct. 2001 and Oct. 2012. What type of dependence can the term ÃŽ ¸12 ÃŽ µt−12 capture? 1

Time for Writing How to Make Time to Write in Your Busy Life

Time for Writing How to Make Time to Write in Your Busy Life Time for Writing: 8 Steps to Become a Weekend Writing Warrior Carving out the time to write a book requires planning, persistence, and at times, a lot of caffeine. Even with all the right elements in place, making time for writing is a major undertaking, especially when your days are filled with commitments to work, family, and social activities. So, you have a dream to write that book, but you’re locked into a schedule that’s keeping you from pursuing your dream.I know the routine: Get up, work all day, come home and make dinner, and look after the kids (or unwind in front of the TV) and then you fall into bed, exhausted, before you have to do it all again the next day.When the weekend comes, you just want to kick back, take it easy, and put the week behind you. Then Monday comes around and the rat race starts all over again.Soon you can hear yourself making excuses for all the reasons why you didn’t write:â€Å"I was so busy this week I just didn’t have time†Ã¢â‚¬Å"I’ll do it next week when I’m more organized†Ã¢â‚¬Å"I’ll start writing when I’m feeling more motivated†Ã¢â‚¬Å"I’ll get to it once I quit my day job and have more time†¦Ã¢â‚¬  But as you know by now, there’s never a perfect time.We’re always busy with something.And if we don’t take action when we can, the excuses will keep coming until we run out of time forever.Don’t let your dream die. I’m going to help you get your book done.NOTE: We cover everything in this blog post and much more about the writing, marketing, and publishing process in our VIP Self-Publishing Program. Learn more about it hereTime for Writing: 8 Steps to Becoming a Weekend Writing Warrior By becoming a weekend writing warrior, you can get it done. I know because I’ve done it. In this post I’ll share with you my 8 step strategy for writing a book on the weekends even if your week is crazy busy.#1 Start With Intentional Planning Habit FormingWhen it comes to getting your writing done, strategy is everything. Without a plan, you drift; and when you drift, you end up back where you started, wasting more time while procrastinating.The key to writing a book on your weekends is to get plan out how you will use your writing time and develop a writing habit. If you know ahead of time what you’ll be focusing on, where you’ll be writing and for how long, when it comes time to start writing, you’ll show up ready for keyboard action. Our intentional planning model should consist of:Researching topics, articles, and interviewsChapter mind mappingCrafting an outline A good craftsman always shows up to create with his best tools. As writers, we need to spend time preparing to write before showing up at the keyboard. You want to do any necessary research outside of your writing time, not during it.Stopping just to check that â€Å"one thing† breaks your writing flow (and often sends you off into the wilds of the internet , never to return).During my writing sessions, if I get stuck and need to check on something, I’ll make a note in the paragraph like CBL [Come Back Later].You can set up your chapters as well by doing brief mind maps for each. If you have crafted your book’s outline already, this should be easy. Take a few minutes each day during the week to do a quick outline for each chapter.You don’t have to write anything until the weekend, but at the very least, make some notes about what you’re going to write when the weekend comes so you’re prepared.#2 Setting Up Your Writing Space Your writing environment has a huge influence on how your writing sessions flow. Will you write in a coffee shop? A quiet room? Under the stairs?Locked in a closet with just your laptop and a light bulb? Wherever you choose to write, it should be at least comfortable and a place you can stay focused for long periods of time.My writing space consists of my computer, motivational q uotes, and mind maps for my books.Heres a table detailing what a good writing space looks like.How to Start Writing TipExecutionMinimize Distractions- isolate yourself from family/friends/even the family dog - remind everyone it's YOUR time - Turn your phone off - Close ALL web browsers - Close your emailGet Comfortable- invest in a GOOD chair - or resort to using a stand-up desk for more energy - fill the area with motivational quotes - make sure you're physically comfortable for the next 30 minutes or an hourChoose Beneficial Background Noise- turn off all sounds if it distracts you - turn on lyric-less music to help you concentrate - choose energizing music to help you focusDecorating your writing space adds to inspiration, but also serves as a reminder: This is where you write. Make it a place that you can enjoy creating in. But does it have to be just the one place? Of course not. You can change writing locations and have two or three designated spots.I would recommend having a primary spot you write in consistently, but have another place set up that you can get to just in case you need to change locations. Try out several places and see what works best.Take note of how you feel working in your creative element.Is it comfortable?Are you comfortable?Is it an energetic spot or, do you feel irritated and restless?Do you work better in a place that’s quiet [private room] or super noisy [Starbucks]?On days when I spend all day writing, I’ll break it up into two different locales: one is my writing room, and the other is a coffee shop. If the noise is a problem, I’ll wear headphones and tune out everything with some mellow writing music.#3 Keep Your Mindmap and Book Outline HandyI have shown up many times to write only to realize I had no plan for what I was writing. This leads to procrastination and then I look for something else to occupy my time.Know what you are going to write by planning beforehand. Developing your mind map or a book outline is the surest way to start cutting into the pages. Before you become a weekend writer, you’ll need your mind map and outline.If you start writing without having done these important steps first, you’ll eventually end up stuck. Make sure you have your book fully mind mapped and a general working book outline.Use your outline as a checklist to get your words down on paper with purpose. Each of your writing block sessions should have a clear purpose as to what you are going to write.#4 Eliminate Internet Distractions Excuses One of the biggest obstacles writers face is being pulled out of their â€Å"writing zone† by message indicators, vibrations, pop-ups, and a whole list of writing excuses.This includes notifications that â€Å"you’ve got email† or, better yet, someone that you don’t even know has just liked one of your comments on Facebook and you feel that need to check it out right away.My advice: unplug yourself from all thing s connected to the Internet. Here is what you do: Option 1: Unplug yourself completely from the internet. Turn off Wi-Fi or physically unplug your network cable. This is the best option to separate yourself from the internet during your writing time. This is the â€Å"zero tolerance† method that I use as my number one choice for getting things done.Option 2: Use productivity apps to eliminate or cut down on time spent checking certain sites. Use an app such as RescueTime to block the sites that distract you by choosing the amount of time you need to focus. RescueTime send you updates via email to let you know how much time was spent on certain websites. This is good to know, because the next time you catch yourself saying â€Å"I didn’t have time to write† but you spent three unproductive hours on a certain site, you can channel this time into your weekend writing schedule.Two more apps I recommend: Cold Turkey and SelfControl [for Mac]. Both apps are designed t o reduce or eliminate wasted time, and this means higher focus and more time targeted for writing words fast. In a nutshell: Sit Down. Unplug. Focus. Write.#5 Establishing a Writing Schedule Time Slots When time is limited, it’s important to be strategic in how you use it. In the previous step, we took action by cutting off our interaction with the Internet during our writing time.The next thing we want to do is decide:How long are your writing sessions going to be? 25 minutes? 40 minutes? One hour?How many writing sessions are you doing today? For example, I’ll do three one-hour sessions in a day. I’ll write for one hour, take a ten-minute break, repeat. During the break, get up and move around, stretch or grab some coffee.How to Set Up Your Writing SessionOne option is to use the Pomodoro Technique.Self-published author Steve Scott, who has written close to 70 books, utilized the Pomodoro Technique to structure his writing time.Set your timer for 25 minutes and write. Take a five-minute break, and repeat. This system works really well and is great for getting focused and writing in short bursts. If you want to go longer, set your timer for sixty minutes. I use the timer on my iPhone.Set it for the time you are committed to writing and GO. You should focus only on your writing during this period.No research, editing, or breaking the writing flow, unless there’s a house fire. Just write.Set a goal for yourself to crank out one thousand words in an hour. These are longer stretches and can be tough for some people so if you are struggling, start with the Pomodoro System and ease your way into doing longer sessions.#6 Set Your Word Count TargetMany people get overwhelmed when they think about writing a book. But if you write 3000 words a day on the weekends, you can be done with the first draft of your book in a month.  All you have to know is how many words will be in your novel and you can work backward from there.If you plan ah ead and set your writing goal at a pace of 800-1200 words per hour, you’ll be done in thirty hours of writing time.This might seem like a lot but think about it: How much time do you spend watching TV in a week?How much time do you spend at the office?How much time do you spend checking email or on social media?It can be done, and you can do this!Set a daily word count targetfor yourself. Be strategic about this and take a rough guess how long your book is going to be. If I know I’m planning to write a 25,000-word novella, if I crank out 6000 words per weekend, I can complete a draft in a month. If your book is shorter or longer, you can adjust to fit your target deadline. You can easily track your word count in Scrivener. You can also use a Google spreadsheet or a simple Excel spreadsheet. By tracking your progress, you have a clear indication of how close you’re getting to your goal.It’s also highly motivating to know you’re making progress.#7 R eward Yourself There’s a famous proverb that says: â€Å"All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.†I have no idea who Jack was, but I do know that if you spend your entire weekend writing, you’re going to need some RR at the end of it. This is a critical stage.If you spend week after week putting in time at work and then working more on the weekend, even if it is a passion project like writing your novel, you’ll get burned out and feel less inspired when the next weekend comes around. You deserve a break.Do something for yourself. Go to a movie. Take your friends out to dinner. Get away from the manuscript.I usually end the weekend by engaging in some fun activities such as:Watching a movieSpending time with the kidsTaking a long walk or runningTaking a long drive and thinking about future goals and what I accomplished this weekendMeditating or working out#8 Plan Your Next Writing Weekend There’s one more stage after you have wrapped things up a t the end of your writing weekend.This is an important step. Before you pack it up, take ten minutes to draft a quick action plan for the week. This consists of the book research, chapter outlining, and anything else you need to do outside of the book writing process. I do this step Sunday night before bed. Then, when the week starts I know exactly what work on to set myself up for success the following weekend. The alternative to this is to spend five minutes each night writing down what you’ll do the next day.Do you need to outline your next chapter? Tighten up your overall book outline? Reach out to any online influencers about your next book release? This step is part of the intentional planning phase that will keep you focused.So even while you are busy in the week with your other commitments, having a shortlist to refer to makes your mission clear.The weekend is nearly here again. Are you ready? Don’t make excuses- get your book written. You can do this. If you f ollow the 8-step plan, three months from now you can be celebrating the publication of your next book.The next time someone asks you the question: â€Å"How do you find the time to write?† You can now tell them: â€Å"Oh, it’s easy. I write books on the weekends.†What to do NextNow its time to cut the reading and get to learning.If youre ready to write a book and self-publish it, inthenext90days,join your free training!

Isogram - Definition and Examples in English

Isogram s in English Definition In morphology and verbal play, an isogram is a word with no repeating letters (such as ambidextrously) or, more broadly, a word in which the letters occur an equal number of times. The term isogram  (derived from two Greek words meaning equal and letter)  was coined by Dmitri Borgmann in  Language on Vacation: An Olio of Orthographical Oddities  (Scribner, 1965). Pronunciation I-se-gram Also Known As non-pattern word First-Order, Second-Order, and Third-Order Isograms In a first-order isogram, each letter appears just once: dialogue is an example. In a second-order isogram, each letter appears twice: deed is an example. Longer examples are hard to find: they include Vivienne, Caucasus, intestines, and (important for a phonetician to know this) bilabial. In a third-order isogram, each letter appears three times. These are very rare, unusual words such as deeded (conveyed by deed), sestettes (a variant spelling of sextets), and geggee (victim of a hoax). I dont know of any fourth-order isograms... The really interesting question is: which is the longest isogrammatic place-name in English? As far as I knowand thats an important qualificationit is a small village in Worcestershire, west of Evesham: Bricklehampton. Its 14 letters, with no spaces, make it the longest such name in the language. (David Crystal, By Hook or by Crook: A Journey in Search of English. Overlook, 2008) The Longest Nonpattern Word The longest nonpattern word ever devised utilizes 23 of the 26 letters of our alphabet: PUBVEXINGFJORD-SCHMALTZY, signifying as if in the manner of the extreme sentimentalism generated in some individuals by the sight of a majestic fjord, which sentimentalism is annoying to the clientele of an English inn. This word is also an example of going to the uttermost limit in the way of verbal creativeness. (Dmitri Borgmann, Language on Vacation: An Olio of Orthographical Oddities. Scribner, 1965) The Longest Isogram in the Dictionary UNCOPYRIGHTABLE [is] the longest isogram in Merriam-Websters Collegiate Dictionary, Tenth Edition, the source used in Scrabble for long words. Borgmann, who searched the dictionary manually in his quest to manipulate the language, coined UNCOPYRIGHTABLE by placing the prefix UN- before the dictionary-sanctioned COPYRIGHTABLE. (Stefan Fatsis, Word Freak: Heartbreak, Triumph, Genius, and Obsession in the World of Competitive Scrabble Players. Houghton-Mifflin, 2001)

4 ways your job can impact your health

4 ways your job can impact your health It’s one thing to dislike your job, but it’s another if it’s making you sick. If you’ve been feeling physically and mentally worn down lately and can’t seem to shake it, maybe it’s time to take a hard look at your work life to see if it’s the cause of your health issues. Of course you have to go to work, but recognizing where problems exist and making even small changes can start to put you on the road to wellness. Are you sedentary all day?According to a study done by the American Heart Association (AHA), even if you fit exercise into your life, sitting all day every day can negate the health benefits you’ve gained. The solution? Move even more- as much as you can. Make sure to get up and walk around every hour or so. Walk to the kitchen for water once an hour. Take an office lap every other hour. Get up and get your blood flowing whenever possible.Does your commute stress you out?If you’re spending a ton of time getting to and from work, it’s likely taking a toll on your life attitude. One study done in the United Kingdom earlier this year found people with long commutes are more likely to suffer from depression and work-related stress. If your commute is longer than 10 miles by car or 30 minutes by bus or subway, then it might be negatively impacting your life. You can’t help where your office is located, but do everything you can to make the travel time as restful and enjoyable as possible: try downloading a fun podcast or listening to music that will start your day off right.Are you way overworked?If all your waking hours are spent thinking about work or being at work, you’re likely neglecting all other aspects of your life. In fact, according to a recent study, if you work more than 39 hours a week, your mental and physical health will start to decline. Even if you’re on your couch in pajamas, if you’re logged in and constantly monitoring your work emails the n you’re not getting proper rest. Dedicated time to focus on yourself, your friends, and your family is crucial to maintaining balance- at some point, you need to be able to shut things off and not be at work.Are you surrounded  by germs? (You are.)Did you know that your keyboard, mouse, mousepad, and even I.D. badge are all germ factories? Scary but true: your keyboard in 20,000 times dirtier than a toilet seat. And then there are all the hands you shake and doorknobs or faucets you turn in the course of a day. You’re in an enclosed space with tens or hundreds of people every day- start carrying around that hand sanitizer. And if your office is open plan? It might encourage more collaboration, but it also encourages sharing whatever bug is going around. You might find you’re getting sick more and more often, just by coming to work. Take your vitamins, keep your space clean, and get fresh air when you can throughout the day.Notice a theme here? If you take mom ents out of your day to make sure you are taking care of yourself, your overall health will start to improve.

Put down that Doughnut Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Put down that Doughnut - Article Example Major food chains have stopped the use of trans fat for frying or cooking their meals. These restrictions have yielded improved health results in particular areas. Use of trans fat is also being reduced by other countries across the world. Trans fat naturally occurs in dairy products and meat and it is safer than artificial trans fat. Certain food products have hidden trans fat and are labeled free of trans fat because of very little amount of trans fat in them. FDA is taking measures to quickly inhibit the use of trans fat. Major health-care organizations are in favor of inhibiting the use of trans fat in processed foods. Foods free of trans fat need revision of labels because the determination is essentially for partially hydrogenated oils instead of trans fat which might naturally occur in certain food products. Avoiding food products consisting of artificially produced trans fat would be a big step toward a healthier

Conflict Scenario PowerPoint Presentation Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Conflict Scenario - PowerPoint Presentation Example The template given to the receptionist by the doctor could be a standard template but the template given by the scheduler may not be the standard one and so the scheduler gave a patient an appointment that does not exist. This led to confusion even to the doctor. The scheduler could have reduced the whole chaos if her personal attitude would have notcome her way when discussing with the receptionist. Due her attitude she disliked to talk to the receptionist and about the issue to resolve and instead she left a blind eye on the issue, which led to all the problems. Due to this unacceptable attitude towards work by the scheduler the issue could not have escalated and could have been subsided. Typically, entry-level nursing education programs provide some basic exposure to general and basic breast cancer nursing, but little direct experience in patient care and scheduling process should be offered. Academic programs in patient care nursing are generally restricted to graduate advanced practice programs for clinical nurse specialists or nurse practitioners. The perception of understanding has a great deal to do with communication and managerial effectiveness. Since outstanding management presumes that one can influence people to be communicative, an objective analysis of your influencing capacities and the way other people see it is crucial. One way to get this kind of necessary feedback is to take an interactive and intense program to help accomplish a critical self-assessment. Examine interpersonal intangibles in that setting. Experiment with and examine the present interactive style and refine and improve it - in response to the straightforward and frank feedback that you receive. Arrange, somehow, if possible, to get out of the daily work situation into a relaxed, informal setting with a small group of other staff and executives. Talk to each other. Discover ways in which ones behavior and attitudes affect others. Put oneself in the capable hands of a qualified professional trainer. Cover this in training seminar such things as listening, communicating, leading, handling frustration and anger, asserting yourself, facing pressures, relating to colleagues, personal openness, handling stress, perceiving, respecting other people's feelings, selling your ideas to other people, and giving and receiving constructive critici sm. After getting to know each other quite well, formally and informally, near the end of the program have a major feedback session. Then the group discusses: whether or not, based on what they have got to know about you at that point, they would want you as a colleague and why or why not. Flexibility The increasing complexity of pediatric critical care has required a corresponding evolution in the sophistication of pediatric critical care nursing (PCCN). The role of the nurse in this setting is multifaceted. First, the nurse serves as a form of total systems monitor-continually examining all the physiologic monitors and treatment devices, along with the child's body. This requires the acquisition of peripheral vision. A skilful doctor learns to adjust settings on critical care equipment so it can serve as an extension of his or her own sensory system. The nurse has to perform routine maintenance activities (e.g., medication preparation, blood procurement) while

Evaluation of the Key Marketing Strategies for Toyota in the UK Essay - 1

Evaluation of the Key Marketing Strategies for Toyota in the UK - Essay Example This paper illustrates that the sales and revenues for Toyota reduced in financial 2011, compared to 2010 in its major geographic market segment; Japan. This occurred because the government was offering subsidies for the citizens to purchase eco-friendly cars. This, therefore, points to the need for venturing into the less competitive market segment, where there are still few companies specializing in this market segment. By so doing, Toyota will manage to annex a new market segment comprising of buyers and government institutions willing to use the Eco-Cars, making it possible for the company to increase its sales and revenues. Thus, the introduction of Eco-friendly cars by Toyota in the UK will have the impact of boosting its sales, since government institutions in the UK support these vehicles. This way, Toyota will manage to capture the demand from these institutions, thus expanding its overall market share, sales and revenues. Customers are always in search of products that will not only satisfy their need, but also those products which they have full confidence in. the market for Toyota vehicles has been badly hurt by recalling cars, which were manufactured with various defects. Although such an action is necessary to avoid losing the market share when the default is eventually discovered, it does not augur well with customers. Recalling vehicle after selling them to the customers serves to inconvenience the customers, while also increasing their doubt on the suitability of the subsequent products manufactured by the company. This is detrimental since it s erodes the confidence that the customers had on the company and its products. Additionally, recalling cars after they have already been sold is detrimental to the reputation of the company, since it gives its competitors an upper hand. Therefore, to boost the confidence of the customers and ensure that their loyalty in the company and its products is restored, the company needs to work towards improving the reliability of its products, through eliminating any weaknesses on its products before they are released to the market.

Critically consider whether the current law on spousal compellability Essay

Critically consider whether the current law on spousal compellability is justifiable - Essay Example law and statute and has created controversy with regard whether it remains justifiable in the contemporary societal framework, particularly in light of the complex nature of familial relationships. For example, in cases involving violence it doesn’t always follow that a spouse will be willing witness and if children are involved in the family set up, the compellability principles could create negative repercussions for the witness in the long term3. The focus of this paper is to critically evaluate whether the current law on spousal compellability is justifiable. To this end, this paper will firstly consider the common law and statutory rules, followed by a discussion of proposals for reform on the spousal compellability rule with specific reference to the Scottish recommendations to amend the law on the compellability of spousal witnesses by analogy to the position in England and Wales. With regard to the definition of spouse under the compellability rules, under section 84(1) of the Civil Partnership Act 20044, the provisions relating to spousal compellability under section 80 of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 19845 (PACE) apply equally to a civil partner of the defendant in addition to a spouse. Therefore both civil partners and spouse are covered by the compellability provisions. Additionally, the law distinguishes between civil and criminal cases6. For example, in civil cases spouses must be competent and compellable7however different considerations apply in criminal cases8. However, the common law position has often been criticised for being unsatisfactory and Murphy comments that â€Å"there had always been felt a slight natural repugnance at the thought of spouses giving evidenced against each other†9 on grounds of risks of perjury and the risks to the validity and credibility of any such evidence given10. This sentiment is further reflected by the dissenting speech of Lord Edmund Davies in Hoskyn v Commissioner of the Police for the

Financial Analysis of Marvel Toys Pvt. Ltd Research Paper

Financial Analysis of Marvel Toys Pvt. Ltd - Research Paper Example It intends to expand business to other EU countries. For this purpose, it is planning to build a larger and modern warehouse and distribution facility which would cost around $10 million and would be completed by June, 2013. This cost includes machinery worth $2 million. It also plans to renovate its existing warehouse for $200000. The projects, to be completed by January, 2013 could increase 25% revenue. For this new project, capital is planned to be acquired through a local UAE bank. The current document dwells into the complete financial analysis of the organization. The financial analysis includes: 1) Cash Flow analysis 2) Ratio analysis and 3) Analysis by a long term creditor 4) Examining the collateral security to be offered by the firm in case loan is granted for the firm. 5) Conclusion The cash flow analysis details about the cash generated through various activities of the firm like operating, investing and financing. Operating cash flows elucidate the increase and decrease in cash pertaining to income statement. Investing cash flows depict increase and decrease in assets while financing activities revolve around dividend and other payments to stock holders. If the cash flows are positive and growing year on year, they are considered to be favorable for any creditor. The ratio analysis is extensively studied through a variety of ratios. The meanings of those ratios are explained for comprehensive understanding of their purpose. They are then compared to previous year and industry average to ascertain their degree of favorability and non-favorability of ratios. Recommendations are made to improvise the ratios in the long run. The only area of concern identified was that of interest expense servicing which could be easily done by increasing sales through upgraded warehouse. Once the analysis is completed, as a banker, we can analyze the outcomes. For analysis, we need to arrive at the requirements of criteria for firm’s suitability to be bestowed with a long term loan. The requirements are the positive cash flows, favorability of crucial ratios, a discussion of property which would be available as security, credit history of the loan taking firm and perfect documentation giving all relevant details. Positive cash flows are examined by the cash flow analysis. The crucial ratios namely debt-equity ratio, return on capital employed and proprietor ratio are calculated to know whether a long-term creditor would be interested to extend finance for Marvel toys. It is understood that these ratios are favorable and the firm is qualified for further finance. Land and buildings which were valued conservatively at $50 million could be offered as collateral security for further finance and overdraft. The credit history is always positive as the firm has never exceeded its overdraft limits. The only requirement which the firm would need to perform is to file documentation giving details of expected revenue from such investment so that the bank authorities would be convinced to extend the required loan and overdraft for the firm. Introduction Marvel Toys Pvt. Ltd which imports and exports toys from China to UAE are now planning to build new warehouse of larger capacity and also renovate its existing warehouse. It plans to expand its business to cater to total EU customers. It wishes to

How desalination of seawater for use as drinking water relates to the Essay

How desalination of seawater for use as drinking water relates to the principles of osmosis - Essay Example The process utilizes the principle of reverse osmosis and has its own share of advantages and disadvantages. Description and Evaluation Osmosis is defined as â€Å"the passage or diffusion of water or other solvents through a semipermeable membrane that blocks the passage of dissolved solutes† (Kershner, 2012). Technically, water moves from an area of less solute concentration to that of greater solute concentration, because water seeks equilibrium and thus seeks to make the concentration of the area with greater solute more or less equal. It does so through osmosis and water only stops moving once balance is attained or until equal osmotic pressure is reached. This is the state where there is no more movement by solvent. The desalination of water is not osmosis but rather the opposite of it: reverse osmosis (Kershner, 2012). In the case of reverse osmosis, there is movement of solvent molecules through a semipermeable membrane from an area of greater solute concentration to t hat of less solute concentration, or simply the movement of the solvent away from where solute concentration is relatively higher. ... Applying pressure to saltwater to pass through the semipermeable membrane will make the solvent or water component to pass through but not the relatively bigger particles of salt. Thus, one has salt on one side of the semipermeable membrane and freshwater on the other (Kershner, 2012). See Figure 1 for the schematic diagram of the reverse osmosis desalination plant. Figure 1. Schematic representation of a Reverse Osmosis Desalination Plant Source: http://freshlysqueezedwater.org.uk/waterarticle_reverseosmosis.php The reverse osmosis system includes several features. One of these is the type of semipermeable membrane used, upon which the percentage of tap water impurities removed depends. Cellulose Tri-Acetate, or CTA, membranes possess a removal rate of around 88 to 94% of tap water impurities. Thin Film Composite, or TFC, membranes remove around 94 to 98% of all solids, and Hi-S membranes are responsible for the elimination of 97.5 to 99% of all impurities especially fine silicates (FAQs: Reverse Osmosis Water, 2013). Moreover, the three main components of the system include the high pressure pump, the energy recovery device and the reverse osmosis membranes. The high pressure pump is responsible for providing the pressure needed for seawater in order for it to move from an area of high solute or salt concentration to an area of lower solute concentration. Depending on the salinity and temperature of the seawater, the amount of pressure provided by the high pressure pump ranges from 55 to 85 bars. The pressure then creates not only the movement of the flow of concentrate, but also energy. The energy recovery devices are then responsible for the reuse of the energy coming from the flow of the

Financial Analysis of Marvel Toys Pvt. Ltd Research Paper

Financial Analysis of Marvel Toys Pvt. Ltd - Research Paper Example It intends to expand business to other EU countries. For this purpose, it is planning to build a larger and modern warehouse and distribution facility which would cost around $10 million and would be completed by June, 2013. This cost includes machinery worth $2 million. It also plans to renovate its existing warehouse for $200000. The projects, to be completed by January, 2013 could increase 25% revenue. For this new project, capital is planned to be acquired through a local UAE bank. The current document dwells into the complete financial analysis of the organization. The financial analysis includes: 1) Cash Flow analysis 2) Ratio analysis and 3) Analysis by a long term creditor 4) Examining the collateral security to be offered by the firm in case loan is granted for the firm. 5) Conclusion The cash flow analysis details about the cash generated through various activities of the firm like operating, investing and financing. Operating cash flows elucidate the increase and decrease in cash pertaining to income statement. Investing cash flows depict increase and decrease in assets while financing activities revolve around dividend and other payments to stock holders. If the cash flows are positive and growing year on year, they are considered to be favorable for any creditor. The ratio analysis is extensively studied through a variety of ratios. The meanings of those ratios are explained for comprehensive understanding of their purpose. They are then compared to previous year and industry average to ascertain their degree of favorability and non-favorability of ratios. Recommendations are made to improvise the ratios in the long run. The only area of concern identified was that of interest expense servicing which could be easily done by increasing sales through upgraded warehouse. Once the analysis is completed, as a banker, we can analyze the outcomes. For analysis, we need to arrive at the requirements of criteria for firm’s suitability to be bestowed with a long term loan. The requirements are the positive cash flows, favorability of crucial ratios, a discussion of property which would be available as security, credit history of the loan taking firm and perfect documentation giving all relevant details. Positive cash flows are examined by the cash flow analysis. The crucial ratios namely debt-equity ratio, return on capital employed and proprietor ratio are calculated to know whether a long-term creditor would be interested to extend finance for Marvel toys. It is understood that these ratios are favorable and the firm is qualified for further finance. Land and buildings which were valued conservatively at $50 million could be offered as collateral security for further finance and overdraft. The credit history is always positive as the firm has never exceeded its overdraft limits. The only requirement which the firm would need to perform is to file documentation giving details of expected revenue from such investment so that the bank authorities would be convinced to extend the required loan and overdraft for the firm. Introduction Marvel Toys Pvt. Ltd which imports and exports toys from China to UAE are now planning to build new warehouse of larger capacity and also renovate its existing warehouse. It plans to expand its business to cater to total EU customers. It wishes to

The Student Movement and 1968 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

The Student Movement and 1968 - Essay Example The essay "The student movement and 1968" will help to understand, that political oppression is one of the main factors that encouraged student action in the 1960s, where students wanted to offer an alternative opposition that the government lacked. In 1966, the two main West German political parties, the Social Democratic Party (SPD) and Christian Democrats (CDU), merged to create the Grand Coalition. The Grand Coalition selected Kurt Georg Kiesinger of the CDU to become the chancellor. The decision sparked controversy because Kissinger served as the radio propagandist of the National Socialist German Workers' Party (NSDAP), also called the Nazi Party (Allinson, 2013, p.141). In addition, the formation of the Grand Coalition created social unrest because it decreased and curtailed parliamentary opposition (Allinson, 2013, p.142). With the union of CDU and the SPD, the only remaining opposition party was the relatively small organization of the Free Democratic Party (FDP). The studen t movement formed part of the â€Å"extraparliamentary opposition† or APO (Von Dirke, 1997, p.34). Andrei S. Markovits, an Arthur F. Thurnau Professor and American sociologist Philip S. Gorski assert that APO is not a monolithic movement. They stress that the â€Å"term APO never designated a single organization or tendency. Rather, APO was a loosely negative alliance between a diffuse array of groups united against a shared opponent† (cited in Von Dirke, 1997, p.34). The Socialist German Student Union served as the leader of the student movement in Germany.

HIV Prevalence in Uganda

HIV Prevalence in Uganda Uganda (HIV/AIDS) Section 1: Between 2002-2011, the international non-profit NGO AVSI Foundation has supported Uganda’s Ministry of Health (MoH) prevention of mother-to-child HIV transmission (PMTCT) program in four Northern Ugandan districts: Kitgum, Lamwo, Pader, and Agago. The program â€Å"aimed to be comprehensive, emphasizing social and medical care and support† and was successful in reducing HIV prevalence among HIV-exposed infants from 10.3% in 2004 to 5.0% in 2011, among other things. The MoH/AVSI PMTCT sites showed how a â€Å"comprehensive PMTCT program emphasizing social and community engagement alongside medical care and support can succeed in a remote setting with multiple challenges† (3). Despite the advances of the MoH/AVSI program, HIV/AIDS remains a critical issue in Uganda. Northern Uganda especially faces dispropriate challenges and adversities in regards to the national HIV/AIDS epidemic response. In 2011, the Uganda AIDS Indicator Survey measured a national HIV prevalence of 7.3%, but the HIV prevalence in northern Uganda specifically was shown to be 8.3%. Also, Uganda has one of the largest crude birth rates in the world. In 2011 Ugandas birth rate was 42.1/1000 (3). In addition, Northern Uganda has faced great adversity from the Lords Resistance Army (LRA) during the period 1986-2006. There was an estimated two million individuals mandated to live in internally displaced people (IDP) camps from this violent discord (3). The fallout from the war between the government and the LRA had worsened already sparse health services in the north. Due to the high birth rate, HIV prevalence, and structural violence faced in northern Uganda, the AVSI Foundation proposes to extend the MoH/AVSI PMTCT program for an additional five years with support from the Global Fund. Support from the Global Fund will allow us to broaden PMTCT services in 24 Northern Uganda MoH facilities (located in Kitgum, Lamwo, Pader, and Agago) and help expand these sustainable PMTCT service sites to other MoH facilities nationwide. Estimated Populations (2011) of Targeted Northern Ugandan Districts Kitgum 222,737 Lamwo 164,754 Pader 237,100 Agago 285,300 Link to Map: https://mapsengine.google.com/map/edit?mid=zZ1ADMHAfHkY.krdFRCFxMCRQ Section 2: Goal: Impact Indicators Baseline* (Year 1) Target (Year 5) Reduction in HIV incidence among HIV-exposed infants 5% 3% *2011 estimate The first and foremost goal is to reduce HIV incidence among HIV-exposed infants by reducing Mother-to-child Transmission (MTCT) of HIV. MTCT occurs when an HIV-positive mother infects her infant with HIV during pregnancy, labor, delivery, or breastfeeding (1). Yet, the risk of transmission can be reduced to less than 5% if mothers undergo proper maternal ART treatment. The diagram below illustrates the many steps mothers need to take to successfully complete a PMTCT program. This series of complex steps is why it is absolutely critical to assist Ugandan mothers as much as possible to make successfully complete our program. However, even if HIV-positive mothers complete a PMTCT program in all of its entirety and give birth to an HIV-free infant, infants still remain at risk of HIV infection. Other channels, such as contaminated needles, can infect an infant who was initially born HIV-free. Thus, maintaining and promoting strict sanitation procedures, alongside a strong PMTCT program, is absolutely critical in reducing HIV incidence among HIV-exposed infants. The table below summarizes the PMTCT Indicators â€Å"number of HIV-exposed children (18 months or younger) tested† and the â€Å"number of HIV-exposed children (18 months or younger) that tested HIV-positive† measured by the MoH/AVSI program between 2002-2011. This data was used to formulate Year 1 and project a realistic target for Year 5. Section 3: Objectives: Outcome/coverage indicators Baseline* (Year 1) Target (Year 5) Increase the proportion of HIV-positive women who deliver in health facilities 81.1% 95% Increase the number of mothers who undergo HIV testing (in ANC) 96% 98% Increase proportion of HIV-positive mothers on ART treatment 78.5% 95% Increase antenatal care attendance (mothers) 20,032 50,000 *2011 estimate One of the main objectives is to increase the proportion of HIV-positive women who deliver in health facilities. It is absolutely critical for HIV-positive women to deliver in health facilities. After all, health facilities can provide better medical care and support than a traditional midwife would be able to in a home delivery. Furthermore, health facilities have more resources, equipment, and personnel to respond to any emergencies during delivery. Above all, delivering in a health facility will better guarantee the infant receives the appropriate antivirals need to PMTCT. HIV-positive women delivering at home run a higher risk of these crucial medications not being administered. Thus, increasing the proportion of HIV-positive women who deliver in health facilities better protects both the mother and the child, than a home delivery. The table below summarizes the PMTCT Indicator â€Å"percentage of HIV-positive women who delivered in health facilities† measured by the MoH/AVSI program between 2002-2011. This data was used to formulate Year 1 and project a realistic target for Year 5. Another objective is to increase the number of mothers who undergo HIV testing while in ANC. There are clearly many benefits for at risk individuals undergoing HIV-testing. However, the benefits of having undergone an HIV test are lost if the patient does not return to learn their result. Thus, it is absolutely crucial for our program will utilize â€Å"rapid testing at a women’s first antenatal clinic visit† (1). In contrast to a â€Å"conventional HIV test† that can take days or even weeks to attain results, â€Å"rapid tests can produce a result in as little as twenty minutes† (1). This will allow reduce the number of HIV-positive women who are lost from lack of follow-up and will also facilitate rapid enrollment of HIV-positive pregnant women into PMTCT program services. The table below summarizes the PMTCT Indicator â€Å"ANC women tested for HIV† measured by the MoH/AVSI program between 2002-2011. This data was used to formulate Year 1 and project a realistic target for Year 5. Another objective is to increase proportion of HIV-positive mothers on ART treatment (e.g. antiretroviral prophylaxis or triple antiretroviral therapy, depending on the circumstance). However, â€Å"to be fully effective, antiretroviral medication needs to reach newborn babies as well as their mothers† (1). The table below summarizes the PMTCT Indicators â€Å"number of HIV-positive women who received ARV prophylaxis† and â€Å"percentage of ANC HIV-positive women started on prophylaxis† measured by the MoH/AVSI program between 2002-2011. This data was used to formulate Year 1 and project a realistic target for Year 5. Specifically, our program will utilize and adhere to the 2013 World Health Organization’s (WHO) Option B guidelines for PMTCT (until subsequent more effective recommendation plans replace it). The WHO’s 2013 Option B advocates to provide â€Å"Provide all HIV-positive pregnant or breastfeeding women with a course of antiretroviral drugs to prevent mother-to-child transmission† (2). They explicitly state that a triple-drug antiretroviral treatment should be administered throughout pregnancy and delivery. Furthermore, breastfeeding mothers should persist on the triple-drug antiretroviral treatment until at least one week after stopping breastfeeding. The steps and procedures of Option B are outlined in the flowchart below. Another objective is to Increase antenatal (ANC) care attendance for mothers. After it has been shown that â€Å"A number of clinical processes, such as antenatal care and safe delivery, can improve the health of both mother and child† (4). ANC services offer certainly offer many benefits for mothers but their benefits (just like in HIV-testing), are lost if women do not take advantage and utilize these services. There are numerous reasons a mother may not seek ANC services, even if they are â€Å"free†. A huge factor is accessibility difficulties. Pregnant women in low income countries, like Uganda, often have an increased difficulty in utilizing maternal programs because of their busy schedules. They are heavily occupied in caring for children, working, and running numerous kinds of other errands. Furthermore, many mothers live far away from health clinics and may lack a reliable means of travel. Both of these issues creates a huge barrier for women who need antenatal care services, but struggle to access it. Thus, our program will offer basic care and support services (such as food/transportation vouchers, housing assistance, and child-care services) to help increase ANC attendance. After all organizations, such as Partners in Health, have proven that by seeking to overcome the â€Å"social barriers† to accessing care by implementing â€Å"wraparound services [e.g. transportation costs ]† can help in addressing some of the â€Å"social and economic determinants of ill health† (4). The table below summarizes the PMTCT Indicator â€Å"ANC attendance† measured by the MoH/AVSI program between 2002-2011. This data was used to formulate Year 1 and project a realistic target for Year 5. Section 4: Activities: Main Activities Process/Output Indicators Program Year 1 Target Program Year 5 Target Responsible/implementing agencies Free/accessible HIV testing and antenatal care services for mothers ANC attendance (# persons) 30,000 50,000 Ministry of Health Maternal mobile teams Number home-births assisted 2,000 10,000 AVSI HIV counseling for mothers and their partners % HIV-positive mothers participating in therapy 25% 50% AVSI One of the main activities to be conducted is providing free and accessible HIV testing and antenatal care for mothers. Indeed, it has been proven, on behalf of the structural adjustment era, that â€Å"user fees in many resource-poor settings deterred the poor from accessing any health services (4). Likewise, charging service fees for PMTCT services would create a huge barrier for the poorest northern Ugandan mothers. On the other hand, providing financial support to mothers would encourage and give incentive for mothers to continue to attend and adhere to PMTCT program services. Thus, financial support will be given to mothers who attain antenatal services and HIV testing. This will not only help support poor Ugandan mothers, but will also reduces the likelihood of mothers being lost by lack of follow-up. Another activity that will be conducted is using maternal mobile teams to reach at risk mothers who have an increased difficulty and/or refusal to travel. After all, some pregnant women, despite being offered transportation services and/or financial support, will refuse to deliver in health facilities for whatever reason. Therefore, maternal mobile teams will be trained to provide â€Å"services such as HIV education, testing and counseling, and advice on infant feeding† (1). Maternal mobile teams should be used for the women who deliver at home and ensure that those who have tested positive for HIV have access to the essential antiretrovirals needed for PMTCT. Indeed, keeping track of mothers (especially HIV-positive mothers) who plan to delivery at home will be a challenge. Consequently, this will be a major a coordinating responsibility of community health workers who will be responsible for the gathering the necessary records (i.e. HIV-positive pregnant mothers) to pass on to the maternal mobile teams. Additionally, HIV counseling for mothers and their partners will be provided at no cost. Indeed, biomedical treatments are not the only thing needed for a successful HIV intervention. Social and emotional support are also crucial. Unfortunately it can sometimes prove difficult to persuade men to attend such services that are often regarded as â€Å"women’s clinics dealing with women’s issues† (1). Nevertheless, another vital activity will be to train and engage community health workers who will be paid to promote maternal education and social support to mothers. After all, the use of expert clients and other community-based volunteers helps reduce the stigma and discrimination of mothers living with HIV. It also helps improve the utilization of basic care services and adherence to Antiretroviral (ARV) Therapy. The term â€Å"expert clients† refers to people who are currently HIV/AIDs positive who serve as experienced role models for other PLHIV. Currently, expert clients work in almost every Ugandan ART site, engaging in various activities ranging from promoting health education to providing psychosocial support for PLHIV. Furthermore, mothers will be either followed up with an invitation to come to the health facility for specific interventions/services or visited by a team of health professionals (i.e. a maternal mobile team). Section 5: Our goals and objectives fit within the National Plan because they complement and scale-up an HIV infection prevention campaign to one of the most disadvantaged regions in the country, Karamoja. This 2013 campaign, called Elimination of Mother-to-Child-Transmission of HIV (eMTCT), is part of the Ugandan government’s large-scaled efforts to prevent new HIV infections. Furthermore, our goals and objectives further assist Uganda in their Ministry of Health 2010-2015 Scale Up Plan for PMTCT that aims to achieve an HIV-free generation of Ugandans by 2015 through the virtual elimination of MTCT of HIV, which utilizes a Sector-Wide Approach (1). Indeed, it is extremely critical to work with the public sector and not against the public sector. Our program is committed to working in public sector PMTCT health systems because â€Å"only governments can enshrine health as a human right and then implement programs to safeguard this right for its citizens on a national scale† (4). Section 6: a) We will involve Ugandan mothers by providing HIV counseling services for mothers and their partners. Social support is a crucial component of providing medical services. Indeed it has been shown that when â€Å"male partners are involved, both partners can get tested for HIV, know their status, and therefore improve the baby’s chances of a healthy survival† (1). Furthermore, counselors are better able to â€Å"emphasise the man’s responsibility for protecting the health of his partner and family† and can also advance the use of PMTCT services, â€Å"resulting in much higher rates of treatment uptake† (1). b) Community participation will be fostered by using community health workers to promote awareness, attendance, and adherence to PMTCT services. Specifically, community-based female volunteers who are â€Å"expert clients† (current HIV-positive mothers who serve as mentors and have experience with overcoming HIV-related stigma) will especially be invaluable. After all, community health workers can gain the trust of mothers who will thus be more likely to adhere to PMTCT services. c) This PMTCT campaign will help to improve the status of women in Uganda by empowering mothers to be active, confident, and assertive actors in the health of their children. Indeed, educating women is crucial to improving the health of infants. By increasing maternal education for mothers, indicators such as infant mortality will be reduced. d) Social equality is promoted by providing free antenatal care, HIV testing, and free antiretroviral treatment (WHO’s Option B); we are removing the financial barrier that would keep the poorest mothers from attaining maternal services. Indeed it is of the utmost importance to avoid punitive user fees† and other â€Å"cost-sharing devices that shift the burden of payment to those least able to pay† (4). As mentioned previously, charging user fees for services would exclude poorer populations. Not only will free treatment be provided, but financial support will be given to women who adhere to therapy. e) There will be an emphasis on education and expansion of programs nationwide to promote human resources development. We will train community health workers. These community health workers will pass on their training to mothers. These mothers will likewise be encouraged to share their acquired knowledge with friends, relatives, and other community members. In other words, creating a dynamic chain reaction of teaching will be a huge focus of this program. Moreover, we wish to spread the effectiveness of our PMTCT program from northern Uganda to other parts of the country. After all, â€Å"addressing maternal and child health comprehensively will require training more health workers; strengthening referral networks between communities, health centers, and hospitals; and ensuring adequate supplies at care centers- all elements of a robust health system† (4). Section 7: There may be potential opposition from the local context regarding the empowering of women our services inevitably (and justly) bring. According to the Foundation for Sustainable Development, â€Å"women face . . . discrimination, low social status, lack of economic self sufficiency, and greater risk of HIV/AIDS infection† (5). Because women typically have lower status than men in Uganda, some natives may potentially view this education and empowerment of women as a threat to their culture. The best way to address it will be to involve the mothers boyfriends, husbands, etc as much as possible in the lessons and counseling. Promoting equity is a crucial measure and indicator of a successful program. Another potential opposition to the plan will be the barrier of HIV-testing stigma that keeps mothers from getting HIV-testing. The best way to address this is to integrate HIV-testing as a standard part of antenatal care. Instead of asking women if they would like to â€Å"opt in† (receive HIV- testing), one would only ask them if they would like to â€Å"opt out† (not receive HIV-testing). In other words, if HIV-testing is set as the default option, women will be more comfortable with receiving it. And thus, overtime, HIV-testing will be normalized and become common practice, which will help remove the barrier of stigma. In brief, removing the â€Å"special status given to HIV testing helps to make it more acceptable† (1) Finally, any other existing NGOs in the area who are doing similar PMTC work may create conflict with our plan. There may be some â€Å"turf war† as different NGOs commonly have different agendas. The best way to address any NGO conflict is to do preliminary research to ensure we set up the PMTCT care services in areas that are not disrupting any â€Å"parallel programs†. References AIDS Education and Research Trust. Preventing PMTCT. AVERT. Web. 9 Mar. 2014. http://www.avert.org/preventing-mother-child-transmission-pmtct-practice.htm>. AIDS Education and Research Trust. WHO Guidelines. AVERT. Web. 9 Mar. 2014. http://www.avert.org/who-guidelines-pmtct-breastfeeding.htm>. Bannink-Mbazzi, Femke, MA. High PMTCT Program Uptake and Coverage of Mothers, Their Partners, and Babies in Northern Uganda: Achievements and Lessons Learned Over 10 Years of Implementation (2002–2011). Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndromes 62.5 (2013). JAIDS. Lippincott Williams Wilkins, Inc., 27 July 2012. Web. 09 Mar. 2014. http://journals.lww.com/jaids/Fulltext/2013/04150/High_PMTCT_Program_Uptake_and_Coverage_of_Mothers,.20.aspx>. Farmer, Paul. Reimagining Global Health: An Introduction. Berkeley: University of California, 2013. Print. Gender Equity Issues in Uganda. Gender Equity Issues in Uganda. Foundation for Sustainable Development. Web. 09 Mar. 2014. http://fsdinternational.org/country/uganda/weissues>.

Management: Managing Individuals and a Diverse Work Force Essay

Chapter 12 is an entire chapter devoted to diversity. It explains exactly what diversity is, common mistakes in dealing with diversity, what are the individual differences associated with diversity and finally how to manage a diverse work force. Diversity is a variety of demographic, cultural, and personal differences among people who work in an organization and the customers who do business there. The main misconception is that diversity is interchangeable with affirmative action. However, that statement is far off basis. Diversity is much more in depth because it deals with a wider variety of contributing factors.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The chapter talks about the individual differences associated with diversity. These factors include surface level differences such as age, gender, race, and physical disabilities. There are also deep level differences such as personality, attitudes and values. Finally, the chapter discusses how to manage diverse working environments. They introduce methods such as: 1) The discrimination and fairness method, 2) The access and legitimacy method, and finally 3) The learning and effectiveness method. They also mention some types of training that are already out there to help diverse working environments work as a whole, from the top positions to the lowest positions. â€Å"What Would You Do II† The question that Avon, the worldwide distributor of makeup and personal products to women, has is whether to choose a man or a woman for the new pos...

Prophets of Zion and the Babylonian Exile :: essays research papers fc

Prophets of Zion and the Babylonian Exile   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In ancient Jewish culture, prophets were a part of every-day life. They proclaimed what they understood to be God’s word, and lived according to it. In times of crisis, prophets were even more present, to warn and give consolation to the people. One time period in which there were many prophets was the Babylonian Exile, where the people of Judah were taken and deported to live in Babylon. Of the books of the prophets Isaiah and Jeremiah, Isaiah 63:7-64:12 and Jeremiah 29:4-23 will be examined together.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The book of Isaiah can essentially be divided into three groups of authors, the first being an eight century prophet called Isaiah of Jerusalem. The second is an anonymous prophet who shares Isaiah of Jerusalem’s same ideal of the Davidic king. The third prophet is possibly the same person as the second, or his disciple or group of disciples (Meeks 1013). The third prophet or group lived in the land of Judah after the Babylonian exile and wrote the chapters which will be discussed, and thus will be referred to as Isaiah, rather than adding an indication of his place in the sequence of prophets under the book of Isaiah. Whereas Isaiah was firm in his belief of the Davidic king which stemmed from the southern land of Judah, the prophet Jeremiah was from a small tribe whose influences were the older traditions of Mosaic theology, which is closer to the ideals of the Northern Kingdom’s many Tribes of Israel (Meeks 1110). The excerpt that will be analyzed from the book of Jeremiah was written during the exile, and will automatically have a different viewpoint than that of Isaiah. The first difference to note between the two passages is who is speaking, and who is being addressed. â€Å"I will recount the gracious deeds of the Lord†¦and the great favor to the house of Israel that he has shown them according to his mercy†¦Thus you led your people, to make for yourself a glorious name† (Is 63:7,14b). Here, Isaiah is the speaker, who, aside from the initial referral to God in the third person during the first seven lines, is actually talking to God. Looking at the Jeremian passage, God is the speaker who speaks through Jeremiah to his people, as he writes â€Å"Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the exiles whom I have sent from exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: Build houses and live in them†¦multiply there, and do not decrease† (Jer 29:4,5,6b).

Hello Kitty

| HELLO KITTY| | Obsah Introduction3 1. Hello Kitty4 1. 1 History4 1. 2 Hello Kitty in Japan5 2. Globalization – localization6 3. Famous brands create for Hello Kitty6 3. 1 Forever 21 (US)7 3. 2 Sephora (Francie)7 3. 3 Swarovski (Austria)8 3. 4 Vans (US)8 3. 5 Eva Air (Taiwan)9 Conclusion10 Bibliography11 Appendix I. : Hello Kitty Story12 Appendix II. : First product with Hello Kitty motive – 197413 Appendix III. : Hello Kitty Products14 Appendix IV. : Hello Kitty a celebrities19 Appendix V. : Hello Kitty products in magazines20 Introduction Lately I have been noticing many articles in the shops carrying a name Hello Kitty with the typical oversized-head kitty image. To be quite honest until I started looking for information I did not know anything about this brand, where it is coming from, what is its main product, who is its targeted group, nothing. But it got my attention because I have been spotting the Hello Kitty image on so many different products and in such an amount that I started to feel like it is everywhere and I cannot escape. This essay is about one Japanese brand, that was invented as a new Sandio? company design for coin purse that turned into a global brand, presenting her as a western brand and not carrying so much about its origin. Introducing the company secret about such a popularity of Hello Kitty brand – licensing. Starting by introducing the brand and saying few details about its history, continuing by describing the Japanese market and some cultural differences. Naming few categories of p roducts that are available in Hello Kitty design concentrating more on chosen famous brands that decided to provide its good name, quality and prestige to this Japanese cartoon brand. . Hello Kitty The reason for this name is expressed in this statement, made by Bill Hensley, marketing director of Sandrio? s company: â€Å"Gift-giving is an important part of the Japanese culture. In Ja-pan, ‘Hello’ communicates the idea of open communication. That’s why she was named Hello Kitty. † Since Sandrio? s motto is â€Å"Small gift, big smile† it explains very well the statement and the character? s name, as it is all about gifts and making other people happy even with small things. (ICMR, 2007, online). 1. 1 History This Japanese brand Hello Kitty founded in 1974. When we look for more details about this brand, nowadays very famous one, we can found out, that the company is not really associating Hello Kitty with its home – Japan, but with England, where it was â€Å"born†. The official story behind this character is as follows: â€Å"Hello Kitty was born on November 1st and she lives in London, England with her parents and her twin sister, Mimmy. They have a lots of friends at school with whom they share many adventures. Her hobbies include travelling, music, reading, eating yummy cookies her sister Mimmy bakes, and best of all making new friends. As Hello Kitty always says, you can never have too many friends. † (Sandrio. com, 2011, online). Hello Kitty is not, as many other characters (Mickey Mouse, Winnie the Pooh, Pikachu, etc. ) a cartoon figure. At appeared as mysterious cat, that nobody knew. The reason why she was created was that Sandrio – the company that owns this brand, needed a new motive to use for their change purses. Back into 1970s Hello Kitty was originally used on popular little merchandise – toys and stationary like coin purses or pencil boxes and other small gifts targeted at small girls – mainly at the age of 4 to 6. And in those days the prices were quite low so it would be affordable for most of the kids. (ICMR, 2007, online). . It was not Yuko Yamaguchi, who created Hello Kitty, but she invented the story of Kitty? s life and since then she has been responsible for this product, and very successful one have to say. She was also responsible to extend the brand to a wide variety of products – clothes, accessories and even electronic goods. Yoko was very concerned about making the product up to date, so she was constantly asking customers what they want, what are their expectations from Hello Kitty etc. For example in mid 1980s company received a letter from a high school student, asking for products with Hello Kitty targeted at customers her age, so the company did so and changed positioning of the brand targeting on girls from about 5 years old to teenage. Sandrio soon realized that Hello Kitty is growing with her original customers, little girls, in 1970s who were teenagers in 1990s and adult women in 2000s but they still kept on buying Hello Kitty stuff so nowadays the targeted group is said to be from 4 years old girls to women in their 30s. ICMR, 2007, online). Thank to voluntary endorsement by celebrities, as during 1990s Hello Kitty became very popular in US, the brand develop into a fashion symbol in early 2000s and turned into a â€Å"premium brand†. We can name few celebrities who were (maybe still are) big Hello Kitty fans: Christina Aguilera, Mariah Carey, Kate Perry, Lady Gaga and others like Cameron Diaz, Heidi Klum, Carmen Elektra, Madonna etc. that posed for fashion magazines wearing Hello Kitty products. (See Appendix IV. ). At the present time Hello Kitty products can be found in many magazines recommending them as one of the thing the modern, cute and sexy girl or woman has to have (See Appendix V. ). 1. 2 Hello Kitty in Japan As it was said above, Hello Kitty started as a brand in 1970s targeted at little girls. But they grown and in 1980s and 1990s they turn into teenage girls who mostly stayed faithful to their childhood toy. The company realized that and changed the positioning of the brand on teenagers, found a Hello Kitty a boyfriend called Daniel and helped its brand to be even more popular by focusing on a larger group of customers. As a result, nowadays is Hello Kitty loved and adored by girls age of approximately five to women in their thirties. Even though a significant number of Hello Kitty fans are male it is still considered as a female brand in Japan. (ICMR, 2007, online). The huge popularity that is Hello Kitty receiving in Japan can be explained by many factors actually. First of all, Japanese women love cute things and Hello Kitty is said to be a â€Å"cutie queen†. It is her sweet, cute, friendly and innocence appearance in the Japanese female customers represented by its big head, small black-dot eyes, yellow nose, red or pink ribbon and no mouth. The motionless expression in Hello Kitty? s face is actually big advantage of this character as every single person can give her the motions they feel like – sad, happy, thoughtful, angry, etc. , so it will be the way they need. (Wai-Ming Ng, 2011, online). Since Sandrio gave to its character Hello Kitty a London identity, it is considered as a western brand in Japan. So being a Japanese brand, it has, funnily enough an exotic appeal in Japan. It actually represents a Western or dreamlike world and that is way, Hello Kitty is not very liked in local characteristic ways – for example Hello Kitty dressed up in Kimono. The popularity of this brand is supported by the fact that mostly anything can be found with Hello Kitty motive on it. We talking about products starting from office & school stuff (pens, pencils, sell tapes, stickers, etc), clothes, shoes, kitchen & bathroom things, electronics, as well as wedding stuff (dresses, rings, invitations) or as famous brands? collection – Sephora for Hello Kitty, Swarovski Hello Kitty collection, Hello Kitty MasterCard, Forever 21 fastion collection and much more (see Appendix III. ). Only in Japan are about 90 companies possess a Sandrio? s licence allowing them to use Hello Kitty design on their products. Just a little comparison with Singapore? s customers as even though it is an Asian country and not that far from Japan, many attitudes and believes are completely different. In Singapore is Hello Kitty considered as a Japanese brand, not as a western or English one as it is in Japan. So it does not look any exotic to them. Asian versions of Hello Kitty – in traditional costumes and so are very popular here, which we cannot say about Japan. And last difference between these two countries is that very little variety of Hello Kitty products are imported into Singapore. (Wai-Ming Ng, 2011, online). 2. Globalization – localization American cartoons like Donald Duck or Mickey mouse can be considered as one of the tools to spread American ideology all over the world, we cannot say the same about Hello Kitty and propagate Japanese culture. First of all the company wanted Hello Kitty to be a western brand, so they created a life story about the character coming from London. As it was mentioned, Japanese customers prefer the western Hello Kitty, but it does not bother Americans to promote Asian series in US. So surely Hello Kitty is a global brand available all over the world but with local differences to suit the particular needs. This fact we can illustrate on another Sandrio? s move in order to be liked by more customers, by making a special blue Hello Kitty collection in the US to make look Hello Kitty less childish. (Wai-Ming Ng, 2011, online). 3. Famous brands create for Hello Kitty In 1976, Sanrio started licensing the Hello Kitty image to many different companies for use on their merchandise. The Hello Kitty brand success, and other character brands too, made Sandrio one of the leading companies in this area. But Hello Kitty has become a â€Å"global licensing phenomenon† as nowadays it is possible to buy almost everything with Hello Kitty design. The only exceptions, that were not permitted from Sandrio to use Hallo Kitty images from Sandrio are producers of guns, cigarettes and alcohol. (ICMR, 2007, online). But it is possible to get Hello Kitty wine, so I am not really sure, what they consider as alcohol. In Appendix III. re examples of some products that are available in Hello Kitty design. As the most â€Å"unexpected† things to find decorated whit Hello Kitty motives, in my opinion, are: vegetable peeler, hair drier, shower curtain, frying pan, chopping board, kitchen sponge, iron, sewing machine, wedding dress/rings, car, wine, sleeping bag, shoes and adult stuff – vibrator or condoms. Now I would like to present few companies that success of H ello Kitty impressed so much and saw such a potential in this brand that asked for a license and produced many products under their names, giving them the quality and prestige. As well as I want to demonstrate of the international act as none of the companies are Japanese so it helps give the brand the global appearance. 3. 1 Forever 21 (US) It all started in 1984 as a 900 square ft. Shop in Los Angeles, originally named as Fashion 21. Now quickly growing clothing design and accessories producer at affordable price having 120 locations in 25 states. This company targeting at teenagers and young people in their 20s decided to entice more customers by buying a Sandrio? s license to use Hello Kitty motives. In November 2011 Forever 21 introduced New Hello Kitty Exclusive collection containing items like: T-shits, bags, socks, tights, sweaters, raincoats etc. With the new collection Forever 21 organized for their customers and Hello Kitty fans a party in US on 18th November to celebrate the new collection. (Forever21. com, 2011, online). 3. 2 Sephora (Francie) This company was founded in 1970 in France and now, forty years later is leading chain of perfume and cosmetics in France and selling in another 24 countries. In July 2011 Sephora introduced Hello Kitty Graffity Collection. Limited edition of cosmetics and accessories including suitcase, brush set, eye shadows, compact mirror and perfume. In November 2011 new collection was introduced by Sephora: Hello Kitty Noir collection. It symbolize cinematic Hollywood romance. This limited edition is much richer in the number of offered items then the previous one presenting: eye shadows, perfumes, powders, held and compact mirrors, make up bags, brushes, combs and nail polishes. (Sanrio – blog, 2011, online), (Sephora, 2011, online). When looking at Sephora? webside, it looks like that the company is very please to co-operate with Sandrio: â€Å"She's iconic. She's adored. She's known around the world. Now, Hello Kitty is bringing her playful spirit to a new beauty line presented exclusively at Sephora. This sophisticated collection mixes the essence of Hello Kitty with a touch of style and fun. With charming designs and luxurious formulas infused with ingredients she loves, Hello Kitty Beauty is the ulti mate must-have. Hello Kitty. Hello Pretty. â€Å" (Sephora, 2011, online). 3. 3 Swarovski (Austria) An Austrian company, in these days very successful and known worldwide, founded in 1895 by Daniel Swarovski. Celebrating over 100 years on the market Swarovski could be spotted in James Bond movies, wore by celebrities or seen in popular music videos – lately Swarovski used product placement in Jennifer Lopez song called On the Floor which was seen over 445 million times on youtube. com, so the fame of this brand is undisputed. In July 2011 Swarovski launched the first Hello Kitty Collection including necklaces, rings, earrings, glass statues, handbags, key chains etc. For Hello Kitty fans there is a Limited Edition also available offering only 88 pieces worldwide to ensure its exclusivity. 3. 4 Vans (US) Earlier on this year (March, 2011) was announced that Sanrio teamed up with famous Californian shoe producer Vans, founded in 1966, to create a new Hello Kitty shoe collection for its fans. Vans used Hello Kitty design on several kinds of their footwear – Slip-on, Authentic and Sk8-Hi – offering different types and sizes for Toodlers/Infants, Kids and Adults – both women and men. (Sanrio – blog, 2011, online). On the official Vans. om website there is a promotion video to be found out about how the Vans ; Hello Kitty story started. There is a meeting recorded where Hello Kitty â€Å"chose† the design she wanted, but there is no representative of Sandrio? s company but actually a person dressed up as Hello Kitty so she is kind of â€Å"alive†. And as it is said in the promotion spot as well, it might not be the last time when Vans ; Hello Kitty comes together. (Vans. com, 2011, online). 3. 5 Eva Air (Taiwan) Eva Airways Corporation is second largest airline in Taiwan founded in 1989. In 2005 the company decided to buy a Sanrio? license to use Hello Kitty motives and dedicated one of their planes completely to this cartoon. By word „completelyâ€Å" it means everything you can think of while flying in plane. Apart from huge pictures on the Airbus itself everything changed: boarding passes, flight crew uniforms, food and its packaging, seats design, tissues, sick bags, entertaining system – program on aboard TV etc. As crazy as it sounds it was a huge success for the company was booked more than 90% on average. (Salman, 2011, online). Conclusion Hello Kitty is a cute little kitty with oversized head and ribbon over her right ear. Even thought it was not successful from the right beginning and had ups and down during its 30 years history, it is now very famous worldwide known Japanese brand. I am sure that most of the people do not know that the owner of this brand – Sanrio – created a story for this character to be coming from London, where its family lives as well. They did not want to associate the brand with its home – Japan. Nowadays we can find Hello Kitty products everywhere and this is thanks to Sanrio? s marketing policy, selling the license allowing the owner to use Hello Kitty motives on their products. It is actually very good as it has many advantages. Licensing other companies to use Hello Kitty character on their product helps Sanrio to spread its brand all over the world by not investing a penny, actually getting very large amount of money for the license. Secondly, the licensed companies are well chosen so they do not undermine Hello Kitty image, the other way around, they actually add more value because they invest their name, prestige and quality. Thirdly, the fact that it is possible to buy mostly anything with Hello Kitty character it encourage its fans to buy more and more in order to be surrounded by this little cutie they love so much. Since Sanrio co-operate with companies all over the word, it gives Hello Kitty really multicultural look – Eva Air (Taiwan), Vans (US), Swarovski (Austria), Sephora (France), Samsung (Korea) etc. And obviously there are cultural differences between states where is Hello Kitty sold, which is being considered in the selling strategy and cooperating with local companies – like Swarovski in Austria helps to get local people as well as Swarovski customers all over the world. The only thing which I am worried about is, that one fine day, there will be too much of Hello Kitty everywhere and all the success, madness and obsession about this brand will turn into disaster presented by hate and disgust. Bibliography Forever21. com [online]. 2011 [cit. 2011-12-09]. History ; Facts. Dostupne z WWW: ;http://www. forever21. com/Company/history. aspx? br=f21;. SALMAN, Maya. Scribd. com [online]. 2011 [cit. 2011-12-08]. Hello Kitty – The Iconing Japanese brand. Dostupne z  WWW: ;http://www. scribd. com/doc/49138163/Hello-Kitty;. Sanrio. Sanrio. com [online]. 2011 [cit. 2011-12-08]. Hello Kitty. Dostupne z WWW: ;http://www. sanrio. com/characters/HelloKitty/? chr=HelloKitty;. Sanrio. Sanrio. com [online]. 2011 [cit. 2011-12-08]. Hello Kitty Blog. Dostupne z  WWW: ;http://www. sanrio. com/hellokittyblog/;. Sephora. Sephora. com [online]. 2011 [cit. 2011-12-08]. Hello Kitty. Dostupne z  WWW: ;http://www. sephora. com/browse/brand_hierarchy. jhtml? brandId=5988;. Shop. vans. com [online]. 2011 [cit. 2011-12-09]. Collections: Hello Kitty. Dostupne z WWW: ;http://shop. vans. om/catalog/Vans/en_US/category/collections/hello-kitty. html;. The Icfai Center for Management Research (ICMR). Scribd. com [online]. 2007 [cit. 2011-12-08]. Hello Kitty – Japanese Superbrand. Dostupne z WWW: ;http://www. scribd. com/doc/19584011/Case-Study-Hello-Kitty;. WAI-MING NG, Benjamin. Scribd. com [online]. 2011 [cit. 2011-12-08]. The Hello Kitty Craze in Singapore:A Cultural and Comparative Analysis. Dostupne z WWW: ;http:/ /www. scribd. com/doc/46952018/Hello-Kitty-Asian-Profile;. Appendix I. : Hello Kitty Story (Source: http://www. sanrio. om/characters/HelloKitty/? chr=HelloKitty) Appendix II. : First product with Hello Kitty motive – 1974 (Source: http://houseofkittyblog. com/) Appendix III. : Hello Kitty Products 1. Bathroom: Hair drier, towel, shampoo, hand cream, mirror, shower curtain, tooth brush, make-up removal cream, sunbathing cream, manicure, bath cap, nail file, cotton swabs, soap holder, dental floss, soap,†¦ 2. Kitchen: Chopping board, kitchen sponge, pan, kettle, kitchen cloth, pots, water battle, vegetable peeler, bowls, plates, lemon juicer, oven mitt, kitchen paper towels, sandwich maker,†¦ . Room: Bed sheets, drawers, alarm, shoe cabinet, lamp shade,†¦ 4. Electro: Headphones, keyboard, computer mouse, CD, DVD, cover for monitor and keyboard, mobile†¦ 5. Household: Doormat, clearing mop, iron, ironing board, air freshener, sewing machine,†¦ 6. Weddin g: Wedding invitations, rings, wedding dresses, wedding glasses,†¦ 7. Car – Mitsubishi 8. Car accessories: Seat belts covers, window sunshade, in car sign, car seat barrier, air freshener, tissues holder, rearview mirror, steering wheel cover,†¦ 9. Other stuff: Contact case, jewel case, dog leash, sleeping bag, mobile charm, weighing scale, beach stuff, wet tissues, fondue,†¦ 10. Obleceni: Underwear, T-shirts, pyjamas,†¦ 11. Accessories: Watch, necklace, badges, earrings, bracelets,.. 12. Shoes: 13. Babies: Bib, bottles, babies dummy, baby carriage, car inside sticker,†¦ 14. Bags ; luggage Luggage, bags, handbags, purse,†¦ 15. School ; office: Calendars, diaries, pens, pencils, pencil sharpener, scissors, sell tape, highlighters, schedule books, file folders, clip boards, stamps, water color pens, oil pastel, calculator, paper clips,†¦ 6. Toys: Soft toys, playing cards, trampoline toys, plastic purse toy, robot, board games†¦ 17. Happy meal? s toys (McDonald? s): 20. Swarovski: Glass figures, card holders, bag charms, pens, earrings, rings, necklaces,†¦ 19. Aduls? stuff: Vibrators, condoms,†¦ Appendix IV. : Hello Kitty a celebrities (Course: http://www. sanrio. com/hellokittyblog/) Lady Gaga Ben Affle ck? daughter Adam Sandler? s children Heidy Klum? s daughterAvril Lavigne Megan Fox