Wednesday, October 30, 2019

Anthropology Questiuons Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Anthropology Questiuons - Assignment Example The people of Tiv show frustrations because they believe that they know the meaning of the story better than Bohannan. The differences in understanding of Hamlet are brought about by the fact that the locals do not understand things such as ghosts. These people also believe that water is a good thing and thus they do not believe that someone can drown in the same water. The central points within Hamlet seem to be meaningless in Tiv because the audience have different meanings and understanding of the story. The customs of the Tiv makes them find it alright that Claudius should marry the wife of his brother. From her experience in Africa, Bohannan comes to learn that different cultures understand things differently and as a result there are no values which can be considered to be universal. Womb as Oasis is a story which is based on an ethnographic research which was conducted in Hofriyat which is a village in Sudan. The author went to do the research while aware that females within t he village were taken through genital mutilation rituals but what she witnessed during her visit was way far from expectations. The researcher considered the ritual and the custom of female genital mutilation within this village to be meaningless. As days went by, the perception of the researcher for the female genital mutilation began to change as its significance began to be understood and thus its appreciation. The people within the Hofriyat practice Muslim religion and culture and are presented as having strict beliefs. The people of the village organize themselves into groups but few of them are corporate. Endogamy is practiced in the village with people marrying a close kin and preferring marrying people who did not live far away (Boddy 13). The story presents arguments which help the reader to understand the reason why the Hofriyat people persist on keeping their Pharaonic circumcision culture. Regardless of the pressure that the villagers get for the eradication of the custo m of female genital mutilation, the reasons why they keep it is described to enhance the understanding of the audience. The Pharaonic circumcision within this village is described as being related to the value of â€Å"enclosedness† which the customs and beliefs of the villagers stress within their cultural idioms. The assertion of the paper argues that the Pharaonic circumcision is meaningful for those who go through it because it de-emphasizes the concept of female sexuality while putting emphasis on fertility (Boddy 24). Question 3 The issue of space in the Nationalist Rhetoric of the Hellenic is described within ideological convergences on the politicizing cultural, educational and symbolic structures. The emphasis however lies in the need for cultural protectionism within Greece (Kaldellis 220). The National Rhetoric tries to explain the evolution of Greece and the mixed ideologies which result into disputes with Macedonia. The dispute that occurred between Greece and th e new republic of Macedonia caused challenges in international relationships. The Usage of the name

Monday, October 28, 2019

The enthalpy change of a reaction Essay Example for Free

The enthalpy change of a reaction Essay This is the equation for the reaction I intend to find the enthalpy change for. As this particular reaction is very difficult to measure the enthalpy change by carrying it out (the decomposition of CaCO3 needs a temperature of over 800i C), I must use another method and it uses Hess Law. Hess Law States: The enthalpy change for any chemical reaction is independent of the intermediate stages, provided the initial and final conditions are the same for each route. CaCO3 CaO + CO2 CaCl2 + CO2 + H2O. In simpler terms, the main point of Hess Law is that the total enthalpy change for the indirect route of a reaction is the same as the direct route, i. e. ?H1 = ? H2- ? H3. The diagram above represents a Hess Cycle or a Thermochemical Cycle. By knowing the enthalpy changes in two parts of the cycle, it is possible to calculate the third part and complete the cycle. This is how I am going to carry out my experiment. For my experiment I will: 1. ) React calcium carbonate with hydrochloric acid. 2. ) React calcium oxide with hydrochloric acid. In both of these reactions I will measure the enthalpy changes by recording the starting temperature and following the reaction, the end temperature. By following this procedure, I can calculate the change in temperature and consequently the enthalpy change. The apparatus I will need for these reactions includes: 2 x Polystyrene Cups 250ml Beaker Digital Thermometer 50ml Measuring Cylinder I decided to use a polystyrene cup so I could reduce heat loss polystyrene is an insulator, whereas if I had used glass heat loss would have been a huge influence on results. I am using a beaker so that when I need to move the reactants, I do not influence any temperature change just through my body heat. Also, the thought of the solution spilling was not a pleasant one, so in case of spillage, the beaker would catch it. The digital thermometer is much more accurate than a conventional thermometer because it reads down to 1 decimal point. Safety Apparatus: Safety glasses and lab-coat. The quantities of materials I have available: HCl (2. 0 mol dm-3) : As much as required CaCO3 : Between 2. 4g and 2. 6g CaO : As much as required. In order to determine the quantities I will need to use in the experiment, I must carry out a few simple calculations. Here is the equation for the first reaction I will carry out, involving CaCO3 and HCl. CaCO3 + 2HCl CaCl2 + H2O + CO2 This equation shows that 2 moles of HCl are needed for every 1 mole of CaCO3 to react. Using this information I can calculate the volume of HCl I will need in the reaction. I first need to find the number of moles of CaCO3 will be in the reaction: Number of Moles = Mass Relative Formula Mass No. of moles of CaCO3 2. 5g 100 0. 025 moles of CaCO3 Now I need to calculate the minimum amount of HCl I will need in the reaction. (Adding more would not affect the results because rate of reaction has no relevance to the experiment. All that is important in this reaction is that it is completed. ) Volume = Moles Concentration Volume of HCl 0. 05 (twice as many as CaCO3, as required) 2 0. 025 dm3 of HCl I now know that the quantities I require, in the first experiment, are as follows: CaCo3 About 2. 5g HCl 50cm3 (25cm3 is minimum any less will affect results). In the second reaction, involving Calcium Oxide and Hydrochloric acid, the equation is: CaO + 2HCl CaCl2 + H2O Again, like the first reaction, 2 moles of HCl are required to react with 1 mole of CaO. To keep things simple, I am going to use the same number of moles of CaO as CaCO3. Mass = Moles x Relative Formula Mass Mass of CaO needed = 0. 025 x 56 1. 4g Volume of HCl needed 0. 05 (twice as many as Ca0, as required) 2 0. 025 dm3 In order to carry out these experiments, the following directions should be carried out carefully. Method for reaction 1: CaCO3 and HCl. Add 2. 5g of CaCO3 to a polystyrene cup.   Place the polystyrene cup in a beaker.   Add 50cm3 of HCl to a 50ml measuring cylinder. Measure the temperature of the HCl.   Add the HCl to the CaCO3 and measure the end temperature. Once I have measured the end temperature I will compare it to the start temperature and calculate the temperature change. Method for reaction 2: CaO and HCl Add 1. 4g of CaO to a polystyrene cup. Place the polystyrene cup in a beaker.   Add 50cm3 of HCl to a 50ml measuring cylinder.   Measure the temperature of the HCl. Add the HCl to the CaO and measure the end temperature. Again, once I have measured the end temperature I will compare it to the start temperature and calculate the temperature change. Once the temperature changes have been calculated ? H needs to be found. Once all of the enthalpy changes have been calculated, follow the equation ? H1= ? H2- ? H3 Risk Assessment The substances which I am using are both fairly dangerous and have the potential to cause serious damage. Hydrochloric acid can cause burns and is irritating to the respiratory system. The molarity I am using is only irritant but this is still not pleasant. The only form of protection that is really needed while using HCl is to wear safety glasses. Calcium oxide causes burns and is irritating to the eyes, skin and respiratory system. Again, only eye protection is really needed with the use of this substance. By using my plan, I expect to get accurate and consistent results as I have calculated the exact amounts of substances needed and factors which will affect results, such as heat loss. Nothing in my experiment will give inaccurate or varied results as long as the method is followed strictly, i. e. correct and precise measurements of substances. The only way the experiment can be inaccurate therefore is through human error. Sources used in devising my plan:   Haz-Cards. Chemical Ideas, Second Edition Burton, Holman, Lazonby, Pilling, Waddington.   Class work notes Show preview only The above preview is unformatted text This student written piece of work is one of many that can be found in our GCSE Patterns of Behaviour section.

Saturday, October 26, 2019

Sir Isaac Newton vs Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz :: Sir Isaac Newton Essays

Sir Isaac Newton and Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz are two of the most supreme intellects of the 17th century. They are both considered to be the inventors of Calculus. However, after a terrible dispute, Sir Isaac Newton took most of the credit. Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz (1646-1716) was a German philosopher, mathematician, and statesman born in the country of Leipzig. He received his education at the universities of Leipzig, Jena, and Altdorf. He received a doctorate in law. He devoted much of his time to the principle studies of mathematics, science, and philosophy. Leibniz's contribution in mathematics was in the year 1675, when he discovered the fundamental principles of infinitesimal calculus. He arrived at this discovery independently at the same time along with the English scientist Sir Isaac Newton in 1666. However, Leibniz's system was published in 1684, three years before Newton published his. Also at this time Leibniz's method of notation, known as mathematical symbols, were adopted universally. He also contributed in 1672 by inventing a calculating machine that was capable of multiplying, dividing, and extracting square roots. All this made him to be considered a pioneer in the developement of mathematical logic. Sir Isaac Newton is the other major figure in the development of Calculus. He was an English mathemetician and physcist, whose considered to be one of the greatest scientists in history. Newton was born on December 25, 1642 at Woolsthorpe, near Grantham in Lincolnshire. He attended Trinity College, at the University of Cambridge. He received his bachelor's degree in 1665 and received his master's degree in 1668. However, there he ignored much of the universities established curriculum to pursue his own interests: mathematics and natural philosophy. Almost immediately, he made fundamental discoveries in both areas. Newtons dicoveries was made up of several different things. It consisted of combined infinite sums which are known as infinite series. It also consisted of the binomial theorem for frational exponents and the algebraic expression of the inverse relation between tangents and areas into methods that we refer to today as calculus. However, the story is not that simple. Being that both men were so-called universal geniuses, they realized that in different ways they were entitled to have the credit for â€Å"inventing calculus†. Both engaged in a violent dispute over priority in the invention of calculus. Unfortunately, Newton had the upper hand, considering that he was the president of the Royal Society. He used this position to to select a committee that would investigate the unsolved question. Apparently, Newton included himself on this committee (illegally) and submitted a false report that charged Leibniz with deliberate plagiarism. He was also the one who compiled the book of evidence that the â€Å"society† was Sir Isaac Newton vs Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz :: Sir Isaac Newton Essays Sir Isaac Newton and Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz are two of the most supreme intellects of the 17th century. They are both considered to be the inventors of Calculus. However, after a terrible dispute, Sir Isaac Newton took most of the credit. Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz (1646-1716) was a German philosopher, mathematician, and statesman born in the country of Leipzig. He received his education at the universities of Leipzig, Jena, and Altdorf. He received a doctorate in law. He devoted much of his time to the principle studies of mathematics, science, and philosophy. Leibniz's contribution in mathematics was in the year 1675, when he discovered the fundamental principles of infinitesimal calculus. He arrived at this discovery independently at the same time along with the English scientist Sir Isaac Newton in 1666. However, Leibniz's system was published in 1684, three years before Newton published his. Also at this time Leibniz's method of notation, known as mathematical symbols, were adopted universally. He also contributed in 1672 by inventing a calculating machine that was capable of multiplying, dividing, and extracting square roots. All this made him to be considered a pioneer in the developement of mathematical logic. Sir Isaac Newton is the other major figure in the development of Calculus. He was an English mathemetician and physcist, whose considered to be one of the greatest scientists in history. Newton was born on December 25, 1642 at Woolsthorpe, near Grantham in Lincolnshire. He attended Trinity College, at the University of Cambridge. He received his bachelor's degree in 1665 and received his master's degree in 1668. However, there he ignored much of the universities established curriculum to pursue his own interests: mathematics and natural philosophy. Almost immediately, he made fundamental discoveries in both areas. Newtons dicoveries was made up of several different things. It consisted of combined infinite sums which are known as infinite series. It also consisted of the binomial theorem for frational exponents and the algebraic expression of the inverse relation between tangents and areas into methods that we refer to today as calculus. However, the story is not that simple. Being that both men were so-called universal geniuses, they realized that in different ways they were entitled to have the credit for â€Å"inventing calculus†. Both engaged in a violent dispute over priority in the invention of calculus. Unfortunately, Newton had the upper hand, considering that he was the president of the Royal Society. He used this position to to select a committee that would investigate the unsolved question. Apparently, Newton included himself on this committee (illegally) and submitted a false report that charged Leibniz with deliberate plagiarism. He was also the one who compiled the book of evidence that the â€Å"society† was

Thursday, October 24, 2019

Compare Barak Obama’s and Martin Luther King’s persuasive speeches

Barak Obama and Martin Luther King are two very important historical people that helped America return to it ideals. Obama is the first black president of the United States, elected in 2008. King was the moral leader of the civil rights movements; he was fighting for legal equality for black people. King was addressing the 1963 March on Washington to the black and white supporters in favour of civil rights. His profession as a pastor and his pacifist beliefs influenced his speech; also he was a preacher and strongly believed in non violence. The result of his speech and the movement he led was a direct turning point and change of law, which soon lead to the end of segregation. Later on, indirectly it led to the election of the first black president. Barak Obama was addressing his supporters after the election in 2008, when he made his speech. A few things influenced Obama’s speech, including his election as the first black president and his need to unite all parties. Also, this was the time of the credit crunch and many people were losing their jobs, this was a big influence. In Martin Luther King’s speech he uses a range of persuasive techniques to engage his audience. For example, he uses similes and metaphors to illustrate points he talks about that are more difficult to understand, so his audience always recognizes what he is trying to get across. For instance, King quotes â€Å"we will not be satisfied until justice rolls down like waters and righteousness like a mighty stream.† This makes King’s point very clear about how he wants justice to flow as if it were normal and with discretion. He also uses references to the declaration of independence and emphasises the idea of equality. King quotes â€Å"this note was a promise that all men would be guaranteed the inalienable rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.† This is showing that equality is not just an opinion, but a right that everyone has and it should be accepted and pursued because it is a state of law. King has used emotive language also to capture the audience’s attention. He quotes â€Å"we are free at last†; he repeats this line many times because it really impacts on how you look at segregation, as if it’s slavery or punishment. King really absorbs his audience into what he’s saying by using emotive language because it connects with them and controls their emotions. There is much more persuasive language and rhetoric manipulated in King’s speech but another of the main features is the sound patterns he uses, for example, onomatopoeia and alliteration. He quotes â€Å"by the colour of their skin but by the content of their character.† The ‘c’s alliterate here, and ‘c’ is a percussive consonant that really impacts the message, the ‘b’s also have this affect. He uses this because it gives the speech a rhythm and makes it more interesting to listen to. In President Barak Obama’s speech he also uses a range of persuasive techniques to engage his audience. Like King, he uses many similes and metaphors to help describe or make a point, also to encourage the audience to draw a link between two obviously unrelated things, and find similarities between them. Obama quotes ‘Every so often the oath is taken amidst gathering clouds and raging storms’ meaning, â€Å"Every so often the oath is taken amidst a political situation as brutal as a gathering storm† or â€Å"Every so often the oath is taken when the money has run out.† Obama uses a clear, powerful metaphor that allows the audience to completely realize that â€Å"gathering clouds and raging storms† refers to the current US recession. Obama also used references to the declaration of independence like King did but in a slightly different way. He quotes ‘America has carried on†¦ because We the People have remained faithful to the ideals of our forebears, and true to our founding documents.’ He refers back to this to remind and mainly thank his audience for remaining loyal and essentially following the ways of the declaration of independence and Martin Luther King. Something that both Obama and King too both used a great deal was the rule of three. This is when the speaker narrows a subject down to three major points which all link. Obama quotes ‘Homes have been lost, jobs shed, businesses shuttered.’ He uses these three because they are very strong and important. Using this rule makes a powerful impression to the audience on the topic, showing that it is a key issue. Repetition and imperative commands are core techniques used in all great speeches, it really highlights what, in this case, Obama and also King are trying to convey. In Obama’s speech, he repeats the words ‘Yes We Can’ quite a few times after talking about change or progress. This shows that he trying to imply that anything is achievable if you have the determination and strength to carry on and accomplish what you set out for. He uses this as a sort of catch phrase for the speech as a whole, as the main focus. The two speeches I have discussed are very much linked, with Martin Luther King being a direct impact on the banning of segregation and Barack Obama being the first black president they and their speeches relate. There are many similarities between the two, such as they both refer back to the declaration of independence and both use most of the same persuasive language and rhetoric in their speeches. The difference is that they aren’t exactly giving their speech on the same precise topic. The purpose of Martin Luther King’s speech was to explain to why black people should have rights along with white people, in which he called racial equality and end to discrimination. Whereas Barack Obama’s speech’s focused on the subjects of racial tensions, white privilege, and race and inequality in the United States, discussing black â€Å"anger,† white â€Å"resentment,† and other issues, his speech closed with a request to move beyond America's â€Å"racial stalemate† and concentrate on shared social problems. Both these speeches are very powerful, influential and convincing, they really explain their points well and make the audience aware of the problem or situation, they have a very persuasive tone, as a speech should have.

Wednesday, October 23, 2019

Purpose and Use of HRMS

Every organization has a set of employees working together to achieve the same goals known as the â€Å"human resource† of the organization. These people in turn are handled by another set of employees known as the â€Å"human resource management†. As the fast growing environment and the technology is becoming an active part of the daily exchanges in the business environment, companies are forced to implement latest tools to compete in the fast paced world. One of the tools utilized by the managers to counter the activities of the human resource management is to utilize the human resource management systems or they may also be called human resource information systems. These systems make a direct link with the human resource management and the information technology, enhancing the competence of the organization. Moreover, their main purpose is to automate the activities handled by the human resource management which in turn boosts the efficiency of the department. FINDINGS: Focusing on the purpose and uses of the human resource information systems, let’s look at the reason why managers want to implement these systems in the first place. There comes a time when your business is generating large profits and there is an immense amount of information that needs to be stored; be it about your employees or about the organization itself, there has to be a database securing this information. To ensure the security of this information along with reduction in paper work, organization of data, reorganization of processes, maintenance of profits and the employees an organization may require a human resource management system. These systems serve various purposes and hence, incorporate a lot of modules. Their main focus is on the employee information. First to mention is the Payroll module which takes a note of the attendance of the employees after which it automatically calculates various taxes that they are supposed to pay and also the deductions if any. This helps to reduce all the paper work and calculations; the only manual work done over here is to enter the attendance of the employees. The Work Time module takes care of the time along with the work efforts that the employees need to put in. This information is eminent in order to keep the costs of the organization low and efficiency high. Thirdly, there is the Benefit Administration module which basically focuses on making the employees involved in the benefit programs. These programs generally include compensation, insurance, retirement benefits and so on and so forth. The next module is known as the Human Resource management module. It helps managers to evaluate and analyze employees through their data provided and also takes care of the training and development of the employees and what skills do they encompass. There have been great advancements in technology and such systems have also been developed which tap relevant applicants and put them in the right database for further evaluation by the managers. Another similar module which focuses only on training is known as the Training module. It keeps a check of the skills, education and what type of learning the employee has and suggests books, CDs and other various platforms which may enhance their learning. A cost check is also kept by them, telling what training may cause what expenditures. The next module, known as the Employee Self-Service module enables the employees to check records of their attendance and also question the records if ever a problem is faced, without having to go directly to the HR personnel. It helps them to perform transactions related to the human resource department and ask questions related to the department. Basically this facilitates the employees to solve their own matter. All of these modules combine together to help the organization as a whole. The human resource unit is benefitted as it improves their decision making capability and aids them in providing their best to their customers/clients. It integrates all information into an Enterprise Resource Planning system which further enhances the capabilities of the organization. It promotes organizational and operational efficiency along with making the managers more intricate about their decisions and strategic planning. These systems can be used to achieve the objectives of the organization as well as establish a competitive advantage. As a lot of time of the HR activities is spent on activities which are transactional in nature, these modules may aid the purpose of those activities and help simplify the work. As mentioned above these modules activate the payroll and benefit activities serving the use of such modules. Also do they take into account the Equal Employment Opportunities by looking at various employees and their qualifications. Thirdly there comes the benefit that the employees gain due to an easy access of all the data. The self service provider module for instance aids the employees to get greater access to the human resource information which in turn reduces HR costs. These systems help to analyze the whole organization, looking at the absenteeism analysis, skills inventories, internal job matching, affirmative action plan, applicant tracking, workforce utilization, training needs assessment and so and so forth all give a clear picture to the HR managers of what the organization needs and what it should do to acquire its targets. HRMS facilitate employees by making data more accessible as no human contact is required which takes up most of the time in understanding the query of the employee. Another important factor is that bulletin boards again enhance the information spread throughout the organization as it is accessible to employees globally. They provide a platform through which data can be transferred electronically between vendors and the employees making the whole process swift and smooth. RECOMMENDATIONS: Looking at various uses and the purpose of the Human Resource Management Systems a few recommendations are as follows: * HRMS systems should also introduce a transparent mechanism through which employees are evaluated against their peers, to get a clear picture as to where they stand in the organization. This may enhance their motivation to do better and increase their ranking to become a more valued asset to the organization as it is visible to everybody. This can be included in the self sufficient module where employees can check each other’s ranking. These systems can also incorporate reports of the competitors; about their pay packages and benefits given so as to compare there’s with them; making the organization never lag behind in satisfying their employees. It should always remain up to date with the current scenarios of their competitors and look at the factors in which they need to improve themselves to motivate employees as compared to their c ompetitors. This information may only be available for the use of the human resource department. Another piece of information which may be generated from these systems is to generate productivity reports of each employee. Notice how much effort and time one employee is putting in and what the results are. The employee with the highest productivity may then be rewarded and based as a bench mark to evaluate other performances. * Certain surveys can be occasionally conducted to check the morale of the employees and seek what is there that is missing from the organizations point to satisfy them. Through online responses these systems can generate reports and infer what common problems employees face. * Also HRMS can hold information as to what other types of jobs would the employees like to do. This can come in handy for situations when managers want to utilize job rotation, job enlargement or job enrichment. This can make them aware that in what other activities a person is good in and how could that be put to use. CONCLUSION: HRMS, along with increasing the efficiency of the organization, also standardize the processes making employees utilize easier and quicker mechanisms. Their use and purpose for an organization is mostly administrative and they fulfill it ideally. It provides an effective framework to utilize and administer the human capital of a company. By the help of IT professionals these systems are generated and transformed from initially being the main frame â€Å"client server† architectures. Overall, as viewed through various insights it can be concluded that much of the work that is done manually is taken over by these systems for better management of processes and a well integrated company is a result of implementing these systems. They allow managers to employ them in such a way that it becomes an â€Å"effortless† job for the managers to keep a track of various activities: focusing on recruitment, employee turnover, problems and so and so forth. A company making use of these systems in the right way has a great chance to prosper.

Tuesday, October 22, 2019

Cooking With Your Children

Cooking With Your Children Free Online Research Papers How many parents take the time to cook with their children? How many of you were taught to cook by your parents or someone else in your family? I actually started cooking with my mother when I was 6 years old rolling out bread dough to make crescent rolls (homemade, of course). Due to my childhood experience, I now cook with my children at least twice a week. Since I am normally only home on the weekends to see my children, I use this time for bonding; as well as for teaching them skills that they will need in order to survive in today’s world, better known as life skills. Cooking with your children is great way to strengthen family bonds, while enforcing math and life skills. First, cooking with your children can create strong family bonds. This provides the opportunity for spending quality time with your children. While preparing meals, daily discussions regarding current topics in and about their lives are abound (â€Å"How was your day†, â€Å"What did you do in class†, â€Å"Have you spoken to your grandmother†). These discussions during meal preparation can lead to enjoyable moments that children tend to remember as they grow older. They then share these experiences and moments with their children (Eisenhower). In the words of my favorite T.V. Cook, Alton Brown of â€Å"Good Eats†, â€Å"Cooking with children is just plain fun†. How can you not have fun in the kitchen while cooking with your children? Yes, it can be messy; yes, it can be time consuming; but that is what makes it a fun learning environment. Make mistakes, get messy, have fun. Secondly, cooking with your children will teach them a necessary life skill, a required skill that they will need in order to survive on their own. Cooking not only teaches food preparation, but also educates them on making healthy food choices (Eisenhower; Ryan). By allowing them to cook for themselves, they are not dependent on fast food or constant dining out. It also teaches the principles of time management. For example, if for dinner we are having a roast that requires four hours of cooking then they need to consider that the additional sides or â€Å"fixings† should be prepared in a sequence that would allow them all to be ready at the same time as the roast. These basic life skills of cooking and time management are important for your child and are necessary for them to survive. Third, cooking with your children helps to reinforce their math skills. Having your child count the beans or carrot sticks gives them a reason to count. It makes counting fun purposeful or â€Å"Purposeful Counting† (Marinelli). Employing your children in the kitchen can be fun and will reinforce their measuring skills. Using the volume method of measuring, such as one-quarter cup of flour or two cups of sugar, helps children to visualize the actual measurement. In my household, we also use ruler measurements when baking. When making cinnamon rolls we measure the length and width of the rolled dough for proper sizing. In the case of the cinnamon roll dough, we are looking for a perfect rectangle. In other baking situations, we will use other geometric shapes including circles, triangles, squares, cones. Cooking also teaches and reinforces their skills at telling time, which will assist with proper time management. Such as with the aforementioned roast, if you put it in t he oven at 4 P.M. and it takes one and half-hours to cook, you can ask, at what time does the roast have to be taken out of the oven? Having your children count, measure and tell time can reinforces those skills with â€Å"Purposeful Counting†. These activities conducted in a fun atmosphere and used in â€Å"real world† situations reinforce the basic life skills that are important. In conclusion, Cooking with your children can create a naturally fun environment for family bonding. It gives them some of the skills, cooking and time management, they will need to survive. As well, cooking reinforces their math skills by letting them use what they have learned in a â€Å"real world† situation. Taking the time to cook with your children will create stronger family bonds, teach them basic life skills that they will need as they grow older and reinforces many math skills that they will not only be able to utilize at home but in school too. Brown, Alton. â€Å"Apple Family Values† Foodnetwork.com, Food Network Season 2 Episode EA1B03 Video. Eisenhower, Julie. Cooking With Children. The Saturday Evening Post , Curtis Publishing August 1975, 94-110 Print. Marinelli, Noel. Count Cook. Scholastic Parent Child, Scholastic Publishing March 2006, 73 Print. Ryan, Kelley Andrea. Cooking With Kids. Nebraska Kitchens, Nebraska Life Publishing June 20088, 37-39 Print. Research Papers on Cooking With Your ChildrenEffects of Television Violence on ChildrenPersonal Experience with Teen PregnancyInfluences of Socio-Economic Status of Married MalesHip-Hop is ArtRelationship between Media Coverage and Social andComparison: Letter from Birmingham and CritoBook Review on The Autobiography of Malcolm XThe Spring and AutumnMarketing of Lifeboy Soap A Unilever ProductThe Effects of Illegal Immigration

Monday, October 21, 2019

Cro- Magnons

entrances, while others built huts in forested areas. As better hunting methods developed, Cro-Magnons built more permanent homes. Long houses holding many families were made of stone blocks. There is archaeological evidence that communities of 30 to 100 people lived together. To their technological advances, the Cro- Magnons added accomplished artistry. They creat- ed cave paintings like those found at Lascaux (la .sKOH) and Vallon-Pont-d' Arc (vah. YOHN pohn DAHRK), both in France, as well as those at numerous other cave sites in Spain and Africa. Researchers so far can only speculate on the pur- pose behind the mysterious wall images. Perhaps the hunting scenes were educational, designed to teach young hunters how to recognize prey. On the other hand, the Cro-Magnon painters may have been reaching out to the spiritual world, creating images meant to have mystical powers that would help the hunters. Archaeologists have discovered some Cro- Magnon figures sculpted from clay or carved from reindeer antlers. They have also found figures of ivory and bone decorated with animal drawings and abstract designs. Some of these artifacts may well have been used in magic rituals and probably reflect Cro-Magnon beliefs about spirits thought to live in animals, plants, the earth, and the sky. During the Neolithic period and immediately after, humanity made one of its greatest cultural advances. New environments had developed with the end of the last Ice Age, and forests and grass- lands appeared in many areas. Over some 5,000 years, people gradually shifted from gathering and hunting food to producing food. Because new agri- cultural methods led to tremendous changes in peoples' lifestyles, this period is usually called the Neolithic Revolution.

Sunday, October 20, 2019

Idioms and Expressions - Draw

Idioms and Expressions - Draw Here are  idioms with the verb  draw  in English. For each idiom, study the definition and read the example sentences.  Next, take the quiz to check your knowledge of what youve learned.  To learn more idioms, you can also use  short stories providing idioms in context. Draw a Blank Use draw a blank  to express that you do  not know the answer to a question: Im afraid Im drawing a blank. I just dont know what to do.Who is that person over there? Im drawing a blank. Draw a Line Between   Use draw a line between  with two objects to show that you  separate one activity from another:   You should draw a line between your private life and work.Some people have a hard time drawing a line between friends and family. Draw Blood   Use draw blood  to express that something or someone has  caused someone to bleed. This idiom is also used figuratively to express that someone hurt another emotionally: He drew blood during his last five boxing matches.She drew blood when she began to put down his friend.   Draw Interest Use draw interest  to indicate that something has  created interest or become popular: Any time a new movie comes out, youll see articles in magazines trying to draw interest to the movie.His crazy comments drew interest during the presidential campaign. Draw Someone Out   Use draw someone out  when you are  asking questions in order to get someone to speak in detail about something: Make sure to ask her lots of questions. Its hard to draw her out and shell try to keep everything secret.If you keep asking questions, you can draw anyone out on almost any subject. Draw Something Out Use  draw something out  to refer to a process that takes place over a long period  of time: The chairman drew the meeting out for over two hours.Its a good idea to not draw out your presentation for too long. Draw Fire Away From Something Use draw fire away from something  when someone  creates a distraction so that people dont pay attention to something else: Id like you to go out and draw fire away from the institution.Politicians dont answer direct questions in order to draw fire away from something that has gone wrong. Draw Something to a Close Use draw something to a close  to express that you would like to  finish  something in progress: Lets draw this meeting to a close by reviewing the decisions weve made.If you dont mind, Id like to draw dinner to a close. Ive got an early flight tomorrow. Draw Something Up Use draw something up after having reached a verbal agreement when you intend a write a contract, proposal, or report based on the agreement: Now that weve agreed. Lets draw a contract up and get to work.Could you draw up a proposal for next weeks meeting? Draw the Line at Something Use draw the line at something  to show that you will tolerate something up to a certain point: Im afraid I draw the line at speaking poorly of my friends.If you were in a difficult position, would you draw the line at breaking the law to resolve your situation? Draw to a Close Use draw to a close  to indicate that something has come to an end: Thank you, Mary. And with that, our presentation draws to a close. Thank you for coming this evening.Id like to draw the class to a close. Remember to do your homework for Monday. Beat Someone to the Draw Use  beat someone to the draw  when you are quicker than someone else in obtaining something: He beat me to the draw and won the auction.Jennifer beat us to the draw and arrived an hour earlier. Quick on the Draw Use  quick on the draw  to show that someone is quick to do or understand  something: She was quick to the draw on buying that handbag.ï » ¿Im afraid youll have to be quicker on the draw on such a good deal. Quiz Use one of the  idioms with draw to complete the blanks. Be careful to use the correct form of the verb draw: The new actor from South Africa is _________. I think shell be a huge success.Id like you to _________ a contract by the end of next week.She told me she ______________ her work and her family, so she wouldnt work more than 20 hours overtime.The politician _________ at the death penalty.  If you can _________ from my scandal, Ill make sure you get all of my business for the next two years.I dont know answer. Im _________.You _________ me  __________, so go ahead and take the last one on sale.Id like to _________ the meeting _________. Thank you all for coming.  Ask her as many questions as you can, so you can _________. Shes a fox!I promise I didnt _________ when I hit him!I tried to ________ her ________ on the details for the deal, but she wouldnt tell me anything.Shes very ____________ and understands almost everything immediately. Answers drawing interestdraw up  drew the line betweendrew the line at / draws the line atdraw fire away  drawing a blankbeat me to the drawdraw the meeting to a closedraw her outdraw blooddraw her outquick on the draw

Saturday, October 19, 2019

Economic Impact of the Cocoa Industry Case Study

Economic Impact of the Cocoa Industry - Case Study Example It lies between Liberia and Ghana and borders the North Atlantic Ocean. Other neighboring countries are Mali and Burkina Faso in the north, Guinea in the east, and the Gulf of Guinea in the south. (Central Intelligence Agency) Its principal city is Abidjan, which is the economic and political capital of the country. Yamoussoukro is its official capital city. (Bureau of African affairs) Ivory coast plays a major role in the economic and political stability of the whole of Western Africa, with people from poorer neighboring countries relying on it to provide employment.Felix Houphouet-Boigny was the main political figure leading the rebuilding of the country after the World War II. Consequently, he became the country’s president after it achieved independence in 1960. He motioned for the improvement of the conditions of the African farmers and other laborers. He believed that the path to African harmony was through gradual economic and political cooperation, recognizing the prin ciple of laissez faire in the internal relationships. The country began to prosper with the help and cooperation given by France. Up to now, France remains as one of the major markets of the country. In the 1980s the country's economy began to suffer as the population began to grow. This caused the decline in the county’s standard of living. â€Å"A failed coup in September 2002 left Cote d’Ivoire divided between a rebel-held north and government-controlled south transforming the country from a regional economic miracle to a conflict hot-spot.†Ã¢â‚¬  (IRIN) Today, the Ivory Coast is struggling to maintain economic and political vitality. Ivorian Economy Since the colonial period, the Ivorian economy is chiefly market based and depends a lot on the agricultural sector. Together with forestry, and fisheries, the three sectors account for a considerable part of the country’s Gross Domestic Product and of exports. â€Å"Almost 70% of the Ivorian people are involved in agricultural activity in one way or the other† (Cote d'Ivoire). As a result, the country’s economy fluctuates from time to time, depending on the international prices of its agricultural products, and productivity according to whether conditions. Its main products and exports are cocoa beans, coffee, and palm oil. Other principal exports are banana, cotton, pineapple, tuna, rubber, and tropical woods. Table 1 shows the ups and downs in Ivory Coast’s economy from 1980 up to 2005. Table 1 Gross Domestic Product and Dollar exchange rate of Ivory Coast from 1980 to 2005 (International Monetary Fund) Year Gross Domestic Product US Dollar Exchange 1980 2,121,163 211.27 Francs 1985 3,077,900 449.26 Francs 1990 2,939,400 272.26 Francs 1995 5,490,706 499.10 Francs 2000 7,416,793 709.87 Francs 2005 8,532,387 526.56 Francs Year 1990 has the lowest GDP although the CFA stands strong against the American Dollar. There was no drastic change in the economy until 1990. In the succeeding years, there was noticeable increase in the country’s GDP, but the country’s currency value decreased. Increase in GDP may be due to the country’s oil produce. On the other hand, the slump of CFA Franc in 2000 is largely caused by loss of foreign investors and decrease in agricultural profit due to the civil war. â€Å"To reduce the economic fluctuations caused by price variability, the government encourages diversification in export and intermediate processing of cocoa beans†. (Bureau of African affairs) â€Å"Despite attempts by the government to diversify the economy, it is still largely dependent on agriculture and related activities, which engage roughly 68% of the population†. (Wikimedia Foundation Inc.) The government continues to be optimistic that the

Friday, October 18, 2019

A study of the financial sector in Saudi Arabia differentiating Essay

A study of the financial sector in Saudi Arabia differentiating between conventional loans & Murabaha financing - Essay Example Further, the section will also discuss about the basic aims and objectives of the paper. The next section of the paper will be of the theoretical perspective in which the actual meaning of the conventional financing and Murabaha financing according to theories will be discussed. In the next chapter, an intensive review of various literary sources will be presented through which different aspects about Murabaha financing and current market scenario of Saudi Arabia will be presented. The next chapter will discuss the methodology being used for the research. Further, in the next section, analysis of the information gathered in the previous section will be presented. The next section of the paper will present several recommendations about the topic on the basis of the research. At last, the paper will conclude in the last section, i.e. conclusion. Table of content Chapter 1: Introduction...................................................................................................... ... 4 1.1 Aims and Objectives of the research.................................................................. 4 1.2 Research Questions ........................................................................................... 6 Chapter 2: Theoretical perspective ....................................................................................... ... ............................................................................................... 14 Chapter 4: Methodology  and Research design.......................................................................18 4.1 Library Research Method for Data Collection ....................................................22 4.2 Case study analysis methods ...............................................................................24 4.3 limitations of the research and research design .................................................. 25 Chapter 5 Findings and analysis.............................................................................................28 5.1 Findings from literature review .......................................................................... 28 5.2 Findings from case study .................................................................................... 35 Chapter 6: Recommendations ........................................................................ ...................... 44 Chapter 7: Conclusion ........................................................................................................... 45 Chapter 8: References ............................................................................................................47 Chapter: 9 Appendix ............................................................................................................. 51 1. Introduction Finance is one of the most important aspects of business activities of each and every country. Simply, finance stands for the allocation as well as management of available resources. It also includes the process of acquisition or investing activities of a firm. Basically finance is considered as blood of the organization which is

Report and project plan Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Report and project plan - Essay Example Due to numbers of internal and external problems and issues, the company’s Board of Directors has decided to overhaul the whole company in all aspects. The board is aimed to formulate a plan to bring revolutionary changes in the working and operational environment of the company. Spector (2010), states that managers are generally more responsible to carry out such kind of revolutionary plans. The detailed report of this project plan is summarized in the form of Gantt chart prepared by Microsoft Office Project as Appendix-I. The main aims and objectives for the plan are: Establishing a vertical integration structure so that dependability of Pipework is minimized on external agencies Setting up of integrated information technology system throughout the company Improve the overall standards and minimizing the grievances of the workforce Enforcing of democratic leadership style instead of autocratic style Improving the quality control TASK 1: VERTICAL INTEGRATION STRUCTURE Pipewor k is not directly related to selling. Basically it is a manufacturing company which deals with the manufacturing of pipes, boiler, and household items. Besides several administrative and non-technical issues, the company is also facing challenges at its production and quality department. These challenges include some macro level issues like political and economic constraints in different countries. In respect of production, company is not capable of making the branded items. For manufacturing of some accessories or certain parts of an item, Pipework is highly dependent on other manufacturing organizations. Thus bargaining power of suppliers is high. As far as quality of production is concerned, the imported items are not conforming to the desired specifications. Although, company has managed to procure some manufactured items from third world countries, but even then boilers manufactured from Taiwan and Korea has created difficult conditions for Pipework because their prices are rel atively too low. Pipework cannot compete the price war because it has to cost extra amount on transportation of goods from other countries as well as the custom and import duties take the prices even more high. In recent years, the situation has reduced the overall revenue of the company. Therefore, in order to improve the market share, Board of Directors has intended to invest heavily on the vertical integration structure in the company. A vertically integrated company is generally independent of external supporting factors thus becomes more competitive (Slack, 2010). Zara fashion retailer and Apple Inc. are excellent examples of vertically integrated companies. Successful execution of this plan will not only generate the turnover of the company but will also support it to set up other tasks effectively. Objectives To reduce the dependency on external agencies, setting up a well-established vertically integrated structure in the company. It will be executed by: Setting up of separa te independent plants equipped with latest design and

Thursday, October 17, 2019

Hogarth print and the enlightenment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Hogarth print and the enlightenment - Essay Example With his new art, he was able to reach countless audience by making engravings of the paintings and selling them at low prices1. He therefore created art for aristocratic patrons as well as the public sphere that came together through the print medium to reflect on issues of general concern. Generally, Hogarth’s work brought dynamic influences on the public sphere which developed into an entity able to generate new ideas and challenge beliefs that were supported by the state. His first ‘modern moral subject’ called A Harlot’s Progress was produced in 1732 and was succeeded by A Rake’s Progress produced in 1733-34. Hogarth’s masterpiece, Marriage a La Mode was painted in 1745. His other print series included Industry and Idleness produced 1748 in and The Four Stages of Cruelty in 1751. This paper is going to mostly dwell on the print Marriage a la Mode and how it might have conveyed the ideas of the Enlightenment to the British public2. Marriag e A La Mode Marriage a la Mode was by far the most enduring and popular of Hogarth’s moral subject series. The print tracks on a doomed marriage between a daughter from a wealthy man from lower social class and a son from a high status but financially troubled family3. This marriage is arranged by two opportunistic fathers; one, a rich representative of the London city who craves social status and aims to acquire it by marrying off his daughter and the other father, Earl of Squander who was a spendthrift nobleman and needed cash desperately which he finally gets it by marrying off his unprincipled, dandyish son. Since there were no considerations of love or even compatibility, the marriage is led into a path of self destruction. The print contains a set of six paintings which were subsequently made into engravings4. Plate one: the Marriage Settlement The scene establishes the just concluded negotiations for their children’s marriage between the Alderman who is seated a t the center and the Earl of Squander seated at the extreme right. While squander wants money to fund his overly exuberant lifestyle, the alderman is dying to achieve a higher social status for his family that he had to buy his way into aristocracy5. In the meantime their children are depicted to be indifferent and miserable at the proceedings. Viscount Squanderfield the son of Earl has just returned from the continent and is dressed in the recent Paris fashions. He has a black spot on his neck, an indication that he might be having syphilis. Alderman’s daughter on the other hand is being soothed by Silvertongue, the lawyer, though she looks inconsolable. The chained dogs make clear the fact that the couple’s marriage is loveless and ill-matched6. The Tete a Tete The scene is set in the west end of London in a Palladian style house. It is past midday as depicted by the clock far right on the wall, and still the viscount seems to have returned from a night out and is sl acked in a chair, tired and bored7. A dog is shown sniffing at some woman’s cap in his pocket. His wife as it seems, has also been awake all night apparently playing cards, but her satisfied stretch and sly look indicate that she too had been having sexual engagements and dissimilar to her indifferent husband, was at that moment enjoying the freshness of life as a stylish woman of leisure. Using a pocket mirror, she appears to be bespeaking to someone out of sight, perhaps her lover who as it looks like, had to exit in a hurry as a result of the

Business Failure Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 10000 words

Business Failure - Essay Example The following year saw liquidity dry up, businesses lose their orders or defaulting on their payments, and layoffs become widespread. Then, businesses started closing; the larger conglomerates relied upon government bailout money, at the risk of nationalization, but â€Å"too large to fail† was exactly that – critical industries and the economic framework relied upon the survival of these key enterprises (Peters, Shane & Torgerson, 2009). While there were some companies that were saved at all costs – especially at the cost of public money being used to purchase toxic assets – other companies were left to die out because they were not crucial to the coming recovery. Several of these hardest hit are in the retail sales business. And in the United Kingdom, one of these companies that had to close its books for the last time was Woolworths, the high-street retail firm in existence since 1909, and owned by the Woolworths Group plc. This case study shall deal with the phenomenon of business failure, and its occurrence in the UK retail sector. Highlighted will be the case of Woolworths plc, which presents several controversies concerning the circumstances surrounding its closure. The case of Woolworths is one that defies an easy and clear-cut solution; as many serious observers believe that the company should not have been closed down because its two or three core businesses could have been demerged and allowed to operate; apparently, the administrators and regulators felt otherwise, and finalized the group’s demise. A small remnant of Woolies (as it is affectionately called) continues to operate as an online retailer, having been acquired by the Shop Direct Group (Anon, Cabinet Maker, 2009). This study shall examine the case of Woolworths from the point of view of theory, and from the indicators and accounts that comprised the facts of its operations.

Wednesday, October 16, 2019

Hogarth print and the enlightenment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Hogarth print and the enlightenment - Essay Example With his new art, he was able to reach countless audience by making engravings of the paintings and selling them at low prices1. He therefore created art for aristocratic patrons as well as the public sphere that came together through the print medium to reflect on issues of general concern. Generally, Hogarth’s work brought dynamic influences on the public sphere which developed into an entity able to generate new ideas and challenge beliefs that were supported by the state. His first ‘modern moral subject’ called A Harlot’s Progress was produced in 1732 and was succeeded by A Rake’s Progress produced in 1733-34. Hogarth’s masterpiece, Marriage a La Mode was painted in 1745. His other print series included Industry and Idleness produced 1748 in and The Four Stages of Cruelty in 1751. This paper is going to mostly dwell on the print Marriage a la Mode and how it might have conveyed the ideas of the Enlightenment to the British public2. Marriag e A La Mode Marriage a la Mode was by far the most enduring and popular of Hogarth’s moral subject series. The print tracks on a doomed marriage between a daughter from a wealthy man from lower social class and a son from a high status but financially troubled family3. This marriage is arranged by two opportunistic fathers; one, a rich representative of the London city who craves social status and aims to acquire it by marrying off his daughter and the other father, Earl of Squander who was a spendthrift nobleman and needed cash desperately which he finally gets it by marrying off his unprincipled, dandyish son. Since there were no considerations of love or even compatibility, the marriage is led into a path of self destruction. The print contains a set of six paintings which were subsequently made into engravings4. Plate one: the Marriage Settlement The scene establishes the just concluded negotiations for their children’s marriage between the Alderman who is seated a t the center and the Earl of Squander seated at the extreme right. While squander wants money to fund his overly exuberant lifestyle, the alderman is dying to achieve a higher social status for his family that he had to buy his way into aristocracy5. In the meantime their children are depicted to be indifferent and miserable at the proceedings. Viscount Squanderfield the son of Earl has just returned from the continent and is dressed in the recent Paris fashions. He has a black spot on his neck, an indication that he might be having syphilis. Alderman’s daughter on the other hand is being soothed by Silvertongue, the lawyer, though she looks inconsolable. The chained dogs make clear the fact that the couple’s marriage is loveless and ill-matched6. The Tete a Tete The scene is set in the west end of London in a Palladian style house. It is past midday as depicted by the clock far right on the wall, and still the viscount seems to have returned from a night out and is sl acked in a chair, tired and bored7. A dog is shown sniffing at some woman’s cap in his pocket. His wife as it seems, has also been awake all night apparently playing cards, but her satisfied stretch and sly look indicate that she too had been having sexual engagements and dissimilar to her indifferent husband, was at that moment enjoying the freshness of life as a stylish woman of leisure. Using a pocket mirror, she appears to be bespeaking to someone out of sight, perhaps her lover who as it looks like, had to exit in a hurry as a result of the

Tuesday, October 15, 2019

Discussion Question 1 Week 4 Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Discussion Question 1 Week 4 - Assignment Example In a cigarette industry where I am employed, in the past twenty years, the U.S. cigarette companies used to spend as much as $1.1 billion on marketing alone. That marketing involved advertising, labeling and promotion of cigarette smoking. Before the enactment of the law in 1970, brands of cigarettes regularly sponsored the American television and radio programs in 1960s and 1950s. In early 1970s, marketing of cigarettes then extended to newspapers, magazines and to billboards. Ten years before the enactment of the tobacco law, all tobacco companies continued to advertise, promote and label cigarette packages with messages such as â€Å"approved by doctor† along with images of beautiful models and athlete who are enjoying their life with cigarettes in their hands to raise the awareness, sales and preference of the cigarette brand. Due to the kind of cigarette advertisements by cigarette companies, consumers of cigarettes continued to smoke without knowing the health impact of excessive usage of tobacco and cigarettes. That was because smoking advertisements were majorly focused on glamorizing smoking and did not expose the grim realities of using tobacco. For all that period, the cigarette companies did not succeed in fulfilling the promise of enlightening its consumers about health effects caused by smoking. Adamson (2010) states that the failure of manufacturers of cigarettes to discharge these promises making the consumers to remain misinformed concerning the smoking risks associated with their health. The Tobacco Control Act was endorsed to regulate advertising and marketing of cigarette and tobacco. These included introduction of new warnings for products of smokeless tobacco and prohibition of manufacturing products that used deceptive descriptive terms like â€Å"low†, â€Å"light† and â€Å"mild†. In the next 10 years, if this law is not repealed, it will lead to a negative impact on cigarette business. This is

Influence of Brand Name on Consumer Decision Essay Example for Free

Influence of Brand Name on Consumer Decision Essay In the present developing and modern day world, consumerism has dominated all the aspects of life. The life in the society follows the pattern of the capitalist culture where the human values have a different measure, ‘you are known by what you have not by what you are’. This naturally leads to the life in a society where everyone wants to have a unique place in the society, by possessing the things which sets them apart from the rest of people in the society. In present society and living way, the Brands not only represent the symbol of the company or product but to a larger extent define the general life of a person. What the person uses can reflect his taste of life, his status in the society, his economic background and many other things. This makes a deep connection between the company and its brand, with the consumer. In this two way relation both are dependent on each other for various different reasons. In today’s time customers are very deeply connected to the brands. When they purchase any product like a car, mobile, items of daily need, brand name influence the consumer’s choice. Some customers purchase the specific branded things just due to the brand name. Customers believe that brand name is a symbol of quality. I found this interesting and wanted to find out whether brand name influences the consumer choice when they go for purchasing any product. I chose to for the specific product because  this is one of the products which got my attention because of many reasons. Initially the car production was dominated by few companies and one or two countries. With the time, the market started to grow and once considered to be luxurious commodity, cars became a need  rather than a choice. This increased the demand and with that many more  companies entered the arena to have their share of profit and exploit the growing market. This made the companies to put more efforts and money to creating brand awareness of their product. With the Huge sum of money and effort invested by the companies to create the awareness of their brand in the market, many questions arise; does this really affect the purchasing decision  of the customer? Does the brand awareness somehow influence the sale of the product? Etc. On the basis of these questions, I formulated my problem as follows: The purpose of this thesis is to create deeper consideration of what influence a brand name can have, when people go for purchasing, choose the products between different brands in automobile industry. Further I want to identify, if there is a connection between brands and the consumer decision making process. I conducted this study based on theories and surveys. I analyzed the result of the survey in order to be able to draw conclusions and find answers to my problem. I came to the conclusion that when consumer purchases a car, brand names influence his choice. Customers choose the well known branded car among other brands which are new or not so known. The study shows that branded cars have a great place in consumer mind, when customers go for purchasing a car, they prefer to purchase a well known branded car. Customers do not want to try new or unknown branded cars because they have no much information about the  lesser known brand. Usually, people purchase well known branded cars because they might have heard before about brands or they have some information about them from other sources. This makes customer feel more comfortable during the time of decision making as they are not so confident about the knowledge they have gathered about the other brands. The consumers are very conscious about branded and unbranded cars because they have the view that branded cars are more reliable than unbranded car. This study also explains that customers trust the branded cars’ quality. Before purchasing a car people do not consider the lesser known brand car, as people are very attached to some specific brands. Some people are loyal to specific brands, over time they want to purchase the same branded car because the specific brand has satisfied the customer’s needs and in turn has gained the trust in the brand name. I feel that the purpose of this study has been fulfilled to some extant. The theory describe that brand name has a power, which attracts the customers towards branded products. The reason  is that customer gets special connection with specific brands product and become the loyal with brand.

Sunday, October 13, 2019

Gaussian Mixture Model

Gaussian Mixture Model Many computer related vision technology, it is critical to identify moving objects from a sequence of videos frames. In order to achieve this, background subtraction is applied which mainly identifies moving objects from each portion of video frames. Background subtraction or segmentation is a widely used technique in video surveillance, target recognitions and banks. By using the Gaussian Mixture Model background model, frame pixels are deleted from the required video to achieve the desired results. The application of background subtraction involves various factors which involve developing an algorithm which is able to detect the required object robustly, it should also be able to react to various changes like illumination, starting and stopping of moving objects. Surveillance is the monitoring of the behaviour, activities or other changing information usually of people and often ina surreptitiousmanner. Video surveillance is commonly used for event detection and human identification. But it is not easy as think to detect the event or tracking the object. There are many techniques and papers introduced by many scientists for the backend process in the video surveillance. Different automated softwares are used for the analysis of the video footage. It tracks large body movements and objects. In this report we discuss the application of mixture of Gaussian (M.O.G) which is used as a background subtraction model in order to achieve object/target recognition; this method involves calculation the mean and standard deviation of each pixel frame which will be discussed more in detailed as the report progresses. 2. Background Subtraction (Literature Review) Figure 1 Background subtraction Flow Diagram [1] According to [1], the above figure shows the basic flow diagram on how background subtraction algorithm is based. The four important steps described by [1] and which play an important role in background subtraction are described below and include: 2.1 Preprocessing Temporal or spatial smoothing is used in the early pre processing stage to eliminate device noise which can be a factor under different light intensity. Smoothing technique also includes removing various other elements like environment such as rain and snow.   In real-time systems, frame size and frame rate are commonly adopted to reduce the data processing rate. Another key factor in preprocessing technique is the data format used by the background subtraction model. Most algorithms can handle luminance intensity which is one scalar value per each pixel.   As shown in the examples below [2]: Figure 2 Image on the left shows snowing and image on the right is a resultant of smoothing effect In the figure 2, shown are two images which shows snow on the left and whereas with the application of spatial and temporal smoothing on right image results in the elimination of snow producing an more clear and effective image for background subtraction. 2.2 Background Modeling This step uses the new video frame in order to calculate and update the background model. The main aim of developing a background model is that it should be robust against environmental changes in the background, but sensitive enough to identify all moving objects of interest. 2.3 Foreground Detection In this step, it identifies the pixels in the frame. Foreground detection compares the video frame with the background model, and identify candidate foreground pixels from the frame. Commonly- used approach for foreground detection is to check whether the pixel is significantly different from the corresponding background estimate as show below: A different foreground detection scheme is normalised threshold based statistics as shown below: Where,  µd and are the mean and standard deviation of the for all spatial locations (x,y). 2.4 Data Validation Finally, this step eliminated any pixels which are not connected to the image. It involves the process of improving the foreground mask based on the information obtained from the outside background model. Most background models lack three main points: 1. Ignoring any correlation between neighbouring pixels 2. The rate of adaption may not match the moving speed of the foreground object. 3. Non-stationary pixels, from moving leavers or shadow cast by moving objects are at times mistaken for true foreground objects. 3. Background Reading There are different types of background modelling which are as follows: 3.1 Simple Frame Difference Frame difference is considered the simplest form of background subtraction. The method involves the subtraction of previous pixel frame with current pixel frame and if the value obtained from this greater than a set threshold then it is considered as the foreground. Advantages: Less complex The method can easily and quickly adapt to changes Able to distinguish the background from foreground much affectively. Disadvantages: Not Robust, object has to continuously move. Only applicable when with fixed camera. Fails to handle illumination changes. 3.2 Moving Average Filtering Referring from [3], Moving Average filtering is a method in which an estimate value of a particular background pixel value is weighted as average of the previous values. Pixels in the far part are weighted at Zero and the weights increase smoothly.  Ã‚   3.3 Online Gaussian Model In this method, we assume the background as a Gaussian distribution rather than a single value. To calculate Gaussian for 1-D is as follows[4]: Where, x is the current pixel value,  µ is the mean of each pixel and sigma is the standard deviation of the pixel. Finally, the following equations are used in online updated of Gaussian mean and variance: In the above equations[4]:  µ(t) is the mean for each pixel where ÃŽÂ ± is the learning rate, t is the time of the previous pixel and x is the current pixel value. à Ã†â€™2(t) is the standard deviation of the each pixels. The foreground decision rule applied here is when the distance between each pixel value and Gaussian model is larger than a certain threshold, it is considered as the Foreground. 3.3 GMM Gaussian Mixture Model In order to use GMM the following equations are considered: In the above equations [4]:  µ(t) is the mean for each pixel where ÃŽÂ ± is the learning rate, t is the time of the previous pixel and x is the current pixel value. à Ã†â€™2(t) is the standard deviation of the each pixels. The description and implementation of GMM model will be discussed more in detail in the later part of the report 3.4 Codebook based Technique It is a method where a quantized and clustering technique is motivated by Kohonen to construct the background model from long observation sequences, without making any parameter assumptions. For each pixels, a codebook contains one or more codewords and mixed backgrounds can be modelled by using multiple codewords. Samples at each pixel are clustered into the set of codewords based on a color distortion metric together with a brightness ratio. [4] 4.0 Gaussian Mixture Model In this report we implement the Gaussian Mixture Model for background subtraction. This background subtraction model is more robust than other models discussed in previous section. Most importantly it can handle multi-modal situations e.g. trees and sky which is more effectively filtered by the GMM model. Each pixel value is modelled by a mixture of Gaussian rather than a particular type of distribution. Based on the variance of each of the Gaussian of the mixture, we determine which Gaussians may correspond to background colors. Pixel values that do not fix the background distributions are considered foreground until there is a Gaussian that includes them with sufficient consistent evidence supporting it [5]. This method is very adaptable with lighting changes, repetitive motions and slow moving objects. This method contains 2 main significant parameters -Alpha, the learning constant and T, the proportion of the data that should be accounted for by the background The Gaussian mixture components for a pixel have normalized weights calculated from the past observations. The likelihood that a pixel has a value of Xt is assumed to be:    [5] The parameters of the mixture components are updates with the new frames. A retrieved pixel value is compared with all the components of the mixture assigned to that pixel to find out if there is a match. A match is said to happen when the retrieved pixel value is within 2.5 times standard deviation of a mixture component. The update procedure is different for the matching component and other components. The mean values and the covariance matrices are updated for only the matching component. The value formulas for the matching components are: And the weights are updated with given formula    [6] In case there is not a match between the current pixel value and the mixture components related to that pixel .the component having the smallest likelihood with respect to the current pixel value is discarded. A new Gaussian component is created in place of the discarded one, having a mean value equal to the current pixel value, and a variance equal to a predetermined constant. To retrieve the foreground the following equation is used. Where, T is the threshold value for the sum of the weights.[6] 5.0 Algorithm In order to give a better understanding of the algorithm used for background subtraction the following steps were adopted to achieve the desired results: Firstly, we compare each input pixels to the mean mu of the associated components. If the value of a pixel is close enough to a chosen components mean, then that component is considered as the matched component. In order to be a matched component, the difference between the pixel and mean must be less than compared to the components standard deviation scaled by factor D in the algorithm. Secondly, update the Gaussian weight, mean and standard deviation (variance) to reflect the new obtained pixel value. In relation to non-matched components the weights w decreases whereas the mean and standard deviation stay the same. It is dependent upon the learning component p in relation to how fast they change. Thirdly, here we identify which components are parts of the background model. To do this a threshold value is applied to the component weights w. Fourthly, in the final step we determine the foreground pixels. Here the pixels that are identified as foreground dont match with any components determined to be the background. 6.0 Experimental Results For better results, median filter was used where the main purpose was to filter out unconnected pixels from the large connected pixels (e.g. people, vehicles) so that it was easy to distinguish between the background and foreground. With median filter the value of the output pixel is determined by the median of the neighboring pixels instead of the mean. Median has a much smaller insensitivity compared with mean to extreme values. The function used was medfilt2(A,[m n]). Figure 3 GMM Background Subtraction with high light intensity In the above image, the picture on the right shows the output of background subtraction using the GMM model. There is still false negative foreground detection which produces the disturbances in the image. Although it still shows the objects moving hence, making it suitable for object tracking. The reason for these disturbances can be narrowed down to illumination changes. Figure 4 GMM Background Subtraction with Low light intensity For the above, a short 30 second video was recorded where light intensity was moderate and the camera was still. It can be observed that the hand is visible and false negative detection is low which suggests that the model works robustly in low light intensities. From the above results, we can say that there are still improvements to be made in the algorithm mostly to work with illumination which increases the false negative background subtraction. 7.0 Further Improvements The GMM model used in this paper could be further tweaked to provide better results in terms of zero disturbances/noises. The use of morphological filters could be implemented into the algorithm to reduce these unconnected pixels which were seen in the figures above and make it more robust in object tracking. The algorithm has the capabilities of further improvements to run large size videos and importantly the ability to process more frames per seconds using larger number of Gaussians in the mixture model. Apart from the above improvements, we further plan to research the model using PTZ (Pan Tilt Zoom) technique to study the processing rate of frame/second and observe the robustness of the algorithm in terms of disturbances/noise. There are possibilities of false positive results where background could be recognised as foreground. 8.0 Conclusions In this project we implemented a very strong and widely used background subtraction method according to the paper Adaptive background mixture models for real-time tracking. This method is very adaptable for lighting changes and shadow removals. Also it finds the repetitive actions as well with the use of mixture of Gaussians. Alpha and T are the key parameters in this paper. The values of these parameters changes with the different cameras and different environment. So it is very important to get the best values for them to work with for different videos. Also we tried to improve the output quality by using some filtration methods like median filter. The guassain model is not perfect with the result since there are some disturbances after the modelling also. But there are many good post processing techniques are introduced and we referenced two of them. A new region Gaussian background model for video surveillance by Xun Cai and Long Jiang, and Improved Post-Processing for GMM based Adaptive Background Modeling by Deniz Turdu,Hakan Erdogan. But the 1st paper doesnt give any clear information about the techniques failed to explain the equations as well. Second paper introduces a very good technique and we couldnt able to get the result properly. But this assignment was very challenging for us and helped us to get a very good knowledge about different background subtraction methods used in Video surveillance. 9.0 References [1] Robust techniques for background subtraction in urban traffic video Sen-Ching S. Cheung and Chandrika Kamath, 2006/07 [2] Background Subtractions of Moving Objects https://computation.llnl.gov/casc/sapphire/background/background.html [3] Page444, Computer vision A modern approach, David A. Forsyth [4] Dr J. Zhang, CSC7006 Lecture 2 Slides, Queens University Belfast. [5] Adaptive background mixture models for real-time tracking, Chris Stafer, W.E.L Grimson [6] Improved Post processing for GMM based adaptive background modelling by Deniz Turdu, Hakan Erdogan

Saturday, October 12, 2019

Heart Of Darkness Response Assignment :: essays research papers

â€Å"They were dying slowly-it was clear. They were not enemies, they were not criminals, they were nothing earthly now, nothing but black shadows of disease and starvation, lying confused in the greenish gloom†. (page 14 para. 3, line 1). The quote is coming from Marlow, upon arriving at the outer station, and first witnessing the devastation the Belgians have caused the native peoples. He is speaking about the black men, who have been enslaved, dying all around him. He can see the work they are being made to do, and finds it a great horror, similar, perhaps, to what hell must be like. This quote also shows Marlow’s first recognition to an epiphany, he will later realize, as imperialism. He says clearly, these men can not be viewed as criminals, for the only function they seemed to be carrying out was dying, and die they did, in great numbers, and at the hands of the â€Å"enlightened† Europeans. I believe his conscience was getting the better of him, first seeing the death, disease, starvation, and chaos all around, allusions of a modern day genocide, which righteous people can not stand to watch, but are helpless to do anything about it. Descriptions of Africans dying, or more precisely, being killed, are common stories surrounding imperialism. Heart of Darkness, finely details the worst kind of African imperialism, the Belgian kind. Millions of people, in what today is called the Congo, were forcefully enslaved, and then made to gather ivory tusks, and rubber plants, all the time being treated as animals, for the sole purpose of lining the pockets of the Belgian monarchy. These scenes shock the more caring, and kind hearted reader, in today’s world, and leave questions swirling in the mind about how atrocities, similar to the ones described in Heart of Darkness, could have been carried out, by a supposed more enlightened society. Surprisingly enough, European imperialists do not hold the sole rights to death and destruction. In fact, simply by reading a history book of the last 2000 years, the reader may come to the conclusion that imperialism was a natural part of empire expansion. Just look at the Egyptians , the Assyrians, the Greeks, the Romans, the Huns, the Moslems, the Christians, and finally the British. What did they all have in common, first they all conquered territory, and usually to do this they needed to kill indigenous people, so that they could use newly conquered land, for their needs.

Friday, October 11, 2019

Emerging Markets; Risks and Challenges

Trade among these countries has also grown by a staggering amount in recent years and their multinational companies are now competing with those from the developed economies. There remain, however, significant risks and challenges to investing in these countries. They are discussed here under these broad headings; Political, Economic, Legal and Socio cultural. They affect the different countries in deferent ways and sometimes Interact in deferent ways to produce deferent results. For example, political processes more often than not drive economic, legal and social policies of governments.China and India, two of the largest emerging markets operate very different political processes and therefore have two very different sets of political institutions. Chinese communism and Indian democracy vary significantly, and their political systems ultimately affect the choice of economic, legal and social policies. The first step to emerging market status for most of these countries can be trace d to political reforms and/or movements, examples being the transition from authoritarian to democratic governments and economic liberation's.It can also be argued that social reforms and/or popular movements brought about the downfall of the authoritarian governments in the first place, allowing for reforms in the political and economic systems In place (the political economy), thus paving the way for economic gains witnessed today. Despite the often complex interactions between these factors, wave attempted to simplify them by grouping them In broad categories. Emerging markets also face challenges as they come to grips with economic prosperity and their new status in the global community.

Thursday, October 10, 2019

Advertising and Behavior Control Essay

In the article â€Å"Advertising and Behavior Control† there were many arguments for and against advertising. The first and the biggest problem Robert L. Arrington has against advertising is â€Å"puffery.† The reason/reasons why Arrington has a problem with puffery is due to the fact that the seller makes exaggerated, or suggestive claims about a product. His overall argument on puffery is that it isn’t just â€Å"bragging† but it is bragging that is designed to persuade you to want the item or product being sold. The bragging goes so far as they convince the viewer (of the advertisement) they need the product. Puffery ultimately leads to manipulation, exploitation, and control over what people think of the product. Although Arrington has reasons against puffery, he also points out examples as to why puffery is good for advertising. As stated on page 284 â€Å"businesses just give the consumer what he/she wants; if they didn’t they wouldn’t stay in business very long. Proof that consumer wants the precuts advertised is given by the fact that he bus them, and indeed often returns to by them again and again.† Puffery ultimately leads to the customer purchasing the product. If puffery is not used then as Arrington states businesses would go out of business very quickly. Puffery is not the only argument for or against advertising Arrington had but definitely was is strongest one. Another argument against advertising that Arrington had was credibility of an advertisement. He uses Philip Nelson’s ideas and theories to better explain his thoughts. His argument states that even when the message is not credible, we as a society give it validity by allowing ourselves to see the advertisement, and the fact that we constantly see them makes us believe that things are true. Simply put as stated on page 285 â€Å"advertised frequently, is valuable indirect information for the consumer. The reason for this is that the brands advertised most are more likely to be better buys-â€Å" Although the constant streaming of false or indirect information from advertisements makes us believe something that may be untrue, there is a counter argument as to why this form of advertising is legitimate, One of the counter arguments is in the form of a thought provoking question on page 285 â€Å"do the advertising techniques we have discussed involve a violation of human autonomy and a manipulation and control of consumer behavior, or do they simply provide an efficient and cost effective means of giving the consumer information on the basis of which he or she makes a free choice.† This may seem like a lot to grasp, but in essence the meaning of that thought provoking question is: is advertising information, or is advertising there for us to create wants and desi res in our life? These are just a couple of the arguments for and against advertising, and Arrington continues with many more thought provoking and legitimate arguments. All in all, Arrington makes claims for and against advertising, and eventually comes to the conclusion that he does not know what is right. If advertising is indeed good or bad as he says on page 289 â€Å"I do not pretend to have the answer. I only hope that the above discussion, in showing some of the kinds of harm that can be done by advertising and by indicating the likely limits of this harm, will put us in a better position to grapple with the question.† In my own opinion I don’t think that advertising should be controlled anymore than it is now. My reason for thinking this way is because products are made to be sold and along with that products are also made for us (the customer) to use, and enjoy. If products weren’t marketed/advertised to the customer as enjoyable, or brings you a higher satisfaction in life what would be the point of any person buying the product? Sure puffery may seem like it is a scam by â€Å"extending the truth† but at the same time if you had the money, and the time, and the friends to live a life like a commercial then it is very well possible to achieve that fulfillment from a product. Unfortunately not everyone is capable of doing this, but a product that is advertised is always going to be represented better than it actually is, due to the fact it is there to make a profit, and to be sold. My next point is the fact that advertisement falls into our liberties. We all have the right to freedom of speech. By advertising, or marketing one is free to say, promote, speak, etc. how they would like as long it is not in an offensive or demeaning way. This is why I believe there should be no more restrictions or limitations (if any) on advertising/marketing.

Martin Luther King I Have a Dream Essay

2. In Martin Luther King Jr’s speech he uses a variety of vivid phrases that paint a picture for the audience. For example: â€Å"crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination† † the negro is still languishing in the corners of society and finds himself an exile in his own land† â€Å"let us not seek to satisfy our thirst for freedom by drinking from the cup of bitterness and hatred.† These phrases attribute to gaining his audience’s attention and emotion. 3. Primary points in his speech: African American individuals are being discriminated against in society, even though the emancipation proclamation granted all slaves citizenship. America will not be tranquil as long as there is segregation. MLK and his followers will only be a part of a peaceful protest. If America is to be a great nation freedom is imperative among all people. 4. It is clear that MLK is very passionate about what he says in his speech. While staying passionate, he understands that he will not win the war against segregation by being bitter and angry. My interpretation is that he is in a way confident that this issue will be resolved, and he knows that this ongoing issue will not be resolved immediately. 5. The audience in this case would be pretty much everybody in the United States at the time as well as us today. MLK probably didn’t know that his speech would make such a big impact in our world today, but his speech was aimed toward American society as a whole. 6. Without hesitation I will say that MLK does succeed with his message. Our country today has minimal racial injustice and people can be judged by their character. I think that the reason he has succeeded is attributed to his attitude and poise that he demonstrates during the speech. His message  would not have been accepted if he was to lash out in anger and criticize the white man.

Wednesday, October 9, 2019

The assessment for this module is an End Course Assessment (ECA) Essay

The assessment for this module is an End Course Assessment (ECA) constituting report based on the MINI case study - Essay Example This failure can have a profound negative impact on the brand equity of the parent or corporate brand. The second positive application of this strategy deals with the addition of a new brand in the brand portfolio of the parent company. This step gives a fresh outlook to the corporate brand portfolio and enables it to nurture a â€Å"Star†. This strategy, also gives some breathing space to the aging brands of the corporation, thereby extending the lifecycle of the entire brand portfolio. Let’s analyze the marketing strategy of MINI on pertinent dimensions: 4P’s Framework: The marketing mix or 4P’s, as they are called, reflects the important strategies of the organization regarding the product, price, promotion, and place (Fill, 2009). Product The product under consideration is the MINI car, which launched its new model in 2001. In addition to this model the company has the following brands of cars: New MINI, MINI One, MINI Cooper, Cooper S, Cooper D, MINI Convertible, MINI Clubman and MINI Countryman. Price The pricing method used by the company to appraise its cars is â€Å"value-based pricing†. This method of pricing is consistent with the strong brand equity of the car. Since the car is a symbol of a specific kind of lifestyle, therefore it carries immense value for the followers of this kind of lifestyle. These followers are willing to give extra when it comes to expressing their peculiar lifestyle. This makes MINI exclusive and inaccessible to every car buyer. Promotion Industry followers have always found MINI’s marketing campaigns to be very innovative, lively and peculiar. These attributes make these campaigns very successful. When MINI launched its new 2001 model, it employed adventure campaigns to enhance brand awareness. This campaign had at its core the concept of buzz marketing. By the use of this concept the company amplified its core association of: Excitement, Uniqueness and Fun. Through this campaign th e company very successfully raised the level of awareness of its brand, and created a word of mouth effect among its customer community. This campaign employed both traditional and contemporary marketing tools and tactics, for instance media houses were brought into this campaign, print and online advertising was done along with promotional material being planted in hot spots(important public centers). Through â€Å"Bondage Fetish leather†, the company extended its adventurous and likely nature. In this entire promotional campaign the company engaged its target audience and fan community. The company employed methods which led to their (audience and community) participation. In this endeavor the company also made use of digital community forums like social networking sites e.g. Face Book, Twitter, YouTube. One unique method used in this endeavor was MINI Space, which brought together the MINI community. This community used to engage in online conversations in the form of thre ads, to communicate their opinions about the car. Direct marketing tools like emails and instant messages were also used. A unique king of email was sent to customers, containing a game in it. This mail was very

Tuesday, October 8, 2019

Literature. A Mexican American girl Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Literature. A Mexican American girl - Essay Example He was an example of an unreliable narrator, due to the many facets of his character. Montresor seemed to be lacking in friendships, sensitive, but devious and vindictive and most probably slightly paranoid. He perceived himself to be above or at any rate, alienated from the 'common herd', and believed he was a connoisseur of good wines. This last, he used as a trick to achieve vengeance on a supposed enemy. He appeared to be a complete loner through choice, and looked down on the rich who had not the old family heritage he possessed. He could be described equally as a sad, pitiful individual or a dangerous mad man. Esperanza would put a Want Ad. in the paper for a used portable typewriter. She knew she had talent; her aunt Lupe told her to keep writing. She valued education, working to pay for it, and admired Alicia for studying. A typewriter would be a good start for her dreams to be made real. He would put an obsequious obituary in the paper, as this would give him an opportunity to gloat over his success at achieving redress, while removing suspicion from himself. It would also allow him to appear to be mourning publicly and reinforce the faade of his and Fortunato's alleged friendship. He would use this as a way to state his superiority over others in his society. Her tone and style would be serious