Provide a critical assessment on the merit of the claim that Essay

Provide a critical assessment on the merit of the claim that microfinance has a poverty reduction and gender impact - Essay Example The governments across the world have been instrumental in alleviating poverty. They have introduced various measures that are aimed at enabling people to create employment. However, there are other challenges that are dragging the success of these interventions. This paper will analyze the merit of claim that microfinance has a poverty reduction and gender impact (Wright-Revolledo, Greeley, Brody, & Copestake 2005). Over the past five decades, the financial institutions have become very critical in financing people to initiate various projects that are very significant in alleviating poverty. However, majority of the people in developing countries do not have collaterals to enable them to get access these funds (Shaw 2004). For instance, in Asia and Africa, many governments are yet to establish effective structures to enable people to have the required collaterals in order to get access to loans. This has made it hard for the banks and other financial institutions to reach the common citizen who is highly affected by the poverty levels. Agriculture is one of the sectors that are associated with poor people in these regions (HamzeÃŒ  2001). Many poor farmers rely on rain fed agriculture in order to grow their food. This is because they do not have collaterals such as title deeds to enable them get access to the funds. In addition, banks are not willing to give them loans because the sector is v ulnerable especially from the vagaries of nature such as drought, floods, etc. This has exposed these people to extreme poverty. However, microfinance institutions are able to offer poor people with loans that enable them to start small and medium enterprises, an aspect that has contributed immensely in reducing the poverty levels. Because majority of these people lacks the skills and experience on how to handle such enterprises, the microfinance institutions have even gone ahead to train the

Nursing Research Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Nursing Research Paper - Essay Example A number of researches have been made for the past years focusing on assessment tool, healthcare delivery, and different treatment modalities. Others focused on special groups or populations such as the children, men or women, adults, and elderly. An example of topic made in nursing research is the urinary continence experienced among elderly. Despite advances made in the field of nursing regarding urinary incontinence, the risk of incidence among elderly is still increasing (Pringle-Specht, 2005, 58); thus, the author had thought of what might still possibly cause increase in incidence of urinary incontinence among elderly and how could the current quality of care provided be improved. In line with this, the paper will provide an overview of what the research will look like, as well as the goals for the activity undertaken. In addition, the paper will identify the problem, the significance of addressing the problem, and the search terms used in the review of literatures. Furthermore , the author will present the summary of the two selected research articles, the evidence of gaps between the literature and the research problem, the research question, approach and design, the research hypothesis, concepts or variables under investigation, the target and accessible population, the sampling procedure, the researchability and feasibility of the study, the challenges of conducting the research, and a conclusion. Goal The overall goal of the research activity is to identify whether the use of catheters and diapers as interventions increase the risk of urinary incontinence among elderly patients. The specific goals or purposes of the study are: (1) to identify other treatment modalities to prevent or control urinary incontinence among elderly patients; (2) to test the hypothesis concerning the relative risks of using diapers and catheters among urinary incontinent elderly patients; and (3) to use the findings to develop recommendations for possible changes in intervent ions for urinary incontinence. Problem Statement Use of urinary catheters and diapers while in the hospital increases the risk of urinary incontinence among elderly patients, and interventions to date found that diapers and catheters are often used as a first-line treatment for urinary incontinence (Schnelle & Smith, 2001, 754). Other treatment modalities are to be identified to reduce increasing risks of urinary incontinence among elderly. Significance of Addressing the Problem The study is significant to the geriatric patients as the risk of developing urinary incontinence due to catheters and diaper would be prevented. In addition, diminishing the use of diapers and catheters in elderly will boost their self-esteem and facilitate routine urination. The result of the study would benefit the nurses and the nursing profession because of addressing the changes that should be made in common nursing practice which is frequent use of catheters and diapers in geriatric patients as this m ay further contribute to urinary incontinence. Researchers from the related field would also benefit from the study for providing information about one of the causes of urinary incontinence among geriatric patients. Search Terms in Literature Databases from CINAHL, PubMed, Medline, NCBI, and Google Scholar were used in search of related

Creative Art Therapy on Schizophrenia | Literature Review

Creative Art Therapy on Schizophrenia | Literature Review CHAPTER II REVIEW OF LITERATURE A literature review is an account of what has been published on a topic by accredited scholars and researchers. As a piece of writing, the literature review must be defined by a guiding concept. It is not just a descriptive list of the material available, or a set of summaries. (Dena taylor-2010). A literature review is a text written by someone to consider the critical points of current knowledge including substantive findings as well as theoretical and methodological contributions to a particular topic. Review of literature is a written summary of the state of an art on a research problem. It helps the researcher to familiarize themselves with the knowledge base. It includes the activities involved in identifying and searching comprehensive picture of a state of knowledge on that topic (Polit and Hungler, 1995). The review of literature has been described under the following headings: SECTION A: Studies related to schizophrenia SECTION B: Studies related to Creative Art Therapy SECTION C: Studies related to Creative Art Therapy on schizophrenia SECTION A: STUDIES RELATED TO SCHIZOPHRENIA An experimental study was conducted to assess the effectiveness of clozapine in the treatment of resistant schizophrenia in Beijing, China. Twenty two patients with treatment of resistant schizophrenia were selected for the study by using randomized sampling technique. This samples were assessed by using the positive and negative syndrome scale for schizophrenia. The results showed that 60% of the study participants responded to clozapine therapy during the observation period. The researcher concluded that clozapine has therapeutic efficacy in treatment of resistant schizophrenia. (Xiang,Y. T, 2009). A descriptive study was conducted to assess the importance of genetic factors in men with early onset of schizophrenia in Surat, India. A total sample of 40 male schizophrenic patients with clinical onset before the age of 25 years were selected by using convenience sampling technique. Samples were assessed by using structured questionnaire. The results showed that one of the parent of 12(30%) patients had the history of schizophrenia. The researcher concluded that the genetic causes are more important in the etiology of schizophrenia. (Mukesh Patel, 2009). A descriptive study was conducted to assess the side effects of antipsychotic drugs in patients with chronic schizophrenia. A total no.of 1493 schizophrenic patients were recruited at 57 United states sites by using convenience sampling technique. They were evaluated using the positive and negative syndrome scale for schizophrenia. The result showed that olanzapine was associated with more discontinuation for weight gain or metabolic effects and perphenazine was associated with more discontinuation due to the presence of extra pyramidal effects. The researcher concluded that majority of patients discontinued the medicines owing to inefficacy or intolerable side effects or for other reasons. (Lieberman,J.A, 2005). A descriptive study was conducted to assess the association between violence and schizophrenia in Mullen, Australia. A total no.of 40 patients were selected by using purposive sampling technique. Patients were assessed by using structured questionnaire. Research shows that violence is a result of comorbid substance abuse or psychotic symptoms. The result showed that most studies conform the association between violence and schizophrenia. The researcher concluded that the proportion of violent crime in society attributable to schizophrenia falls below 10 %. ( Walsh,E. 1997). A preliminary study was conducted to assess the effect of psycho education program on self efficacy of schizophrenic patients utilizing the psychiatric day care. A total no.of 33 schizophrenic patients utilizing the psychiatric day care were selected by convenience sampling technique for this study. Generalized Self Efficacy Scale (GSE Scale) was used for the evaluation 1 month before intervention, immediately before intervention and after the completion of intervention. He has incorporated the social skills training into psycho education. The results showed that Self Efficacy score changed significantly between immediately before and after completion of the intervention. The investigators concluded that the psycho education was effective in increasing the self efficacy among schizophrenic patients. (Yamaji ,2005). An explorative study was conducted to assess the behavioral impairments and social disabilities among schizophrenic patients. A total no of 520 patients from seven countries were participated in the study. Disability assessment scale and Psychological impairments assessment scale were used to for this study. The results showed that there is an impairment in sexual relationship, workplace, self care and also in social roles. Negative symptoms such as inactivity, loss of interest, initiative and poverty of speech also present in the patients. (WHO, 2000). A descriptive study was conducted by Schizophrenia Research Foundation and Madras Medical College to assess the prevalence of schizophrenia in Tamil Nadu. Two areas Chintadripet and Triplicane were chosen for the study and door to door survey technique was adopted. The Indian psychiatric survey schedule and present state examination schedule was used for assessing the prevalence of the schizophrenia. The study was concluded that the prevalence rate of schizophrenia was highest in the area and a higher rate have seen in males and in age group of 15 – 45 years respectively. The higher prevalence rates were shown in slum areas, those living alone, in those with no schooling, in Christian communities and in the unemployed group. (Padmavathi, 1998). SECTION B: STUDIES RELATED TO CREATIVE ART THERAPY An experimental study was conducted on the effectiveness of Creative Art Therapy on the treatment of aggression in Netherland. A total no.of 100 samples were selected by using convenience sampling technique. They were used the structured questionnaire in this study. The results showed that expressing aggression with help of art material safely helps to explore one’s aggression. The researcher concluded that art therapy is an useful modality to suppress the anger that explodes in uncontrolled destructive aggression. (Henk, 2006). An interventional study was conducted to assess the effectiveness of Creative Art Therapy in reducing anxiety and fear in hospitalized children in Punjab, India. Samples of 22 children in the age group of 3-10 years were selected by using the convenience sampling technique. Creative Art therapy intervention was given 60 minutes for seven days. The Beck Anxiety Inventory Scale was used to measure the anxiety of the samples. The result shows that there was a significant difference between pre test (22%) and post test (11%) scores of anxiety. So the researcher concluded that the creative art therapy is effective in reducing fear and and anxiety among hospitalized children. (Hamre.H,J, 2006). An experimental study was conducted to assess the effectiveness of creative art therapy with incarcerated women who have experienced the death of a loved one. A total no.of 7 samples were selected by using purposive sampling technique. Semi structured interview was conducted before the study. One hour Creative Art Therapy sessions were offered to eight incarcerated bereaved women for a period of eight weeks. After two weeks after treatment, a 45-minute interview provided to the women with the opportunity to describe their personal experiences and responses in regard to the Creative art Therapy sessions. Result shown that seven women described positive outcomes following the Creative Art Therapy intervention and they had an opportunity to express their feelings. (Horn et al., 2004) An experimental study was conducted on the effectiveness of Creative Art Therapy and cognitive behavior therapy with sexually abused children. A total no.of 120 samples were selected in the age group between 8-11 years by using purposive sampling technique. Two group research design were used by dividing the group into two groups, 60 children in each group. Therapy sessions were held once a week for 12 weeks. Symptoms were assessed with trauma symptom checklist for children. The result showed that there is a significant reduction in symptoms commonly associated with sexual abuse who had been received creative art therapy than cognitive behavior therapy. (Pifalo. T, 2002). An experimental study was conducted to assess the effectiveness of creative art therapy on self esteem and anxiety of nursing home elderly residents. Quasi experimental research design was used. A total no.of 20 older adult psychiatric patients were selected by using purposive sampling technique. The state trait Anxiety Inventory Scale and Beck Depression Inventory were used to assess the anxiety and depression. Creative art therapy intervention was given three days per week for four regular weeks. The result indicated that the creative art therapy improved the level of self esteem and reduced the anxiety and depression of older adults. (Henry, L. 1997). SECTION C: STUDIES RELATED TO CREATIVE ART THERAPY ON SCHIZOPHRENIA An experimental study was conducted to assess the effectiveness of creative art therapy as an adjunctive treatment for patients with schizophrenia in London. A total no.of 43 participants were selected by using randomized sampling technique. Symptoms were assessed with the help of Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale. Allocated participants were offered with activity three sessions a week for 90 minutes per day and the duration for an average of 2 months. The result indicated that Creative Art Therapy produced statistically significant positive effect on negative symptoms. (Philrichardson, 2007). An experimental study was conducted to assess the effectiveness of creative art therapy among schizophrenic patients. Totally 45 participants were selected by using convenience sampling technique. Twenty sessions of creative art therapy have given for the selected samples. Symptoms assessed before and after the intervention by using positive and negative syndrome scale. The result showed that improved mental health especially reduction in negative and general symptoms in schizophrenia. (Crawford, 2007). An experimental study was conducted to assess the effects of Creative Art Therapy among schizophrenic patients and their relatives on symptoms, personal and social skills. Total no.of 9 patients and 7 patient’s relatives included in this study. Totally 17 sessions of Creative Art Therapy intervention were given for the patients and relatives for 30 minutes duration. Participants were assessed by using Positive and Negative Syndrome scale. Whereas all participants relatives were assessed through Beck Depression Inventory Scale. The results showed that creative art therapy can reduce negative symptoms, particularly social functioning and depressive symptoms of schizophrenia in which antipsychotics are not helpful. (Anadolu, 2013). A study was conducted to assess the effectiveness of Creative Art Therapy in acute schizophrenic patients in Berlin, Germany. A total no.of 60 samples were included in this study by using convenience sampling technique. Creative Art herapy have been given to the experimental group for 45 minutes daily for two weeks period. Before and after the study researcher were applied PANSS to all participants. The result shows that significant changes in negative symptoms and only mild effect on positive symptoms. So the researcher concluded that Creative art therapy is more effective on negative symptoms of schizophrenia. ( Dannecker, 2012). An experimental study was conducted to assess the effectiveness of Creative Art Therapy as an adjunctive treatment for people with schizophrenia in United Kingdom. A total no.of 417 samples were selected by using convenience sampling technique for the study. Group creative art therapy was delivered by the researcher for 90 minutes duration per day for two weeks. Before and after the study researcher were assessed by using PANSS to all participants. The result shows that some improvement in primary outcomes of participants. So the researcher concluded that creative art therapy can improve global functioning and reduction of symptoms in schizophrenia. (Crawford, 2012).

The wars affect on civilization :: essays research papers

This paper is about stuff i know little about. I'm eally just riting this so i can get some stuff for myself. I plan on making contributions to this site at a later time. As for now, I will just type this so as to gain access to the site. As you hav noticed I put one space after each end of sentence period, although most common typing books tell you to use two. That is a bunch of hooey. Well I don't know how many words I have but I need my report stat cuz it's due tomorrow. So, with no further ado, I end my fake essay by saying, goodbye. What is wrong with this paper? Didn't I put enough words in it? It seems like culture and society are words I can use to make my registration complete. It may be that it is too short. Or I might not be using words like exploration or journalism. Some other things it could be are they know this entire report is not real. So therefore, two out of three is not bad. Therefore I will make this long as possible. Apparently you are not truly married. Whoa! I say. This paper has to be 250 words or more. I don't understand it. This is the third time I tried sending it and to my surprise it's not long enough. What more can I do? It's tough writing essays like this man.The communications links of the Internet are also owned and maintained in the same anarchic fashion as the hosts. Each owner of an Internet host is responsible for finding and paying for a communications link that will get that host tied in with at least one other host. Communications links may be as simple as a phone line, a wireless data link such as cellular digital packet data, or as complicated as a high speed fiber optic link. As long as the communications link can use TCP/IP or UUCP, it can fit into the Internet. Thus the net grows with no overall coordination. A new owner of an Internet host need only get permission to tie into one communications link to one other host. Alternatively, if the provider of the communications link decides this host is, for example, a haven for spammers, it can cut this â€Å"rogue site† off of the Internet. The rogue site then must snooker some other communications link into tying it into the Internet again.

A Psychological Look Inside the Movie ‘Good Will Hunting’ Essay

In the film, Good Will Hunting, main character Will Hunting is a troubled young man from a poor neighborhood in south Boston. Following a youth of abusive foster care experiences and only himself left to trust, Hunting leads a life of self-sufficiency becoming a witty sharp shooter. A seemingly independent individual working as a janitor in renowned local university, MIT, he spends his downtime with a select group of buddies he considers family or isolated reading volumes of old novels and textbooks. Upon being found as the secret sleuth to a graduate level mathematics problem, MIT professor Gerald Lambeau seeks out the janitor, Hunting, in efforts to engage his mind and make him an apprentice. As the plot twists, an earlier issue lands Hunting facing jail time for assaulting an officer during a fight in his neighborhood. With knowledge of this, Prof. Lambeau uses his university standing and professional name to allow a proposition to be offered to Hunting that Lambeau believes to be mutually beneficial: Hunting is freed from jail time under the stipulations that he works with Lambeau academically and sees a therapist for counseling purposes, simultaneously. Initially standoffish, Hunting doesn’t seem interested, meanwhile a recent new love interest sways his thinking and he accepts Prof. Lambeau and the courts offer. While there seem to be a few dilemmas listed above, including the professors initial interest in offering a lessened jail sentence for his potential protà ©gà ©, the intent of his proposal was not for sole self-interest if the viewer understands his point of view and life experience. In his opinion, what person could possibly turn down an opportunity to work directly with an MIT professor and for free? For the purposes of this paper, the ethical dilemma discussed is what happens next in the plot of Good Will Hunting, and that is when Will (who burns through multiple therapists before connecting with one) and his eventual Psychologist, Sean Maguire begin working together. Two major occurrences happen, one is that in an early meeting between the two, Hunting begins to ‘test’ Maguire in efforts to make him lose his temper and it works. By discussing a painting in Maguire’s office that holds emotional value, Hunting is able to prod the weak areas of Maguire’s past and after he could no longer take it, he became irate and physically restrained Hunting by the throat. To quickly go over this and how it relates to the American  Psychological Association’s Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct, this seemingly obvious violation is of course beyond all measures of intentions of helping but is also cited in Standard 3: Human Relations (APA Code of Ethics, 2014) in 3.04 Avoiding Harm: â€Å"Psychologists take reasonable steps to avoid harming their clients/patients, students, supervisees, research participants, organizational clients and other with whom they work, and minimize harm where it is foreseeable and unavoidable.† In order to avoid such a situation, beyond the realm of Hollywood dramatization, a simple separation of the two people (professional and patient/client) to collect thoughts, breathe and reevaluate the circumstances would have been an appropriate alternative to physical contact. A separate yet major occurrence of ethical standards in the film involves the follow through of professional service to Hunti ng by Maguire as he deemed necessary when the role of Prof. Lambeau intended cessation of therapy so he could carry out his own prerogative. Maguire positively maintained the five foundational general principles as found in the APA’s Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct: Principle A: Beneficence and Nonmaleficence – â€Å"†¦seek to safeguard the welfare and rights of those with whom they interact professionally†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Principle B: Fidelity and Responsibility – â€Å"†¦concerned about the ethical compliance of their colleagues’ scientific and professional conduct†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Principle C: Integrity – â€Å"†¦strive to keep their promises and to avoid unwise or unclear commitments†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Principle D: Justice – â€Å"†¦exercise reasonable judgment and take precautions to ensure that their potential biases, the boundaries of their competence and the limitations of their expertise do not lead to or condone unjust practices.† Principle E: Respe ct for People’s Rights and Dignity – â€Å"†¦respect the dignity and worth of all people, and the rights of individuals to privacy, confidentiality, and self-determination.†

Animal Farm-Power Corrpts Essay

Animal Farm is an allegorical novel about the Russian Revolution and the resulting political system of the Soviet Union. Through this story which appears to be a simple fable on the surface, we see George Orwell’s beliefs about the nature of power and its seemingly inevitable corruption of noble ideas. Educated authority figures in the book bend the principles of communism to suit their own selfish needs and desires, all the while taking advantage of the uneducated masses, and easily manipulated them through propaganda and persuasion. Through this allegory of communism turned to totalitarianism, Orwell explores the dangers of a political system where leaders have no sense of social responsibility toward their subjects. The first instance of corruption among the ruling class appears shortly after the revolution. The pigs, the new rulers of Animal Farm after the ousting of the tyrant farmer Jones, milk the cows to relieve them from of their discomfort. The animals, remembering how Jones would mix some of the milk into their mash, look forward to at least similar treatment from the pigs. However, the milk soon disappears and it is discovered later that the pigs have mixed it into their own mash without sharing it with the other animals, just as the windfall apples have been consumed exclusively by the pigs. Squealer, the political propagandist for the pigs, justifies this to the other animals by saying that the pigs need the extra brain energy, and then bolsters his argument with some fear mongering: â€Å" Do you know what would happen if w pigs failed in our duty? Jones would be back!† (32). The fact that this incident occurs so quickly after the revolution and at a time when all of the pigs are still present on the farm shows Orwell’s belief that the corruption is not only inevitable in a society where the ruling sector of the population is so much better educated than the rest, but that all of these members of the ruling class were potentially corruptible. As the story moves on Orwell shows us how power is corrupting more. Another of the major instance that occurs after the milk and apples is the ruling class moving in the farmhouse. As the commandment says no animal shall sleep in a bed. Some of the other animals were confused but as usual squealer came with his propaganda.

Free Essays on Robert Wagner

There have been many great operas composed throughout recent history. In many of these operas there is a plot or theme that has been taken from an ancient myth, legend, or story. Most of the composers in history maintain the same approach when dealing with the connection of opera and historical tales. One composer who follows this concept is Richard Wagner. The opera that he composed was Der Fliegende Hollander. Wagner was also the librettist in this opera. The composer chose to create this opera as a result of his journey across the New Sea. Hs experiences inspired him to develop the opera based on the legend of the Phantom Ship. This legend is about a sea captain who swore he would sail around the Cape of Good Hope, even if it took him forever. As a result Satan dooms his soul to the sea for eternity, unless he finds a woman to break the curse. Another opera based on a legend is Der Freischutz by Carl Maria von Webber. The librettist of this work is a man named Friedrich Kind. The title of this play when translated into English means â€Å"The Free Shooter†. This translation is as accurate as they could make it. This work is based on a German legend. The legend explains that a marksman, who uses charmed bullets, could secure these bullets by agreeing to hand his soul to the devil on a planned date. If the marksman could find another victim by the set day then he would be exempted. Henry Purell was an English composer who contributed the opera Dido and Aenas. The librettist of this work was Nahum Tate. The plot of this opera was based on the episodes in the Aeneid of Vergil. This tale involves a man and woman who fall in love with one another. Then one day the man is falsely told that the gods had asked him to sail to Italy, and so he went. When the women learned of this she took her life, she stabbed herself on a funeral pyre. There is no question that there is a relationship between opera and historical le... Free Essays on Robert Wagner Free Essays on Robert Wagner There have been many great operas composed throughout recent history. In many of these operas there is a plot or theme that has been taken from an ancient myth, legend, or story. Most of the composers in history maintain the same approach when dealing with the connection of opera and historical tales. One composer who follows this concept is Richard Wagner. The opera that he composed was Der Fliegende Hollander. Wagner was also the librettist in this opera. The composer chose to create this opera as a result of his journey across the New Sea. Hs experiences inspired him to develop the opera based on the legend of the Phantom Ship. This legend is about a sea captain who swore he would sail around the Cape of Good Hope, even if it took him forever. As a result Satan dooms his soul to the sea for eternity, unless he finds a woman to break the curse. Another opera based on a legend is Der Freischutz by Carl Maria von Webber. The librettist of this work is a man named Friedrich Kind. The title of this play when translated into English means â€Å"The Free Shooter†. This translation is as accurate as they could make it. This work is based on a German legend. The legend explains that a marksman, who uses charmed bullets, could secure these bullets by agreeing to hand his soul to the devil on a planned date. If the marksman could find another victim by the set day then he would be exempted. Henry Purell was an English composer who contributed the opera Dido and Aenas. The librettist of this work was Nahum Tate. The plot of this opera was based on the episodes in the Aeneid of Vergil. This tale involves a man and woman who fall in love with one another. Then one day the man is falsely told that the gods had asked him to sail to Italy, and so he went. When the women learned of this she took her life, she stabbed herself on a funeral pyre. There is no question that there is a relationship between opera and historical le...

Advice From an Energy-Efficient Architect

Advice From an Energy-Efficient Architect The most energy-efficient houses function like living things. They are designed to capitalize on the local environment and to respond to the climate. Australian architect and Pritzker Prize-Winner Glenn Murcutt is known for designing earth-friendly homes that imitate nature. Even if you live far from Australia, you can apply Glenn Murcutts ideas to your own home-building project. 1. Use Simple Materials Forget the polished marble, imported tropical wood, and costly brass and pewter. A Glenn Murcutt home is unpretentious, comfortable, and economical. He uses inexpensive materials that are readily available in his native Australian landscape. Notice, for example, Murcutts Marie Short House. The roof is corrugated metal, the window louvers are enameled steel, and the walls are timber from a nearby sawmill.   How does using local materials save energy? Think of the energy used beyond your own home- what fossil fuels were burned to get supplies to your work site? how much air was polluted to create cement or vinyl? 2. Touch the Earth Lightly Glenn Murcutt is fond of quoting the Aboriginal proverb touch the earth lightly because it expresses his concern for nature. Building in the Murcutt way means taking special measures to safeguard the surrounding landscape.   Nestled in an arid Australian forest, the Ball-Eastaway House in Glenorie, Sydney NSW, Australia hovers above the earth on steel stilts. The main structure of the building is supported by steel columns and steel I-beams. By raising the house above the earth, with no need for deep excavation, Murcutt protected the dry soil and surrounding trees.   The curved roof prevents dry leaves from settling on top. An exterior fire extinguishing system provides emergency protection from forest blazes that are so prevalent in Australia. Constructed between 1980 and 1983, the Ball-Eastaway house was built as an artists retreat. The architect thoughtfully placed the windows and meditation decks to create a sense of seclusion while still providing scenic views of the Australian landscape. The occupants become part of the landscape. 3. Follow the Sun Prized for their energy efficiency, Glenn Murcutts houses capitalize on natural light. Their shapes are unusually long and low, and they often feature verandas, skylights, adjustable louvers, and movable screens. Horizontal linearity is an enormous dimension of this country, and I want my buildings to feel part of that, Murcutt has said. Notice the linear form and expansive windows of Murcutts Magney House. Stretching across a barren, wind-swept site overlooking the ocean, the home is designed to capture the sun. 4. Listen to the Wind Even in the hot, tropical climate of Australias Northern Territory, houses by Glenn Murcutt do not need air conditioning. Ingenious systems for ventilation assure that cooling breezes circulate through open rooms. At the same time, these houses are insulated from the heat and protected from strong cyclone winds. Murcutts Marika-Alderton House is often compared to a plant because the slatted walls open and close like petals and leaves. When we get hot, we perspire, says Murcutt. Buildings should do similar things. 5. Build to the Environment Every landscape creates different needs. Unless you live in Australia, you are not likely to build a house that duplicates a Glenn Murcutt design. You can, however, adapt his concepts to any climate or topography. The best way to learn about Glenn Murcutt is to read his own words. In the slim paperback Touch This Earth Lightly Murcutt discusses his life and describes how he developed his philosophies. In the words of Murcutt: Our building regulations are supposed to prevent the worst; they in fact fail to stop the worst, and at best frustrate the best- they certainly sponsor mediocrity. I’m trying to produce what I call minimal buildings, but buildings that respond to their environment.† In 2012 Great Britains Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) rigorously used sustainability principles similar to Murcutts to develop Olympic Park, now called Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park. See how this urban revitalization happened in How to Reclaim the Land - 12 Green Ideas. In light of climate change, why cant our institutions mandate energy efficiency in our buildings? In Glenn Murcutts Own Words: Life is not about maximizing everything, its about giving something back - like light, space, form, serenity, joy.- Glenn Murcutt Touch This Earth Lightly: Glenn Murcutt in His Own Words ​​Source: Biography by Edward Lifson, Director of Communications, The Pritzker Architecture Prize (PDF) [accessed August 27, 2016]

Using Your Finger Like a Weathervane

Using Your Finger Like a Weathervane Your index finger has many uses, but I bet you didnt know a weathervane is one of them. If youve ever seen someone lick the tip of a finger and stick it into the air, or done this yourself, this is the very reason behind this peculiar gesture. But, while youll often see people stick their finger in the air as a weather joke, its actually a legitimate way to estimate wind direction. So the next time you find yourself on a deserted island, Survivor style, or simply without a weather app, heres what to do: Stand as still as possible. (If your body is moving, it will be harder for you to get an accurate wind reading.) If you happen to know which way is north, south, east, etc., face this way it will make determining the final wind direction easier.Lick the ball of your index finger and point it upwards.Observe which side of your finger feels the coolest. Whichever direction the cool side of your finger is facing (north, south, east, west), thats the direction the wind is coming from. Why it Works The reason why your finger feels cool has to do with the speedy evaporation of the moisture on your finger as the winds air blows across it. You see, our bodies heat (through convection) a thin layer of air just next to our skin. (This layer of warm air helps insulate us from the surrounding cold.) But whenever the wind blows across our exposed skin, it carries this warmth away from our bodies. The faster the wind blows, the faster the heat is carried away. And in the case of your finger, which happens to be wet with saliva, the wind will lower the temperature even more quickly because moving air evaporates the moisture at a quicker rate than still air would. Not only does this experiment teach you about evaporation, but its also a neat way to teach kids about the wind chill and why it cools our bodies down below the air temperature during wintertime. Dont Use Your Finger in Humid or Hot Weather Since using your finger as a weathervane depends on evaporation taking place, it doesnt work as well at helping you estimate wind direction on humid or muggy days. When the weather is humid, it means that the air is already filled with water vapor, and so, it will carry away the additional moisture from your finger more slowly; the slower the moisture from your finger evaporates, the less youll be able to feel the winds cooling sensation. This weathervane hack also wont work as well when the weather is hot, sine the warm air will dry your finger before youve had a chance to feel the evaporative cooling sensation.

Alexander Wendt Anarchy Theory Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Alexander Wendt Anarchy Theory - Essay Example Wendt is more with the realists when they say that the state system is in a state of anarchy and that the states are competing for survival. Theorists agree that Wendt's theory has important implications for the advancement of international politics. "Contrary to neorealism's static materialist structuralism, Wendt's social theory bears on the 'tranformative potential' of international politics. His theory claims to reveal the potential for a more cooperative international relations," http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexander_Wendt International Relations is supposed to have started with the Peace of Westphalia in 1648, from where the modern system of States emerged and since then, various theories have cropped up. Answering a question why we have to thearise everything, Brown says: "For the majority of theorists in this area, the answer is clear - explain in order to predict, predict in order to control, or if control is impossible, then at least to minimise the consequences of undesirable states of affairs and take advantage of whatever opportunities exist," (Brown, 2002, p.12). This word comes from the German word, realpolitic meaning foreign policy based on practical concerns, and the word attained its credence because of Bismarck. This theory assumes that the States themselves are the actors, and these individual actors are influenced by the structure of international anarchy. It is also assumed that World politics is a voluntarily self-helping system and each state is interested in its own national interest and there is always conflict between one state and another. Its one more assumption is that diplomacy is not for solving the problems, but to serve national interests and the main instrument of success is the military force. Since the end of Second World War, Realism has bhecome one of the major theories of International Relations which leads to political realism, Winston Churchill was a powerful advocate of realist foreign policy. "The perspective was well suited to the early phase of the Cold War. The power struggle between the world's two superpowers dominated international politics, and the United States sought to contain Soviet expansionism," claims (Knutsen, 1997, p.241). It could be defensive realism with national interest in its core and its interpretation connects with international security, anarchy in international relations and Michiavelli's realism. Thucidydes is supposed to be the founder of this school. Michiavelli, though condemned for preaching amoral ways during his lifetime, is the real propagator of Realism. Morganthau is crdited with systemetizing classical realism with his famous six principles. LIBERALISM Liberalism assumes that states can cooperate with one another through institutional mechanisms and bargaining and they are one key actor in the arena of World politics, and here states are not independent, but interdependent. It also argues that international institutions like Transnational Corporations, IMF, WHO, United Nations are actors in a different sphere, and have a role to play. Francis Fukuyama said that the ideology of

Cisco Topic Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Cisco Topic Analysis - Essay Example The next main step was taken regarding the reallocation of the majority of the IT budget to the departmental level. In this way each department will have a direct control over the departmental money. In this new structure the concept of the cartelized management has minimized. The next main transformation he has made is regarding the separation of the central IT steering committee. He has established a new structure through which IT investment decisions on application projects will be taken by the line management. In this regard the main execution of these projects will be done by the centralized IT organization (Schwartz) & (Jouret). Accoring to Pinkowski (2004), old Cisco legacy system was a UNIX based software package that maintained its operations of manufacturing, financial, and order entry. This system was crashed on January 1994 and because of this problem organization’s systems were down for two days. At that time CISCO administration realized that they should implemen t an ERP system quickly. After the time of less then one year Cisco successfully established an ERP system from Oracle (Pinkowski). NOLAN (2005) has outlined the main benefits of the ERP system and the web-centric supply chain. This offered the greater facility of the email, and server operating systems, Voicemail, desktop, meeting schedule software and office productivity suites were all standardized. Through this transformation the whole business operational structure became centralized (NOLAN). According to Schwartz (2006) through the web-enabling CISCO whole systems’ operations were standardized and Cisco was capable to carry out business activities with enhanced efficiency and more effectively (Schwartz). Through this implementation of new technology based system and large IT projects CISCO was able to standardize the overall business structure. This offered Cisco to uphold and maintain an efficient supply chain through business networked applications and also

Interest Group Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Interest Group - Essay Example n the media and popular culture, PETA has contributed directly and indirectly to the enactment of more comprehensive legislations concerned with animal rights. It has also played a central role – directly or indirectly – in the amendment of existing animal rights laws to create better, more holistic legislations that suit the animal rights agenda. The organization was formed in 1980 and has always been dedicated to protecting animals from abuse and suffering, especially at the hands of humans. PETA’s slogan is based on the notion that â€Å"animals are not ours to eat, wear, experiment on, or use for entertainment† (Singer 41). This message features prominently in the organization’s website, merchandise, and marketing material (Del Mar 26). The group trains members of the public and policymakers on animal abuse and advocates humane treatment of animals. Its headquarters are in Norfolk, Virginia, but it has international divisions to further its cause abroad. The organization believes that just like humans, animals have rights, and their best interests should always be considered, irrespective of their value to humans. Animals also experience pain and suffering and thrive when they are left to lead their lives in the way that fits their nature and environments. All of PETA’s activities are guided by the belief that all human and nonhuman beings have a right to be free from all forms of harm. According to the group’s mission statement, animal cruelty is one of the problems plaguing the world, and that deserves sufficient attention. The organization believes that everybody has a responsibility to prevent and oppose animal abuse at every opportunity (Singer 34). For 35 years, PETA has worked to create a global society in which people contemplate the needs of, according to Henry Beston, â€Å"the other nations† (Singer 57). In this regard, the group considers itself to be a protector of the rights of individual animals; this informs its belief that animals

Understanding Economic Diversification in the UAE Research Paper

Understanding Economic Diversification in the UAE - Research Paper Example Understanding Economic Diversification in the UAE This paper will explore the economy of UAE by discussing strength and weakness in a way that facilitates the understanding of the topic in the context of Abu Dhabi. Various issues related to labor, free zone and stock market are discussed in way that depicts their contribution to growth of non-oil sectors in Abu Dhabi. In this section, the paper seeks to identify ways through which labor, free zone and stock markets are supporting the diversification from the oil sector. Therefore, this gives an illustration of the ways in which Abu Dhabi is reducing the dependence on oil. The paper concludes with a summary and recommendations of the issues that will be explored. Understanding The UAE economy The economy of United Arab Emirates has been ranked the thirty-fifth freest economy in the 2012 index with a freedom score of 6.9, and it has experienced a growth of 1.5 using last year as the base year. This growth has been attributed to improvements in the property rights, monetary freedom and labor freedom. Moreover, the economy is ranked fourth in a list of seventeen countries in Africa and Middle East due to its overall score that is higher than the averages on various regions in the world. Registration of the best twenty enhancements in 2012 index has made a substantial contribution to improving economic independence. The business environments and conditions boosting investments have contributed to restructuring of the economic systems; thereby facilitating the establishment of pulsating private sector. Furthermore, sustenance of momentum growth has been facilitated by the open trade regime with cost controls. Therefore, the UAE has been focusing on being a regi onal financial hub with a banking sector dealing with the financial problems moderately well. However, there are deficiencies in legal systems and investment framework, which are restraining the entire economic freedom of UAE. There are judicial systems that intimidate foreign investors by increasing their vulnerability to political influence. However, corruption is deteriorating compared to other economies in the region. Abu Dhabi makes significant contribution to the oil yields resulting in a principal role in political and economic decision-making (The government of Abu Dhabi, 2008). Of late, the focus of the government has shifted towards alternate and non-oil resources, a process termed as diversification. This paper purports to discuss the concept of economic diversification, growth of the oil and non-oil sectors over the last ten years, contribution of labor, free zone and stock market to the growth of the non-oil sector in the UAE. Concept of Economic Diversification The con cept of economic diversification is associated with the process of risk reduction through division of the assets among various securities or forms of investment (Fridson & Alvarez, 2002). Therefore, diversification of income sources based on different and unrelated exposures to risk increases the chances of being compensated to the incidence of potential loss. Moreover, this is used in selection of a portfolio, fields of financial economics. Understanding this concept clarifies the reason behind government expenditure in UAE along with

East Asian histiory Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

East Asian histiory - Essay Example The two events occurred almost at the same time, and, therefore; it will be easier to connect the two historical events with relative ease. My story will focus on Mr. Haro Aoki who is an experienced fighter jet pilot. He is of Japanese descent. He is married to a South Korean woman whom he met during the colonial occupation of the Korean peninsula by the Empire of Japan. During this occupation, the Korean area was regarded as a sphere of influence for the Japanese and as a result a lot of their citizens went to settle there and even married and started families with the locals; Mr. Aoki was no exception. When the Second World War breaks out, he is called upon by the air force to serve his nation. He is among the pilots that participated in the bombing of Pearl Harbor. However, as the war rages on and there are disturbances in the Korean empire, he is torn between remaining in Japan to fight for his mother country and going back to fight for his wife’s native land. It is a story of loyalty and love delving into whether Aoki should stay and fight along his fellow Japanese in the war or go back and get involved in t he Korean War in order to secure the safety of his wife and that of his family. The tale transpires on a sunny morning when Mr. Aoki who had just come from Japan to Korea to see his wife, Mrs. Aoki. They had been married for the past six months and were expecting their first born child within the next three months. Mr. Aoki was excited and had spent the past few days going over possible names for his unborn child. However, on this particular morning, he woke up with a bad feeling in his gut. The war rhetoric over the past few days had gotten much louder. When he left Japan for Korea, tensions were rising and there was a flurry of activities in the barracks as the nation made war preparations. The tensions were caused by reports that the Japanese had committed unfathomable crimes and atrocities in China, especially in the Nanjing Massacre. This had

Reaction paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 19

Reaction paper - Essay Example This was a bunker designed for war yet Germans managed to creatively put a semblance of home. On a larger scale, this can be reflected in the products that they make which reflects utmost creativity. There is a famous saying in German that goes "Wenn schon, denn schon". It meant that if there is something that is worth doing, it is worth doing right. In short, Germans are perfectionist with work and do not do half baked and half hazard jobs and this complements their creativity that led them to produce cars that is a symbol of luxury and creativity. There is another German clichà © that goes "Ordnung muß sein!" It meant order and everything should be done by the rules. As a result, they are conscious about time that being late among Germans is unthinkable and this reflects how they put value to orderliness. In a way Americans share the same creativity, thoroughness and orderliness with Germans but not on the same level. Gleaning on the example given about cars, Americans has Ford and General Motors which is not really at par with German Mercedez Benz and

East Asian histiory Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

East Asian histiory - Essay Example The two events occurred almost at the same time, and, therefore; it will be easier to connect the two historical events with relative ease. My story will focus on Mr. Haro Aoki who is an experienced fighter jet pilot. He is of Japanese descent. He is married to a South Korean woman whom he met during the colonial occupation of the Korean peninsula by the Empire of Japan. During this occupation, the Korean area was regarded as a sphere of influence for the Japanese and as a result a lot of their citizens went to settle there and even married and started families with the locals; Mr. Aoki was no exception. When the Second World War breaks out, he is called upon by the air force to serve his nation. He is among the pilots that participated in the bombing of Pearl Harbor. However, as the war rages on and there are disturbances in the Korean empire, he is torn between remaining in Japan to fight for his mother country and going back to fight for his wife’s native land. It is a story of loyalty and love delving into whether Aoki should stay and fight along his fellow Japanese in the war or go back and get involved in t he Korean War in order to secure the safety of his wife and that of his family. The tale transpires on a sunny morning when Mr. Aoki who had just come from Japan to Korea to see his wife, Mrs. Aoki. They had been married for the past six months and were expecting their first born child within the next three months. Mr. Aoki was excited and had spent the past few days going over possible names for his unborn child. However, on this particular morning, he woke up with a bad feeling in his gut. The war rhetoric over the past few days had gotten much louder. When he left Japan for Korea, tensions were rising and there was a flurry of activities in the barracks as the nation made war preparations. The tensions were caused by reports that the Japanese had committed unfathomable crimes and atrocities in China, especially in the Nanjing Massacre. This had

Abu Dhabi Police Essay Example for Free

Abu Dhabi Police Essay The focal point of this paper is to develop a plan that would be successfully implementing an organizational change management system within Abu Dhabi Police department in order to increase its efficiency, development and achieving future objectives. It should be stated that at the moment there are several problems related to the issue and it is needed to overcome those in order to gain more mileage in the long run. The main aspect of this problem lies in the traditional form of police and investigation procedures that are taken into account and executed with comparatively lesser efficiency. This could also be sated that the functionality of the Abu Dhabi police department is more ancient in approach and there is an essential need for the department to catch up with the rest of the world in terms of technology implementation and efficiency evaluation. Furthermore, it is also essential to look into the aspects of administrative reconstruction as the department is unable to work up to its true potential with the administrative structure located at a medieval scenario. (Lamb, 2004, 69) Thus it can well be stated that the problem with Abu Dhabi police is not only with it’s below the par utility and efficiency but also is related to the ill formulation of the administrative system. Quite logically, the department is in extreme necessity of finding solutions for negating these problems. It should be stated that at the moment there is a five step remedy to this malady. Firstly, it is essential to understand the present management of Abu Dhabi police department and identify the key areas of improvement. Similarly, it is important in the aspect of researching the past to get an understanding about Abu Dhabi Police department’s status and importantly eliminating the risk of following the old mistakes. Then, it should be noted that a wide study is incorporated with a variety of methods of change management practices and their applicability in Abu Dhabi Police department. Furthermore, it is important to investigate the potential of alternative methods of change management and the most advantageous will be launched. Lastly, a strategy would be created with prospective enhancement that can be introduced, understanding the structure and working culture currently present in Abu Dhabi police department. It should be mentioned that the theoretical framework will involve police and public interviews, police and public’s strategic interview, historical records, secondary research through the Internet and university database, it will also use strategic analysis tools for development of the evaluation of the best method between coercive and consensual policing. In this context it should also be mentioned that the purpose of the project is formulated in a mutually beneficial way such that from an academic perspective there would be a huge gain in the context of valuable experience, and simultaneously add value by providing insights as well as a fresh objective outlook on any matter relevant to the social context. Research design will follow the following method or schedule. Firstly the participants will be trained about data collection techniques and tools to be used to collect the relevant information. The participants will be including police officers, data collection officers, team leaders and other resourceful personnel. Secondly the areas to be interviewed will be identified and accessibility determined. These areas to be sampled for the research can range from 10-16 of these areas, say 5 will be where coercive policing will be imposed and other five consensual policing can be applied. The period of the research can take a period of minimum 3 months and a maximum of 6 months of which during this period data will be collected. Thirdly the data so collected will be prepared as a report of findings. Finally, the final reports will be analyzed and evaluation for determination of the difference between consensual and coercive forms of policy. The different is supposed to put more emphasis on the difference. In order to attain the objectives it is essential to recognize the existing practices in Abu Dhabi police department and also in the modern police departments of countries like USA, Germany, UK, Australia etc. This will be done by individual interviews of the officials in Abu Dhabi and the through questionnaires from other corners of the world. Primary research will be persistent on personal interviews with Abu Dhabi Police department officials that will give an inner view of the present positing and future goals. This will also be a key basis of understanding the indolence for change. This will help in bringing out the indication of the present managed system in Abu Dhabi police department organization. Ultimately the clients will help in providing the true print of Abu Dhabi Police department’s working and key areas of improvement. Data presented from this research will assist to evaluate the best practices model and the actual working. This will help in indicating the difference and the reason for Abu Dhabi police department organization to implement a successful change management. Abu Dhabi Police higher officials will be randomly selected with favorable time and place for the interviews to be carried out. Finally the research will be focused on the historical data by looking at the Abu Dhabi Police department’s strategy in the past. If any failure or any glitches are to be found in companies strategy they will be pointed in this research. This will help the writer to understand the Abu Dhabi Police department’s goals in the past and their implementation process. It is necessary to design a new experiment that test the statistical method. For the purpose it is necessary to collect a complete data of the site that would include different religion, ethnicity or gender. An open meeting with police as well as the general mass or public would be very relevant in this context in the initial stages. The mixed gender of male and female Police and public could well be excluded as that would complicate matters in the context of gender variable juxtaposed with other pre mentioned variables but considering other dependable factors sustaining it would yield to be fruitful in the long run. Data would be collected in relation to the gender, color, religion of the potential customers in respect to the composition of the management under the same parameters. All these variables are considered as very relevant and important features of the statistical method and it is to be seen if these aspects are fundamentally acceptable in practical world and it could well be mentioned that social service, especially security service industry, are a very relevant manifestation of the social dimensions. As a result if the test is carried out in a proper manner with proper calculations of the population involved then there is no reason that the results would be both logical and true at the end consideration. In accordance to the basic test selected it could be stated that it could be possible that the outcome would be relatively logical in the sense that it would ultimately follow the trends of social facilitation theory in marketing and thus it would be agreeable with the statistical method and thus a well formulated marketing strategy can be constructed for the benefit of the Police and public alike as a definite method can be chosen between coercive and consensual policing. However, it should be stated that there would be few independent variables in the context of the test that could not be explained by the statistical method statements. Here the ethical consideration of the potential Police and public or the ethnic background of the potential Police and public may not be a very relevant factor. Thus there could be some flaws to the collection of the population but if these aspects are kept in mind then the shortcomings would easily be negotiated during the ultimate computations. As a result the test would appear to be a full proofed measure that would be able to define and prove the fundamental aspects and statistical method applied. It should be noted that the access to the research participants is both easy and hard. In terms of the public interview it would be relatively easy to identify and access but the difficult part would be to frame the questioner in accordance to the color and creed of the participants in general. In case of the police interview there would be more homogenous pattern in terms of the questioner but the difficult part would be to gain access. For the purpose it would be arranged to acquire permission from the hope department. Data will be collected using two different methods. The first will be interviews, which involve citizens, police officers from the sampled areas. This is an advantage in that feedback can be obtained instantly. The second will be use of questionnaires, which will be administered to the sampled areas. The questionnaire to be used will be the opened type. The advantage of this method is that the information obtained can be quantified to reflect that the sampled group as part of the entire population. The advantage is that it is easier to analyze data collected through questionnaire method. It should be noted that reliability for the researcher was achieved in the assurance that only a specified group of men and women were utilized in regard to the research. That group was focused mostly on customers and retails along with administrative personnel. This gave the research a more focused view of the research goal. The validity was managed as a result of this focus and emphasized in the considerations involved in the data collection, variables, and sampling methods. Privacy and confidentiality methods included assigning numeric and alphabetic coding to each responding questionnaire. This ensured anonymity in regard to the researcher and the subjects of the research process and a thorough qualitative method would be used during data analysis. The basic advantages of qualitative measures are multifold. Firstly, it presents a completely realistic approach that the statistical analysis and numerical data used in research based on quantitative research cannot provide. Another advantage of qualitative measures is that it is more flexible in nature in terms of collected information interpretation, subsequent analysis and data collection. It also presents a holistic point of view of the investigation. Furthermore this approach of research allows the subjects to be comfortable thus be more accurate as research is carried on in accordance to the subject’s own terms. The best statistical method would be to interview long well formulated day to day working procedure at a specific and well selected location. Throughout the procedure, it should be noticed whether there are specific variables within the testable population or not. These variables would be extremely important while evaluating the basic data in the final stages where the adjustments would be made to the formulated data in accordance to the observations. As a conclusion to the outline of this paper it can always be stated that Qualitative research is a process that includes interpretative paradigm under the measures of theoretical assumptions and the entire approach is based on sustainability that is depended on people’s experience in terms of communication. It can also be mentioned that the total approach is based on the fact that reality is created on the social formulations. It can also be mentioned that the basic target of qualitative research is instrumented towards social context under normal circumstances where it would be possible to interpret, decode and describe the significances of a phenomenon. The entire process is operational under the parameter of interpretative paradigm that can minimize illusion and share subjectivity under contextualization, authenticity and complexity of the investigation. References: Lamb, Davis; (2004); Cult to Culture: The Development of Civilization on the Strategic Strata; National Book Trust; Wellington

Nokia vs Apple Case Study

Nokia vs Apple Case Study The Board of Apple iTunes has requested a report that seeks to examine the key macro and micro environmental factors within the music download industry and provide significant information regarding the current threat of Nokia entering the music download market. Also, recent trends should be observed and a strategy has to be developed that will limit Nokias impact and protect Apples market share within Europe. In order to do so, we used significant instruments to analyse the market and we formulated a strategy accordingly. 2.1 Apples Mission Statement: Apple is committed to bringing the best personal computing experience to student, educators, creative professionals and condumers arounf the world through its innovative hardware, software and iternet offerings. Apple continious to lead the industry in innovation with its award-winning computers, OS X operating system and iLife and professional applications. Apple is also spearheading the digital media revolution with its iPod portable music and video players and iTunes online store, and has entered the online phone market this year with its revolutionary iPhone. 2.2 Apples strategy: Apple inc. is a vertically integrated company, manufacturing and supplying all hardware and software as well as its own operating systems. Apple Inc. chose this strategy so they could retain profit and ensure profit is not lost by financing other companys profit margins. The practice behind this theory is to heavily finance research and development and have have the necessary means of production to cover all areas of the business. Marketing and advertising are also a key component in Apple Inc.s strategy to have a better market position. 2.3 Apples market: To exactly define Apples market is nearly impossible as the company takes part in the multimedia download market by offering a wide range of services like music, ringtones, games, Podcasts and movies (most popular is their iTunes service) as well as having recently entered the mobile phone market with its new iPhone. The multimedia download market is described by Mintel as anything that can be copied from the Internet to a PC, other portable devices (mobile phones, PDA), game consoles or multimedia devices (Mintel, 2007). This includes music, video/television programmes, games, wallpapers, icons and ringtones. For our report we will focus on the music part which is of special interest to the Board of Apple iTunes although some consideration about the whole multimedia download market will have to be done, as Apple provides a variety of multimedia services and a reduction of the market to the music download market might be to narrow sometimes. Apple is not yet part of the mobile download market (unlike Nokia that has entered this market with its new Ovi service and the launch of its N-Series devices) as this market is strictly defined by Mintel as products that are downloaded to a mobile phone, including ongoing subscription purchases or single one-off downloads. These products include icons, wallpaper, ringtones, music, news or video clips, jokes and games. These services are for mobile phones only and similar items downloaded to a PC are excluded (Mintel, 2005) . The mobile phones market is being defined by Mintel as handset manufacturers and network service providers (Mintel, 2007). 3. Overview of the multimedia download market: This overview has been generated on the base of a Mintel report about uploading and downloading in the UK in 2007 and the figures provided only show the UK market. Since it can be assumed that the UK market does not differ dramatically from the Europeen market since network providers, third party providers and mobile manufacturers taking part in this market are accessed through the world wide web and therfore are also being used from Europeen customers, the facts given can be transformed to the Europeen market. The multimedia download market and especially the music download market is a fast changing and fast growing emergent market that is characterised by high fragmentation as more and more players such as mobile phone manufacturers, network- and third party providers enter the market. Market Size and Segmentation: The UK value for the download market in 2006 has increased 179% above 2002 to  £343 million and especially the growth of music downloads is acting as a main driver for the market and is overtaking mobile phone downloads that have been the largest segment of the market in the past. Mintel forecasts further expansion of the market between 2007 and 2009. Market Share: The multimedia download market is a highly fragmented market with many players, that is being dominated by Apple iTunes with nearly 80% market share. Third-party providers like Napster, MonsterMob, iTouch and Zed are also an imporant source of the market, although in the case of mobile downloads network providers are significant too. Key Points of the Internal Market Environment: An increasing desire of consumers to benefit from new technology can clearly be recognized and especially in the music download market, consumer interest has increased due to innovative product launches, such as the Apple iPod. Also, theres a trend for technology devices to blend functions that have been associated with only one product, as recent examples like the Apple iPhone or the freshly announced Google Gphone show. Key Points of the External Market Environment: The current lack of legislation regarding copyright issues, encourages people away from legal download services. A trend being recognized by Mintel is that ad-supported content is getting more and more accepted from customers as they are more willing to download from official sources if the content is free. The Future: Mintel predicts that rather being an add-on downloading will become an activity carried out on most devices. As a result mobile Internet surfing will increasingly become mass market! 4. Key factors to success for Apple: The companys wide and always up-to-date range of downloadable files. The companies fresh and exiting presentation of services and devices that delivers the attitude towards the customer that downloading is fun. Design and fashion have proved highly important for the company, as their products are being regarded as hip and stylish. The ease of use for its products and services. The companys innovative technologies. Strong branding that attracts new customers, keeps older ones and creates additional value. Highly effective advertising Many formal and informal cooperations with big multinational firms 5. PESTEL-Analysis: Economical aspects: Consumers currently feel very safe about their financial situation and about their prosper life. As a result to that, they are willing to spent more in fast moving goods and luxury. However, costs evole to be the most important factor for customers when it comes to purchasing a mobile phone and additional services as well as downloads. Socio-cultural aspects: Theres a trend in the mulimedia download market towards targeting younger consumer groups, since these groups show higher interest in downloading and are less restrictive towards new technologies. Despite this trend Apple have to consider that older consumer groups are usually wealthier than younger people and have more money to spent and it is also important for the furture to meditate that the overall population is growing older. Technical aspects: The wide range of fast changing high-tech/high-quality download possibilities, encourages consumers to download but it also puts more pressure on competing firms, as they have to stay up-to-date with the newest technologies. Considerable developments in the mobile phone market (3G handsets becoming reality and expanded features available to the customer) will push the multimedia download market into new spheres and will open up great opportunities for Apple. Still, since Apple is taking part in a highly competitive market with new technologies arising and changing in a very fast rate product-life-cycles are short and companies have to invest strongly in RD in order to stay competitive and to fullfil the market demand. Legal aspects: Issues of copyrights and illegal downloads greatly affect the music download industry and are a major problem for active legal providers. A former lack of legislation in this area has encouraged consumers away from commercial downloading services and as a response to this, new technologies have been introduced that protect the copyright of owners and prevent customers to download and share files illegaly. Digital Rights Managment (DRM) was created to controll the number of copies that can be made from a download and although for the music industry there are many positive aspects to DRM, there are surely as many negative for the consumer. Therefore, some companies have already planned to open big portals on DRM-Free tracks, that will legally enable the consumer to download files without being limited to a certain number of computers, portable digital devices and CD burns for a reaonable price. Moreover DRM-Free tracks can be played on any MP3 capable device! Although Ap ple has already updated its offer with DRM-Free tracks, the choice for customers is still very limited, as Apple could only strike deals with EMI that allow them to offer DRM-Free tracks. Also, Apples DRM-Free tracks are more expensive than those of its competitiors which could become a major problem in the future, if the company doesnt adapt its pricing to the market. 6. Porters 5 Forces: Substitute products: A substitute product is not a direct alternative to the product a company is selling. For example, the new Sony Walkman media player is not a substitute for the iPod Touch, it is a competitor. However, a personal CD player or MP3 player could be if certain aspects of the market were to change, e.g. price and there was a high elasticity of demand. In the case of iTunes, with music there is a wide range of options for buying music and therefore are many substitutes within the music industry, for example tapes, CDs, vinyl and DVDs. All of these are easily accessible and just as convenient as downloading from the internet. The benefit which iTunes has is that you do not have to buy whole albums; you can download songs individually and at a fraction of the cost of a single song on another format. Also you are able to buy movies, TV shows, audio books and Podcasts, all available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Reports by Mintel have shown that sale price and the volume of sales is falling for non digital media, consequently as a result of internet downloading. Album sales are in dramatic decline; largely due to a boost in single downloads. High definition gaming and music channels have also deflected consumers away from buying into the music industry. However, for the future, it is likely that technological innovation will replace popular digital mediums and formats but we asume that this is not a very big threat for Apple, as the company has proved to always be up-to-date with the newest technologie and will do so in the future. The Threat of new Entrants: Already, there are hundreds of media downloading sites available to use on the internet. Some are legal and some are not. It is more difficult to block and put barriers up for illegal entrants into the market because they are not abiding by the law and therefore do not have patents, licences or the rights to distribute media, but still do. With legitimate start up companies, there are capital requirements, possible patents licences to obtain and ultimately the prospect of competing with already well established and reputable companies such as iTunes. Mintel predicts that there will be an influx of new companies willing to invest in the online downloading industry. A big threat for Apple constitutes the entrance of Amazon into the market. The company announced the launch of a new music download portal that offers a wide range of DRM-Free tracks to a reasonable price. Since there are many advantages to DRM-Free tracks, like the fact that users can legaly co py the files without being restricted to a certain number of copies, consumers are expected to highly welcome the new download store. Apple has to be aware of the fact, that it could loose both new and old customers by restricting them to Digital Rights Management tracks that can only be played on Apples iPod and not on any MP3 capable device, as it is the case with Amazon. Another threat of new entrants Apple has to face is, that the download industry is likely to change towards add-driven downloads, which means that customers wont have to pay for their downloads if they agree to watching adds. Google will launch its own mobile phone, the G-Phone. Googles strategy is to give its services for free to customers and than sell adds to pay for them. Apart from that, Nokias launch of the new Ovi Store together with its new N-Series will be the greates threat of new entrance as it will allow customers to directly download files to their mobile which Apples iPhone currently doesnt do. Bargaining Power Of Customers: Due to the vast range of direct alternatives and substitutes, iTunes needs to price competitively as well as maintaining reputation and range availability. Consumers are easily swayed to alternative products, especially the ease and free use of illegal downloading sites and therefore need to be drawn in to using legal downloading sites like iTunes. Consumers have great power due to their ability to buy from any one competitor in the music industry and can therefore potentially dictate prices by constantly buying from the cheapest company, thus forcing competitors to reduce prices. Obviously one customer would not make a difference, but collectively customers are strong. As for the Apple iPhone, it has to be considered that network providers have great power over the company, as they could decide not to sell the iPhone or put pressure on the company that forces them to pay a certain amount of their revenues to the provider. At the moment, Apple has rest ricted itself to one provider, O2, and therefore greatly depends on them selling the iPhone but this will surely change over time. Bargaining Power of Suppliers: Similarly to bargaining power of customers, there is the bargaining power of suppliers. iTunes have to submit to the requirements of the consumer market to be competitive, but on the other hand have the ability to bargain with their suppliers due to the size and reputation of the company, thus they are a supplier and a customer. Due to the volume of sales that iTunes have, it would be foolish for companies such as SonyBMG, Universal, Warner and EMI to not compromise on the costs and rights to distribute their music, as their success in the music download market highly depends on the successful distribution of their music, mainly through Apple. This fact clearly limits the bargaining power of suppliers to a certain degree, although Apple has to consider that without their music iTunes could not function as efficiently as the market demands. Therefore a compromise must arise that suits both companies, a possible agreement could be initial fees plus percen tage of sales. Intensity of Rivalry: Although the amount of companies operating in the music download market is pretty high, Apple is the clear market leader. Still the multimedia download market is a market in its growth phase with fast changing technologies and many new companies entering the market. At the moment, it seems very unlikely that a company could seriously threaten Apples market position but the company has to be aware of the fact that there are other big multinational companies trying to enter the market with new technologies and ways of offering their services. 7. The Industry Life Cycle: The multimedia download market is a market in its growth phase that is being stimulated by an increasing desire of customers to benefit from multimedia technology and services. Technical innovations are leading to an increasing number of consumers seeking to interact through the internet and to download their music. The market value of the music download market has shown very strong and is going to rise even more in the future as customers familiarise themselves more and more with the internet and are increasingly aware of innovative technologies. Especially the youth segment pays great interest to the digital download of music and holds out good prospects for long-term growth. At the same time more and more firms are entering the music download market and prices for technology and services are expected to fall. Add-driven content services and the entrance of firms offering download services from online portals directly to the mobile will bring new perspectives into the market and co nstitute a threat and a opportunity at the same time. 8. Four Links Model Lynch: Informal co-operative links: Google: There are many informal ties that form the alliance between Google and iTunes. The reasoning for the alliance has long been speculated and many believe it is to overthrow the dominant leader in the market; Microsoft. With Google developing an Office type package and Apple inc. already having an operating system well established, an alliance could be the key to outsmarting Microsoft and decrease their market share. The main features that form the alliance are as follows: Google currently have a video application that has been made available for users to browse freely but cannot download from. Therefore a link to the iTunes website where consumers can download the video can be made available. The link is perfect because customers can view on Google Video and then download from iTunes if they wish. iTunes can be integrated into the Google toolbar or software pack. Also, Google have a sponsored search for the iTunes website where users are directed to the iTunes website and a sma ll fee is provided to Google from the company for the service. CEO of Google Eric Schmidt is currently sitting on the board of Directors for Apple inc. due to the past possible development of the Google iPhone, but this development never really took off. However, he has said recently that Apple and Google are doing more and more things together and there is a possible tablet style personal computer on the horizon. We have similar goals and similar competitors. Though there is no formal agreement or alliance yet. Starbucks: Currently only available in the USA, when in a Starbucks Coffee Shop, any iPod touch, iPhone or PC with iTunes on can connect to the iTunes website for free. There is a Starbucks option on the webpage that can allow you to see the current song that is playing and also the last 10 tracks played. Songs can be previewed and downloaded and will automatically sync to your PC when next connected. This is convenient for the customer and benefits both Starbucks and Apple. Formal co-operative links: Nike: Bringing sports and music together, Apple and Nike have produced the Nike+iPod which is designed to give the ultimate workout experience. In order to benefit from this, the customer must own a pair of Nike+ trainers (Nike+Air Zoom Moire), an iPod and the Nike+iPod sport kit which is what connects the trainers to the iPod. It is connected via wireless receivers. The idea was realised when Apple CEO Steve Jobs conducted research that showed 50% of the 50 million who bought iPods last year used them during a workout. Both companies define their core markets by lifestyle, (Kraft, 2006). Nikes target audience a sports culture and for Apples target audience it is the creativity culture. Both have come together to create a new profile, thus being the lifestyle and technology that has founded the partnership. The two huge brands have come together to create a fusion brand that will attract massive attention. Coca-Cola: Coca-Cola and iTunes teamed up to promote the release of a coke branded music website that had iTunes services integrated into the website. The website would be available across Europe and allow viewers to see the latest up and coming artists and to download podcasts from iTunes. Were excited to announce this partnership with AppleTogether we are creating a unique and exciting platform that gives young people a voice and allows them to refresh their music experience every day. (Dominique Reiniche, president of Coca-Cola European Union Group, 2006) 70 million free songs would be downloaded from iTunes in the promotion due to special codes printed on coke bottles. The strategic decision was made by Coca-Cola to join with iTunes because of the failure of its own digital downloading website MyCokeMusic, which lost out to iTunes quite badly. The alliance means that Coca-Cola can sell music but it is only iPod compatible due to DRM restrictive measures. Network Operators:Apples strategy was potentially to play the network operators off each other to ensure they got the best deal possible. Apple decided to go for the biggest operators in each of the countrys that they were supplying the phone in: UK O2; France Orange; Germany T-Mobile. O2 secured their deal by offering 40% of any revenues made from the iPhone and possibly more in commission and other areas. The tactics employed have left Apple highly unfavourable with other Network operators. (Wray, 2007) Complementors: It is the complementors who add the value to a company without there actually being agreements or strict negotiations. Companies such as SonyBMG, EMI, Universal and Warner all benefit iTunes because obviously if it wasnt for these companies iTunes would not function as well as it does and would not generate anywhere near the amount of money that it currently does. Ultimately, Steve Jobs listened to the concerns that music companies had regarding illegal downloading, piracy etc. He came up with the idea for iTunes and this was basically an external source for music companies to make money in the digital downloading industry with minimal effort. It wasnt strictly a way of how it would help Apple, but how it would help the music producers and the industry. Therefore the collaboration of iTunes with the big players in the music industry complemented each other. 9. SWOT-Analyses: Strengths: Apple is the clear market leader in the music downloadand steady financial performance. Revenues have grown from $5,742 million in 2002 to $19,315 million in 2006 and the companys net profit has increased from $65 million in 2002 to $1,989 million in 2006 (Datamonitor, 2007). Steady financial growth shows the good financial state of the company and builds the base for future growth and expansion. Also, the company has a very strong branding and enjoys a high level of brand recognition and brand awarness that allows the company to differentiate its offers and stimulate sales. Another strengths of the company is defined by its successful distribution of the iPod and its software iTunes. With every iPod sold, the consumer automaticaly installs iTunes on his pc, as it is only possible to download music from Apples original software to an iPod. Moreover, Apple procucts are being considered as hip, stylish and fashionable which is increasingly becoming important for consumers. F urthermore, Apple devices and software attract customers for their convinience, their ease of use and for always being up-to-date with the newest technology. Apple has also collaborated with large brand companies like Nike, Starbucks, CocaCola and Google,which has had beneficial impacts on both Apple and their partners and has created a new profile, e.g. linking sports and music culture. Weaknesses: First off all there is to say that although the interconnection between the iPod/iPhone and iTunes has been a key factor to Apples success this restriction could become a problem in the future, as more and more customers are looking for devices and online portals that allow them to download MP3s to any MP3 capable device. Moreover, Apple has only a very limited offer of DRM-Free tracks on iTunes, which can be defined as a strong weakness since an increasing number of customers fancy DRM-Free downloads. Another weakness for Apple lies in its pricing, especially for its iPhone. A Mintel research about the mobile phone market in the UK defined pricing and costs to be the most important factor when it comes to purchasing a phone (Mintel, 2007). Also, the iPhone currently doesnt allow the costumer to directly download files to the mobile, which, compared to the new Nokia N-Series, is a enormous weakness, since it could prevent customers to buy the Apple device and go for the N okia handset instead. This could lead to a loss of Apples market share to its competitor Nokia. Also, technically, the iPhone isnt quiet as good as its competitor the Nokia N95, as it runs on a slower mobile data service and comes only with a 2 Megapixel camera. Another weakness for Apple is, that theyve only chosen one operator in each country where the iPhone is available and thus has restricted the consumers choice of network operators. Threats: The comanys biggest threat probably constitutes the entrance of Nokia into the digital download market. By providing the opportunity to directly download files to a handset device, Nokia could gain some of Apples a market share in the digital download market, since customers are increasingly fancying mobile downloads that dont restrict them to a bulky pc or laptop. The mobile download market is one of the most opportunity-rich markets the world has ever seen, as Nokias Chief Executive Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo states (Halper,2007), and if Apple doesnt catch up fast on this opportunity it is running risk to loose its superiour market position to Nokia. Another threat for Apple constitutes the launch of online portals that are specialized in marketing DRM-Free tracks. More and more customers are looking for music that doesnt restrict them to a certain number of copies or to a special device as it is the case with iTunes and the iPod. Although Apple is currently trying to improve it s choice of DRM-Free tracks, it still lacks the greater choice and lower price of companies such as Amazon which could lead to custmers switching over from Apple to those in terms of DRM more convinincing sites. Also the threat of illegal download sites would have an negative impact, due to the availability of free digital content that could sway customers away from Apples iTunes. Opportunities: Although currently especially the youth customer segment is seen as the major target group for downloading, as these customers seem to be less restrictive towards new technologies, providing more substantial and sophisticated products and services for older and wealthier people could proof very profitable for Apple. With the launch of its iPhone Apple has already done an important move into the mobile phone market that might allow the company to challenge its biggest threat Nokia on their home market. As more and more customers are increasingly becoming aware of innovative techologies and of the benefits arising out of Internet downloading Apple should now take advantage of the great opportunities arising from the fast growing mobile phone download market by making its services directly downloadable to its iPhone as its rival Nokia has already done. Also, the upcoming change in the digital download industry towards ad-supported content could be an opportunity for Apple , if the company manages to strike advertising deals with companies that allow Apple to offer services for free to customers who agree to watching ads. This could bring a whole new bunch of customers to the company. Although these customers wont have to pay for the add-supported services, they will probably buy an iPod or an iPhone or another Apple hardware device. 10. 1 About Nokia: Although having its origins in the wood-pulp industry the finnish handset manufacturer Nokia has become a global leader in the manufacturing of mobiles and mobile networks and is now the market leader in the mobile phone market with 36% of the worlds market share. In 2006 the company sold 290 million units and therefore it sells more phones than its three nearest competitors combined. More recently the company has made a move into the mobile download market, which was considered by Nokias president and chief executive Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo to be one of the opportunity- rich markets of all time (Fildes, 2007), by launching its new multimedia online portal Ovi, which consists of the three components Nokia Music Store, N-Gage Service and Nokia Maps and acts as gateway for consumers to Nokia services. The company has done this as an answer to the announcement of Apple that it would launch a new iphone and therefore enter the mobile phone market, which constitutes a serious threat to the f innish handset manufacturer in its home market. Nokia is now going from a purely hardware-driven company to the service sector and is becoming a player in the multimedia solutions market. 10.2 Nokias Mission Statement: Nokia focuses on bringing people together by providing consumers with human technology that fulfills peoples need to communicate and share. Nokia aims to provide technology that is intuitive, beautiful and a joy to use. The companys strategy relies on growing, transforming and building its business to ensure its future success and it sees the internet as its main quest, due to the continously changing communications industry with the internet at the center of this transformation. The companys vision is a world where everyone can be connected. 10.3 Nokias new N-Series compared to Apples iPhone: Nokia has launched its new N-Series which consists of the totally new N81 device and an upgrated version of its flagship N95. The N81 is a music-orienated handset which enabels the consumer to directly download songs from the Nokia Music Store to the mobile. This opportunity makes the handset superior to Apples new Iphone as consumers no longer rely on a PC or iPod but can directly download their files to the mobile. The N81 has a 8GB memory with the capacity to store 6000 music tracks, which is about the same as the new Iphone, and it uses a 3G connectivity. The Apple iPhone uses a slow mobile data service called EDGE and that makes it about four times slower than the N81. The new N81 will cost about EUR 360 and is therefore slightly cheaper than the Apple iPhone which comes about EUR 399. The upgrated version of Nokias flagship N95 is being marketed as a multimedia device and could take on the highly praised iPhone. It comes with 8 GB of storage, a 2.8 inch screen and 3G connectivi ty and will feature a 5 Megapixel camera, which is a lot, compared to the rather dissapointing 2 Megapixel camera of the iPhone. The N95 costs about EUR 419 and is therefor sligthly more expensive than the iPhone. Technically the Nokia N-series appears to be better than the Apple iPhone since it offers a faster connectivity and a better camera but what makes it really superior to the iPhone is the fact, that the consumer can download files from the Nokia Music Store directly to the mobile. Still the highly anticipated iPhone looks more fashionable and its got the greater consumer attention since many costumers are already familiar with the Apple iPod and Apple iTunes and cant wait for the

Jealousy and Self-construal Essay -- Psychology, Emotions

Jealousy is an intrinsically relational phenomenon that is regarded as a multidimensional experience, consisting of cognitive, emotional and coping behaviors (Aylor, 2004; Fleischmann et. al, 2005; Pfeiffer and Wong, 1989; Theiss, 2006). Jealousy typically occurs when there is a potential threat to or an actual loss of a valued relationship between oneself and another due to a real or imagined rival for one’s partner’s attention (DeSteno & Salovey, 1996; Fleischmann et. al, 2005; Pfeiffer & Wong, 1989; White, 1981; White & Mullen, 1989). These real or perceived threats cause individuals to experience and respond to jealousy differently, as most researchers believe jealousy to be not a single emotion, but a combination of internal and external negative emotions. Some people may internally experience hurt, anger, and fear of loss or deterioration of an important relationship (Aylor, 2004; Pfeiffer & Wong, 1989; Strom & Aune, 2008; White & Mullen, 1989); while other peopl e may experience external displays of jealousy, such as crying, retaliating, departing, using surveillance or even becoming aggressive (Fleischmann et. al, 2005). Although jealousy appears in a variety of forms and levels of intensity, it always results from an interaction between predispositions and a triggering event. An individual’s response to jealousy may be either direct or indirect depending on the severity of the relational threat posed by a potential rival (Bevan & Tidgewell, 2009; Theiss & Solomon, 2006). Severe problems in relationships often call for direct communication to resolve the issue. Direct responses often include accosting the partner or rival in face-to-face communication. For instance, a jealous partner might approach the rival to altercat... ...e relationship and creates feelings of uneasiness or anxiety, both of which may lead to decreased intimacy. Consequently, individuals may take measures to reduce uncertainty and improve their relationship with their partner. A fourth goal is re-assessing the relationship which occurs when individuals experience discontent in their relationship, thus they may re-examine the relationship by weighing the costs and benefits attributed to the relationship. The last cognitive goal provided is restoring equity through retaliation and transpires when partners in inequitable relationships participate in behaviors prompted by the need to restore equity in the relationship (e.g., tactics that even the score). Understanding how these cognitive goals impact the experience of jealousy is an essential first step in understanding how an individual will express jealous behaviors.