The Homestead Strike 1892 compared to The Great Sit Down Strike 1937 Research Paper

The Homestead Strike 1892 compared to The Great Sit Down Strike 1937 - Research Paper Example The strike was able to attain goals meant for the benefit of the workers. They averted the reopening of the plants thus resulting in the recognition of their right to organize, a right which has been repeatedly denied by this corporation (Weinstone, 1). The union was formally recognized as the collective bargaining agency for its members in all the plants (Weinstone, 1). The union was able to put a stop to the open-shop system practiced by this American industry (Weinstone, 1). It was also able to successfully bargain wage increases for the GM workers and for the auto workers in other plants. Finally, it also successfully bargained â€Å"an agreement to open negotiations between the union and the corporation for the demands on wages, hours and working conditions† (Weinstone, 1). Aside from the above successes, the union was also able to resist and hold off forceful efforts to remove the sit-down strikers, who only left the plants when their conditions were met (Weinstone). Fin ally, this strike successfully endorsed â€Å"the policy of industrial unionism, of militant unionism and progressive leadership based upon rank-and-file democracy,† which confirmed that such system is â€Å"the only correct form of organization† that â€Å"can effectively meet and defeat the corporations of big capital† (Weinstone, 1). The tactics used by the union includes first by strategically locking themselves in, â€Å"making it difficult to dislodge them without the use of considerable force and numbers, while at the same time, by taking over the gates, they obtained the possibility of freely coming and going and thereby relieved the strain which they would otherwise have found a serious factor in their ‘voluntary imprisonment’† (Weinstone, 1). The workers went on shifts hence, were able to withstand continued stay inside the plants for a long time. They were also able to create a â€Å"complete and efficient organization† by s etting up an elected strike committee, various sub-committees, captains, including health and sanitation, patrol and policing, trial committee† (Weinstone, 1). The elected strike committee was the one assigning particular duties to every worker which includes the â€Å"reception of visitors, guarding, and cleaning up† (Bliven, 377). Through this, they were able to utilize an effective strategy that heightened their awareness and control against any possible attacks against them (Weinstone, 1). The workers â€Å"barricaded themselves within the plants† and readied themselves to employ devices available to secure their positions within the plant† (Weinstone, 1). Their preparedness can be best illustrated in the following: covering â€Å"the windows with bullet-proof metal sheets† and at the same time a way wherein fire hoses could be placed to prevent â€Å"any gas or firearm attack†; systematizing and drilling squads in using water hoses; organ izing â€Å"a police patrol† making rounds at given hours, to monitor â€Å"the movement of people in adjoining wings of the building† to prevent any â€Å"surprise attacks† (Weinstone, 1). The strikers also were said to hold â€Å"court every morning†, and those found guilty of inappropriate behavior such as â€Å"bringing liquor into the plant or circulating rumors† was removed from the plant (Lovett, 123). The workers could even â€Å"take classes in parliamentary procedure, collective

Pressure Ulcer Care Essay Example for Free

Pressure Ulcer Care Essay The aetiology of pressure ulcers is in some parts insubstantial due to the numerous influences that apply to the formation of a pressure ulcer. There are, none the less, a diverse array of contributing factors that have been proven to impair the structure of the skin and disrupt the healing processes, for example heart complications, lack of mobility, nutrition, sensory loss, temperature and age effecting the skins texture and strength. The most significant rationale behind the choice of clinical skill is to assist in the advancement of knowledge base, as Ali amp; Atkin (2004, p. 03) accurately specify, ‘we need to use our increasing knowledge base to transform service provision and provide better primary care’. As health professionals it needs to be realised that we are a vital link between patients and other specialised health care services, Morison (2001, p. 4) points out the importance of, ‘health care professionals as patient advocates in relation to tissue viability services’, if we do not make it our duty to be knowledgeable of what options our patients have it is impossible to administer care holistically as if our duty as a health care professional. In recent studies it has shown that pressure ulcers are most prominent with surgical patients, research has also shown that the surgical patient develops a pressure ulcer 8 times more than the non surgical patient (Pulskamp, 2007). Interestingly it shows that not only are pressure ulcers observed in older patients but just as often in the younger ago groups, with an increase in occurrence in those who receive neck and head surgeries (Bader et al, 2005), In a study is it is shown that adaptation to the operating table diminished sharply the incidence of pressure ulcer development. Bader et al found that often Pressure ulcers are observed after 2 weeks of being admitted, this then contradicts the theory that ‘pressure ulcers are caused by inadequate nursing care’, this then can only suggest that pressure ulcers develop during an operation, during periods of treatment or during investigations, for example X-ray departments where the mattresses are not adapted to the variety of different patients with a different variety of problems. To reduce occurrence and risk there must be put in place preventative measures in terms of risk assessments but as Pulskamp (2007) points out, ‘There is no validated tool to predict risk of pressure ulcers in the surgical patient’. There are numerous pressure ulcer risk assessment tools in use, yet none being significantly more preferred than others and each with particular strengths and weaknesses. In 2003 the National Institution for Clinical Excellence produced the guidelines, ‘pressure ulcer risk assessment and prevention, including the use of pressure relieving devices (beds, mattresses and overlays) for the prevention of pressure ulcers in primary and secondary care’. They suggest that in order to maximise the effectiveness of the guidelines, they should be enhanced by implementing them in working partnerships such as tissue viability teams. The aim of the guidelines, as LittleJohns amp; Rawlins (2005, p. 9) highlight, are to ‘inform clinical practice and to direct clinical decision making in order to improve patient outcomes with regard to pressure ulcer prevention and management’. To encourage the use of this guideline the National Institution of Clinical Excellence suggest, ‘incorporating guidance into continuing professional development programmes (in order to) further encourage its use in clinical practice’ (LittleJohns amp; Rawl ins, 2005, p. 100). After initial implementation an audit was arried out which highlighted significant pitfalls in implementation of the guidelines in clinical practice, for example being unable to record timings or risk assessments, repositioning charts not being used and seating assessments n out being carried out, this highlights the need for flexibility in future risk assessments as clinical issues often arise and cannot be avoided in the busy schedules of health care professionals and can often become barriers to the effective implementation there for making the correct use of the guidelines impossible risks unattended concerning the patients. They also voice the fear that the guidelines are simplifying clinical decision making and urge professionals to adopt any particular recommendations in light of such issues as available resources, local policies, patient circumstance and updates research findings. The European Pressure Ulcer Advisory Panel quick reference guidelines on prevention for developing pressure ulcers (2009) have a in depth and diverse approach on the assessment of pressure sores and contributing factors, their guidelines investigate not only the treatment of pressure ulcers but use of pressure ulcer prevention devices and wound management with a grading system to reflect the severity of the sore. The advisory panel suggests that, ‘pressure ulcers need to be assessed in the context of the patients overall condition’, they also identify ‘nutrition, pain and psychosocial factors as potential areas of complication, looking into the localization, grade, size, wound bed, exudates, pain and status of the surrounding skin’ (Dealey, 2005, p. 138). One of the pitfalls of this particular assessment strategies is the actual analysis of the pressure ulcer itself, one must have gained adequate back ground knowledge and experience on the analysis of a sore and the most suitable wound management product (for example dressings or antibiotics if the wound appears infected) to truly be able to grade it, Dealey (2005, p. 142) herself discusses, ‘accurate assessment is necessary in order to select a suitable wound management product’.

Artificial Insemination and the Rights of Women, Men, and Children Essa

Women have adamantly battled for political and social reproductive rights since, in particular artificial insemination, have become mainstream phenomena in the recent decade with a focus on rights of women. In fact, doctors have experimented with the procedure for nearly a century. However, with the women ¹s liberation movement of the 1970s, physician-assisted and self-insemination has become more and more popular among heterosexual career women and lesbians. The Origins of Artificial Insemination She was a Quaker. The wife of a merchant. The infertility patient of Dr. William Pancoast. She was a woman whose name was never recorded. Dr. Pancoast, a professor at Jefferson Medical College in Philadelphia, had already examined and tested her numerous times. Finally, he discovered that she was fertile and that the problem was her husband ¹s;; There were no sperm. Pancoast (or maybe it was one of his students) had an idea. He called her in. He just wanted to examine her once more, he told her. The woman lay on the table as she had been told to do. Pancoast ¹s six medical students-all young men- stood around her body. Pancoast anesthetized the woman with chloroform. He took the receptacle into which one of his students had masturbated. With a hard rubber syringe, he inserted the student ¹s semen into her uterus. He then plugged her cervix with gauze. When she awoke, he did not tell her what he had done. He never told her. Nine months later, she bore a son. It was 1884. This was the first reported human artificial insemination with donor semen. It was a rape. (Corea, 12) As explained by the above excerpt from The Mother Machine, artificial insemination is not a recent technological breakthrough. The procedure among huma... ...n under the notion that reproductive technologies will ensure conception of a perfect child. If the child is born with a congenital defect or is of the wrong sex, the parents present feelings of disappointment, which is often reflected in the rearing of the child. (Blank) Moreover, parents treat their children as more fragile that other children in their nuclear family conceived by natural means, and tend to be overprotective of him or her. Works Cited Blank, Robert. Human Reproduction, Emerging Technologies, and Conflicting Rights Congressional Quarterly: Washington D.C., 1995. Corea, Gena. The Mother Machine : Reproductive Technologies from Artificial Insemination to Artificial Wombs New York : Harper & Row, 1985. Daniels, Ken R.  ³Information Sharing in Semen Donation: The Views of Donors ² Social Science & Medicine v. 44 no5 (March 1997) p. 673-80

Gray and Goldsmith’s Attitudes towards Loss

Death as man’s fate can never be controlled by anyone or by anything. This is what one can infer from the poems of Thomas Gray and Oliver Goldsmith. These poems deal about death or loss of life and all other losses humans experience in life. Consequently, this paper is a comparative analysis of the attitudes of Gray and Goldsmith towards death or loss in their poems. This includes a discussion of the similarities and differences of the poet’s attitude which can be deduced from the speaker’s involvement or attachment, the speaker’s feelings towards the subject and the tone of the poems â€Å"Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard† by Thomas Gray and â€Å"The Deserted Village† by Oliver Goldsmith. Obviously, both poets have similar attitudes and feelings about the subject. However, Gray communicates stronger attitudes about loss or death in his poem than what Goldsmith articulates about the subject in his poem. To begin with, Gray’s â€Å"Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard† is a poem composed of 128 lines grouped into stanzas and it focuses on the dead people buried in a country churchyard. While, Goldsmith’s â€Å"The Deserted Village† is a poem consisting of 430 lines grouped into irregular number of lines per thought and it talks of the wretchedness of a village named Auburn. These poems have the following similarities. Initially, both poets are emotionally attached to the topic on hand. Gray feels the loss as he contemplates of his own death someday. Meanwhile, Goldsmith has personally experienced the loss of happy memories in Auburn especially in the first 34 lines of the poem. Next, the poems â€Å"Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard† and â€Å"The Deserted Village† attest that death prevents humans from doing what they were used to doing and from experiencing the pleasures they used to experience. In lines 17 to 28 of Gray’s poem, the speaker cites that the dead can no longer wake up every morning with the sounds of the â€Å"swallow†, the â€Å"cock† and the horn, be with their wife and children or go to work in the farm fields. Likewise, lines 243 to 250 of Goldsmith’s poem say that those who die can no longer enjoy the different pleasures in life. Another is that according to the two poems, death or loss will come to any person regardless of his/ her social position, prestige and economic status. No one is exempted from experiencing death. It comes to the poor as well as to the rich. It comes to the kind and to the unkind. This is exemplified in the lines 33 to 40 of Gray’s poem which point that even the rich will die and their riches will not prevent death or loss from happening. It is also cited in the lines 107 and 109 of Goldsmith’s poem that man will â€Å"meet his latter end† and will go down â€Å"to the grave†. The lives of the â€Å"village preacher† in lines 140 to 187 and the â€Å"village master† in lines 196 to 240 both exemplify that death comes to anyone in the poem â€Å"The Deserted Village†. Subsequently, both poems show that a human being goes to another place after his or her life on earth is over. Gray mentions the word â€Å"heaven† found in line 124 and â€Å"God† in the last line of the poem. Goldsmith also speaks of â€Å"heaven† in lines 112 and 188. This means that both poets believe that when death comes to a person, he or she has the hope of going to heaven to be with God who is the creator of man and of the universe. Lastly, the tone of Gray and Goldsmith’s poems is similarly mournful, hopeful and wishful. Since the poems talk about death or loss, they are obviously in a state of mourning for the dead. Gray evokes an atmosphere of mourning in the first twelve lines of the poem with the images of â€Å"the parting day† (line 1), the farmer going home, and the coming of darkness. Gray also uses the wailing of the â€Å"owl† in line 10 to conjure this tone. Meanwhile, Goldsmith uses the words â€Å"saddens† in line 38, â€Å"cries† in line 46, â€Å"griefs† in line 84 among others to present this tone. But in spite of the tone of mourning in these poems, they also express the hopes and wishes of the poets that after death or loss, there will be a new life or a new beginning as alluded to in words â€Å"heaven† in lines 122 and 124 and the word â€Å"Father† and â€Å"God† in line128 of Gray’s poem. In addition, Goldsmith mentions the word â€Å"heaven† in line 188 and the phrase â€Å"worlds beyond the grave in line 374 of his poem. The differences in the attitudes and feelings of Gray and Goldsmith towards loss in their poems are the following: first, Gray seems to feel uninvolved in the poem because he uses the pronouns â€Å"them† and â€Å"their† most of the time. Perhaps, this is because he does not personally know the people who died and who were laid in the country churchyard. In fact, he was just making guesses or contemplating of possibilities of what these could have become and what could have happened to them if they did not die yet. In contrast, Goldsmith feels very involved because he uses the personal pronouns â€Å"my† and â€Å"I† for many times in the poem. This could mean that what he has written in the poem is based on his very own experiences. Second, Gray demonstrates that death prevents anyone from achieving their ambitions or from discovering their hidden potentials. This can be interpreted from lines 45 to 64 where Gray elaborates the things that those who have died could have done in their lives if they were still alive. The speaker thinks of someone who could be a â€Å"Penury† in line 51, a â€Å"Hampden† in line 57, a â€Å"Milton† in line 59, and a â€Å"Cromwell† in line 60. On the contrary, Goldsmith does not mention the what- could-have-been in his poem because he primarily talks about the loss of the simple pleasures as part of village life. Third, Gray encourages that man should be prepared to die because it is a part of the natural course of life. Just as a day in a person’s life comes to an end as literally stated in lines 1 to 4 of the poem so does a person’s life on earth ends. If there is a beginning, there is also an ending. Nothing is ever permanent in this world. Everything is temporary. What has been commonly quoted by many: â€Å"The only thing that does not change is change itself† and â€Å"There is an end to everything† are indeed true. Gray tells us in the poem that humans need to prepare for that time when they will die because it is inevitable. He even makes himself an example of a person who gets ready for his death. As a matter of fact, he includes in lines 116 to 128 of the poem an epitaph that is to be written in his own grave. However, Goldsmith implies fear or suggests dread for the day of one’s death in lines 363 to 370 of his poem. The words or phrases â€Å"sorrows gloom’d†, â€Å"look’d their last†, â€Å"wish’d in vain†, and â€Å"shudd’ring† gives an idea that the poet is not yet prepared to die if he feels that death is something that comes to everyone. Fourth, Gray presents that nothing can bring back a dead person to life. He asks in the form of rhetorical questions in lines 41 to 44 if the things he has mentioned are able to bring back a dead person’s â€Å"breath†. Since these are rhetorical questions, obviously the answer to all these is a resounding â€Å"NO†. There is really nothing that can be done or no one can do anything to make life come back to someone who is already dead. A realization can then be made based on this. A person has to do what he can do and what he wants to do while he/ she is still alive because when he dies he can never do them or he cannot return to life to do them. Goldsmith, on the other hand, does not talk about these things. Fifth, Gray feels that those who are still alive should honor and remember those who have died. This is implicitly expressed in lines 77 to 112. The words â€Å"memorial† (line 78), â€Å"tribute† (line 80), â€Å"forgetfulness† (line 85), â€Å"unhonour’d† (line 93), and â€Å"tale relate† (line 94) are some of the hints that tell us that the poet wants to be honored. He also wishes in these lines that a friend or a â€Å"kindred spirit† (line 96) would remember him when he has died. Contrariwise, Goldsmith does not refer to these hopes in his poem. Instead he has other things revealed. Sixth, Goldsmith in â€Å"The Deserted Village† presents that loss is caused by a person’s discontentment or his/ her desire for luxury and wealth. The loss specifically referred here is the loss of the â€Å"ignorance of wealth† which leads to the loss of the simple pleasures in life that is analogous to the loss of one’s own life. It can be surmised from the poem that when humans lose their desire for the simple sources of joy and happiness and instead desire for luxury and wealth, then destruction or loss of life results just like what happened to Auburn. The speaker implicitly condemns â€Å"luxury† which caused the desolation of Auburn in lines 51 to 56 and lines 385 to 390. The discontentment of the village people for the simple pleasures referred to in the words â€Å"sports† (line 18), â€Å"pastime† (line 19), â€Å"sleights of art and feats of strength† (line 22), â€Å"dancing† (line 25), and â€Å"laughter† (line 28) led the people to â€Å"leave the land† (line 50). This idea is indeed true but Gray was not able to mention it in his poem. Seventh, according to Goldsmith, loss causes pain or is very painful on the part of the person who has lost someone or something very dear to him/ her. The words â€Å"pain† in line 82, â€Å"vexations† in line 95, and the phrase â€Å"sorrow, guilt and pain† in line 172 prove that it is painful to loss someone or even something. Likewise, the loss of happy memories can be as painful as having lost one’s body part. Conversely, Gray is silent about pain in his poem. Perhaps, he does not consider a natural process of life which is death as something painful or something which causes sorrow. Eighth, Goldsmith proposes that loss comes after luxury, wealth and pleasures. So for him, one should stay away from these things. He even calls â€Å"luxury† as â€Å"curst by Heaven’s decree† in line 385. He also demonstrates through irony in lines 52 to 56 that when riches abound, men’s lives deteriorate. In addition, lines 63 to 74 support the proposition that â€Å"trade’s unfeeling train† (line 63) resulted to â€Å"mirth and manners† (line 74) being lost. Finally, the tone of Gray’s â€Å"Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard† reveals his attitude or feelings for the poor, his readiness to die and his resignation to the inevitability of death whereas; the tone of Goldsmith’s poem is a mix of happiness, sadness, irony, and condemnation. Furthermore, the tone of Gray’s poem remains constant throughout the poem. In contrast, the tone of Goldsmith’s poem changes its tone from one feeling to another such as being happy then sad, ironic then condemning. To sum it up, both Gray and Goldsmith feel that death or loss comes to every human being whether he or she is poor, rich, kind or unkind at anytime. When loss comes, one can no longer do what he or she used to do or would want to do. And that loss comes with hope of going to heaven to be with God.

Comparing the marketing of Tescos and Audi Essay

For this task we have been asked to look at the ways two different businesses market their products and services the two businesses we have been asked to look at are Tesco & Audi. The first Tesco was opened in 1919 by a man called; Jack Cohen from that 1 store Tesco has grown in the market and now has 923 stores worldwide, Tesco is a supermarket that sells all kinds of household items such as food, clothes range, technology range, phone range furniture, toys and many more, Tesco has many different stores which make a lot of money every year. Tesco uses its brand to obtain new customers and also retain old customers because they are a reliable business that is well known by many of their customers. They are known for their cheap products and suitable prices which attract customers to come back and buy again, They obtain new customers by doing things like advertising and promoting their products and business on things like flyers, T.V, Internet, Comparison sites and a lot of other places, they also do things like club cards which allow customers to get some products for lower prices or free, this makes the customer want to come back and shop again because they like the way of service. We have been asked to pick one product from each business and discuss the marketing techniques between them, from Tesco I have chosen to do a Mobile phone, the target markets of this product is everyone, but almost everyone needs a mobile phone, the branding of the mobile phone will be different because if the phones are made from different companies their brands will be on them, Tesco will use adverts to promote the phone and get people interested so they will buy it, Tesco uses relationship marketing with phone brands such as Nokia, Samsung ECT as they sell their products in side their stores, The mobile phone has a large number of rival products as there are lots of different phone models to choose from and this particular phone might not get bought. An Ansoff matrix is a business strategy that businesses use to increase sales and improve their market, Tesco is developing new products in existing markets because they already have a market and they just need new products to sell in their market, for example if Tesco created a new product their brand phone they would sell it under their name in their stores. Tesco constantly uses the Ansoff matrix as they are always releasing new products, and selling them, sometimes Tesco would work on improving a market and sometimes they create completely new products, If Tesco release a new mobile phone they would be releasing a new product into a existing market which would be using the Ansoff matrix. Audi AG (Xetra: NSU) is a German manufacturer of a range of automobiles, from supermini to crossover SUVs in various body styles and price ranges that are marketed under the Audi brand. The company is headquartered in Ingolstadt, Germany, and has been a wholly owned subsidiary of Volkswagen AG since 1966, following a phased purchase of its predecessor, Auto Union, from its former owner, Daimler-Benz. Volkswagen re-launched the Audi brand with the 1965 introduction of the Audi F103 series. The company name is based on the surname of the founder August Horch, meaning listen — which, when translated into Latin, becomes Audi. Audi uses its brand to sell their products, Audi is a well known and trusted brand and people can buy from them with trust unlike smaller companies, customers know that they can trust Audi, because they have reliable cars that they sell and the public know these facts about the business so they trust the company and buy the car. We have been asked to pick one product to describe the marketing techniques they use, I have chosen to do the Audi RS4, the target of this car would be anyone who can drive and people who have money, The branding of this car would have the Audi Logo on it, Audi will use things like adverts to promote their product, advertising increases sales, Audi can use Relationship marketing with Car dealerships/shops which sell their cars, Audi has a lot of rivals due to there being many other car companies that are selling cars like them such as Mercedes, Bmw, ECT, so Audi will have to be better that the other companies and prove that they are the best car dealer on the market. An Ansoff matrix is a business strategy that businesses use to increase sales and improve their market; Audi is constantly creating new products in their existing markets, and sometimes creating new products for new markets, for example Audi would not start a new company to sell new products under, they would just make new products which would be cars and sell them under their current name which would be Audi. Audi constantly uses the Ansoff matrix as they are always making new cars and selling them, sometimes Audi would work on improving a market and sometimes they create completely new products, for example If Audi created a new car they would sell it under their brand name and this is using the Ansoff Matrix.

Free Essays on Control Through Coercive Persuasion

CONTROL THROUGH COERCIVE PERSUASION How does one define control? Webster’s dictionary defines control as â€Å"to exercise restraining or directing influence over† or to regulate and rule. (Merriam-Webster’s p. 252) There are many methods of control used by people and organizations. Propaganda and persuasion are two methods of exerting influence over an individual or group of people. A more systematic and powerful method of persuasion is coercive persuasion. â€Å"Coercive persuasion and thought reform are alternate names for programs of social influence capable of producing substantial behavior and attitude change through the use of coercive tactics, persuasion, and/or interpersonal and group-based influence manipulations â€Å"(Ofshe, p. 222) A coercive persuasion program is a behavioral change technology applied to cause the "learning" and "adoption" of a set of behaviors or an ideology under certain conditions. Coercive persuasion is not a religious ritual, it is a control device. Through coercive persuasion, a more powerful method of control can be applied. This type of persuasion is typically applied by cults but is not limited to them. (Dolan 2000; Singer 1987) There is instinctive human need to belong to a group. (Gale Encyclopedia of Psychology, 2001) Most people generally perceive cults as religious organizations. Cults can be defined as â€Å"Groups with religious, political, psychological, and other ideologies at their core, which almost universally offer as their central theme a special new psychological awareness handed down by an indisputable and arbitrary authority that uses the technique of thought reform (intense indoctrination or re-socialization, coercive persuasion brainwashing.† (Singer, p. 1467) Cults share similarities to everyday social groups like work, school and family. â€Å"Cults use the same persuasion tactics often used by other propagandists; cults just us them in a more thorough and complete... Free Essays on Control Through Coercive Persuasion Free Essays on Control Through Coercive Persuasion CONTROL THROUGH COERCIVE PERSUASION How does one define control? Webster’s dictionary defines control as â€Å"to exercise restraining or directing influence over† or to regulate and rule. (Merriam-Webster’s p. 252) There are many methods of control used by people and organizations. Propaganda and persuasion are two methods of exerting influence over an individual or group of people. A more systematic and powerful method of persuasion is coercive persuasion. â€Å"Coercive persuasion and thought reform are alternate names for programs of social influence capable of producing substantial behavior and attitude change through the use of coercive tactics, persuasion, and/or interpersonal and group-based influence manipulations â€Å"(Ofshe, p. 222) A coercive persuasion program is a behavioral change technology applied to cause the "learning" and "adoption" of a set of behaviors or an ideology under certain conditions. Coercive persuasion is not a religious ritual, it is a control device. Through coercive persuasion, a more powerful method of control can be applied. This type of persuasion is typically applied by cults but is not limited to them. (Dolan 2000; Singer 1987) There is instinctive human need to belong to a group. (Gale Encyclopedia of Psychology, 2001) Most people generally perceive cults as religious organizations. Cults can be defined as â€Å"Groups with religious, political, psychological, and other ideologies at their core, which almost universally offer as their central theme a special new psychological awareness handed down by an indisputable and arbitrary authority that uses the technique of thought reform (intense indoctrination or re-socialization, coercive persuasion brainwashing.† (Singer, p. 1467) Cults share similarities to everyday social groups like work, school and family. â€Å"Cults use the same persuasion tactics often used by other propagandists; cults just us them in a more thorough and complete...

Hospitality In Odyssey essays

Hospitality In Odyssey essays In the heroic culture of Ancient Greece, Zeus was the king of the gods and ruled over the hospitality and the rights of guests and suppliants, the punishment of injustice...and the governance of the universe... One of several values in the enforced by Zeus was hospitality. The principle of hospitality was so important that it could determine ones fate. In The Odyssey, this idea of hospitality is explored through the acts of Menelaus; more specifically, how it is used to exert moral control over the society. In Book Four of The Odyssey, King Menelaus made it clear that all strangers were to be welcomed and treated as if they were his own. When Eteoneus asked the King if Prince Telemachus and Pisistratus should be invited in or turned away, he replied ...Just think of all the hospitality we enjoyed at the hands of other men before we made it home, and god save us from such hard treks in years to come... This illustrated Zeuss favoritism toward those who were admirable hosts to their guests. For instance, Telemachus was favored by Zeus because he allowed the suitors to feast in his home despite the fact that they were rude. In King Menelauss royal household, ...women had washed them, rubbed them down with oil and drawn warm fleece and shirts around their shoulders...even the King himself passed them a fat rich loin with his own hands, the choicest part, that hed been served himself... All these great things were done before the princes told of themselves. It was not until Queen Helen questioned the King that the Princes acknowledged themselves. After this acknowledgment, the Queen tells how she was courteous to King Odysseus during the Trojan battle. She told how she bathed him, rubbed him down with oil, and gave him clothes to wear just as King Menelaus did for the princes. This is also another form of hospitality. ...

Learn About the Many Varieties of Quartz

Learn About the Many Varieties of Quartz Quartz  is an old German word that originally meant something like hard or tough. It is the most common mineral in the continental crust, and the one with the simplest chemical formula: silicon dioxide or SiO2. Quartz is so common in crustal rocks that its more notable when quartz is missing than when its present.   How to Identify Quartz Quartz comes in many colors and shapes. Once you start studying minerals, though, quartz becomes easy to tell at a glance. You can recognize it by these identifiers: A glassy lusterHardness 7 on the Mohs scale, scratching ordinary glass and all types of steelIt breaks into curved shards rather than flat-faced cleavage fragments, meaning it exhibits conchoidal fracture.Almost always clear or whiteAlmost always present in light-colored rocks and in sandstonesIf found in crystals, quartz always has a hexagonal cross-section like that of a common pencil. Most examples of quartz are clear, frosted, or found as milky-white grains of small size that dont display crystal faces. Clear quartz may appear dark if its in a rock with a lot of dark minerals. Special Quartz Varieties The pretty crystals and vivid colors youll see in jewelry and in rock shops are scarce. Here are some of those precious varieties: Clear, colorless quartz is called rock crystal.Translucent white quartz is called milky quartz.Milky pink quartz is called rose quartz. Its color is thought to be due to various impurities (titanium, iron, manganese) or microscopic inclusions of other minerals.Purple quartz is called amethyst. Its color is due to holes of missing electrons in the crystal in combination with iron impurities.Yellow quartz is called citrine. Its color is due to iron impurities.Green quartz is called praseolite. Iron impurities account for its color, too.Gray quartz is called smoky quartz. Its color is due to holes of missing electrons in combination with aluminum impurities.Brown smoky quartz is called cairngorm and black smoky quartz is called morion.The Herkimer diamond is a form of natural quartz crystal with two pointed ends. Quartz also occurs in a microcrystalline form called chalcedony. Together, both minerals are also referred to as silica. Where Quartz Is Found Quartz is perhaps the most common mineral on our planet. In fact, one test of a meteorite (if you think youve found one)  is to be sure it doesnt have any quartz. Quartz is found in most geologic settings, but it most typically forms sedimentary rocks like sandstone. This is no surprise when you consider that nearly all the sand on Earth is made almost exclusively from grains of quartz. Under mild heat and pressure conditions, geodes can form in sedimentary rocks that are lined with crusts of quartz crystals deposited from underground fluids. In igneous rocks, quartz is the defining mineral of granite. When granitic rocks crystallize deep underground, quartz is generally the last mineral to form and usually has no room to form crystals. But in pegmatites quartz can sometimes form very large crystals, as long as a meter. Crystals also occur in veins associated with hydrothermal (super-heated water) activity in the shallow crust. In metamorphic rocks such as gneiss, quartz becomes concentrated in bands and veins. In this setting, its grains do not take their typical crystal form. Sandstone, too, turns into a massive quartz rock called quartzite. Geological Significance of Quartz Among the common minerals, quartz is the toughest and most inert. It makes up the backbone of good soil, providing mechanical strength and holding open pore space between its grains. Its superior hardness and resistance to dissolution are what make sandstone and granite endure. Thus you could say that quartz holds up the mountains. Prospectors are always alert to veins of quartz because these are signs of hydrothermal activity and the possibility of ore deposits. To the geologist, the amount of silica in a rock is a basic and important bit of geochemical knowledge. Quartz is a ready sign of high silica, for example in rhyolite lava. Quartz is hard, stable, and low in density. When found in abundance, quartz always points to a continental rock because the tectonic processes that have built the Earths continents favor quartz.  As it moves through the tectonic cycle of erosion, deposition, subduction, and magmatism, quartz lingers in the uppermost crust and always comes out on top.

Rock and Roll Music History in Asia Research Paper

Rock and Roll Music History in Asia - Research Paper Example It is not easy to believe, however there was once a time when there was not any trace of rock music. Many of the music historians guess the origins of the rock music back in the year 1954. According to them, it was the phase when the new form of music called â€Å"rock and roll† surfaced and revolted musical trends. The younger generation was happened to be most affected by this new form of music. Rock and Roll music changed the entire world of music and gave new waves of rhythms (Allen 54). This new form of music, of course did not originate in isolation, but was an outcome from the union of two musical forms. These two forms were rhythm-n-blues and country, along with a vista of technological enhancements that developed an innovative beginning of a music market. Similar to jazz, rhythm-n-blues created from the music form called blues. The blues songs were actually getting their concept and origin from African spirituality and work records sung by the African-Americans living the South. One of the greatest creators in the 1950s of the rock music, Little Richard has mostly expressed that rhythm-n-blues had an offspring and it was known as rock and roll. He was definitely right, and numerous eminent artists of Rock and Roll were also the part of the origination of the music form. Among many of them, there were Muddy Waters, Joe Turner, Ray Charles, and Willie Mae Thornton. Initially, the rock and roll became admired in small clubs and on the radio. Afterwards, with the introduction of some famous radio programs, teenagers were able to enjoy their favorite bands on television. Although, not everyone was enthusiastic about this form of music. The majority of the parents didn’t appreciate the evocative dancing, wayward lyrics, and piercing, fast beats (Gill 102). A little time earlier, specifically during the 40s and 50s, rhythm and blues were also growing. Initiated primarily in the rural areas blues created its way into the urban cities. Rhythm and blues were made up of quite peculiar and different styles, including doo-wop and black gospel tunes. Probably, its most crucial aspect was a particular type of twelve bar blues. However, conventional rhythm and blues artists were African American and the topic of the songs mostly had arousal references, it never completely obtained the approval of a national audience like several other famous sounds of the time. Also, most of the music rock and roll artists were the rebellious teenagers who started their musical career while disobeying their parents (Nash 115). In the history of Asian rock and roll, India has been a unique example among developing markets and had a record industry especially in the Gramophone Company of India. The records were largely available, including the rock and roll acts from Britain and the United States. Among these mid 1960s music groups, one of the most famous were the Mystiks originated from Bombay, the Flinstone from Calcutta and Madrasi Beat X. All these groups were influenced by the British invasion and hard rock. These music styles were mostly played regularly in Indian universities and colleges. The origin of Chinese rock music was supposed to be in Beijing. Being the nation’s capital, the genre of the music was tremendous criticized and generated a series of foreign impacts. It was unimportant for the majority of the 1980s, comprising of live shows in minor bars and hotels. The music style was nearly exclusively f or the purpose of high

What is the role of celebrity endorsement in marketing communication Essay

What is the role of celebrity endorsement in marketing communication - Essay Example Celebrity endorsement is a method of brand communication whereby a celebrity uses his or her popularity and acts as a spokesperson for a particular product. Celebrity endorsements are seen to have a long lasting impact upon minds of consumers. A celebrity is an individual who enjoys public attention and are famous for their achievements. In celebrity endorsement, celebrities use their recognition on behalf of a product and appear alongside it. While choosing celebrities for endorsing products, firms should keep in mind that there must be an adequate match between characteristics of the product, personality of the celebrity and nature of target consumers. It is necessary for the target market to have adequate familiarity with the celebrity endorsing a product. There should be a symbolic match between brand image and that of the celebrity (Nelson, Tunji and Gloria, 2012). For instance, a brand selling sports shoes can endorse its products through a famous sports personality. Companies try to associate qualities of a celebrity with that of the product. Through celebrity endorsements, it becomes easier for consumers to recall ads while viewing the product. In order to gain these kinds of advantages, companies pay huge sums of money to celebrities and align their products and brand with the endorsers (Kansu and Mamuti, 2013). The contract between celebrities and the brand for the purpose of endorsing products are generally made for a considerably long time. Firms that choose celebrity endorsement for their products are not seen to frequently change face of the brand. This helps in establishing stronger identity and brand image. Celebrity endorsements are largely viewed as a long-term strategic decision, which affects brand’s value in the market (Academia.edu, 2013). The individual who endorse a product helps in creating strong perceptions about the brand. When consumers view the

Creativity in a Business Context Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Creativity in a Business Context - Essay Example Such industries like the publishing, the entertainment industry are called the creative industries. However business also taps the creative abilities of individual employees in their chosen line of business to stay ahead of competition. Harnessing and utilizing this is a much more challenging task. Accounts is one of the oldest functions of business, and has evolved over a period of 500 years and is based on historical costs and transactions reporting. According to the American Accounting Association (AAA), accounting can be defined as: Difficult as it may be to combine creativity and business, it will be even more so associating accounts function with creativity. Accounting is about adhering and following strict guidelines and rules as per stringently laid accounting norms while representing the financial transactions of the business. Creativity in accounting has got negative connotations, especially after the recent global financial crisis. There is a constant call to increase and tighten reporting norms. (E.g. the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, 2002). Accounting is about measurement and control, which could kill creativity. For the purpose of maintaining the correct perspective on the topic, a brief note on the link between innovation and creativity is necessary. Creativity is about generating new ideas, new perspectives, Innovation are the process of converting it into a product/service from which the firm will derive value. No business is interested in creativity for creativity's sake, but sees it as a means of generating innovations by which it moves forward in the competitive market. In any organization a good balance of focus on each would be necessary. Too much emphasis on creativity would mean lot of ideas, but little commercialization. Too much focus on commercialization would mean drying up of creative ideas, the basis of innovation. (Davila 2006, p 89). Issues, Problems and Challenges The recent crisis in the financial markets has largely to do with corporate governance and the role of accounts professionals in this. It has had a role to play in misleading investors, share holders by presenting finance and

Global Marketing Term Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Global Marketing Term Paper - Essay Example Therefore, they more or less stuck to their pricing levels in US and tried to bring in quality and technology to ensure that the product tasted better and was more nutritional. The re-entry in case of Kellogg was in terms of price. The war in the middle class consumer products is over the price. Kellogg had to compete with Mohun which has been in the market prior to Kellogg's entry. Mohun and another of the competitors, Champion were both pricing their products at a much lesser price compared to the one Kellogg did. Kellogg however, was sure of the strategy and continued with the same pricing strategy of being the premium brand among corn flakes. Though of course, the other two offered by Kellogg, the wheat and the rice flakes did not do well in the market and had to be slashed down. On analysis of the first two to three years of Kellogg business in India, it is seen that the company has not spent enough efforts in understanding the consumer preference in the market. A large percent of the upper and middle class consumers will not be having their breakfast. In addition to this, most of the people who do take breakfast would like to have something that 'fil ls' the stomach. More likely Indian alternatives like idli and vada dominated the breakfast scene in most houses rather than any other. The cereal breakfast concept did not just pick up and was viewed mostly as a health issue. Only those people who were either sick or otherwise not healthy would go for cereal food. Therefore, number of people who would be continuous or regular buyers of corn flakes was becoming lesser. As their study shows only 2% of the buyers were regular buyer which is not what Kellogg wanted to have. Kellogg had launched during its re-entry, the chocos which is corn flakes coated with chocolate. This was a roaring success and the market immediately picked up. Kellogg could corner nearly 57% of the market share in the Indian market. In addition to this, Kellogg had other products in the pipe line to suit the taste of the Indian consumer. Indian consumers want their breakfast to be filling, nutritious and less costly. It was not expected to be fun. But when the Chocos was introduced with a fun element to it, it immediately appealed to the kids and it took over the morning breakfast from the noodles and idlis for the children. Kellogg therefore had to ensure that the fun factor in the breakfast cereals continued. In line with this, Kellogg further went ahead and released the biscuits with the same brand, the Chocos and another line of special corn flakes primarily aimed at the growing Indian breakfast eaters. It had the mazaa in it; special flavours exclusively developed for the Ind ian market. On analysing further the status of the corn flakes market, it could be seen that the company was aiming at improving their continued domination of the market and might better their share. But the market itself if small and has to be increased to ensure that there is adequate growth for the company in real terms. This was taken care of in the third approach that Kellogg had. They planned to educate the people and distributed free samples to the students and the target customers so that they might get converted. In the course of time, the effect could be felt. Kellogg was intent on weaning the people who starved away the morning and then slowly

Cross-Cultural Management of Australia and China Essay

Cross-Cultural Management of Australia and China - Essay Example This paper illustrates that the Australian company should familiarise itself with these cultural values in order to foster success in China as a new target market. An Australian automobile firm -Holden invest- is considering China as a new market for its products. In order to increase its chances of success, it is imperative to do a cross-cultural analysis of these two countries. This will enable managers and stakeholders from Holden to first understand themselves and their own cultural perspectives. Thereafter, they may also understand the values of the Chinese partners that they plan to do business with. China is now Australia’s largest trading partner; this indicates that the automobile firm under consideration could draw a lot of lessons from other Australian’s experiences in China. Primary languages spoken in both countries are radically different since most Chinese speakers use Mandarin while Australians speak English. A number of Chinese residents have learned th e English language; however, translation difficulties may arise due to colloquialisms in Australia. In China, Confucianism dominates religious thought and has political connotations. This explains why religious tolerance may not be firmly adhered to. On the other hand, Australians are predominantly Christian but resolutely believe in the separation of religion from politics. Many individuals consider Chinese people as rule-followers who fear breakage of rules. This stems from their fear of authority as well as the severe repercussions they might face if they do not abide by them. Conversely, Australians are rule makers and usually speak openly about their discontentment about certain issues.

Global Marketing Term Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Global Marketing Term Paper - Essay Example Therefore, they more or less stuck to their pricing levels in US and tried to bring in quality and technology to ensure that the product tasted better and was more nutritional. The re-entry in case of Kellogg was in terms of price. The war in the middle class consumer products is over the price. Kellogg had to compete with Mohun which has been in the market prior to Kellogg's entry. Mohun and another of the competitors, Champion were both pricing their products at a much lesser price compared to the one Kellogg did. Kellogg however, was sure of the strategy and continued with the same pricing strategy of being the premium brand among corn flakes. Though of course, the other two offered by Kellogg, the wheat and the rice flakes did not do well in the market and had to be slashed down. On analysis of the first two to three years of Kellogg business in India, it is seen that the company has not spent enough efforts in understanding the consumer preference in the market. A large percent of the upper and middle class consumers will not be having their breakfast. In addition to this, most of the people who do take breakfast would like to have something that 'fil ls' the stomach. More likely Indian alternatives like idli and vada dominated the breakfast scene in most houses rather than any other. The cereal breakfast concept did not just pick up and was viewed mostly as a health issue. Only those people who were either sick or otherwise not healthy would go for cereal food. Therefore, number of people who would be continuous or regular buyers of corn flakes was becoming lesser. As their study shows only 2% of the buyers were regular buyer which is not what Kellogg wanted to have. Kellogg had launched during its re-entry, the chocos which is corn flakes coated with chocolate. This was a roaring success and the market immediately picked up. Kellogg could corner nearly 57% of the market share in the Indian market. In addition to this, Kellogg had other products in the pipe line to suit the taste of the Indian consumer. Indian consumers want their breakfast to be filling, nutritious and less costly. It was not expected to be fun. But when the Chocos was introduced with a fun element to it, it immediately appealed to the kids and it took over the morning breakfast from the noodles and idlis for the children. Kellogg therefore had to ensure that the fun factor in the breakfast cereals continued. In line with this, Kellogg further went ahead and released the biscuits with the same brand, the Chocos and another line of special corn flakes primarily aimed at the growing Indian breakfast eaters. It had the mazaa in it; special flavours exclusively developed for the Ind ian market. On analysing further the status of the corn flakes market, it could be seen that the company was aiming at improving their continued domination of the market and might better their share. But the market itself if small and has to be increased to ensure that there is adequate growth for the company in real terms. This was taken care of in the third approach that Kellogg had. They planned to educate the people and distributed free samples to the students and the target customers so that they might get converted. In the course of time, the effect could be felt. Kellogg was intent on weaning the people who starved away the morning and then slowly

Case Study #2 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Case Study #2 - Essay Example Health wise, in their old age, this group of people is susceptible to a variety of ailments that can negatively impact on their welfare. It can be noted that the major problem associated with large quantities of iron in bodies of older people is that it increases the risk of developing chronic diseases that are often life threatening. Conceptually, excess iron in the body has negative impacts in that it can cause chronic diseases among the elderly as stated above. However, it has to be noted that iron plays a very important role in the human body. According to Harmes (N.D.), â€Å"Iron is a mineral used by the body in the production of red blood cells. Specifically, iron is used in the production of haemoglobin which is the main protein in red blood cells and this substance carries oxygen throughout the body.† From this assertion, it can also be seen that without iron, the body will not be able to function properly given that the other parts will have inadequate oxygen. It can be argued that there are many factors, such as gender, health status, iron status, and intake of other dietary factors such as fibre that affect the way the body absorbs iron. In this case study population of the elderly American people, about one-fifth of the total daily iron intake is derived from iron-fortified cereals. However, f urther study is needed to determine which foods, including iron-fortified foods contribute to increased iron levels. Basically, there is need for a fine balance in the levels of iron in the body so as to avoid both risks associated with its inadequacy or its excessive quantities in the body. Given that the elderly are at risk of high iron stores in their bodies, it is recommendable for these elderly persons to consult a physician about their nutritional requirements before they embark on an iron supplementation programme. Consulting a physician first

U.S. counterinsurgency operations in Cuba and the Philippines Essay Example for Free

U.S. counterinsurgency operations in Cuba and the Philippines Essay In January 2002, The United States Special Operation Commands, Pacific (SOCPAC) took on an arduous task of assisting the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) with a specific mission for ousting the terrorists forces of Al Qaida, Jemaah Islamiyah and the Abu Sayyaf Group(ASG) and to carry the humanitarian operations in the islands of Basilan which was considered as the most dangerous place. The United States Special Forces (SP) unit along with the specially equipped forces and scout rangers of the AFP formed the Light Reaction Company. This Light Reaction Company along with the SOCPAC were deployed at Basilan with the sole motive to reject the ASG sanctuary, undergo surveillance on the key positions, support the villagers, conduct regular training to boost the morale of the AFP and support the strike forces of AFP and assist in the civil affairs operations. This was the part of the Operation Enduring Freedom-Philippines (OEF-P). In this operation, 350 operating personal were deployed and other 750 were providing logistics support to the headquarters in Zamboanga on Mindanao. The main purpose of the Mission was to help AFP in curbing the stronghold of Abu Sayyaf and as a result, the declared members of the Abu Sayyaf group reduced to 80 from 700. Another project that took place was Operation Smiles, a program to give medical aid to the local civilians of Basilan where the intensive fighting was taking place. The result of this operation was the establishment of 14 Schools, seven clinics, three hospitals and more than 20 fresh wells. Fighting again resumed in 2005 and 2006 between the government forces and the Abu Sayyaf group who was aligned with the New People’s army. By the end of 2006, hundreds of guerillas and soldiers were killed, and NPA was left with 7,000 fighters whereas Abu Sayyaf with 2,000. United States took up a different approach in Cuba by interfering in their internal private affairs. When the United States felt threatened by the Cuban revolution in 1959 and rise of communism under Fidel Castro, they formed a special committee to launch an attack on Cuba. They faced the danger of the coercion of the communist parties in Cuba that they would unleash their communist movements in America. They formulated the plan to infuse the anti-regime spirit and overthrow the government. They made thirty different plans to over throw the government and disrupt their economy. Among these were included the use of American Green Berrets, destruction of their sugar crops and mining of harbors. To overcome the crises, Cuba began to establish the trade relationships with Soviet Union. On April 17, 1961, United States conducted air strikes across the island to eliminate the Cuban air force, and enabling the Brigade 2506 to have a complete control over the island much before their actual landing at the Bay of Pigs. This failed because the invasions were not conducted as planned and Fidel Castro even resisted an armed invasion of 1,500 CIA trained Cuban exiles at the Bay of Pigs. This was another excuse for America to increase their propaganda against the Cuban government. In 1962 Operation North wood, plan was initiated with the intention to use false flag as an excuse to attack Cuba. Every month since 1962 there was one plan or the other to destabilize the communist regime either in the form of publishing views against Castro, equiping militant opposition groups with armaments, helping them in establishing guerilla bases and preparing them for their military interventions in Cuba in October. Many of the plans were devised by the CIA with the sole purpose to assassinate Fidel Castro which included the use of hair removal powder to fall the Castros beard, a poisoned wetsuit, the exploding cigars and the placing of explosive seashells in Castros favorite places including the place where he used to go for diving. This project was originally decided to put into action in October 1962 with an open revolt and ultimately to the overthrow the Communist regime. This action was planned when the Cuba was at the peak of the Cuban Missile crisis due to the Soviet Unions’s presence of Soviet missiles in Cuba, and could have led to the nuclear war between Soviet Union and United States. Therefore on 30th October the operation was suspended, but they had already deployed three of ten six-man sabotage teams in Cuba. One team infact was successful in blowing Cuban industrial facility on 8th November, 1962. This whole Cuban Project was known as Operation Mongoose. United States broke all the diplomatic relations with Cuba and imposed sanctions against it in 1962. The relationship between the two nations improved in 2000-2001 but again deteriorated when George W Bush came to power. Bush termed Cuba as an outpost of tyranny and his undersecretary to the U. S. State Department John R. Bolton levied accusations against Cuba of keeping and maintaing bioweapons program. Bolton even declared that Cuban leader had visited US enemy countries like Libya, Iran and Syria. Cuba was also declared as a State Sponsor of Terror by the United States department of State but Cuban government in turn accuses America for sponsoring terrorism against Cuba. Thus American Government again started their activities towards overthrowing the Cuban government and through the media propagated against the government to the extent that the opposition parties, supporting United States in Havana started displaying messages on a scrolling â€Å"electronic billboard† and to counter these Cuban government constructed large number of poles, carrying black flags with white stars, to obstruct these messages. On 12th September, 2006, the United States formed five interagency working groups to monitor Cuba and to carry their policies. These groups were set up quitely in War like rooms. According to the U. S. officials, three of these created groups; diplomatic actions; strategic communications and democratic promotion are headed by the State Department. One more group which coordinated humanitarian aid to Cuba is run by the Commerce Department, and the fifth group tackles migration issues, is being run jointly by the National Security Council and the Department of Homeland Security. These prcocess is being undertaken to restore democracy. Thus the counter insurgency operations with Philippines was to help the Philippine regime to crush the terrorists activities of the Al Qaida, Jemaah Islamiyah and the Abu Sayyaf Group(ASF) whereas the United States Policy towards Cuba was to eliminate the Communist regime by supporting the opposition parties and to counter the Russia’s missiles in Cuba. United States Counter Insurgency operations in Philippines were over and all successful, and the reasons behind these successful efforts were the comprehensive operations, adopting strategy of attacking the enemys line of attacks and disrupting their alliances and this was achieved by strengthening the Philippine government institutions and local security so that the daily lives of the people can move on smoothly. The measures were also undertaken for civic development to provide necessary amenities to its population. These operations being carried out in Basilan led to the ousting of the ASG from the island simply because they lost the support of the population and lost the combat operations as well as bases. But, there were certain strategic errors that led to again the emergence of ASG who â€Å"Lived to fight another day with the sole help from the JI and MILF. The ASG is again rising on the southern islands of Jolo and Tawi Tawi where Forces of the United States are not allowed to give assistance to AFP. This situation arises due to the certain strategic errors by the United States. The first strategic error was inability of the OEF-P, American leaders to fruitfully understand their own forces. They could not understand the basic traits of SF in an arena of employment and their capabilities to take out the combat advisory mission during unconventional warfare. Instead of fully understanding the situation, combatant commander and the Secretary of Defense imposed restrictions on SF soldiers. Over and above, the restrictions were also imposed on these SF advisers to operate at battalion level with their AFP counterparts but were not disallowed to operate at lower tactical echelons. U. S. leaders at the highest levels also could not able to comprehend fully the unconventional warfare. This led to the second strategic error and that is over-reliance on technical reconnaissance assets. The Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and the Navys P3 Orion began to be used for locating the ASG and the hostages on Basilan. These they used again for protection minimizing the risks to U. S. personnel. These though reduced the patrolling in remote areas, but this kind of surveillance was unconventional, and the forces on the ground were not allowed to use these reconnaissance assets. The third reason cited because of the prohibition of the U. S. leaders to assist the SF units because the negotiations were going on between the AFP and MILF, so forces were removed from MILF and because AFP was desperate to take the advice and assistance from U. S. Military, AFP troops were shifted from MILF-controlled areas. This led to the creation of de facto ASG sanctuaries giving boost to the ASG and MILF strong relationship. Many people staying in the area are also the members of these two organizations. (Tzu Sun, May-June 2004). The United States strategy in Cuba did not get desired results. The CIA wrote an internal report that blamed the internal incompetence on failure. The administration thought that the troops could retreat to mountains and conduct guerrilla war if they lost in open battle. But they did not realize that the troops could not reach the mountains by foot. The second reason was that the troops were deployed in swampland, where they were easily surrounded. The third biggest fault was their thinking that Cubans would be great full to them to give them liberation from Fidel Castro and would join in the battle, but the Americans could not gain the support of the population. It was basically due to the agencys weak positions on the ground in Cuba. CIA’s witnessed the mass support of Castro and those who were against the Castro were rounded and arrested by him. (Bay of Pigs invasion, encyclopedia) Looking at these failures and strategies the soldiers in order to win the war against terrorism first of all should analyze the ground situation where the war is to be fought, take the local population into confidence, never underestimate the enemies, and use the reconnaissance assets at the appropriate situation and at the appropriate moment. WORKS CITED 1. Bay of Pigs Invasion All Experts: Encyclopedia Retrieved April 5, 2007 from the World Wide Web: http://en. allexperts. com/e/b/ba/bay_of_pigs_invasion. htm 2. Maxwell S. David (May-June 2004) Operation Enduring Freedom-Philippines: What Would Sun Tzu Say? The U. S. Army Professional Writing Collection Retrieved April 5, 2007 from the World Wide Web: http://www. army. mil/professionalwriting/volumes/volume2/june_2004/6_04_3. html

The Implication of creative accounting on the firms

The Implication of creative accounting on the firms This project will explore several definitions of creative accounting and the range of reasons for a companys directors to engage in creative accounting. It explores the nature and occurrence of creative accounting practices within the context of ethical considerations. In addition, it considers the various ways in which creative accounting can be found and summarizes some empirical research on the nature and incidence of creative accounting. The role of the auditors in detection creative accounting is discussed, drawing evidence from several empirical studies. Then, it will illustrate the source of data, the sampling method and the data analysis technique that had been chosen for this research. Finally, the paper concludes with the analysis of possible solutions for the creative accounting problems. Chapter 1 Introduction Manipulation of financial information is known by several terms. In USA the preferred term and widely used is Earnings management whereas in Europe the favored term is Creative Accounting and also this term will be used in this study. The term can be defined in different ways. However, primarily it is a process whereby accountants use their knowledge of accounting rules to manipulate the figures reported in the accounts of a business. Further definition will be explored later in this paper. Creative accounting occurs when managers involve in changing the accounting figures to alter financial reporting. The motive behind the alteration is either to mislead stakeholders about the poor performance of a company or attract new contract and investment that depend on figures in statements. This research will apply the previous study in some scandal cases, such as Enron to find out whether it has same motive as mentioned by other authors. In addition, it will show the way in which managers have used creative accounting to committed fraud. The rest of study is organized as follows. In chapter 2 the literature is reviewed to pinpoint certain definition of creative accounting and explore the motives behind creative accounting. In chapter 3 the research method is employed to identify the relevance of creative accounting to Enron annual reports. In chapter 4 the paper will discuss major finding, recommendation and conclusion of the study. In chapter 5 different sources of the study will be listed including articles, journals and so on. Rationale of study: Many fraudulent cases had been found in the past few years. These scandals had been made by directors and managers of the organizations. There are numerous victims who suffered from misuse of the position starting from shareholders, going towards employees and end up with societies. Although most of these organizations have been audited by external auditors, the fraud has been occurred within the firms. This is because the auditors give only a reasonable assurance of their view on the financial statements and even some of them involved in fraud like Arthur Andersen. There are many people who are still not aware of how the company may use creative accounting in manipulate the accounting figure and hence committed fraud. This paper will explore the ethic and the way of using creative accounting providing with practical example. Aims and Objectives: To understand the meaning and explore definitions of creative accounting. To explore several reasons or motives of the using CA by companys managers. To list and explain the techniques of creative accounting. To understand the role of auditors and responsibilities in deduction of CA. To identify whether the auditors (both external and internal) play role in minimizing the CA in corporation. To find out the implication of CA on the countrys economy. Limitations of Study The research had successfully obtained the financial statements of Enron Corporation for four years started from 1997 till 2000. However, there was failure in collection the adjustment reports figure except for income and long term debts. These missing figures might be important to use in methodology for accurate judgment. Furthermore, the time to accomplish this study was slightly short to collect some important data for this research. Chapter 2 Literature Review There are various scholars who defined creative accounting (CA) in different views. These are as follows. Involves the repetitive selection of accounting measurement or reporting rules in a particular pattern, the effect of which is to report a stream of income with a smaller variation from trend than would otherwise have appeared. (Copeland, 1968) Is any action on the part of management which affects reported income and which provides no true economic advantage to the organization and may in fact, in the long-term, be detrimental. (Merchant and Rockness, 1994) Whereby the true financial performance of a company is distorted by managers for private gains (Klein, 2002) It has noticed that although scholars from different decades had defined the CA, they agree the basic concept of CA which is use knowledge of accounting rules to manipulate accounting figure to show the faulty result of the organization performance. The reasons and motivations of creative accounting Various authors have studied about the issue of management motivation towards creative accounting. There are many reasons. One of these was mentioned by: Shafren (2009) concluded based on his analysis of Satyam Company that the stakeholders are interesting on companys financial statements because there are mean to show how the firm is performed and its position in market. Therefore, managers try depicting these figures in such way to send positive indicator to the investors. The investors always attracted if annual statement is superb. Thus, to express this view mangers aim to modify the statement by means of tricks of CA. In other hand, the directors also have their own reasons as their bonuses may decide in proportion with the profit they made or reported. Lttner et al (1997) have also agreed that when the manger bonuses and stock options are depend on the company performance there is likely that the manager modify the figures upward to get the desired result. other motivation was mentioned by Dharan and Lev (1993) who Showed in their study of The valuation consequence of accounting charges that an organization used CA when its share price started to fall following the increase in share price which it reported previously. This reason arises when company face great pressure from a variety of obligations and constraints based on amounts reported in statements. For example: based on survey of US bank managers, they found that when a new bank manager hold responsible for an entity there is inspiration to adjust loan provision so he makes sure that any losses occurred by previous manager can be covered from this provision. Whereas Beatty and Harris (2001) said that mangers may manipulate the accounting figures in such way to reduce the burden of tax levies or to allow them to pay lowest possible income taxes by providing that the cost involved is less than the income tax benefit. Niskanen and Keloharju (2000) agreed in their research of earning cosmetics in a tax-driven accounting environment: evidence from Finnish public firms which is based on European companies that the corporate tax could be the reason for CA used by managers of the company. These are some of common motives for CA. However, the most noticeable motives are modifying the accounting figures to show positive indicator to investors and downward the firm income for tax purpose. Therefore, stakeholders should at least to be aware of these two areas. If there were more independent directors in the board then there will be less motivation or even it can be eliminated. Therefore, the best way in elimination this practice is not to know the ways that can be occurred but to appoint more independent directors. Techniques of creative accounting Largay (2002) wrote in his article of Lessons from Enron regardless of the high regulation exist in some countries like USA, the accounting environment afford great flexibility. The potential way for CA and the techniques can be found in certain areas. One of the techniques which can be used in CA as mentioned by Schipper (1989) is flexibility in regulation. He added in the article of Commentary on creative accounting that accounting regulation provides a great flexibility in choosing any policies that are set by International Accounting Standard Board, for example it allows the non-current assets to be valued either at historical cost or at revalued amount. Thus, if management decide to change policies of the company it may easy to deduct in the year of change but it is much difficult to be identified after sometimes probably after few years. Another point is the lake of regulation in some area existing in almost every country. AS it can be seen in Romania and Spain where there are few mandatory requirements for stock option and recognition of pension liabilities. CA can also be finding as the discretionary position of the management that may used in some items to obtain stability in financial position. This had explained by McNichols and Wilson (1988) that manager may decide to increase or decrease the provision of bad debts to adjust the desire result. The timing of some transactions also offers mangers the opportunity to increase the revenue and give an impression result when net profit is not adequate. For instance, company has an investment in historical cost which can be sold at current value (i.e. at higher value) where operating profit is showing an adverse figure. The third technique mentioned by the author is the artificial transactions that are usually use to manipulate balance sheet amount or to move the profit figure between accounting periods. This can be achieved by entering the related transactions with third party like a bank. Suppose an arrangement had made with bank to sell the asset to bank and lease back the same asset for the entire of its useful life. The arrangement consists of selling the asset at lower or higher value than i n an uncontrolled transaction and the compensation is from the difference of rental price. The another technique had explained by Gramlich et al (2001) in which they said that firms may attempt to manipulate balance sheet in order to change the liabilities classification to improve liquidity ratio. Most of time this manipulation is occurred to improve the investors perception. Although there is not much difference between 298 million and 301 million, investors perceived the latest amount more than the earlier one. The International Accounting Standard had been created to reduce or even eliminate the accounting fraud that is occurred by the management of the organization. However, sometimes IAS unintentionally play role in committing fraud by providing different ways of treatment of an item in financial statements. All of the techniques have one motive which is to makes FS more attractive on the view of stakeholders. The role of auditors and their responsibilities After many alleged scandal cases occurred in last decade, many individuals, such as shareholders have lost confidence on the audit firms. They are wondering the responsibility of the auditors in deduction the fraud and whether they played key role in committing fraud. According to Audit Committee Institute (2007) auditors should be aware of all circumstances that lead the firm to face a pressure from both within and outside the organization and thus, encouragement firm to involve in inappropriate earnings management (creative accounting). The independent audit should be often alert of the possibility occurrence of CA and should deeply understanding the companys processes in modifying accounting policies, estimates and judgments in order to assess these processes. Donaldson and Palmer (2003) were mentioned in conference the role that auditors played in accounting scandals of Enron and WorldCom. The auditors failed to resist pressure faced by the manager and therefore, accept the misleading financial statements i.e. they involved in fraud. Auditing may depend on external sources to verifying data. However, if the employees of the company have an intention to defeat the auditing function, they can cooperate with individuals outside the company, so even the best auditors will be unable to protect investors from such conduct at all cases. The role of auditors in minimizing the CA in the firm It had mentioned above how the auditors were involved in corporate scandal. However, internal and external auditors are also play role in at least to minimize these scandals when the audit standards, accounting standards and ethical code of conduct have been properly used. Ebrahim (2001) had mentioned in his study of Auditing Quality, Auditor Tenure, Client Importance, and Earnings Management: An Additional Evidence how the quality of auditors can be effective on earnings management or CA behavior. He used sample that listed in NASDAQ, NYSE and AMEX. The data was collected for 9 to 11 years. The sample included only the firms with fiscal year ended i.e. December 31. He found that the quality of auditor and the firm size had no relation with creative accounting. Amat et al (2008) argued in their empirical study of Earnings management and audit adjustments: An empirical study of IBEX 35 constituents the view of Ebrahim (2001). The sample of the study was collected from IBEX 35 index (Spain). It had collected a sample size of 42 companies for period between 1997 and 2004. The study attempted to explore the role of auditors in prevention of the creative accounting practice. As the result, this study had supported the significant role of auditors in financial market particularly in the prevention of CA practice. Clikeman (2003) mentioned in his journal of Auditors on Alert for Earnings Management that the external auditors are not only the staff who detect the CA practice but the internal auditors also have a duty and role in prevention such a practice and to comply with various requirements of the standards and Acts, such as Auditing standards and Sarbanes-Oxley Acts. The internal auditors have many measurements available to assist them in detection unethical practices. the trend analysis to find out extraordinary variations in revenues and expenses and cutoff testing which enables to monitoring sales and purchases in income statements of the company for the years end. These are some of the tools available for the auditors to detect any suspicious occurred and reported to the board. Director should be the one who should detect fraud at the first place as he is in position that allows him to access to every single part of the business. Thus, the government and the regulatory should have to improve the rules of the board of directors and management teams rather than focusing only on the auditors responsibility. Although there are many regulations for the auditors to conduct their work efficiency, there were many corporate scandals cases recently. This indicates that there are still some weaknesses in these standard and regulations. The implication of CA on the countrys economy Everyone is concerning about CA including analyst, regularities and government due to its impact not only on the firm but also on the countrys economy. The previous studies had found that the CA has a negative effect on the economy as a whole especially when it leads to large corporate scandal. One of the recent articles of these affect was by Hugh (2009). Hugh (2009) explained in his article of Creative Accounting and Italys Growing Unemployment Problem how the CA affected the Italy economy. He mentioned two types of unemployment benefits that are available in Italy. The Ordinary Redundancy Funds which applies in uncertain event, such as market crises and the Extraordinary Redundancy Fund that available in the case of bankruptcy. To benefit from this scheme, Companies cheating different states by sending their employees home under redundancy procedures and then informally re-employment and paying them under the table. The procedure will allow the firm to pay only 30% of the salary and remain will be paid by the state government. This is lead to the Italian underground economy around 15% of the total GDP for the state i.e. à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬ 300 billion per year. The firms might benefit from the aid but they are distorting the market and discouragement the future of more productive companies. Others like Bernoth and Wolff (2006) had found in their study of Fool the market, Creative Accounting that the CA increases the risk premium. They used the portfolio model of five interest differential and modified it to investigate the implication of CA on bond yield spreads between countries. The modifying process of the model had carried on by assuming that the government might used CA to make the observation of financial position of the country difficult to observe. They found that when the country discloses transparent information, the CA increases the cost of borrowing significantly (if it becomes known) especially in the case when the market is unsure the extent to which the CA exist. On other hand, Sopelsa (2010) warned in his article of US Creative Accounting could repeat Greek Tragedy that US could face the same problem as Greece heavy debt if it does not control its spending and deal with its structural deficit. This is due to the engagement in CA for years by USA similar to those that occurred in Greece. The US government did not secure the Federal Reserve and government sponsored entities, such as Fannie Mae into its financial statements. As the result, the total debt to GDP had reached to 85 percent and may going to be at 100 percent in two years. Thus, the situation would be worsening if it goes to the foreign loans. The government has to impose tight budget control, alteration social security, deal with health care costs and restructure tax system to generate more revenues. The CA would lead to economy bubble in country like US as had mentioned by Sopelsa (2010). Instead of blaming the audit firms or the companies that had been got into hot water (involved in scandal), the government should concern first why it is happening. Unfortunately, some governments are aware of what happening neighborhood or far away country but they do not see the problems in their own countries. They already knew the danger of the CA; therefore they have to find solution to avoid the fraud in the future. Chapter 3 Methodology This paper is restricted to secondary data that had collected from various source including journals (weekly and quarterly), articles, news paper, magazine, financial reports and so on. It had reviewed certain literatures which were collected from different sources (as mentioned above). Later in this chapter, the sampling, data analysis and presentation will be explored. Sampling of companies and Data collection The researcher verified a major accounting scandal that had been occurred last decade, such as Enron, Freddie Mac, Halliburton, Merrill Lynch and the recent case of Bernard L. Madoff hedge funds. These samples were randomly chosen from various cases. Last but not least, among these alleged fraud one sample had been selected which is Enron Corporation. The financial data of Enron was collected from its annual reports from the year of 1997 to 2000 (see appendix). 3.2 Data analysis and presentation The Enron Corporation US Energy Company was commenced in 1932. It became as a group of company in 1979. It employed approximately 22,000 staff in over 40 countries worldwide. It ranked in Fortune 500 as seventh largest company that operated in American, sixth largest energy Company and one of the leading company in communication, paper and pulp in the world with reported revenue more than $ 100 billion. In late 2001, Enron forced to fill up chapter 11 of bankruptcy protection after disclosed fraud and being sued by investors and creditors to claim their privileges. It was one of the largest bankruptcy cases in the US history. According to Holmes (2006) Kenith Lay (CEO of Enron) used creative accounting as a way to modify reports that allowed them to create artificial shortage by increasing prices about ten times. In this paper the financial ratios will be used to illustrate the affection of CA on companys annual reports. The ratio will be analyzed for 4 years from 1997 to 2000. Enron net income should be reduced in 1997, 1998, 1999 and 2000 by $96 million, $113 million, $250 million and $132 million respectively. It was also found that companies long-term debts should further added to the one which had reported previously. By the end of the year 1997, the additional debt should be added to give the total of $14103 million. Similarly, the extra amount of $ 561 million and $685 million should be included in 1998 and 1999 respectively to reflect the actual long-term debts of the company. The company should also add the amount of $628 million in 2000 to adjust its debts figure. These balances can be seen as follows: These were the major items which required adjustments (there were other adjustments which were not taking into account in this study). Next, it will show how the some ratios affected by these adjustments. Although the gap between the reported amounts is not much different from the adjustment balance, it is significantly important after cumulatively adding these differences for the years. Furthermore, these are information where only available at the time. There are additional adjustments required in balances for some other items, thus the gap will further increase between the reporting and adjustment balance. It can be found that the major change was in return on share capital which had reached to 2.6% of the gap between the two balances in 1999 (look to the above table). The gearing level was high especially in 1997. This indicated that company had too much debt. The debt level decreased significantly in 1999 to 65% after the adjustment that might gave to company a little hope to overcome the problem but its gearing level had increased again approximately to 70% in 2000. This explained why Enron had used CA as it wanted to hide what was going in the company. 3.3 Data presentation The below bars chart are an illustration of affection of the CA on the companys balance. 3.4 Finding It had been founded that after the adjustments in income and long term debts, there were significant changed in returns on capital and in net profit. However, there were other figures that need to be adjusted, thus the affection will be even much greater. Therefore, it leaded to misguide the public by allowing them to think that the company was in good position and it was a good investment to them but actually it was suffering from heavy debts. This was one of the companies that used the CA practice. There were other companies that exercise the CA, such as Duke Energy. As the result, there was a significant negative impact on that industry which in turn had badly affected on US. The accounting manipulation that had used by Enron affected investors much greater that what had shown above as some bogus figures were not included in this paper. Chapter 4 Conclusion and Recommendation 4.1 Conclusion Many corporate accounting scandal cases had occurred since 1980. One of the earliest scandals was an Australian Nugan Hand Banks and the latest case of Lehman Brothers and Golden Sachs. Yet, the will be many accounting scandals may the world face if nobody try to improve the procedures to prevent the CA. The paper had discussed various issues regarding to creative accounting. It had explained why the companys directors involve in CA to commit fraud. The most common reason is the one that mentioned by Dharan and Lev (1993) and it said; when the company wants to increase its share price. The paper had explained some of the techniques of CA which can be used by the firms including changes in accounting treatment, adjustments in provision of bad debts, movements of the figures between the accounting period and many more. It had also discussed about the responsibility of the auditors, especially external auditors, in corporate scandal and how to detect the potential fraud. In addition, it had also explained the role of the auditors in minimizing the risk of CA by disciplinary following the audit standards and some other regulations. The quality of auditors is also play important role in detection the fraud. Finally, the literature review warned the affection of CA on the economy. It had found that in some cases the CA increased the rate of interest and it would lead to heavy debt burden to country that exercising CA as what happened in US. Moreover, it would affect the GDP as in case of Italy. In methodology, it had talked about the sampling and from where the data was collected. Then, it had analyzed annual report of Enron Corporation form the year 1997 to the year 2000. It had found the earnings of the company that reported were difference from the one after adjustment. As the result, it had given a bogus report to the stockholders. 4.2 Recommendation Many issues had occurred because of the CA, some had already mentioned in this paper and remain were discussed by the others. Some are blaming the auditors whereas others are saying it is the government responsibility. However, there are many people are involved in the CA. To overcome the problems of this practice, the researcher had given various suggestions from different point of view which can be seen below. From the investors point of view, they can follow certain steps to reduce the risk of CA. The investors should not depend only on companys financial statements in deciding of whether it is worthy for their investments. They should also seek for second professional opinion because sometimes the F.S accomplished with material misstatement. The investors should diversify their investments widely and not to keep them in one basket. Although it is difficult to eliminate risk, the investors can reduce such it through spreading their security into wide range of companies or even investing in other countries so if there is any loss in one company resulting from the practice, they will gain in another one. Therefore, the investors can make profit from their average returns regardless of some negative investment that included in portfolio. From the companies point of view, they should appoint more independent directors to take care of public interest, thus avoiding personnel interest. This would lead to the more honest in reporting of the company situation. I case if there is a tragedy event, they will solve it in prudent way rather than using unwelcome practices. They should also appoint qualified audit committee with high level of experience and honesty to detect the material misstatement that could occur in the F.S. Moreover, the audit committee will take all the necessary steps to prevent such fraud. Whereas from the governments point of view, it should select appropriate standards and follow excruciating punishment against those who breach the rules. In addition, although there are some countries not allowing the auditor firm to provide more than one service, there are some governments allow the firm to provide various services to its client. This should be avoided in each country. Chapter 5

Capitalism :: essays research papers

Capitalism A form of economic order characterized by private ownership of the means of production and the freedom of private owners to use, buy and sell their property or services on the market at voluntarily agreed prices and terms, with only minimal interference with such transactions by the state or other authoritative third parties. Communism 1.Any ideology based on the communal ownership of all property and a classless social structure, with economic production and distribution to be directed and regulated by means of an authoritative economic plan that supposedly embodies the interests of the community as a whole. Karl Marx is today the most famous early theoretician of communism, but he did not invent the term or the basic social ideals, which he mostly borrowed and adapted from the less systematic theories of earlier French utopian socialists -- grafting these onto a philosophical framework Marx derived from the German philosophers Hegel and Feuerbach, while adding in a number of economic theories derived from his reinterpretation of the writings of such early political economists such as Adam Smith, Thomas Malthus, and David Ricardo. In most versions of the communist utopia, everyone would be expected to co-operate enthusiastically in the process of production, but the individual citizen's equal rights of access to consumer goods would be completely unaffected by his/her own individual contribution to production -- hence Karl Marx's famous slogan "From each according to his ability; to each according to his need." The Marxian and other 19th century communist utopias also were expected to dispense with such "relics of the past" as trading, money, prices, wages, profits, interest, land-rent, calculations of profit and loss, contracts, banking, insurance, lawsuits, etc. It was expected that such a radical reordering of the economic sphere of life would also more or less rapidly lead to the elimination of all other major social problems such as class conflict, political oppression, racial discrimination, the inequality of the sexes, religious bigotry, and cultural backwardness -- as well as put an end to such more "psychological" forms of suffering as alienation, anomie, and feelings of powerlessness. 2.The specifically Marxist-Leninist variant of socialism which emphasizes that a truly communist society can be achieved only through the violent overthrow of capitalism and the establishment of a "dictatorship of the proletariat" that is to prepare the way for the future idealized society of communism under the authoritarian guidance of a hierarchical and disciplined Communist Party.

Disjunction of Senses in Modern City Life

Disjunction of Senses in Modern City life In his chapter â€Å"City Life and the Senses,† John Urry discusses how the senses system operates in â€Å"open societies† of streams of crowds in open space. The five senses are comprised by the visual, auditory, touch, taste, and olfactory. Urry views visuality as an ambivalent force that is prioritized above the other sense through the developments of centuries and somewhat abused by as visual sense becomes increasingly accelerated in the city life dominated by technology.The imbalance in the sensed environment is magnified by the physical natures of the senses themselves, but the inexpedience in this discrepancy is a product of civilization, implying that visuality and other senses are capable of interacting collaboratively under a hierarchy for a city life that â€Å"plays to all the senses. † The innate features of eyes provide the power for the visual sense. Light travels almost instantaneously while other mediums , like voice, are air-borne. Signals emitted by the sender are instantaneously received by the viewer.While sound and scent can collect their input from all directions and frequencies, sight is focused and specified. Urry mentions Simmel’s argument that â€Å"the eye is a unique ‘sociological achievement’† which â€Å"produces extraordinary moments of intimacy. † Uninterrupted interactions between the eyes carry â€Å"the history of their life and †¦the times dowry of nature. † These characteristics allows â€Å"the eye to [objectify] and [master]† more than the other senses. One could choose to close his eyes when the objects do not reach the expectation.Thus, vision possesses a seemingly superior ability to judge objects from specified angels. Another nature of the eye is that it can act as a delicate measuring tool that collects a vast amount of information. As Urry shows, the eye â€Å"sets a distance, and maintains a distanc e. † Consequently, this capacity to carry and discharge information â€Å"enables the world to be controlled at a distance, combining detachment and mastery† and communication between individuals â€Å"produces the ‘most complete reciprocity’ of person to person, face to face. In addition, Technology adds a new dimension to the existing complexity of visual dominance in the spatiality of sense. The implementation of modern technologies further enlarges the prioritizing of vision. Urry writes that â€Å"vision was given an especially powerful role in the modern era. † Cell phones, emails, and video chatting messengers, like Skype connect people wirelessly. Touch and smell no longer factor into the interactions such that it is no longer necessary for the physical presence of a person for communication.People seek increasingly greater standards for technologies that appeal to the visual sense. Modern innovations, for example, have advanced television f rom black-and-white to color to LED display to plasmid and recently to HDTV for ever improved visual experience. In contrast, there have been few advances in the auditory capabilities of modern inventions. The radio remains mostly unchanged through the past half century. The contrast between technological advances caters again to an assumed superiority of vision over the other sense. However, visuality has its limitations.We have abused the bestowed privilege while the human activities in modern society favor the development of visual sense. â€Å"According to Urry, â€Å"the city both is fascinated with, and hugely denigrates, the visual. † The moment the look dominates, the boy loses its materiality. † The mind becomes biased and receives false information about the truth as our eyes are more involved in working and recreational activities. For example, when shopping for luxury commodity, without â€Å"touching,† people sometimes believe in their visual judgme nt of the authenticity of the product.Besides, the eye turns vulnerable due to excessive usage. More and more people are optically corrected with glasses and contacts. Hand-free products grow multiplicatively popular thanks to its ability to dilution the burden of visual sense. Meanwhile, other senses are essential in that their importance is exemplified by the vast number of common expressions in daily speech. â€Å"Each sense gives rise to metaphors which attest to the relative importance of each within everyday life. People use expressions like â€Å"sounds good to me† and â€Å"it rings a bell,† attesting to the importance of the auditory realm. The auditory sense plays an important role in our learning process. From infancy, we are exposed mostly to sound while we are still â€Å"blind† about what is happening in the world. Then, we start to learn to talk by listening to our parents and are able to identify objects by connecting things we see with their au ditory equivalents. In school, lecturing is an indispensible portion of learning.Most students prefer learning from their instructors over reading the books and trying to understand the material. Furthermore, there are activities involving other senses that are insubstitutional by visuality. Music is a discipline in which visual sense is ineffective. Determining a keynote of melody, for some people, is an even more proficient mastery than visuality. Indeed, each division of the sensed system attempts to adapt to the evolving spatiality as the open societies become gradually civilized.Urry suggests that no matter which coordinates we use, â€Å"a threshold of effect of a particular sense which has to be met before another sense is operative. † This is not quite true. Multiple senses are certainly capable of coexisting in a parallel manner, and they should cooperate under a hierarchy between different senses. The concept â€Å"sensuous geography,† which connects together analyses of body, sense, and space,† should be introduced when examining the issue. The significance of the open societies is to encourage communication and mixture between senses and to achieve spatial complementarities.For instance, â€Å"sight is not seen as the noblest of the senses but as the most superficial, as getting in the way of real experiences that should involve other sense and necessitate much longer periods of time in order to be immerses in the site. † People have come up with approaches such that we can integrate the senses together to be truly reciprocal not within itself, but rather among the divisions to illustrate a decent understanding of city life that is composed. When someone visits a landscape, he or she can carry an electronic mobile auditory guide with them which plays an audio introduction of the spot.The device not only facilitates and enhances visual experience, but also alters the perception of the surrounding space for the tourist beca use â€Å"each sense contributes to people’s orientation in space. † Failure to do so may lead them to be insensitive and incapacitated. It is inevitable that the senses system has developed unequally as the open societies refine. Although visuality plays an essential role in city life, we ought not to overlook the rest of senses, such as previously discussed auditory sense. On the other hand, it is imperative to have a hierarchy for the five senses to operate cooperatively.Nevertheless, senses system may still remain stagnant in suburban cities, or closed societies, where people are not congested by technologies and crowds. Despite of their disparate spatiality and sensed environment, we shall consider the alternative account of sensing nature to assist our understanding of city life in open societies.Bibliography â€Å"City Life and the Senses. † Urry, John. A compaion to the city. Blackwell Publishing, 200. 388-397. Wikipeadia. 27 9 2008 <http://en. wikipe dia. org/wiki/Auditory_learning>.