Past, Present, and Future Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Past, Present, and Future Paper - Essay Example In general, my major motive behind learning of this particular course of drug abuse was to develop my career as a licensed substance abuse counselor and to serve community to promote healthy living habits among the people. I feel that learning is extremely important and must be continued in order to keep our skill sharp and inculcate creativity and innovation in ourselves. Before involving in pursing course in substance abuse, my professional competencies regarding various skills such as written and oral communication, problem solving, and cooperation with the other members were moderate. Notably, I had moderate communication skills both in written as well as oral forms. In my professional life I used to involve in evaluating technical data and apply my logical and analytical problem skills in resolving work related issues. At the same time, I enjoyed taking challenges, I believed that challenges encountered in life not only test our level of competency but it also prepares me to deal with challenges that might emanate in later life. Moreover, I had fair competency with respect to the information retrieval and utilization, I often used to read of books and journals on diverse subjects that had offered me with valuable knowledge regarding information retrieval and utilization. I firmly believe that goal setting is a crucial part of my career as well as personnel development planning. Considering my strengths and weaknesses my career goal is to become a license substance abuse counselor so that I can help the drug abuse victims and their family overcomes their sufferings. I always viewed drug abuse as one of the major problems faced by the societies across the world. Thus, it made me motivated to opt for the course and develop career that would not only benefit me but also the community. When I was working with a non-profit health

South Asia Region Essay Example for Free

South Asia Region Essay South Asia, which consists of the nations of Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka, is ethnically diverse, with more than 2,000 ethnic entities with populations ranging from hundreds of millions to small tribal groups. South Asia has been invaded and settled by many ethnic groups over the centuries including various Dravidian, Indo-Aryan and Iranian groups and amalgamation of Dravidian, Indo-Aryan and native societies has produced composite cultures with many common traditions and beliefs. But, the traditions of different ethnic groups in South Asia have diverged throughout earlier times, sometimes giving rise to strong local traditions such as the distinct South Indian culture. Other ethnic groups, successively streaming in later mainly from Central Asia and Iran, e.g. Sakas, Kushans, Huns etc. influenced pre-existing South Asian cultures. Among the last of these new arrivals were the Arabs followed by the Turks, the Pashtuns and the Moghuls. However, Arab influence remained relatively limited in comparison to that of the Turks, Pashtuns and Moghuls, who brought in much cultural influence and contributed to the birth of Urdu, a syncretic language of combined Indo-Persian heritage, which is widely spoken today. Ethnic Englishmen and other Britons are now practically absent after their two centuries long colonial presence, although they have left an imprint of western culture in the elite society. Languages See also: Languages of South Asia The largest spoken language in this region is now HindustÄ nÄ «, its speakers numbering almost 422 million;[75] the second largest spoken language is Bengali, with about 210 million speakers.[76] Urdu is also a major language spoken in the subcontinent, especially in Pakistan and India, and is similar linguistically to Hindi; Hindi and Urdu together make up HindustÄ nÄ «. Although Hindi is spoken in some states of India, many people are not aware of the fact that most of the Indians speak local languages and are not familiar with Hindi. Other languages of this region fall into a few major linguistic groups: the Dravidian languages and the Indo-Aryan languages, a sub-branch of the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages. The other great sub-branch of Indo-Iranian, the Iranian languages, also have significant minority representation in South Asia, with Pashto and Balochi being widely spoken along the northwestern fringes of the region, in modern-day Pakistan. Many Tibeto-Burman ethnic groups, who are speakers of their language-group, are found in northeast India, Tibet, Nepal, and Bhutan. Other small groups, speaking Austro-Asiatic languages, are also present in South Asia. English is another language which dominates South Asia, especially as a medium of advanced education and government administration. Most of South Asia writes using various abugidas of BrÄ hmÄ « origin while languages such as Urdu, Pashto, and Sindhi use derivatives of the Perso-Arabic script. Not all languages in South Asia follow this strict dichotomy though. For example, Kashmiri is written in both the Perso-Arabic script and in the Devanagari script. The same can be said for Punjabi, which is written in both Shahmukhi and GurmukhÄ «. Dhivehi is written in a script called TÄ na that shows characteristics of both the Arabic alphabet and of an abugida. Religions Further information: Religion in Bangladesh, Religion in Bhutan, Religion in India, Religion in Nepal, Religion in Pakistan, and Religion in Sri Lanka Hindu priest saluting the sun in the Ganges, Varanasi, India   Jama Masjid, the main mosque in Delhi, India. About 64% of the South Asia population is Hindu, 33% is Muslim, 2% is Buddhist and 1% is Christians.[74] In South Asia Hinduism and Islam and in some of its countries Buddhism are the dominant religions. Other Indian religions and Christianity are practiced by significant number of people. Historically, fusion of Indo-Aryan Vedic religion with native South Asian non-Vedic Shramana traditions and other Dravidian and local tribal beliefs gave rise to the ancient religions of Hinduism and Jainism. As a consequence, these two religions share many similar cultural practices, festivals and traditions. Arabs brought the Abrahamic religion of Islam to South Asia, first in the present day Kerala, Sri Lanka and the Maldive Islands and later in Sindh, Balochistan and much of Punjab. Subsequently, Muslim Turks/Pashtuns/Moghuls furthered it not only among the Punjabi and Kashmiri people but also throughout the Indo-Gangetic plains and farther east, and deep south up to the Deccan.Afghanistan[1]Islam (99%), Hinduism, Sikhism and Christianity (1%) Bangladesh[77]Islam (89.5%), Hinduism (9.5%), Buddhism (0.7%), Christianity (0.3%) British Indian Ocean Territory[78]Christianity (45.55%), Hinduism (38.55%), Islam (9.25%), Others (6.65%) Bhutan[79]Buddhism (75%), Hinduism (25%) Burma[80]Theravada Buddhism (89%), Islam (4%), Christianity (Baptist and Roman Catholic) (4%), Animism (1%), Others (including Hinduism) (2%) India[79][81]Hinduism (80.5%), Islam (13.4%), Christianity (2.3%), Sikhism (1.9%), Buddhism (0.8%), Jainism (0.4%), Others (0.6%) Maldives[82]Sunni Islam (100%) (One must be a Sunni Muslim to be a citizen on the Maldives[83][84]) Nepal[85]Hinduism (80.6%), Buddhism (10.7%), Islam (4.2%), Kirat (1.5%) Pakistan[86]Islam (96.28%), Hinduism (1.85%), Christianity (1.59%), Ahmaddiyya (0.22%) Sri Lanka[87]Theravada Buddhism (70.19%), Hinduism (12.61%), ), Islam (9.71%), Christianity ( 7.45%). Economy Further information: Economy of Bangladesh, Economy of India, Economy of Nepal, Economy of Pakistan, and Economy of Sri Lanka South Asia is the poorest region on the earth after Sub-Saharan Africa. Three South Asian nations — Bangladesh, Bhutan and Nepal — are characterized as least developed country. Poverty is commonly spread within this region. According to the poverty data of World Bank, more than 40% of the population in the region lived on less than the International Poverty Line of $1.25 per day in 2005, compared to 50% of the population in Sub-Saharan Africa.[88] Sri Lanka has the highest GDP per capita in the region, while Afghanistan has the lowest. India is the largest economy in the region (US$ 1.90 trillion) and makes up almost 82% of the South Asian economy; it is the worlds 11th largest in nominal terms and 3rd largest by purchasing power adjusted exchange rates. Pakistan has the next largest economy and the 5th highest GDP per capita in the region,[89] followed by Bangladesh. According to a World Bank report in 2007, South Asia is the least integrated region in the world; trade between South Asian states is only 2% of the regions combined GDP, compared to 20% in East Asia. The Economist has blamed this on Indian neglect of its neighbors.[90] [edit] Governance India[91] and Pakistan[92][93] are the dominant political powers in the region. India is by far the largest country in the area covering around three-fourths the land area of the subcontinent.[94] It also has the largest population of around three times the combined population of the 6 other countries in the subcontinent.[95] India is also the most populous democracy in the world[96] and is a nuclear power. The second largest country in the subcontinent in terms of area and population is Pakistan and has traditionally maintained the balance of power in the region due to its strategic relationships with nearby Arab states[97] and neighboring China.[98] Pakistan is the 6th[99] most populous country in the world and is also a nuclear power. Bangladesh is the third largest populous country in the region. The single largest contributor to UN peacekeeping operations is Pakistan.[100] Diplomacy among the countries of South Asia has been mainly driven by populist politics, with the center stage taken by India-Pakistan conflict ever since their independence in 1947, and then the creation of Bangladesh under tense circumstances in 1971. While the elite rulers of Pakistan chose the USA led bloc during the cold war era, India formed the Non-Aligned Movement. The political situation in Sri Lanka has been dominated by an increasingly assertive Sinhalese nationalism, and the emergence of a Tamil separatist movement under LTTE, which was suppressed recently. Burmas politics is dominated by a military Junta, which has sidelined the democratic forces led by Aung San Suu Kyi. [edit] Health and nutrition There are 421 million MPI-poor people in eight Indian states alone Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Orissa, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal while there are 410 million in the 26 poorest African countries combined.[101] Roughly 42% of Indian children under age 5 suffer from malnutrition.[102] According to the World Bank, 70% of the South Asian population and about 75% of South Asias poor live in rural areas and most rely on agriculture for their livelihood.[103] According to the Global Hunger Index, South Asia has one of the highest child malnutrition rates in the world.[104] In a latest report published by UNICEF in 2008 on global hunger shows that the actual number of child deaths was around 2.1 million.[105] As of 2008 India is ranked 66th on the global hunger index.[citation needed] The 2006 report stated that the low status of women in South Asian countries and their lack of nutritional knowledge are important determinants of high prevalence of underweight children in the region. Corruption and the lack of initiative on the part of the government has been one of the major problems associated with nutrition in India. Illiteracy in villages has been found to be one of the major issues that need more government attention. The report mentioned that, although there has been a reduction in malnutrition due to the Green Revolution in South Asia, there is concern that South Asia has inadequate feeding and caring practices for young children.[106]

Business Ethics Wages And Working Conditions Commerce Essay

Business Ethics Wages And Working Conditions Commerce Essay International business ethics is a particularly complex issue as ethical standards are different depending on where you are. Corporate governance, bribery, corruption, working conditions and targeted marketing are all issues that require organisations to establish an ethical standpoint from which they can work on. There is an increasing emphasis on the corporate responsibility of large organisations from developed nations and the way they operate in third world countries. Many nations now impose their ethical standards on developing countries even though they themselves have been guilty of arguably unethical practices in the past. For example, the poor working conditions suffered in the third world were commonplace during the industrialisation of many western economies. Some of the most common international ethical issues surround the environment, child labour, working standards and conditions, targeting marketing to vulnerable individuals and corruption. Unethical practices include not paying workers a fair wage, employing children under the legal working age and unsafe or unsanitary working conditions. Any practices that are not in compliance with fair labor standards and federal working guidelines fall into this category. 2.2Some of the Types of Unethical Practises Relating To Wages and Working Conditions 2.2.1Child labor   Even today, millions of children in developing countries such as India, Indonesia, and Pakistan are doing hard labor for miniscule payment. Nike and Reebok, as well as other major businesses, have been accused of buying goods from subcontractors which we are produced by child labor. Alongside of this, there have been strong allegations that China is using the free of price labors of prisoners to produce exportable materials. It seems that businesses are sacrificing human rights in order to cut costs. 2.2.2Exploitation of workers (by paying them low wages) Paying extremely low amounts an hour is not far from  slave labor, even if workers are happy with their pay. People should be paid a fair wage based on the benefit you gain from them, not what the fair wage is based on the standards in their economy. If people work for you at pennies on the dollar, and you reap massive profits because of that in other words, they do the work and you keep the money its simply  not fair. Why should one group do most of the work for enough money to survive, while another group becomes stinking rich? Reason behind International Businesses Acting Ethically or Unethically Advantages and disadvantages for a business to act ethically The advantages of ethical behaviour include: Higher revenues demand from positive consumer support Improved brand and business awareness and recognition Better employee motivation and recruitment New sources of finance e.g. from ethical investors The disadvantages claimed for ethical business include: Higher costs e.g. sourcing from Fair-trade suppliers rather than lowest price Higher overheads e.g. training communication of ethical policy A danger of building up false expectations 2.4Recommendations for Businesses to Act Ethically There are ways to curb unethical practices these include having pressure groups, aiming to motivate people to choose morality over greed. 2.4.1 Pressure Groups Businesses and industries increasingly find themselves facing  external pressure  to improve their ethical track record.   An interesting feature of the rise of consumer activism online has been increased scrutiny of business activities. Pressure groups are a good example of this. Pressure groups are external stakeholders they Tend to focus on activities ethical practice of multinationals or industries with ethical issues Combine direct and indirect action can damage the target business or industry Some examples of business-related pressure groups can be found from the following links: Direct consumer action  is another way in which business ethics can be challenged. Consumers may take action against: Businesses they consider to be unethical in some ways (e.g. animal furs) Business acting irresponsibly Businesses that use business practices they find unacceptable Consumer action can also be positive supporting businesses with a strong ethical stance record.   A good example of  this is Fair trade. 2.4.2 Choosing Morality versus Greed Even though $300 USD a month may not seem like much to someone living in a developed country, in Thailand, or Romania, the Philippines, or India, its above the average monthly wage. Sometimes as much as three times the average wage in that country, meaning this person is actually very well off when  compared to others in their country. That money affords the worker a quality lifestyle in their homeland. It may even provide enough money for them to support their family, which no one is going to argue, is a bad thing. Throw in a few bonuses, some extra incentives for good work, and you have a situation where you feel like you are empowering someone and saving them from a situation where they might otherwise be earning half that money doing something like washing dishes. Solution to many international ethic practices lies in the development of international agreements and code of ethics. 2.4.3 Standardized and Strict Laws against Unethical Behavior. Basic laws should be made to protect human rights. Although laws, traditions and beliefs may differ in different countries a basic set of laws should be followed in order to safeguard human rights. 3. Introdution to Apple Organization of Apple was established in 1976 as a computer company. However, in the last decade, Apple has expanded into a complex company that specializes in much more than just computers. In 2001, Apple broke the barrier with the iPod, eventually becoming the dominant market leader in music players. In following, Apple joined the phone industry in 2007 with the iPhone, which has also been widely successful. Apple is known as a consumer goods company; therefore evaluating its value requires understanding its products and consumers. This would be very challenging where Apple competes with many different companies throughout the different industries it takes part in. 4. Unethical Practices by Apple. Apple outsources the production of its goods to countries where labour is cheap. One of apples biggest plants is Foxconn which is located in Schengen, China. Thats why the prices of iPhones and iPads in America and Europe are so cheap. Despite the products being cheap Apple makes super-high profits. This is only possible because iPhones and iPads are made with labor practices that would be illegal in the United States. And its also disconcerting to realize that the folks who make our iPhones and iPads not only dont have iPhones and iPads (because they cant afford them), but, in some cases, have never even seen them. 4.1 Illegal and Poor working conditions Foxconn is a plant in Shenzhen China where apple products are made. Foxconn doesnt really check ages. There are on-site inspections, from time to time, but Foxconn always knows when theyre happening. And before the inspectors arrive, Foxconn just replaces the young-looking workers with older ones. Most of the factory floors are vast rooms filled with 20,000-30,000 workers apiece. The rooms are quiet: Theres no machinery, and theres no talking allowed. When labour costs so little, theres no reason to build anything other than by hand. The official work day in China is 8 hours long, but the standard shift is 12 hours. Generally, these shifts extend to 14-16 hours, especially when theres a hot new gadget to build. The workers stay in dormitories. In a 12-by-12 cement cube of a room, Daisey counts 15 beds, stacked like drawers up to the ceiling. Normal-sized Americans would not fit in them. Unions are illegal in China. Anyone found trying to unionize is sent to prison. One group talked about using hexane, an  iPhone  screen cleaner. Hexane evaporates faster than other screen cleaners, which allows the production line to go faster. Hexane is also a neuro-toxin. The hands of the workers who tell him about it shake uncontrollably. Some workers can no longer work because their hands have been destroyed by doing the same thing hundreds of thousands of times over many years (mega-carpal-tunnel). This could have been avoided if the workers had merely shifted jobs. Once the workers hands no longer work, obviously, theyre canned. One man got his hand crushed in a metal press at Foxconn. Foxconn did not give him medical attention. When the mans hand healed, it no longer worked. So they fired him.   4.2Reasons why Apple has plants in Shenzhen China According to some of the Apple executives, Shenzhens factories, as hellish as they are, have been a boon to the people of China. They say the grimness of the factories, is actually better than the grimness of the rice paddies. So, looked at that way, Apple is helping funnel money from rich American and European consumers to poor workers in China. Without Foxconn and other assembly plants, Chinese workers might still be working in rice paddies, making $50 a month instead of $250 a month   With this money, theyre doing considerably better than they once were. Especially, women had few other alternatives. If Apple decided to build iPhones and iPads for Americans using American labor rules, two things would likely happen: The prices of iPhones and iPads would go up Apples profit margins would go down Almost all of the major electronics manufacturers make their stuff in China and other countries that have labour practices that would be illegal here. One difference with Apple, though, is the magnitude of the companys profit margin and profits. Apple could afford to pay its manufacturers more or hold them to higher standards and still be extremely competitive and profitable. Therefore Apple can afford to pay their workers more or even improve the working conditions. 5. Recommendations for further improvements. Apple should started unprecedented probes into its factories all around the world; these probes will put pressure on the plants that make iPhones and iPads. Apple should increase the amount it pays its employees and therefore give them a larger share of profits. They should reduce the working hours of the employees and pay overtime. They should try to follow the labour laws of their country of origin (USA) and not the lax laws of China where workers are allowed to be overworked. They could increase loans offered to these workers at lower rates, improve the working conditions of these workers by investing in their factories rather than investing so much money in marketing and advertising. They could pressure its branch, converse to improve the working conditions in their factories. 6. Conclusion A small sacrifice in terms of profits from a big company like Apple can go a long way for poor workers in underdeveloped countries. But companies like Apple face the dilemma of voluntarily dropping their profits in order to help these workers or exploiting these workers for large profits. The motivation for a company like Apple to help these workers comes from the fear of bad publicity and the reward of goodwill for being an ethical company. It is therefore important to keep close checks on unethical companies and boycott goods from companies that are unethical towards their workers. The hard truth is that several companies need to be motivated or threatened so that they do not indulge in unethical practices, therefore the responsibility of pressuring these companies falls on the consumer. By buying products from these unethical companies we are indirectly supporting them in their activities.

Deborah Talls From Where We Stand :: Deborah Tall Where Stand Essays

Deborah Tall's From Where We Stand In her book, From Where We Stand, Deborah Tall, tells us the story of coming to Geneva, New York, to begin teaching. It is a personal account of coming to terms with a new and foreign place. It gives us the chance of watching her learn about landscapes, people, and history. It moves through time, through her own life, and especially through motherhood. In the end, and after more than a decade, she gives us the signs of what it means to live out of and within the place where you are. Perhaps the poet is uniquely qualified to consider this issue of place. When Martin Heidegger attempted to understand "place" and "home," he turned to poets like Friedrich HÃ ¶lderlin. Similarly, we can read poems and essays by Gary Snyder --- for instance, The Practice of the Wild or A Place in Space --- or N. Scott Momaday --- for instance, The Man Made of Words. Wallace Stegner's Where the Bluebird Sings to the Lemonade Springs is a collection of essays about "living and writing in the West." John Brinkerhoff Jackson takes us on a tour of American landscapes in his book A Sense of Place, a Sense of Time. And Wes Jackson's Becoming Native to This Place is based on his personal experiences of settling in a little formerly abandoned Kansas farm town, to establish his Land Institute. Virtually all of these writers share a common feeling that mainstream American society has lost its roots. With our extreme mobility we have lost connectedness with the land. We tend to avoid what is unique and defining of landscapes and to look for what is common or universal. When we drive through small communities, we stop to eat at the Burger King or McDonalds instead of investigating Aunt Sue's Loggers' Cafe. In a way, we have invented "everyplace" by universalizing the common things that we expect and seem to need --- familiar motel facades, common fast food menus, universal cable TV access, etc. But what these authors question is whether "everyplace" is really a "place" at all, hence, whether it serves the needs of being grounded in a place, knowing a landscape, feeling the history of habitation, belonging. Here are some personal observations. When Mammoth Mountain was aggressively developed as a ski resort, in the early 70s, traffic began picking up on US395, running through the town of Bishop.

Mergers and Acquisitions †The life of Hewlett †Packard Essay

The first big customer of HP was Walt Disney Studios. The company purchased eight oscillators from HP for their movie Fantasia. These oscillators were purchased in order to develop an innovative sound system for the movie. HP has incorporated profit sharing and social commitment in the company through its values and corporate objectives that have been with the company since 1957, these principles guide them to be focused and committed to the company and were founded by the co founders and are being followed to this day. Through trust, team work, innovation and integrity the company has been successful in making enough profits to finance their growth as well as keep all the stakeholders satisfied. They respect customer loyalty and the role of employees and there fore their contribution in the company. They look for opportunities and grow but not at the stake of society, they serve as an asset to the society and country where ever they are doing business. Dave Packard used a management technique that was incorporated into HP’s corporate culture. He called it â€Å"managing by walking around† which later came to be known as â€Å"management by Objectives† which had employee involvement, recognition and communication for better management and achievement of organizational goals. The company went public in the year 1957 and Bill and Dave have always given respect and appreciation for the employee’s efforts. Therefore after going public they gave the stock grants to the employees automatically who have been serving for at least six months in the company. This meant that the employees were given shares of the company, which will give them some form of ownership in the company and motivate them more for the performance and growth. The first acquisition of the company took place in the year 1958 of a high quality graphic producer company. The name of the company was F.L. Moseley Company of Pasadena, California. This acquisition was not seen as a threat to its flexibility because this gave opportunity to HP to enter into plotters market which was a needed for the company’s printer business. And to counter the problem of growing business the company had practiced decentralization of business divisions which will be responsible for their own products. Bill was looking for opportunities internationally for Hp to enter foreign markets and he found some in Europe after the Treaty of Rome and also the European Common market in the year 1957. These paved way for starting operation of Hp in the European markets and as Bill visited Europe he found it a viable decision and the company became global in the year 1959. The first joint venture of the company was in Asia with a Japanese company named Yokogawa Hewlett-Packard (YHP) in the year 1963. The CEO identified the factors that lead to major acquisitions by HP till the year 2005. HP was performing well in the industry. Its revenue and profits were rising and which made it attractive for the investor’s point of view as the company’s stock value also rose. The company was able to achieve cost control and pay bonuses to the employees at the same time. The company had a strong financial position with an impressive figure of $6.8 billion as an increase in revenue growth. The company wanted to achieve cost competitiveness. The company made some changes in the number of workers and their retirement programmes. The company consists of a team of dedicated workforce which is willing to put in their maximum efforts to enhance the value and performance. Moreover the company wanted to evolve in the bigger markets. The company had cash and potential to prosper in sales, they had no burden of operational debt. They have a strong customer base with a brand loyalty from them. All these led to the successful acquisitions of the company. The merger and acquisitions that took place between HP and other companies around the globe made HP a much stronger company in terms of market share as well as sales growth and innovation and created value for the company. The deal with Compaq was seen as an opportunity to grow into the IT sector in the world.   One of the long term goals of the company is to become the world’s largest computer company. All these mergers and takeovers were taken in order to reduce the competition, increase market share, share expertise which can be used to produce further products. The deal between Compaq and HP was seen as a success in the industry after five years of the deal. Compaq was its strong competitive at the same time one of the largest PC makers. The two companies by integrating have took forward the company’s profits and sales to another level altogether. The merger took place at the right time when both the companies were lacking the production of key products. But after the deal both the companies were able to fill in the gap that they had while operating independently. They were committed to the infrastructure software which helped the company go into the management layer from the commodity hardware. The company was at a stronger position to compete with the global service providers. The deal was able to increase the revenue and profits for the company being in the competitive environment of the industry.

buy custom Persuading an Audience essay

buy custom Persuading an Audience essay Persuading an audience is a very critical issue in life. This can be through writing, speaking or using signs. According to Adams Article, it is important to consider the type of language to use when writing cover letters to a company. For instance, a well-established company may pay attention to a well-presented cover letter. The language should be understandable and straight to the point. This point is also stressed through the Article In Pictures. This article provides that people should try to follow specific guidelines when writing their cover letters. For example, the first sentence should contain your mutual contact name. She identifies that one can relate desires of the job to life experience. The next step can be making a brief description of an individuals career in that sequence. This will give the concerned company a feeling that the person to employ may be competent enough to carry out the duties. On the other hand, Covino identifies specific elements of persuasion through dialogue means. He believes that persuasive instance can involve complex interactions of intentions, premises, assumptions, experiences and beliefs. For example, beaver rejected to put on a suit because he had made an agreement with his friends not to wear suits and ties during a banquet occasion. In this context, his parents did not succeed in persuading him to wear the suit. Since they understood the meaning, they carried the suit. Latter Beaver realized it was important and agreed to his parents persuasion. The weather condition and business advertisement are other areas that require persuasive skills. His audiences in this article are listeners whom the speaker must convince by use of an excellent persuasive language. Both articles talk about persuading an audience using different skills. In this context, Adams article deals with writing skills and Covino on his part is dealing with persuasion by use of speaking skills. All the aspects discussed by both the writers relate to emotional appeals, credibility appeals together with logic and evidence appeals. Buy custom Persuading an Audience essay

15 Top Writing Guides for Novelists

15 Top Writing Guides for Novelists 15 Top Writing Guides for Novelists 15 Top Writing Guides for Novelists By Mark Nichol There comes a time when you have to put down other people’s books and start writing your own. But if you don’t feel you’ve gotten to that point yet, or you’d just like a shot in the arm (or a more definitive blow to another part of your anatomy), explore these excellent writing workshops in print: 1. The Art of War for Writers: Fiction Writing Strategies, Tactics, and Exercises Author and writing instructor James Scott Bell mirrors the ancient strategic guide The Art of War in this 2009 book, discussing reconnaissance (preparing to write), tactics (writing advice), and strategy (how to get published) in short, sharp bursts of wisdom and example. 2. Becoming a Writer Dorothea Brande was far ahead of her time when she wrote this book in 1934. Instead of writing a nuts-and-bolts guide, she focused on the qualitative aspects: artistry, self-actualization, the role of the unconscious mind, and more. 3. Elements of Fiction Writing: Beginnings, Middles Ends Nancy Kress’s 2011 book is more suited for aspiring writers than more seasoned ones, but it is full of suggestions and techniques for hooking the reader from the first sentence and sustaining interest from scene to scene all the way through to the end. 4. Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life Anne Lamott’s autobiographical writing guide from 1995 isn’t for everyone, but it’s full of honest, humorous reflections about the writing life, with frank, funny admissions that give you permission to be human, too. 5. How to Grow a Novel: The Most Common Mistakes Writers Make Longtime novelist and fiction editor Sol Stein’s 1999 guide is predicated on his belief that writers must focus not on themselves but on their readers. Despite the apparently self-aggrandizing title, his 2000 follow-up, Stein on Writing: A Master Editor of Some of the Most Successful Writers of Our Century Shares His Craft Techniques and Strategies, is also highly recommended. 6. Make a Scene: Crafting a Powerful Story One Scene at a Time Jordan Rosenfeld’s 2007 guide to constructing a great story scene by scene analyzes examples representing a wide variety of styles and types of scenes, demonstrating how the narrative arc, character development, and other elements of fiction writing are all dependent on well-constructed vignettes. 7. Novelist’s Essential Guide to Crafting Scenes Novelist and writing instructor Raymond Obstfeld, like Rosenfeld, emphasizes how skillfully crafted scenes are the heart of a successful story. This comprehensive guide from 2000 is suitable for novices and experienced writers alike. 8. On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft Though much of Stephen King’s 2000 tome is autobiographical, it also contains many useful tips for writers, from technical matters such as grammar to thoughts about character and plot. A valuable element is a section that includes a rough draft and an edited draft of one of his stories. Even if you consider King a middlebrow writer, you can’t deny that he is a master of his craft, and we should be so fortunate. 9. On Writing Well Veteran journalist, nonfiction writer, and writing instructor William Zinsser, a champion of word economy, writes, â€Å"Writing improves in direct ratio to the number of things we can keep out of it.† This book, first published in 1974 but timeless, reinforces that credo; also check out his more recent guide, Writing to Learn. 10. Self-Editing for Fiction Writers: How to Edit Yourself into Print Unlike most guides on this list, Renni Browne and Dave King’s 1993 work focuses not on the craft of writing but on the next step: editing your own work. The authors discuss dialogue, interior monologue, exposition, point of view, and other elements of story, with examples, exercises, and checklists. 11. Steering the Craft: Exercises and Discussions on Story Writing Based on a writing workshop offered by legendary science fiction author Ursula K. LeGuin, this 1998 collection of discussions and writing exercises includes such tasks as eschewing punctuation or adjectives and adverbs, or halving a story’s word count. 12. The 3 A.M. Epiphany: Uncommon Writing Exercises that Transform Your Fiction The exercises in Brian Kitely’s therapeutic 2005 book are designed to help writers overcome emotional obstacles to productivity and get out of writing ruts. 13. Word Painting: A Guide to Write More Descriptively Poet Rebecca McClanahan, in this 1999 publication, provides writing instruction and writing exercises along with excerpts and advice from greater writers to help others develop their observational skills and descriptive powers. 14. Writing Down the Bones: Freeing the Writer Within In this 1986 book, Natalie Goldberg suggests taking a Zen approach to writing, expanding on the concept of free writing to suggest what she calls writing practice. Like free writing, writing practice involves unstructured, uninhibited writing exercises, but is also about self-reflection. 15. Your First Novel: A Published Author and a Top Agent Share the Keys to Achieving Your Dream Writer Ann Rittenberg and agent Laura Whitcomb team up to teach you all you need to know about the writing process and the publishing business. Their 2006 guide offers lots of useful advice about how to prepare your story even before you begin to write, and how to submit proposals, decipher submission guidelines, and more. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Fiction Writing category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:10 Rules for Writing Numbers and NumeralsIn Search of a 4-Dot EllipsisTreatment of Words That Include â€Å"Self†

The Apple, Authentec Merger The WritePass Journal

The Apple, Authentec Merger Abstract The Apple, Authentec Merger . The paper analyses the process of the negotiations and with a keen interest on the motivation behind the deal. This is Apple’s biggest deal ever and there are many questions pointing at the reason and the speed of this merger. This paper delves into the timing of the negotiations examining indicators that could reveal any hidden motives that Apple could have had that led to the signing of the final agreement. The paper uses a theoretical lens to explain the occurrences, the nature of negotiations and who actually exerted pressure on the process and the reason why. The paper investigates the relationship between Apple’s aggressiveness and the pending release of its new product.   Introduction Fingerprint sensor technology company AuthenTec Inc announced its acquisition by Apple on July 27. The agreement was at $356 million and was to be the biggest acquisition in Apples 36 year period, in operation. A year after Apple Inc  (AAPL.O) acquired  AuthenTec Inc  AUTH; a patent application was made public by the US Patent Trademark Office  (Purcher, 2012). This application from Apple pointed at a new technology for the iPhone and its other devices, a security feature that would incorporate fingerprint scanner. Interesting was the fact that this technology was acquired from AuthenTec. Purcher (2013) explains that Apple had made such applications earlier in 2009, an indicator that it was interested in fingerprint scanners for its future devices. It appears that this research was at an advanced stage in 2012 with the revelation that this technology would be used together with face or Retina recognition as a sophisticated security measure on its iPhone and MAC. The Q-Theory of Mergers explains that mergers can be used as means for technology transfer and capital reallocation  (Jovanovic et al., 2002). This paper focuses on the former in regard to the merger and acquisition in question. It is the light of this argument that this investigation delves into the background of this deal, Apples agenda and maneuvers and the eventual take over to bring to light its real purpose. The Process According to Brian (2012), the negotiations between AuthenTec and Apple started towards the end of 2011 with a simple approach by AuthenTec whether Apple would be interested in implementing its latest technology. Brian’s (2012), revelation extends to the fact that Apple was not the only company that Authentic approached and despite its wealthy customer base that included â€Å"Alcatel-Lucent, Cisco, Fujitsu, HBO, HP, Lenovo, LG, Motorola, Nokia, Orange, Samsung, Sky, and Texas Instruments†Ã‚  (Brian, 2012), Its only Apple that responded to AuthenTec’s approach and by showing interest in developing the technology. At this moment, it appeared as though the main reason Apple was interested in commercially pursuing this technology was cost. Nonetheless, the negotiations began with the focus turning to the extent to which Authentic would grant intellectual property (IP) to Apple for the latest technology  (Bell, 2012). At this point, it seemed there was a lack of ag reement on such terms and this completely shifted the nature of the agreement. This was the beginning of these negotiations in late February 2012 and Davidoff (2012 ), in his article revealed the nature of these negotiation as Apple would direct. According to Ogg (2012), the deal took a different turn with many consultations between the two parties over licencing, exclusivity, cost as well as issues over the new product and, as a result, Apple was unsatisfied with the proposed commercial agreement. On May 1, it made a counter proposal to AuthenTec’s negotiation team to acquire the company instead  (Brian, 2012). In its proposal, Apple gave a price of $7.00 for each share, and valued the firm at a 115 percent of its previous day common stock ending price  (Ogg, 2012). Apple knew that no other potential buyer would make such an incredible offer to AuthenTec and as such it began to intensify the negotiations. It also believed that AuthenTec technology would not benefit Apple s rivals, who utilized different smart phone platforms  (Brian, 2012). Apple’s products are known to have a narrow platform that is compatible with component parts of universal unit volumes. Nonetheless, Apple wanted this negotiations as quite as possible it appeared to value its privacy on this one, it did nothing as far as news releases on this deal were concern. AuthenTec on the other hand did not mention the acquisition, despite its penchant to news release on every issue  (Davidoff, 2012 ). Ross et al. (2007) rightly express that acquisition process is the most dramatic and controversial undertaking in corporate finance  (Ross et al., 2007). Apple did not want controversy surrounding the revelation of its true intention in the merger. Apple has long been known for its innovation, an asset that it has struggled to maintain since its last release. Apples innovation has put it at the top of the market with pundits valuing it at $1 trillion US dollar market cap  (Woh lsen, 2013). The secrecy surrounding this deal was not only an indication of Apples reduced innovation, but protection of its reputation and market share, Apple was buying technology at a cost of $356 million. Acquisitions of this nature make headlines in the financial press, which could be scandalous  (Ross et al., 2007). Subsequently, Apple proposed a transaction structure and timeline for the acquisition an indication that it needed something more than just AuthenTec, it needed its technology and it needed it fast. The Technology Integration Strategy At the pre-merger negotiation phase, the Apple negotiation team expressed their company’s desire for the process to move quickly as a result of its product plans as well as what it referred to as engineering efforts  (Cheng, 2012). Apple was in a hurry and wanted the pre-merger negotiation rushed, due to its focus on timing. In addition, the company was against the auction process and threatened to rescind its proposal if AuthenTec further proposed alternative proposals  (Cheng, 2012). It is important to note that since the beginning of these negotiations, at no point did AuthenTec filing indicate Apples intention to include neither hardware nor a soft ware feature. However, in Apple’s acquisition proposal to AutheTec, there was an inclusion of a $20 million IP agreement that gave it a free hand on the patents  (Brian, 2012). These patents, AuthenTec, earlier in the strategic planning could have costed Apple as much as $115 million. The filing incorporated an agreement allowing Apple the right to have non-exclusive license as well as other rights that included hardware and software technology, as well as patents for the commercial use of 2D fingerprint security sensors intended for use in or with their products  (Bell, 2012). Based on this, it is reasonable to assume that Apple’s intention was to acquire AuthenTec fingerprint technology that it planned on incorporating in its new eWallet also called â€Å"Passbook†Ã‚  (Bell, 2012). The Passbook was the long awaited application running on iOS 6 and was meant to serve as storage for tickets, loyalty cards and other packages; this device was to be a digital wallet that could also offer digital payments  (Brian, 2012). It is also safe to assume that Apple’s idea was to incorporate a security feature that could verify payments and ensure that was not accessible to an authorized user in case it fell on wrong hands. On the other hand, prior to the acquisition deal, on May 8th 2012, AuthenTec had announced the introduction of the smart sensor; a security feature designed specifically NFC mobile. This was a 192 pixel by 8 pixel sensor that comprised of identifying finger prints alongside other sophisticated features such as the One Time Password (OTP) generator  (Bell, 2012). In other words, this product was ideal in securing the Apple’s eWallet Passbook an innovation that came in time and they had to seize the opportunity. In addition, this sensor that was 1.3 mm could be assimilated in more than one application including a Home button. Apple was tactful in its negotiations as it had to meet specific deadlines. If it could finalize the deal fast enough, then it could have used the new technology in one of it’s yet to be released products. In fact there were secret reports of Apple launching it next generation iPhone later in September of 2012 and thereafter, the a 7.85-inch iPad. It makes sense to assume that this would give Apple a little under 90 days to embed this new technology in its products. Moreover, it is important to note that this could also have been relevant in the Apple’s computer line-up since there had been numerous fingerprint sensors given by AuthenTec for desktop computers for a long time  (Neurotechnology, 2013). There was a possibility of this technology could make its debut in Apple’s Mac lineup. Nonetheless, the question was, it was this technology was developed for Apple, why was there the rush to settle the deal? And is this not an indication that the technology was to be used before the end of the year 2012? Well, if Apple needed a product, then it could have span out such technology from the iOS6 operating system which was to hit the market later on the same year. It is only possible and true that Apple had a perfect timing for the technology for use in one of its products due for release sooner. After consultations with its board alongside its investors, and following exploration of its ability to pursue acquisition deals with other electronic firms, AuthenTec put an offer of $9 for every share to Apple for continuity of the negotiations. However, Apple made a final bid of no more than $8.00 for each share, and consequently, in less than a month the two parties resolved to finalize the deal  (Bell, 2012). This was not to be the end of this transaction as once again AuthenTec put a halt to it claiming that it had undertaken its due diligence and pending this resolution, it was not willing to proceed with the deal  (Brian, 2012). This was not because it wanted to drop the deal, but rather the company had shifted its focus to licensure issue in regard to the new technology. Starting June 1 to 3rd of July 2012, the two firms embarked on developing the technology as needed by Apple and went on to thin out their differences in regard to acceptable commercial agreement terms  (Cheng, 2012). This was revelation of how aggressively Apple was pursuing the technology for integration in its products. This was further strengthened by AuthenTec’s announcement that it had successfully completed and resolved its due diligence issues and that it had brought back the deal on the negotiation table  (Ogg, 2012). July of 2012 saw the two companies iron out the issues that allowed AuthenTec to make the technology available to Apple while at the same time maintain an open bid for other interested companies  (Brian, 2012). However, Apple insisted that development of the technology was to be on schedule regardless of the status of the deal and on the 19th of July both companies agreed on the contentious issues on the IP agreement and made an agreement  (Brian, 2012). The Deal From the beginning, Apple had the intention of licensing the new technology from AuthenTec and utilize it in one of its yet to be released products. It was said that Apple was to officially release a new iPhone and talk of the 7.85-inch iPad were gaining pace  (Slivka, 2012). As Ross et al.(2007) explain, one of the main disadvantages of a merger especially of such a nature, must be approved by AuthenTec stockholders, this has to be a two thirds approval. Having mentioned that, the fact that AuthenTec had submitted its proxy papers, its shareholder were yet to vote on the deal in question. This was certain to proceed regardless and in case AuthenTec wanted out for a bigger offer, it probably needed to have paid Apple $ 10 million.   It did not matter whether the deal was complete or not, the new finger print technology was sure to end up in one of Apple’s products. In addition, in all the negotiations, Apple maintained that the development of the new technology was to cont inue no matter whether it agreed with AuthenTec or not or even acquired the company. There were many negotiations between these companies, one that also involved other parties including Alston   Bird and Piper Jaffray, and by the 26th of the same month, a deal was brokered and Apple agreed on $8 on each share alongside 20 million for the technology as well as $115 million for licensure of the technology  (Brian, 2012). The following day on the 27th of July, announced a deal after it filed an 8-K with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Apple is did not waste time to incorporate the finger print sensor feature in its devices  (Apple Inc, 2013). AuthenTec has been known to specialize in development of security hardware and software and it is possible that these could have found their way into the Apple’s devices including the desktop computers. However, these details are not easily available, but Apple’s aggressiveness in using such technology is a point of speculation that this is possible. Conclusion Apple Inc acquired AuthenTec in July of 2012 after intense negotiations. The deal that was worth $ 356 million dollars is said to be the biggest Apple has ever made. This paper has delved into the issue surrounding this merger. The paper asserts that the motivation behind this merger was the AuthenTec’s finger print sensor that Apple aggressively wanted to acquire. The sensor had a chip that could be incorporated in computers and more so a perfect fit for Apples products that run on a narrow platform that is compatible with component parts of universal unit volumes. However, the company wanted this negotiations as quiete as possible it appeared to value its privacy on this one, the tech firm did nothing as far as press releases on the deal. In addition, the new technology was useful to Apple as it could be relevant in the Apple’s computer line-up since there had been numerous fingerprint sensors provided by AuthenTec for PC computers for a long time. It makes sense to a ssume that Apple had the intention of licensing the finger print sensor from AuthenTec and utilize it in one of it’s products most likely the the 7.85-inch iPad, a talk that has   gained pace. A close examination of the merger between these two companies reveal the fact that it was fuelled by Apples desire to utilize the new technology.  Ã‚   Bibliography Apple Inc, 2013. iPhone 5s: About Touch ID security. [Online] Apple Inc Available at: http://support.apple.com/kb/ht5949 [Accessed 17 December 2013]. Bell, K., 2012. Apple’s Purchase Of AuthenTec Could Mean Future iOS Devices Will Unlock With Your Fingerprint. [Online] Available at: cultofmac.com/184996/ [Accessed 17 December 2013]. Brian, M., 2012. Why Apple really bought AuthenTec: It wanted â€Å"new technology† for upcoming products, and quickly. [Online] Available at: http://thenextweb.com/apple/2012/08/16/the-real-reason-apple-acquired-authentec-because-needed-new-technology-quickly-products/#!p3ghF [Accessed 17 December 2013]. Cheng, J., 2012. Apple wanted AuthenTec’s â€Å"new technology† ASAP for future products. [Online] Available at: http://arstechnica.com/apple/2012/08/apple-wanted-authentecs-new-technology-asap-for-future-products/ [Accessed 17 December 2013]. Davidoff, S.M., 2012. Apple’s Quiet Deal for AuthenTec. The New York Times , 1 August. Jovanovic, Boyan Rousseau, P., 2002. The Q-theory of mergers. American Economic Review , 92, pp.198-204. Neurotechnology, 2013. AuthenTec AF-S2 (FingerLoc). [Online] Available at: neurotechnology.com/fingerprint-scanner-authentec-fingerloc-af-s2.html [Accessed 17 December 2013]. Ogg, E., 2012. Pre-merger, Apple, AuthenTec were working on new tech together. [Online] Gigaom Available at: http://gigaom.com/2012/08/16/pre-merger-apple-authentec-were-working-on-new-tech-together/ [Accessed 17 December 2013]. Purcher, J., 2012. Apple Invents Biometric Features for e-Commerce Security. [Online] Available at: patentlyapple.com/patently-apple/2012/10/apple-invents-biometric-features-for-e-commerce-security.html [Accessed 16 December 2013]. Purcher, J., 2013. Apples Acquired Fingerprint Sensor Patent from AuthenTec Comes to Light. [Online] Available at: patentlyapple.com/patently-apple/2013/07/apples-acquired-fingerprint-sensor-patent-from-authentec-comes-to-light.html [Accessed 16 December 2013]. Ross, S., Westerfield, R., Jordan, B. Roberts, G., 2007. Fundamentals of Corporate Finance. McGraw-Hill Ryerson Higher Education. Slivka, E., 2012. Why Apples 7.85-Inch iPad Mini Isnt a 7-Inch Tablet. [Online] Available at: macrumors.com/2012/07/10/why-apples-7-85-inch-ipad-mini-isnt-a-7-inch-tablet/ [Accessed 17 December 2013]. Wohlsen, M., 2013. Apple’s Reputation for Innovation Is Now Its Greatest Liability. [Online] Available at: wired.com/business/2013/09/apple-annoucements/ [Accessed 17 December 2013].

Lab Report Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Lab Report Example Finally the volumetric efficiency was found to be 60%. It is important to point out that the torque of the engine is dependent on the speed at which the engine turns and it is normally expressed in revolutions per minute (rpm). The curve of the power torque graph for the polo engine slopes smoothly and increases steadily as the revolutions per minute increase. The relationship of torque versus the engine is non linear. This relationship is provided as curve as shown on the torque curve. The exact shape and the height of the curve is specific for each engine type and this is normally determined by engine tests. The curve peaks at approximately 4000 rpm with a torque of about 90.3 N/M. The curves can be defined within the range of 1100-5500 rpm since that is the operating range of the polo engine. If the range is made lower than this, the engine is likely to stall while an increase would damage the engine. For energy balance to occur within the internal combustion engine, it is important that the total power generated by the brake power is kept at its peak. Energy performance is an indication of the degree at which the success of the internal combustion polo engine performs its assigned task. The total power is normally developed by the combustion of the fuel in the combustion chamber is greater than the brake power usually referred to as indicated power. This can be calculated as: The balance of the energy in the internal combustion engine will indicate that approximately 1/3 of the fuel energy that has been input is normally lost to the external environment through transfer of heat. There is also another 1/3 is available as the shaft performs its work. The heat losses must be decreased in order to improve the efficiency of the engine. 3. Exhaust smoke and other emissions: The oxides of nitrogen and any unburned carbons are an indication of the rate of efficiency of the engine. This parameter can be used

A review of the relationship between poverty, uninsured children, Essay

A review of the relationship between poverty, uninsured children, childhood obesity and the well-being index - Essay Example The current study aims to look at obesity and chronic obesity causing conditions since these are emerging as major reasons for negatively affecting the well being of people. Data for the study has been acquired from Gallup-Healthway’s Well Being Index  ® website from a survey conducted and compiled in 2009. Data was also acquired from the State Health Facts website for targeted states only. The data acquired from Gallup-Healthway was used to demarcate five states that formed the upper most and lowest tiers of obesity prevalence in the United States. The states of West Virginia, Mississippi and Kentucky exhibit the highest obesity rates while the states of Hawaii and Colorado displayed the lowest obesity rates (Mendes & McGeeney, 2012). The states were chosen in this order also because West Virginia, Mississippi and Kentucky are on the lowest rung of the WBI while Colorado and Hawaii are near the top of the WBI list. In addition to these statistics, three other variables were also used that include the population in poverty, the amount of uninsured kids and the amount of obese kids. Statistical Analysis Descriptive statistics were tabulated for the acquired data (shown in Appendix A). Gallup uses defined metrics in order to survey well being which can be listed as the Composite, Life Evaluation Index (LEI), Emotional Health Index (EHI), Work Environment Index (WEI), Physical Health Index (PHI), Healthy Behavior Index (HBI) and Basic Access Index (BAI) (Gallup-Healthways, 2009). The other variables used include the Population in Poverty (POP IN POV), uninsured kids and obese kids (State Health Facts, 2012). Results for the descriptive statistics are presented in the table shown below. Table 1 Descriptive Statistics WBI (Rank) State Health Fact (%) Descriptive Statistics for WBI and State Health Facts for the Nation Overall and the Five States Selected Descriptive Statistic COMPOSITE LEI EHI WEI PHI HBI BAI POP IN POV UNINSURED KIDS OBESE KIDS Mean 65.03 44.73 78.2 48.82 75.33 62.27 80.78 23.5 7.83 34.05 Median 64.95 44.55 78.5 48.9 75.7 62.15 81.1 23.5 8.5 33.55 Range 9.7 15.9 8.5 8.3 9.5 10.1 7.1 12 9 17.2 Standard Deviation 3.51 5.83 2.93 2.67 3.66 3.88 2.89 4.04 3.31 6.36 Standard Error 1.43 2.38 1.2 1.09 1.5 1.58 1.18 1.65 1.35 2.6 The mean and median for the Gallup data remain fairly close to each other for all reported metrics. In contrast, the data acquired from State Health shows some skewness for uninsured kids with the mean being 7.83 while the median is 8.5. The range for most variables being analyzed stays under 10 except for LEI (15.9), population in poverty (12) and obese kids (17.2). these variables could be expected to display larger standard deviations as well since the range of data is greater. In terms of the standard deviation, the highest value is displayed by obese kids (6.36) followed by LEI (5.83) while other variables display standard deviations of around 4. The standard error tabulation reveals similar res ults with LEI exhibiting a standard error of 2.38 and obese kids displaying a standard error of 2.6. In contrast, the standard error for population in poverty is 1.65 while other variables display standard errors of less than 1.6. Based on these results it could be safely assumed that the data acquired displays a near uniform distribution except for LEI and obese kids that tend to exhibit some skewness. Composite and domain scores by state as well as the

Analzing daily diet Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Analzing daily diet - Case Study Example A balanced diet with adequate amount of vitamins and minerals not only maintains the health but also prevents us from many diseases. Diet vitalizes the immune system and strengthens body systems. An adequate amount of vitamins like vitamin A, vitamin B, vitamin C, etc and minerals like iron, calcium, magnesium and potassium can prevent us from cardiovascular diseases, skin diseases, digestion problems and many other diseases. A complete diet includes vegetables, fruits, meat, milk and adequate amount of water. I have selected a young college going boy that is following the diet plans. As a young individual he loves eating out particularly fast foods. According to him, he has been following the diet since he is in college. He also intakes junk foods. His diet consists of the following foods and food products. The individual is taking 4824 Kilo calories from the food he is taking. He is taking about 170 grams of fats, 214 grams of proteins, 628 grams of carbohydrates, 2444 calcium, 45.2 gram iron, 11719 micrograms vitamin-A and 914 micrograms vitamin-C. According to the RDA recommendation, the person is of the age group of 19-24 years. He should take about 2900 kilo calories of energy from food, 800 milligram calcium, 1000 micrograms Vitamin A, 63 grams protein, 10 milligram iron and 15 micrograms of zinc (Time-to-run.com, 2014). According to the RDA nutrition chart, the individual is taking enough nutrition. It seems that the individual is taking enough fats that his body stores. He is missing some of the essential nutritional foods that have selenium, adequate amount of iron, zinc and iodine. He is having a complete diet as his diet include a high dosage of calcium that he attains from milk and cheese. He attains enough amount of Vitamin A that he attains from cereal in the breakfast. He takes enough Vitamin B12 and Vitamin B6, which he attains from the beef

Solution for a problem in the contraction Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Solution for a problem in the contraction - Essay Example All the same, the contract with the city managers was exclusively related to loans and the terms agreed had no mention of leases. As such, Wasserman’s lease deal was very attractive and promised Davenport huge profits. Therefore, leasing the property to Wasserman, who could then sublease to the tenants did not violate the terms of agreement; the immediate usage of the property would continue as agreed. Thus, Davenport would be right in leasing the property to Wasserman while at the same time respecting the loan terms not to change the usage or ownership of the property within the stipulated period. All the same, Davenport faces some unethical dilemma. Any contractual deal has to be in good faith and to the best interests of the two parties involved (Hellman 2011). As such, any change or implied change in terms of agreement breaches this good will and partially changes the terms of the investment in question. In the case above, though the agreement with the city managers did not address the issue of leases, leasing the property to Wasserman with the promise of the latter buying the property afterwards amounted to forfeiting the ownership of the property to the second owner, while at the same time pretending that the terms of the agreement were still intact, to benefit unethically from the mortgage waiver. Therefore, in the above deal, though Davenport was legally correct, there were some ethical issues involved in the deal with Wassermann. Helman, Christopher. Chesapeake Energy: Whats Up With These Lawsuits? Forbes. Jan 11, 2011. http://www.forbes.com/sites/christopherhelman/2011/01/21/chesapeake-energy-whats-up-with-these-lawsuits/ March 19,

Investigation of 2 evidences of the climate conditions of the last Research Paper

Investigation of 2 evidences of the climate conditions of the last Deglaciation - Research Paper Example Therefore, the paper presents an investigation of evidences and uses them to make inferences about the impacts of the last deglaciation away from the margin of the ice sheets, especially the formation of Scablands. Arguments from the Documentary In the documentary, the author attributes their formation to gradual soil erosion through the actions of rivers (NOVA, 2005). It is also assumed that it was formed by the action of glaciers during the ice age. Under the assumption, enormous sheets of gradual-moving ice that originated from Canada curved new landscape as it moved down-hill (NOVA, 2005). According to Harlen Bretz’s theory that reflected the scientific convention, Channeled Scablands resulted from an overnight enormous catastrophe, which is more Bible-inspired, but not gradual geological evolution, which is more scientific, oriented (Anderson & Anderson, 2010). He seemed to be discrediting the geological or scientific beliefs that the formation of such landscape might hav e resulted from a gradual process that would last for a long time. The Use of Scientific Evidence to Reconstruct Conditions of the Last Deglaciation According to Edmiston, Scablands are some of the prehistoric features (Edmiston, 2005). He argues that Pardee was among the early geologists to offer explanation regarding the formation of Scablands (Edmiston, 2005). He was of the opinion that the features might have resulted from the actions of ice-age glaciers. Particularly, glacial erosion could be responsible for the formation of such features (Soennichsen, 2008). In fact, he argued that normal erosion could not explain the formation of Scablands. He categorically explained that the deep gorge, large portholes resembling small lakes and sharp hanging dry falls are scientific evidences of glacial erosion (Bretz, Smith & Neff, 2006). Another scientific evidence to reconstruct Bretz’s theory was the enormous discharge from glacial lakes such as Missoula could yield such great vo lume of water, which might be responsible for the formation of channeled Scablands (Geological Survey, 2010). Later, scientists, through the analysis and application of hydrological principles, discovered that open-channel hydraulics was consistent with Bretz’s qualitative observations. Therefore, Bretz got support from the scientific evidence (Bretz, 2003). The other scientific evidence was the Columbia gorge that the scientists believed had significant discharge attributable to channeled Scablands (Summerfield, 2001). Yet, in different and convincing evidence, the geologists found another large lake believed to have been formed from glacial activities (Young & Stearley, 2008). The lake is situated in the West of Montana. Evidently, it empties catastrophically due to glacial actions (Burr, Carling & Baker, 2009). Subsequently, its waters spill over into the Scablands through the channels. The Relevance of Scientific Studies Due to the nature of the Channeled Scablands, thus being deep and containing many other physical features (Young & Stearley, 2008). Therefore, the gradualist explanation offered better account of the events, which might have led to the formation of the feature (Furtwangler, 1999). The Violent and rapid assumption theory of Bretz could not have scientific evide

Critique Assignment Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Critique Assignment - Coursework Example The research being conducted is a quantitative research where trials and simulations were used to collect data. In this research, the participants were subjected to tests, some of which were multiple choices, while some involved the use of a Likert-scale, to measure their response towards the questions asked, and the research question at large. The previous studies in the research include a study by Ackerman, Kanfer and Goff (1995) with their study on cognitive and noncognitive determinants and consequences and complex skill acquisition. Another study is by Kanfer and Ackerman (1989). Kraiger, Ford and Salas (1993) are other authors whose study on the interaction between goal orientation and cognitive ability, was used in the study. Studies by Dweck (1986, 1989) on motivational processes affecting learning were also used in the literature and motivation, were also used in the literature. Farr, Hofmann and Ringenbach (1993) on goal orientation and action control theory, also had their study used in the literature of this study. Studies by Button et al. (1996) on goal orientation in organizational research, Ford, Smith, Weissbein, Gully and Salas (1998) on relationship on goal orientation, Kozlowski et al. (2001) on effects of training goals and goal orientation on multi-dimension training, and Philip and Gully (1997) on role of goal orientation, ability need for achievement and locus of control in the self-efficacy goal setting process, are among other studies listed in the literature review.

Solution for a problem in the contraction Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Solution for a problem in the contraction - Essay Example All the same, the contract with the city managers was exclusively related to loans and the terms agreed had no mention of leases. As such, Wasserman’s lease deal was very attractive and promised Davenport huge profits. Therefore, leasing the property to Wasserman, who could then sublease to the tenants did not violate the terms of agreement; the immediate usage of the property would continue as agreed. Thus, Davenport would be right in leasing the property to Wasserman while at the same time respecting the loan terms not to change the usage or ownership of the property within the stipulated period. All the same, Davenport faces some unethical dilemma. Any contractual deal has to be in good faith and to the best interests of the two parties involved (Hellman 2011). As such, any change or implied change in terms of agreement breaches this good will and partially changes the terms of the investment in question. In the case above, though the agreement with the city managers did not address the issue of leases, leasing the property to Wasserman with the promise of the latter buying the property afterwards amounted to forfeiting the ownership of the property to the second owner, while at the same time pretending that the terms of the agreement were still intact, to benefit unethically from the mortgage waiver. Therefore, in the above deal, though Davenport was legally correct, there were some ethical issues involved in the deal with Wassermann. Helman, Christopher. Chesapeake Energy: Whats Up With These Lawsuits? Forbes. Jan 11, 2011. http://www.forbes.com/sites/christopherhelman/2011/01/21/chesapeake-energy-whats-up-with-these-lawsuits/ March 19,

Critique Assignment Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Critique Assignment - Coursework Example The research being conducted is a quantitative research where trials and simulations were used to collect data. In this research, the participants were subjected to tests, some of which were multiple choices, while some involved the use of a Likert-scale, to measure their response towards the questions asked, and the research question at large. The previous studies in the research include a study by Ackerman, Kanfer and Goff (1995) with their study on cognitive and noncognitive determinants and consequences and complex skill acquisition. Another study is by Kanfer and Ackerman (1989). Kraiger, Ford and Salas (1993) are other authors whose study on the interaction between goal orientation and cognitive ability, was used in the study. Studies by Dweck (1986, 1989) on motivational processes affecting learning were also used in the literature and motivation, were also used in the literature. Farr, Hofmann and Ringenbach (1993) on goal orientation and action control theory, also had their study used in the literature of this study. Studies by Button et al. (1996) on goal orientation in organizational research, Ford, Smith, Weissbein, Gully and Salas (1998) on relationship on goal orientation, Kozlowski et al. (2001) on effects of training goals and goal orientation on multi-dimension training, and Philip and Gully (1997) on role of goal orientation, ability need for achievement and locus of control in the self-efficacy goal setting process, are among other studies listed in the literature review.

The US economy Essay Example for Free

The US economy Essay Nuclear warfare loomed large at this time and international fear of the plutonium and uranium bombs which had been dropped in Japan were escalated, this historians clear aim here was to give the impression that America was instigating this sort of warfare and as such is clearly writing to turn popular opinion and weaken American support worldwide. In understandable contrast James Byrnes shares a completely different view. He demonstrates condolence towards the usage of the bomb. We first have to establish who relayed this source, the then, US Secretary of State, Byrnes. He would have wanted his beliefs at the time of the droppings to appear in a positive light and be seen as fairly thought out strategic move. Patriotism will have played a part in this, Byrnes re-enforces Trumans final word to go ahead with the raids. In a similar fashion to Nekrasov, Byrnes attempts to provoke dislike for the opposition by stating And we are talking about people who hadnt hesitated at Pearl Harbor to make a sneak attack. Comments such as this almost morally justify the actions of America in the minds of its citizens who had lost loved ones in the Pearl Harbor attack but, frankly the 2,403 military peoples lives sacrificed at pearl harbor doesnt compare with the hundreds of thousands lost in Japan due to the bombs. Byrnes comparison is hyperbolic and his obvious reckoning is that Japan deserved the attack and got what was coming to them. His exaggeration is heightened when he refers to the soldiers as boys who would be losing their lives, where in actual fact they were mentally formidable, highly skilled and trained killing machines, just as desperate for their lives as the Japanese were for their. Byrnes would have had to have upheld this point of view and couldnt possibly condemn these attacks as he had played a major part in them and the Japanese sacrifices were so hard to comprehend he had to maintain the attacks were full justified. I believe this memoir is very much designed to affirm this in public minds. I believed the atomic bomb would be successful and would force the Japanese to surrender on our terms furthers this point. The views of Nekrasov and Byrnes are almost incomparable due to the circumstances they were written/relayed. I would argue that they are both written mainly for the respective authors countries to induce sympathy in the minds of their readers for their cause. Censorship will have played a large part in the writing of Source F while Source G would have needed to justify the bombings. Question Five What are the Strengths and weaknesses of Source H as an interpretation on Hiroshima and Nagasaki? Source H is a video episode produced by the BBC for the World at War Series, produced in 1973 it is somewhat outdated for modern reference but offers a fantastic insight into the period and how the bomb affected some of those involved. I feel the video was produced from an impartial standing, the BBC are renowned for making solid documentaries and historical references and presenting the argument as fairly as possible, using all the resources they have to their disposal. I dont believe that we can rely on the reputation of the BBC completely. They perhaps would have produced the video with the intentions of being broad minded and covering every aspect but of course some factors prevented this from taking place. The video is, at times slightly biased towards the US and how they went about the events of 1945. A viewer sees a great deal of the American perspective while watching the video, some Japanese perspective and no Russian perspective. The lack of Russias involvement in the making of the video is of course due to the cold war, such was the censorship in the country at the time. This is a major weakness in the video as a viewer would not be able to assimilate the controversy over the dropping of the bomb. The Americans interviewed on the video could be seen as quite arrogant, they seem to speak in statistics rather than about the inhumane events, mass loss of life and Japanese devastation. This in many ways is a strength of the video, it perhaps shows that the attitude of the Americans was still quite bitter and suggest they have few regrets about dropping the bomb. I feel that the Japanese people interviewed were not as comprehensively portrayed as the Americans. The Americans, especially one of the pilots talking about the bombing, were very militant, seeming to forget about the repercussions of the dropping of the bomb affecting the Japanese. The pilot being interviewed was quite casual and came across as quite scientific. The Japanese interviewed seemed to be surprisingly calm about the attack, they described this physical effects but perhaps didnt highlight the political issues from their point of view. This is a weakness of the video as it means again the viewers cannot get the full picture of the exact scenario. The purpose of the video is to give a good account, this I believe it does. I feel at some points it focuses too much on the strengths of America. I suppose that it is, being a British video, going to compliment their ally and support them in order to project a positive view to the British public. This can be seen as a weakness but in some ways a strength revealing British perception of America, 1945 in general and the decision to drop the bomb. The BBC can be criticized for being selective when relaying facts and figures, they make America look more powerful and portray them in a better light by giving detailed factual analysis while not exploring the true implications of the bombing. The video, overall, is a strong source of study, it isnt overly biased but at times it lacks a rounded viewpoint. I feel that given the time it was produced the BBC couldnt have possibly make the video impartial as Russia were engaged in the Cold War. Being allies with America the BBC have hinted on the US being a very powerful nation and were in the right. Perhaps the biggest thing we can take from this video is the British opinion of the raids over anything else. Dropping the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki was necessary to end the war quickly. Do Sources A to H prove that this interpretation is correct? Explain your answer using all the sources and your own knowledge. Yes the Sources A to H do support this statement. The sources tend to agree that the war would end after the dropping of the bombs, though some refer to conventional warfare and its ability to end the war just as quickly. Although some of the sources say that it wasnt necessary to drop the bombs to end the war. Of course the eventual outcome of the dropping of the bomb proved that it was in fact, a means to end the war immediately. I have discussed the resilience of the Japanese people and Source A clearly gives the impression that the Americans felt that the Japanese could not be broken down without substantial loss of troops and in turn a lot of wasted time. It states that the atom bomb contains the equivalent power of 2000 of their super fortress bombs, a sizeable figure which reflects the power of this bomb compared to conventional warfare. By this account, the dropping of the bomb was time effective, and would end the war immediately. This leaflet, dropped after the first raid would have been alarming to the Japanese but even then they did not carry out the wishes of the leaflet and petition their emperor to a great enough extent. This re-enforces how morally determined the Japanese were collectively and the extent of conventional warfare that would have been needed to finally end the war and allow the US to turn their attentions back to the area of Europe and combating the Soviet Union. There is little to take from Source B, apart from the fact that the dropping of the bomb was perhaps not as co-ordinated as it should have been. The dropping of the bomb should and could have been more focussed on military targets and it is clear to see that civilian establishments in this instance have suffered. This source therefore suggests to me that perhaps the use of the atomic bombs was not completely necessary as military targets could have been dealt with on a smaller scale. Source B definitively shows that the atomic bomb was a complete solution, furthermore it was one that encompassed the wiping out of the Japanese public around these areas and the loss of innocent lives. The results of the bomb depicted by Source B show that, inevitably, it would have ended the war, but counter arguments can be raised from this as to how crucial destruction on this scale was in ending the war. I have previously mentioned how Source C contradicts Source B and that it has been written under the pretence of a diary which could lead to untruths. Source C gives us a good impression of how Truman wanted to be presented, and we can take from this that he wanted to make it absolutely clear that it was necessary to drop these powerful bombs over Japan. The source, a good representation of what Truman actually thought or not clearly takes the stance that America have persisted enough and that the Japanese were unlikely to surrender even after having received a warning. Truman makes out that America have been lenient in giving the Japanese a chance to surrender, showing some remorse. His sympathy demonstrated within this source at times points towards him believing that dropping the bomb is completely necessary under the circumstances and the sacrifices Japan would incur are inevitable but ultimately for the best. His closing statement is certainly very interesting as far as this question goes. Not only does it make him out to be an intelligent man but also suggests that he is using the bombs for entirely the right reasons and not the wrong reasons, It is certainly a good thing fro the world that Hitlers crowd or Stalins did not discover this atomic bomb. Source D, in contrast is evidently anti the dropping of the bomb and indicates that the dropping was perhaps not a necessary move to end the war immediately. The Source starts off by saying, In Hiroshima 70 000 Japanese died. Hundreds more died from radiation sickness in the years which followed immediately condemning the raids and highlighting the devastation experienced by Japan. Source D is objective in saying that the immediacy of the end of the war was Trumans man reason for dropping the bomb, however. To counter this argument, Culpin has said that Truman was criticized because it was merely to test the bomb and justify its vast expense to the US economy. Although the impression Source D gives is objective I, on reading it got the feeling that Culpin felt the dropping of the bomb was unnecessary. Source E is one of the strongest sources against the idea that the dropping of the bomb is necessary to end the war quickly. The bottom caption Dont you see, they had to find out if it worked overrules the reasoning Truman had for using the bomb and suggests that the raids were purely scientific and completely inhumane. The picture is a very strong image provoking controversy in the minds of the public but it has to be considered that this is specifically drawn for a newspaper and that the situation will have been over exaggerated. It was also produced at the time documents were leaked about the bombing and this would have meant that the picture was reflecting the feeling at that time and had a slightly limited and condensed view of the reasoning for dropping the bomb. Taken at face value, Source F is the strongest source to disagree with the statement Dropping the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki was necessary to end the war quickly. This is obviously because of the conditions under which it was written, a censored viewpoint, definitively against America and geared towards provoking dislike for the US nation as a whole. We cannot therefore take Source F seriously but it does have some elements of truth about it. Diplomatic issues, as stated have been explained by some of the other sources, The purpose of the bombing was to frighten other countries, above all the Soviet Union. While this statement isnt entirely true its foundations point towards America having other intentions than wanting to end the war quickly. Written from the opposite side of the fence is Byrnes contribution, memoirs which had been taken some years later. His words tend to agree with the necessity of the raids. Again, this is from a heavily biased perspective and cannot be trusted. This source neither proves or disproves to a historian if the bomb was required in this case. Subjective opinions are hard to use when questioning such issues. We can take something quite significant from this though and that is the fact that this was written by the Secretary of State at the time. He would have had the advantage of considerably more knowledge than the general public and perhaps his view that the raid was a necessity is completely justified. While the previous source was only written by a Russian historian with limited access to information, only relying on public resources. Therefore, I feel the benefit of the doubt should be given to Byrnes, and his account to be considered more reliable. In turn the dropping of the bomb was a necessity. The World at War video is probably the most objective source out of all of them, it is the only one which allows several people from different backgrounds to contribute to the source. I feel it demonstrates that the dropping of the bombs was a necessary action to end the war immediately, it depicts how harsh the fighting had been in other confrontation areas between US and Japan and the sheer determination shown by Japan. From this the video demonstrates the amount of time it would have taken to prepare and implement conventional invasion and traditional air raids. The interviews give detailed reasoning from both sides of the spectrum which point to the might and ferocity of the Japanese and the pressures being put on America. It can be argued that as Source H includes the views of many different people, combined with cinematic hard evidence to prove several points. My interpretation of the video is that it proves the atomic raids were necessary to end the war and should be trusted due to its reliable producers and broadness of views. Each source has different factors to consider about whether it disproves or proves the statement Dropping the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki was necessary to end the war quickly and these have to be taken in the context in which they were written.

The Determinants Of Customer Satisfaction In Airline Industry Tourism Essay

The Determinants Of Customer Satisfaction In Airline Industry Tourism Essay Introduction Customer satisfaction has been established as a psychological concept that involves the feeling of customers well-being and pleasure which results from obtaining what he or she hopes for and expects from consuming an appealing product and/or service (Florian and Maren, 2007; Christian, 2005; Abraham and Taylor, 1999). While different scholarly write-ups have confirmed variety of approaches to the explanation of customer satisfaction/dissatisfaction in marketing, in a comprehensive work done by Abraham and Taylor (1999), they developed nine distinct theories of customer satisfaction: namely expectancy disconfirmation; assimilation or cognitive dissonance; contrast; assimilation-contrast; equity; attribution; comparison-level; generalized negativity; and value-precept (Oh and Park, 1997). Customer satisfaction and service quality have also been confirmed to be critical issues in most service industries, and are even highly important for Airline service providers that offer generally un differentiated products. For example, in the airline industry, the main approach to differentiation and the principal means by which one Airline can distinguish itself from another is service before and after sales services (Stafford et al, 1998). Otherwise, companies will be generally unable to differentiate their services based on market offerings because Airlines offer state-mandated standardized products/services. The recent emphasis on service quality and customer satisfaction in the Airline industry illustrates the increased importance Airlines are placing on customer quality and satisfaction (Halil et al, 2008). As such, service quality measurement and customer satisfaction are increasingly becoming important for service firms to stay in the business (Parasuraman et al. 1988). And these service quality measurements processes differs across different industrial domains, because the service manager will account for the unique nature of services, while different service attributes in each organizations are acting as determinants of customer satisfaction because of the complex interrelationship and dependability that exist between them (Fochen and Robert, 2003). Customer satisfaction, one of the central marketing objectives, is closely linked to customer loyalty, the likelihood of recommendation to others, cross-buying behavior; up-grading and lower price sensitivity (Anderson, 1994; Matzler, 2005; Reichheld and Sasser, 1990; Zeithaml, 2000). Literatures like Kurt et al (2006), have explore the dimensionality of price satisfaction as a means to determine customer satisfaction. In their paper, they empirically find that price satisfaction is a complex construct consisting of several dimensions, i.e. price-quality ratio, price fairness, price transparency, price reliability and relative price. Their analyses of these dimensions are given as thus; price transparency is defined as increasing access to information, access to more alternatives, more simplified transactions, increasing communication between customers and a general distrust and resentment among customers. They argued that as a consequence, customers will increasingly demand open, ho nest and complete information on products and prices. Thus, price transparency can be considered as an important aspect of pricing policy. They concluded that price transparency exists when the customer can easily get a clear, comprehensive, current and effortless overview about a companys quoted prices (Matzler et al, 2006). They also explained that price-quality ratio is when the consumers ascribe value to a product or service subject to their perception of two factors: perceived price and perceived quality, or, in other words, the price-quality ratio. They defined customer value as a cognition-based construct that captures any benefit-sacrifice discrepancy. They said if perceived quality exceeds perceived costs, customer value is high, if cost exceeds quality, customer value is low. In their conclusion, they explained that the buyers perceptions of value represent a trade-off between the qualities of benefits they perceive in the product relative to the sacrifice they perceive by paying the price. 1.1 Background of the study The history of Saudi Airline could be traced to 1945 when the then US President Franklin Delano Roosevelt gave a Douglas DC-3 plane as a token gift to the then Saudi Arabia King Abdul Aziz Ibn Saud. This event actually marked the Muslim Kingdoms gradual development in the civil aviation industry. The Kingdoms main carrier Saudi Arabian Airlines was founded in September 1946, which is fully owned and controlled by Saudi government under the control of the Ministry of Defense. In addition to the above development, the airline took extra two delivery of Boeing 720s in 1962, giving it an opportunity to officially register its operations on 19 February 1963. This continuous development has led into establishing the Kingdoms airline as one of the leading in the industry, especially Asia in particular (). In fact, Saudi Airline has been confirmed as the regions second-largest airline by turnover after the giant Emirates airline (). This is because Saudi airline has continuously remained larger than the Qatar Airways in terms of its revenue, and also rated larger than the current fast growing airline popularly called Etihad (). But if measured by the numbers of traffics in the region, the Saudi Arabian airline will still be number three behind the Qatar Airways and the Emirates (). Part of the arguments in favour of Saudi airline is that it is strategically located at the crossroads between Africa, Asia, and Europe and also serving as the largest country within the Arabian Peninsula (). But very important concerns among its transportation stakeholders is how to maximize this external opportunity in conjunction with its current population of about 28 million people that are still depending on few rail network and air travels, an issue that have been argued as a critical component to the economic development of Saudi Arabia (). Following this trend was why the Kingdoms government encouraged the idea of strategically allowing the privately owned low cost airline competitors to rival with the Saudi Arabian Airlines both in the domestic and international markets (). This initiative from the government was subsequently reciprocated by the private investors first through the establishment of NAS airline in February 2007, and Sama airline in Marh, 2007 both initially focusing on various trucks routes within the country (). 1.2 Research problem Due to excessive subsidy of the transport system in Saudi Arabia, both the air and land transport marketers are strategically challenged on best approach to apply in order to efficiently acquire, service and retain profitable customers both within and outside the country (). This issue of subsidized fuel prices does not exclude the Saudi Arabian airline, but practitioners have continuously argued in favour of the need to remove the fare cap so that marketers can conveniently compete without any fear of fare restrictions (). This and many more are the reasons that experts believe serves as the primary cause of Saudi Arabia airline inability to strategically compete with other international airlines like the Emirates and the Qatar Airlines (). Sequel to the above practical issues in Saudi Arabia airline, several authors have argued that service quality can be a strong differentiating factor for any Airline that wants to boost up their market shares and profit position (Halil et al, 2008; Fochen and Robert, 2003; Dennis et al, 1993). Also very recent among the scholarly write-up on Airline Customer Satisfaction is Ekiz et al. (2006), that developed an alternative to SERVQUAL and called it AIRQUAL. They emphasized that this scale is to overcome the psychometrical application of existing problems in Airline Service Quality scales, as initially guided by Churchill (1979) and Parasuraman et al. (1985, 1988). The findings of Ekiz et al (2006), through their AIRQUAL identified a scale of five distinct dimensions, i.e. (airline tangibles, terminal tangibles, personnel, empathy, and image) as a means to successfully manage and measure the quality perceptions of airline customers. Although, it is confirmed that they successfully developed the AIRQUAL scale, but evidences from other scholars shows that their findings failed to identified the impact of Airline price, solution quality, and employee job satisfaction on customer satisfaction, because these variables have been proven to be very significant in determining customer loyalty (Dean, 2007; Kau and Loh, 2006; Schiffman and Kanuk, 2004). Considering Ekiz et al (2006) and other authors limitation and given the importance of these dimensions to the Airline industry, this proposed study wishes to develop on the findings of Ekiz et al.s (2006) and other related literatures on Airline service quality and customer satisfaction. And studies like this will assist in determining the true behavioral intentions of airline customers in Saudi Arabia and the world at large. This proposed research work has develop an additional variable (Price) with specific reference to literatures like Kurt et al (2006), which has explo re the dimensionality of price satisfaction as a means to determine customer satisfaction. In their paper, they empirically find that price satisfaction is a complex construct consisting of several dimensions, i.e. price-quality ratio, price fairness, price transparency, price reliability and relative price. Besides service quality and employee satisfaction, another strong factor that has a direct bearing on a customers satisfaction with a service provider is the quality of the solution that the service provider provides for the customers business problem (Whyte, Bytheway, and Edwards, 1997). To achieve the intended purpose of this proposed study, below is a proposed conceptual framework for this research: Price Customer Loyalty Loyalty Customer Satisfaction Satisfaction Service/Product Quality Quality Solution Quality Employee Satisfaction Satisfaction + + + + 1.3 Research Questions The following questions are based on the issues discussed in the research problem by analyzing the practices of Airline industry in order to find out the impact of Price, Product/Service Quality, and Solution Quality on Customer satisfaction. These research questions are meant to get a feedback from Airline customers that patronize Saudi Airline and a comparable industry leader such as Singapore Airline on what actually constitute their Satisfaction and loyalty. How does Price/Fare affect Customer satisfaction in Airline Industry? How does Product/Service Quality affect Customer satisfaction in Airline Industry? How does Employee Job Satisfaction affect Product/Service Quality in Airline Industry? How does Employee Job Satisfaction affect Solution Quality in Airline Industry? How does Solution Quality affect Customer satisfaction in Airline Industry? How does Customer satisfaction affect Customer Retention in Airline Industry? 1.4 Research Objectives This primary objective of this study is to establish the interdependence of Price perception, Service Quality, Employee Job Satisfaction and Solution Quality on customer satisfaction and customer loyalty. To achieve this, this study plans to measure the impact of metrics such as Price perception, Service Quality, Employee Job Satisfaction and Solution Quality on customers satisfaction and loyalty in the Airline industry. Equally included in the study objective is to test the mediating impact of customer satisfaction on customer loyalty, an issue the researcher believes will strong assist in better understanding the mechanism that are behind the relationships between the antecedents and outcome of customer satisfactions within the airline industry. The theoretical framework is based on market orientation approach as a means to exploring and establishing the relationship between Efficient Airline projects as the independent variable and customers loyalty as the dependent variable. To simplify this, the researcher has designed the following objectives to capture the research problem and provide answers to the research questions. To test a model that can explain the impact of Price, Service Quality, Employee Job Satisfaction and Service Quality on Customer Satisfaction and Customer Loyalty. Research objective 2: To determine the mediating effects of Customer Satisfaction on Customer Retention/Loyalty. 1.5 Scope of the study The focus of this study is to understand what aspect of Airline operations determines Customer satisfaction. This research is limited to the Airline industry, where Saudi Arabia Airline and a leading Airline such as Singapore Airline will be selected for investigation with a set of sampling technique to explore the determinants of customer satisfaction and loyalty. The focus of this research is limited to the airline industry, where selected customers from the airline industry will be investigated with a set of sampling technique to explore their perceptions of the airline services within tourism industry as a strategic part of tourism marketing. The theoretical background of the research is base on market orientation approach and customer satisfaction theories, while airline Tourism will be study from the perspective of the customers. The researcher is planning to structure this research study as a triangulated exploratory investigation that will integrate both qualitative and quantitative techniques, which will be primarily based on an in-depth interview with managers and professionals from the Saudi Arabia airline industry. 1.6 Significance of the research Airline Industry has been chosen as the subject of this study because it will assist in identifying those variables that determine customer satisfaction and loyalty. To the Airline industry, this proposed research work will assist in establishing industry standard and assist the academics in developing alternative theories and models that will facilitate the general operations of the Airline Industry (Halil et al, 2008; Fochen and Robert, 2003; Dennis et al, 1993). Significance to the Academics Very important to the academics on this research is the detail explorations of the linkages that are between airline operational processes, service quality and contemporary customer satisfaction theories. Arguably, the existing literatures have implied that there exist a relationship between airline operation processes and customer satisfaction (), but till date there is very little published empirical research in this area that is looking at the impact of price, solution quality and employee satisfaction on customer satisfaction and loyalty. In addition to this, existing theoretical gaps have indicated that there is need for the academics to further explore, analyze, explain and expand the links between customer satisfaction theories and airline operation processes. Given the aforementioned, this research will be primarily contributing to the academics through its conceptualization and empirically testing the impacts of airline operational processes like price, service/product quality, employee job satisfaction and solution quality on customer satisfaction and loyalty within the airline industry. Through the developments of a measure that can determine the impact of airline operational processes on customer satisfaction and loyalty will provide the empirical methods for the academics in better understanding and able to predict the actual relationship that is existing between service quality and customer satisfaction theories within the airline industry. Measuring the impact of price will provide the knowledge to determine if increase or decrease in the prices of airline services will lead to better customer satisfaction and improved customer relationship performance or not. Significance to the Practitioners Airline management and managers will benefit by better understanding those factors that actually influence the relationships that exist between their operation processes and customer satisfaction and intention to repurchase. In particular, airline mangers will benefit from their understanding of how solution quality and price can affects their relationship with the customer, and how key attributes in airline services can be developed and supported by operational processes. Both the HR and Production managers will benefit how employee satisfaction can be of significant impact to their service quality and solution quality, specifically through their understanding of the key relationships that exist between airline operational processes and their customer relationship performances. The enhanced knowledge though this research would a long way assist the airline management decision-making processes when they are evaluating their customer relationship performances. In the final analysis, it is worth mentioning here that service quality cannot be separated from the concept of customer satisfaction. This is because the nature or characteristics of the service has also been found to influence the relative importance of the drivers of customer satisfaction (Zeithaml and Bitner, 2000). 1.7 Proposed Methodology and data collection process Though there are many methods of collecting data via survey. In this proposed research work, primary data for the intending statistical analysis will be collected through questionnaire design among the selected Airline customers in Saudi Arabia. The researcher is planning to adopt a second qualitative measurement to affirm research findings and assist in the interprà ©tations of the research results with the help of the Airline Experts/Managers. The Unit of Analysis is who or what that is being studied in a given research. Evidences from the social science research have established a unit of analysis as an organization, an individual, a social interaction or a group of organization/individual. Relating the above into this research, the unit of analysis are the Airline customers that will be surveyed. 1.8 STRUCTURE OF THIS STUDY Chapter one introduces the research topic determinants of customer satisfaction in airline industry and argues on the reasons for using price, service quality and solution quality, also included in it were statement of the research problem, the research questions, the research objectives, scope and limitations of the study and significance of the research. Chapter two will define the dimensions of service quality and offer the theoretical background of airline marketing through a series of literature reviews on tourism marketing and customer satisfaction. The theoretical background upon which the researcher plans to develop a theoretical framework and hypothesis in form of summary will equally be contained in chapter two. Chapter three will introduce the research methodology to be employed in this research, by providing a detailed qualitative and quantitative approach to be applied on each case study; and also contain the procedures for the selection of each case, data collection and discussion of data quality that will assist to determine the validity of the research. Chapter four will consist of the descriptions and analyzes of the practices of the airline projects in Saudi airline. The outcomes of the findings on Saudi airline will be presented for discussion in chapter five. While chapter six will analyze, discuss and make conclusions regarding the research questions and points to the theoretical contribution along with the managerial implications contained in the research. Also to be included in chapter six are the alternative recommendations as a direction for future research.