Wednesday, October 30, 2019

The U.K taxation system Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

The U.K taxation system - Essay Example The paper tells that taxable income includes income from employment either from part-time, full-time, or temporary employment. However, if people receive benefits or perks from their employer, they may be taxable. Income from partnerships or self-employment, pension income such as state pension, retirement annuity and personal or company pension, are also taxable as stated in the UK tax laws. Additionally, pensioner bonds, trust income and investment income, includes dividends on company shares except dividend income from ISAs, are also taxable. Other taxable income includes Rental income, State benefits such as Carer’s Allowance, Jobseeker’s allowance, Employment and Support Allowance, Incapacity Benefit, and weekly Bereavement Allowance among others. The income tax rates in the UK depend on an individual’s personal income. According to Adam, Kaplan and Institute for Fiscal Studies, the 10% rate shows the tax rate for anybody who saves an income of up to GBP 2,4 00. The dividend income below GBP 37,400 is taxed at 10% while that above GBP 37,400 to GBP 150,000 is taxed at 32.5%. In addition, a tax of 42.5% is taxed on dividend income above GBP 150,000. Thus, this shows that income tax is lower in the UK than most countries including New Zealand and Australia. The relevant tax period in the UK starts from 6th April to 5th April in the next year. This includes both income tax and personal taxes. For instance, the 2010-2011 tax year started on 6th April in 2010 and ran through to 5th April 2011. (Adam, Kaplan and Institute for Fiscal Studies, 2002). In the UK, taxes and allowances are usually fixed for any given year, but they often change from one year to another. What is the relative importance of direct and indirect taxes in United Kingdom? What are the implications of this? Direct tax consists of income tax and wealth tax while indirect tax involves central excise duty, customs duty, service tax, purchase tax and value added tax (VAT). Inc ome tax is a direct tax on all incomes that are received by private individuals after some allowances are made. Direct taxes are usually paid directly to the Exchequer by the taxpayer through PAYE, which applies to corporate tax, as well. However, tax liability cannot be forwarded to someone else. Indirect taxes are such as VAT and several excise duties on tobacco, oil and alcohol. Indirect tax, unlike direct tax can be passed onto the final customer by the supplier depending on the price of elasticity of demand and supply of goods. However, over the last twenty years, economists have differed on the optimum mix of taxation between direct and indirect taxes, which has resulted in a shift towards indirect taxation. Economists argue that indirect taxes help in changing the overall pattern of demand for certain products and services, thus, affecting consumer demand such as an increase in the real duty on petrol. Indirect taxes are also useful in controlling and correcting externalities of both production and consumption. Also, they are less likely to interfere with people’s choice between work and leisure than the direct tax. Thus, they have a little negative effect on work incentives. Additionally, they allow a reduction in direct

Monday, October 28, 2019

Different illicit drugs Essay Example for Free

Different illicit drugs Essay Janis Joplin’s experimentation with several different illicit drugs led to her overdose of heroin at the age of 27. Joplin began her fascination with the drug culture as part of the beatnik generation in coffee houses and bars across her home state of Texas and in New York City’s Greenwich Village. Joplin developed a love of speed and alcohol that rivaled man of hermale counterparts of the day (Rock n’ Roll Heaven, 2007). She had a heroin habit that she indulged in for years, but kicked until she began working on her final album â€Å"Pearl†. During the making of the album, Joplin began using heroin again. Friends and family members report that Joplin was always careful with her heroin usage. â€Å"She made every attempt to be cautious when using and made sure to buy from only one dealer who always had his stuff checked by a chemist. It turns out that the bag Janis bought that Saturday, October 3rd afternoon was not checked by the dealers chemist who was out of town at the time. The heroin was 50 percent pure and would prove to be a fatal mistake. (Rock n’ Roll Heaven, 2007). Official investigations into her death tried to blame on everything from a CIA conspiracy to silence the voice of her generation to an intentional suicide, but the coroner ruled that her death came as a result of heroin overdose complicated with alcohol use. Her death was a seriously tragic error. The dealer gave her heroin that was simply too good. Joplin’s alcohol use was legendary. She was rarely seen without a bottle of Southern Comfort and she appeared on national television drunk in 1970 not long before her death. Appearing on the Dick Cavett show, Joplin was so drunk she was slurring her words when she said she would be going to her 10 year high school reunion to face her demons and those who tormented her in high school. â€Å", They laughed me out of class, out of town and out of state; so Im going back. This was in response to her return home to attend her 10 year high school reunion, her first visit back to Texas since rock and roll stardom had struck. This would be the last time Janis would see her family. † (Rock n’ Roll Heaven 2007). Even before she achieved fame, Joplin was well-known as an alcoholic. Once she achieved fame, her drug use was just as well known. Joplin’s choices of drugs were influenced by her upbringing and her generation. Psycotropic drugs and mind-expanding substances were everywhere in the rock scene in the 1960s and Janis Joplin made a meteoric rise to the top of that scene. After being an outcast in high school, Joplin wanted desparately to fit in and would do whatever it took to get there. Unfortunately, according to the biography written by Laura Joplin, Janis found too quickly that it was lonely at the top and turned to heroin and alcohol as a cure. Joplin discovered the hard way what too many other celebrities have also found out: drug use is no substitute for good mental health. Joplin’s choice of drugs is especially damning considering what she was trying to escape. Alcohol, though a disinhibitor, is also a depressant and the long-term effects of heroin include depression as well. In short, she was trying to fight off the loneliness and depression of her situation by adding more depressants. Heroin, at least short term, may have made the loneliness appear less stressful. The short-term effects of heroin is an immediate rush of energy caused by the release of endorphins and then depressed respiration and the desire to sleep for several hours. In her already depressed state, and with the alcohol effects in place, Joplin regularly used the drugs as a way to â€Å"rest† between recording sessions. The problem was that on the night of her death, both the alcohol and heroin lowered her body’s metabolism and it fell so low that the body could not recover. Joplin’s pattern of substance abuse began when she left high school and began performing in coffeehouses, bars and anywhere else that would let her sing. She had been an outcast in her high school and looked for a way to fit in with the cool crowd of musicians and those who loved them. She found her answer in drugs. In the 1960s, the drug culture was so prevalent that almost everyone literally was doing it and Joplin found her niche right away. She began with alcohol, a reasonably well accepted drug of choice and then moved on to stronger drugs as she gained more fame. Joplin’s primary drug of choice, besides Southern Comfort, was speed. Like heroin, speed provides an immediate â€Å"rush† for the user and can act as a mood enhancer, making people who are lonely or depressed feel better about their situation. It is likely that Janis Joplin used it for this reason and because users report feeling more creative while using speed. This effect is a result of the hyperactivity of the nervous system and people who are taking speed often appear twitch or jumpy. There are no known indications that it does make a person more creative, but that was the message of the drug culture at that time. The curious question about Janis Joplin is whether her substance abuse began before her music career or after it. Though the legend of Janis Joplin as a hard-living rock star would indicate that she began indulging in drugs after becoming famous, her life would tend to indicate either that she had substance abuse problems dating back to high school or that she had other emotional and psychological factors present in her pre-fame life which mimicked the social repercussions of substance abuse. Prior to leaving high school, Joplin was an outcast, unable to fit in socially with her peers. She reportedly had behaviorial issues and was eventually kicked out of school for those problems. These issues may have been related to her role as a political activist in the turbulent times of the early 1960s, including her activism on behalf of African American rights in Texas. However, these issues are also consistent with alcohol abuse and other substance abuse. It is completely within reason to believe that Joplin may have developed her dependence on alcohol at a much earlier age than previously acknowledged and began supplementing that addiction with harder, illegal drugs as she gained fame. Unfortunately, most biographies of the rock superstar are written by friends, family or adoring fans and no one appears to have any desire to make the rock star culpable for any of her own behaviors. Instead, her drug use and sexual excess is put down to the era and the need for self-expression. The saddest realization is that in reality the use of drugs and alcohol probably stunted Joplin’s creativity and most definitely shortened her lifespan.

Saturday, October 26, 2019

the deathmetal bands of today :: essays research papers

Official deathmetal band of 2001 many of them are saanist but hundreds are good ol christians. Abominant Absolute Zero Aceldama Acerbus Acheron Acrimony Agent Steel Amon Amarth Amorphis Anal Blast Anal Cunt Anasarca Ancient AncientCeremony Angel Corpse Arius Autopsy Torment AutumnLeaves Avulsed Bal-Sagoth Bane Bastardword Beheaded Benevolence Bleeding Display Blood Coven Bloodgasm Bloody Sign Bloodvomit Bolt Thrower Borknagar Brodequin Broken Hope Brutal Noise Butchery Cadaverous Cannibal Corpse Carcariass Carnal Grief Castrum Catastrophic Centinex Children Of Bodom Ciborium Cinerary Ciribus Coffin Texts Coprofago Corpsevomit Crack Up Cremation Crematorium Crest ofDarkness Crimson Thorn Cryptopsy Damien Thorne Dark Days Dark Disciple Deaden Dead Jesus Deamon Decapitated Decay Of Salvation Deeds of Flesh Deicide Defleshed Dehumanized Demion Deprecated Deranged Descendent Devourment Diabolic Diabolic Intent Diabolous Dimmu Borgir Dismembered Fetus Disgorge Divine Empire Divine Rapture Dying Fetus Dwelling Madness E.C.T. Enforsaken Engrave Enshroud Epicedium Eternal Tears of Sorrow Eulogy Evil Incarnate Exhumator Exposing Innards Famine Fates Warning Fleshcrave Fleshgrind Gallery of Darkness Gates of Ishtar God Dethroned Gorgasm Gorlock Hadez Horde Hate Hate Eternal Hate Plow Hatescar Hatework HavohejEnorhted Hellwitch Impaled Immolation Immortal Dominion Incantation Infamy Infernal Majesty Infernal Torment Infest And Corrupt Infestum Inflames Infusion Inhuman Hatred Insanity Internal Bleeding Judas Priest Kabak Kataklysm Krabathor Krisiun Langsuir Lehavoth Leukorrhea Lividity Lockup Maladiction Malamor Maleficent Malevolent Creation Malignancy Meatshits Meltdown Morbid Angel Monstrosity Mortician<?A> Mortuorio Necrophagia Neurosis New Plague Nile Nightwish Ninth Level Noctuary Nun Slaughter Obelisk Obituary Obscurity Of Trees And Orchids Oratorium Origin Orphanage Pains Invention Pessimist Postmortem Prophecy Putrilage Purgatoria Purge Cannister Rancor Regurgitation Requiem Rise Rise Rudra Sadistic Intent Sanctorum Scythe Sepsism Sevenday Curse Setherial Sickness Sirrah Sinergy Sinister Six Feet Under Skinless Slaughter Of Souls Slayer Solstice of Suffering Splattered Cadaver Stratovarius Suffocation Tchildres Thanatos The Insomnia The Kovenant Therion Thorazine Thy Serpent Tiburon Ton Trokar Twin Obscenity Unnatural End Unsanctified Victims of Internal Decay Villainthrophy Vociferation Ethernity Vulpecula Warmen Within Wormed Vader Vehemence Viiarcano Vile Violencia Viral Load Virus Visceral Bleeding Vivisect Vomit Remnants But there are un official deathmetal abnds as well here are some of them:Brujeria Cannibal Corpse Cannibal Corpse Web of Razors(COB) Children of bodom Children of Bodom Death Dimmu Borgir Hate Eternal Morbid Angel Nightwish Sepsism Sinister Slaytanic Therion Venom Deathmetal is a low sounding violent assult on all your cense and it is becoming evermore popular in the subculters of todays youth. bands like cannibal corpse and slayer with some what satanic lyrics and punching chords todays youth have no choice but to become the children of the new disease. here is an qutobioThe Story: Back in Buffalo,NY in 1989 the breaking up of two bands, Tirant Sin and Beyond Death, resulted in the creation of a monster called "Cannibal Corpse". The group recorded a demo in Niagara Falls, NY entitled "Cannibal Corpse", not "Suffocation" like many of you think. The demo caught the eye of Metal Blade Records and the band was signed right away. The birth of "Eaten' Back To Life" was the first step to being the GODS of death metal. Check out the discography section for a complete listing of albums and song titles. There have been several changes in the line-up throughout the bands's history, First the departure of Bob Rusay. Listen to the first album & you will understand why. Without Jack Owen, the guitar-playing on the album would sound like mud. The acquisition of fellow Buffalonian Rob Barrett, who had also played in Dark Deception, Solstice and Malevolent Creation was a welcomed change. Rob left Cannibal Corpse in late 97' to persue other areas. Next came the departure of Chris Barnes who later formed his own band, Six Feet Under. This occured during the recording of "Vile" which was, at the time, tentatively entitled "Created to Kill". Thats where George "Corpsegrinder" Fisher came into play. He has been a change for the better and has done a great job in filling the shoes of a great singer for his time.

Thursday, October 24, 2019

Drug Abuse Essays -- Drugs Narcotics Research Papers

Drug Abuse   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Drug Abuse is generally defined as the use of a drug with such frequency that the user has physical or mental harm or it impairs social abilities. The substances that are discussed in this report are called psychoactive drugs; those drugs that influence or alter the workings of the mind, affect moods, emotions, feelings, and thinking processes. Drug Dependence/Addiction   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  There are three basic characteristics that indicate that the user is dependent on a drug. First, the user continues to use the drug for an extended period of time. Second, the user finds it difficult to stop using the drug. They may drop out of school, steal, go to jail, lose their jobs, or leave their families in order to keep using. Finally, the user has withdrawal symptoms when drug use is stopped. They may undergo physical pain or mental distress. The drug mimics a natural process in the brain called neurotransmission. This is when a brain cell releases a signal to another brain cell. The signal then returns to the first brain cell. The signal is called a neurotransmitter. One major neurotransmitter is called dopamine, which is involved in feelings of pleasure. When the drug is released into the brain, it blocks the dopamine from returning to the first brain cell. Repeated use changes the brain cells so that normal messages can't be sent between brain cells. The drug must always be present in order for neurotransmissions to take place. The user is only able to feel pleasure from the cocaine rather than the things he/she used to find pleasurable. This is called drug addiction or dependence. Drug Classification Drugs are generally categorized into two groups, stimulants and depressants. Stimulants are drugs that speed up signals through the nervous system. They produce alertness, arousal and excitability. They also inhibit fatigue and sleep. They include the amphetamines, such as cocaine, caffeine, and nicotine. Depressants slow down the signals through the nervous system. They produce relaxation, lowering of anxiety, drowsiness, and sleep. They include sedatives (such as barbiturates, alcohol, and tranquilizers) and narcotics (heroin, morphine, opium, codeine), which dull the mind's perception of pain.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Some drugs are not included in the stimulant/depressant categories. An example is the hallucinogens, such as PCP and LS... ...nclude nausea, diarrhea, and pain, but they vary between drugs. Cocaine users report depression when denied the drug. Since heroin is a very addictive drug, it has many withdrawal symptoms. For example, insomnia, muscle cramps, nausea, sweating, chills, panic, tremors, loss of appetite, yawning, runny nose, and watery eyes. Drug Treatment   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A drug addict generally goes through denial before he/she accepts his/her drug addiction. When they are confronted by a family member or friend, they refuse to accept that they are addicted. This is sometimes called a mental block. The user isn't ready or able to deal with thier addiction. The time period of denial varies from person to person.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  When the person has come to accepting their problem, they may go to therapy for treatment. Group therapy has had excellent results. They learn to come to terms with their problem with the support of other people who are going through the same thing that they are. They also learn tools that they can use to help them through the recovery period, such as prayer, excercise, and meditation. Drug abuse is a serious problem, but through treatment and therapy, it can be overcome.

Wednesday, October 23, 2019

In Othello, Shakespeare creates characters who reinforce social stereotypes and others who abandon more traditional roles

In this essay I aim to discuss the way Shakespeare creates characters who reinforce social stereotypes and others who abandon more traditional roles and how it helps his play by looking at the language form and structure. In Shakespeare's time there were different standings in class, race and in gender, men were above women and whites were above blacks a character that reinforces this stereotype of the time is the character of Brabantio, he is the father of Desdemona who is the object of Othello's heart. Othello is black and Desdemona is white, these two being together let alone married would've been a great shock to audiences in Shakespeare's time, so Shakespeare needed a character to represent the way most people think and this was Brabantio. An example of Branbantio as being stereotypical is when he says where hast thou stowed my daughter? Damned as though art, though hast enchanted her. This shows him as being stereotypical in a varied number of ways the first being he believes that Othello has used magic to make his daughter love him which shows the belief of the dark arts at this time but also the only reasons he believes Othello has used dark arts to enslave his daughter is because he is black, black people at this time were very much looked down upon and were thought of evil and users of the dark arts so it is understandable to the audience of Shakespeare that Brabantio is so annoyed and shocked although it would be different now. Another way he shows thast he is stereotypical is by the way he thinks he knows that his daughter could not love a black person and should only love the people he sees good enough for her this taking away her rights and feelings are being disregarded but at this time it was normal for the women to be objectified and men control them. Brabantio also shows the stereotypical view of a patriarch in this society and he believes that Othello is a direct threat to the patriarchal society he believes that the pagans will be come statesman which in his eyes would create social chaos an example of this belief is shown when he states for instance Bond slaves and pagans shall our statesmen be. This statement would shock most people of a high standing of this time, the play would have been performed in England and even the thought of this happening in England is preposterous and would decrease the amount of people going to this, so Shakespeare deliberately sets the play in Venice where there are more blacks and it is somewhere fair away from home so it is believable to the audience but other than the fact that it tells you this play is set in Venice, nearly all of the characters can be directly linked to the English lifestyle at the time. On numerous occasions Brabantio makes numerous comments showing his stereotypical views on his daughter and shows that he thinks he owns her by objectifying her, a quote that supports this idea is â€Å"Ay to me, she is abused, stolen from me and corrupted† when he says this you can see he sees his daughter as his own and only thinks she should do what he thinks she should. A character that is not stereotypical and abandons their own typical role in this play is Desdemona she does this by disobeying her father and society by marrying a black man who is seen as a peasant in her fathers eyes, the time this play was shown daughters and women alike were controlled by men, so the disobedience of Desdemona would surprise the audience and is also the reason that Brabantio thinks that Othello has poisoned her with magic but as Othello denies using magic to win her over by saying that it was his stories that she fell in love with, Desdemona also states that she should be loyal like her mother to her husband, which uses her own fathers patriarchal views against him but this is also uncommon at this time as she is choosing her lover instead of her father causing much anger as she is not dropping in line like a girl should in this time. Furthermore Desdemona is not a typical woman of the time that should be quiet love there husband and obey their father, Desdemona has different ideas of what she wants and Othello believes that she fell in love with him because of his stories and that she wants to become a great warrior and all he represented, a quote that shows this is when Othello tells us â€Å"She wished she had not heard it, yet she wished that heaven made her such a man† this suggests that Desdemona does not love Othello for his heart but for what he represents to her, a black man who should be looked down and despised upon becoming a great warrior and even gaining the respect of her father, she had never met anyone of this type before and she became hooked but the fact that she told Othello † If I had that loved her. I should teach him how to tell my story† shows that she was flirting and really does love him causing distress to father and others that have tried to court her before. Othello is another character that defies stereotypes and standing at this time as he has overcome many a trial in his lifetime, he is a black man living a white orientated world and to get to his standing and stature as one of the heads of the Venetian army's as the Venetian empire at this time had much power behind it with strongholds as Venice and Verona his shows how much of a struggle it was to get there and makes it more surprising, from being a slave sold from Africa to a warrior and being respected for his talent and not prejudged due to his skin colour. In his speech he tells us that he has been through many a hardships of war and slavery telling us he has had a hard life and the use of language tells that he is going to go through more hardships but with Desdemona we can see this when he says â€Å"but that I love the gentle Desdemona, I would not my unhoused free condition† he is saying her that he would give up his freedom from slavery to stay with her, this is an i dealised romantic notion which is not practical which in turn shows us that it will end in tragedy.

Tuesday, October 22, 2019

A Advertising Campaign for Boutique Gelato

A Advertising Campaign for Boutique Gelato Introduction Prior to venturing into a certain market, it is vital for a company to formulate an effective strategy. The strategy would help in addressing some of the difficulties that the company would face. Anticipating these problems would improve the stability of the company or product. In addition, the strategy would help in the coordination of various activities that strive to improve the competitiveness of the company or product.Advertising We will write a custom report sample on A Advertising Campaign for Boutique Gelato specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More All activities should help in reinforcing the objectives of the company or product. Dairy Farmers intends to venture into the boutique take-home gelato market. This market is experiencing tremendous growth. Therefore, successful venture into this market would guarantee the future growth and profitability of Dairy Farmers. Background Dairy Farmers is one of the major Australian companies that engage in the manufacture of dairy products. The company has been operational since 1900. During its formation, the company had 65 members. The farmers wished to join their efforts to help market their produce to city dwellers. Since then, the company has grown gradually to become one of the most trusted brands in the Australian market. The company supplies various products to local and international markets. Throughout its history, Dairy Farmers has undertaken various acquisitions to improve its competitiveness. Dairy Farmers currently has 11 processing facilities. To ensure that it maintains its growth, it is vital for the company to undertake various strategic decisions that would help in improving its competitiveness. Dairy Farmers has various brands that are popular among its customers. The company produces various brands of cheese and milk. Increased health awareness threatens to reduce to reduce the demand of various indulgence products. However, the demand for these products is still very high. Increased snacking is due to the increase in the number of time-poor consumers. These consumers strive to balance their lives with healthy eating habits. Therefore, it is vital for companies to formulate innovative products that would enable them to capture this market segment. Ice cream is one of the major indulgence products whose demand is increasing steadily. The boutique-take home ice cream market is one of the fastest growing sectors in this market. Companies usually target high-income adult consumers. This market segment is less sensitive to changes in the price of the product.Advertising Looking for report on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More This market segment values the quality and taste of the product. In addition, the comparatively low price of boutique take-home ice cream makes it affordable even during times of economic hardships. Therefore, it is vital for Dairy Farmers to venture into this market. Successful venture into this market would have great financial benefits to the company. Dairy Farmers intends to venture into this market using ‘Euphori Gelato.’ The company would launch the product in October. This would enable the company to gain a considerable number of customers before summer, which is the high season. Situational Analysis The Australian take-home ice cream market would experience considerable growth in the near future. However, the quest for healthy food may have a negative effect on the growth of this market. Therefore, it is vital for companies to ensure that they incorporate various healthy ingredients into the ice cream. In addition, the quest for healthy foods necessitates companies to formulate various innovative products. Innovation helps in improving the competitiveness of various ice cream brands. Various companies strive to portray their products as natural. These companies do not add a rtificial color or preservatives to their ice cream brands. Most consumers consider preservatives and artificial color as unhealthy ingredients. Various brands are dominant in this market segment. Nestle S.A., Unilever Australia, and Regal Cream Products are some of the major companies in this market segment. Unilever Australia is the major company in the Australian ice cream market. The company has a market share of 34%. Unilever has various brands that are dominant in the take-home, bulk dairy ice cream, ice cream deserts, and the impulse ice cream market. These include Paddle Pop, Blue Ribbon, and Viennetta. The company has various innovative strategies that help in improving the competitiveness of these brands. In addition, Unilever uses multichannel advertising campaigns to improve the competitiveness of these brands. The availability of various ice cream brands of Unilever helps in improving the competitiveness of the company. Major supermarket chains, boutique hotels, and res taurants usually stock these ice cream brands.Advertising We will write a custom report sample on A Advertising Campaign for Boutique Gelato specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Generally, young adults accounts for the largest sales of ice cream. Women are the major consumers of ice cream. Therefore, it is vital for companies to use an advertising strategy that would portray taking ice cream as being fashionable. A unique brand name helps in attracting customers in this market segment. In addition, the packaging of the product may help in attracting customers in this market segment. SWOT Analysis Strengths Weaknesses Dairy Farmers has a strong brand name Competitive pricing Natural organic ingredients Wide variety of flavors Increased health awareness would reduce demand It is difficult to launch a new product The market is saturated Opportunities Threats Expanding ice cream market Very hot summers Australian eco nomy is recovering Increase in number of Asians Stiff competition in the market Threats from substitute products Campaign Objectives The main objective of this campaign is to raise awareness about Euphori Gelato from 0 to 30% within three months. In addition, the campaign would strive to increase attitude towards Euphori Gelato from 0 to 20% within three months. Dairy Farmers would use multichannel advertising campaigns to achieve these objectives. The company would use print media, radio, and an official website to market Euphori Gelato. Dairy Farmers would create three posters to market Euphori Gelato. The company would create various competitions on the official brand website to improve customer awareness. The company would create competitions that reward customers who determine the missing ingredient of the brand. In addition, the company would encourage customers to share personal stories about Euphori Gelato on the website. These strategies would help in attracting mo re visitors into the official website of the brand. This would ultimately help in improving brand awareness and appreciation. Dairy Farmers would ensure that various details of the advertising channels help in reinforcing the brand image of the product. Communication Strategy The primary target of the Dairy Farmers’ advertising campaign would be professional women who are between 25 and 45 years old. Asian immigrants living in Sydney and Melbourne would be the secondary target of this advertising campaign. Dairy Farmers would use ‘Escape with Euphori’ as the theme of the advertising campaign of the product. The company would use emotional appeal to market the product. This would help consumers of the product to develop an emotional relationship with the product. Using the emotional appeal to advertise the product would be advantageous to Dairy Farmers. Advertisements that use emotional appeal are more vivid than other types of advertisements. Therefore, it is eas y for customers to remember these advertisements. These advertisements strive to recreate scenes that are relevant to customers.Advertising Looking for report on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More This helps the customers to create an emotional attachment to the product. Recreating relevant scenes reduces counterarguments and resistance from customers. Therefore, emotional appeals may elicit immediate interest from customers (Tellis, 2004). This increases the effectiveness of this advertising strategy. Dairy Farmers would strive to use emotional appeals to market Euphori Gelato. The company would strive to create an image of freedom and choice in various advertising campaigns. This would help in increasing interest from the target market. This is because people in the target market value their freedom and independence. In addition, the company would strive to ensure that the advertisements portray Euphori Gelato as a high quality product. Therefore, Dairy Farmers would design various advertising campaigns that portray Euphori Gelato as a product that is desirable to classy women. The company would include urban elite women in various advertisements. In addition, the company w ould strive to get endorsements from various celebrity women. This would help in increasing the competitiveness of the product. Creative Strategy Creative strategy helps in determining the right type of advertising that a company should use in an extensive advertising campaign. Creative strategy helps in the formulation of advertisements that are relevant to the theme of the marketing campaign of a certain product. Prior to the development of the creative strategy, it is vital for relevant parties to understand the marketing environment and the consumer learning abilities. Creative strategy helps in identifying suitable methods of satisfying the needs and wants of consumers. Therefore, creativity is very important in the formulation of an effective creative strategy. In addition, companies should avoid having unrealistic imaginations. This is because unrealistic imaginations may repel potential customers (Tyagi Kumar, 2004). A company should use a creative strategy to inform, persu ade, and remind consumers about a product. Therefore, the formulation of a creative strategy requires hard work, an open mind, and curiosity. The creative strategy helps in selling a product by communicating with prospective customers. The creative strategy helps in stimulating interest about the existence of a product. In addition, a creative strategy helps in the development attitudes and behaviors that would improve the sales of a product (Tyagi Kumar, 2004). Most Asian immigrants and professional women who are between 25 and 45 years old value their freedom. These people try to juggle their professional and personal life. Therefore, it is vital for a brand that targets this market segment to include the professional and personal life of these people. This would be the major aim of the advertisements of Dairy Farmers. The details of the Euphori Gelato’s logo, slogan, postcards, website, and radio advertisement would reinforce each other and help in building a strong name. Logo A logo is a visual representation of the core values of a certain brand. The logo helps in communicating the brand and image of a product using unspoken words. A successful logo should capture the brand offering and answer the mental questions that customers may have (Ferrell Hartline, 2010). Euphori Gelato would use a logo that incorporates the rough image of an ice cream. However, the logo would replace the position of the ice cream with a handle that resembles the handle of a picnic bag. This would enable customers of the product associate the product with picnics, which are usually romantic. In addition, the company would use yellow as the color for the logo since it is warm, pleasant, and peaceful. This would help in creating a happy feeling in the customers’ mind. Therefore, color and design of the logo would help customers to create an emotional attachment to the product. Slogan Slogan refers to the spoken image that customers usually associate with a certain br and. A slogan usually emphases various attributes of a product that help in differentiating the product from substitutes (Avraham Ketter, 2012). Therefore, it is vital for a company to design a unique slogan. This would enable the customers to associate the slogan with the product easily. Dairy Farmers used ‘Euphori Gelato’ as the brand name of the boutique take-home ice cream. The unique name would help customers to identify the product easily. Use of the term ‘Euphori’ in the brand name helps customers associate the brand with feelings of happiness. In addition, the company would use the slogan ‘Escape with Euphori.’ This would create an image of freedom in the customers’ minds. This would help customers to develop an emotional attachment to the product. Print Advertisement Dairy Farmers would use print as one of the major advertising channels. One of the major advantages of using print advertisements is that they enable a company to reach the target market of the print media. This may be the primary target market of the company (Hiam, 2009). Dairy Farmers would place several advertisements in lifestyle magazines that target women who are 25 to 25 years old. This would enable the company to reach its target market more effectively. The print advertisements would use various urban elite women who are eating Euphori Gelato. This would enable customers to associate with the product. In addition, the advertisements would include women in exotic or serene environments. This would enable customers to associate the products with freedom, which is the slogan of Euphori Gelato. Therefore, print advertisement would help in reinforcing the image of the product among potential customers. Postcard Dairy Farmers would also use postcard advertising to advertise Euphori Gelato among potential customers. The company would design three postcards. The first post card will try to create an image of freedom. The postcard would inclu de a young woman who is jumping. The postcard would show that consuming Euphori Gelato brings freedom. The second postcard will include the image of a woman in a serene environment enjoying ice cream with her male partner. The third post card would include five women enjoying different flavors of Euphori Gelato. The postcard would include the slogan ‘freedom to choose.’ This would highlight the wide variety of flavors of Euphori Gelato. In addition, it would enable customers associate the product with social events. Website The official website of Euphori Gelato would have five main icons. These include home, about, contact, flavors, and ‘The Euphori Experience.’ ‘Home’ would provide customers with information about the product. In addition, it would provide information about new flavors. ‘About’ would provide a brief history about the product. It would provide customers with information about the development of the product. Ã¢â‚¬Ë œContact’ would enable customers to contact the company or leave comments about the product. ‘Flavors’ would describe the flavors of the product. The company would go to great lengths to explain the deliciousness of various flavors. In ‘The Euphori Experience’ page, the company would strive to create emotional attachment to the product. The company would narrate various emotional stories about Euphori Gelato. In addition, the page would also include various promotional events of the product. Radio Spot Advertisement Dairy Farmers would use radio spot ads in various radio stations to market Euphori Gelato. Radio ads enable customers to listen to the ads and form mental images of the products. Therefore, it is vital for the company to use spoken word effectively to enable customers form a good image of the product. The radio spot advertisement would include a conversation between two young women. The advertisement would highlight various competitive ad vantages of Euphori Gelato. The advertisement would portray Euphori Gelato as a ‘rich, creamy product that contains organic ingredients.’ Media Strategy Media strategy refers to a structured plan of how an organization would use the media to pass advertising messages to customers and potential customers (Hewett, 2009). Media strategy enables a company to achieve its marketing strategy. This is because it outlines how the media would help in the accomplishment of the marketing objectives (Tyagi Kumar, 2004). However, it is vital for the media strategy to ensure that the advertisement gets exposure among the target market. Therefore, media strategy should add value to the brand, provide presence, and create awareness about the brand (Yeshin, 2006). The media strategy helps an organization to determine when and where to advertise. In addition, it enables an organization to determine the media it should use in advertising its products. Dairy Farmers will first use billboar ds to advertise Euphori Gelato. The company would then use newspapers, magazines, internet, and radio to advertise the product. Effective use of the above advertising channels would enable the advertisements to reach the target audience. Dairy Farmers would use billboards to elicit interest about the product. Prior to the official launch of the product, the company would place advertisements on billboards in various popular locations in Sydney and Melbourne. The billboards would include phrases that elicit interest from customers. ‘Freedom is coming’ is one of the phrases that the company would use to elicit interest from potential customers. The billboards would use yellow, which the official color of the product. The advertisements would highlight the competitive advantages of Euphori Gelato. After the official launch of the product, the company would run advertisements on the side of various buses in Melbourne and Sydney. Dairy Farmers would also use newspapers to el icit interest about Euphori Gelato. The advertisements in the newspapers would contain messages that are similar to those in billboards. The company would run a special feature in various newspapers during the official launch of the product. This would help in creating a thrill about the product during its launch. After the official launch of the product, the company would run four full-page advertisements in ‘Mx Newspapers.’ Magazines would be one of the most important advertising channels that Dairy Farmers would use to advertise Euphori Gelato. One of the major benefits of magazines is the fact that they target a specific audience. However, newspapers target all members of the public. This increases the efficiency of magazines in advertising products to a certain group. Therefore, Dairy Farmers would place eight full-page advertisements in various magazines that target Asian immigrants and professional women who are between 25 and 45 years old. This would enable the company to tap into the market of these magazines. In addition, association with these magazines would help in improving the competitiveness of the product. Dairy Farmers would also use postcards to advertise Euphori Gelato. The company would put postcards in various newspapers and magazines. Radio would be the principle means of advertisement of Euphori Gelato. This is because radio has a wider reach than all other advertising channels. Most people listen to radio in their cars, homes, or places of work. Therefore, this advertisement channel would enable the company to reach a large number of people. However, it is vital for the company to place advertisements in the right stations. Dairy Farmers would place advertisements about Euphori Gelato in 100.3 FM and 105.6 FM. These are the most popular radio stations in Melbourne and Sydney. In addition, the company would ensure that the stations air the advertisements during shows that are popular with Asian immigrants or professional wo men who are between 25 and 45 years old. Euphori Gelato’s website would also help in advertising the product. ‘The Euphori Experience’ would use emotional appeal to advertise the product. The page would provide personal stories about various people to elicit interest about the product. Dairy Farmers would also advertise the product in various popular websites. The websites would provide a link that would take people to the product’s official website. This would increase the number of people who visit the website. This would ultimately increase customers of the product. Alternative Media Dairy farmers would also use social media to advertise the product. The company would use a Facebook fan page and Twitter handle to advertise the product. The ability of the company to interact with customers using social media is one of the major advantages of this channel. Conclusion The main objective of this advertising campaign is to increase brand awareness from 0 to 30% within three months. In addition, the advertising campaign strives to increase brand attitude from 0 to 20% within three months. To achieve this, it is vital for the company to use the right message in various advertisements. The company would strive to create an emotional appeal to attract the target market. Using the right advertising channels would enable the company to reach the target market. Dairy Farmers would use magazines, newspapers, billboards, radio, and the internet to advertise the product. The media strategy of the company would enable it to achieve the marketing strategy. The media strategy would enable the company to attract and maintain customers. This would guarantee the future growth and profitability of the company. Reflection The pitch project enabled our group to create a marketing campaign for Euphori Gelato. The project enabled us to apply various theories. The application of the theories enabled us to determine some of the problems that managers face in implementing various theories. The complex nature of the real world of management makes it difficult for managers to apply various theories efficiently. The pitch project enabled us to appreciate the fact that efficient implementation of various theories requires people to undertake extensive research. However, this does not guarantee the successful implementation of the theory. The pitch project also enabled us to apply group dynamics. Teams undertake most functions of any modern organization. Therefore, it is vital for people to know how to work in groups. The pitch project enabled us to determine our individual strengths and weaknesses that may facilitate or hinder the efficiency of a group. This may be vital to our future productivity in the real business world. The pitch project enabled us to determine the importance of working as a team. The group provided us with different views that helped in enriching the quality of the project. In addition, the group enabled the members t o focus on areas of their choice. This helped in making the pitch project an enjoyable experience. Teamwork was vital in designing advertisements in various channels. However, the pitch project enabled us to experience some of the shortcomings of teamwork first hand. In some instances, we were unable to agree on the most suitable content. This is because individual members of the group had their own views on various issues. This increased the time that the group took to achieve its objective. References Avraham, E. Ketter, E. (2012). Media strategies for marketing places in crisis. London: Routledge. Ferrell, O.C. Hartline, M.D. (2010). Marketing strategy. Mason, OH: Cengage Learning. Hewett, G. (2009). FCS: Advertising promotions. Cape Town: Pearson South Africa. Hiam, A. (2009). Marketing kit for dummies. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley Sons. Tellis, G.J. (2004). Effective advertising: Understanding when, how, and why advertising works. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publishers. Tyagi, C.L. Kumar, A. (2004). Advertising management. New Delhi: Atlantic Publishers Distributors. Yeshin, T. (2006). Advertising. Mason, OH: Cengage Learning. Appendix Table 1: Estimated budget Expenditure Budget Marketing Communication Research: Pre testing $80,000 Post Testing $80,000 Media buying $100,000 Creative productions: 4 postcards ($10,000 for each design) $40,000 Radio spot ad $20,000 Internet (internet advertising and social media) $11,250 Agency fees $8,000 Total $339,250 Table 2: Media plan Media Description October November December Month 1 Month 2 Month 3 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 Cost Cost Cost Billboards 10 color ads on busses $50,000 10 color ads on billboards in Sydney and Melbourne $50,000 Magazines 10 full-page ads in ‘Cleo’ and ‘Donna Hay’ $10,000 $20,000 Newspaper 4 full-page ads in ‘Mx Newspaper’ $20,000 Radio spots Radio spot adv ertisement in FM 100.3 $20,000 Radio spot advertisement in FM 105.6 $20,000 Internet Online advertisements $2,000 $4,000 $4,000 Facebook and Twitter $250 $500 $500 Total per month $82,250 $94,500 $24,500 Grand total $201,250 Figure 1: Logo Radio spot advertisement script Girl 1: Hi, what is that ice cream you are eating? Girl 2: This is the new ‘Euphori Gelato’ ice cream. Girl 1: It looks so delicious. Does it taste as good as it looks? Girl 2: It tastes even better. You can have a taste. Girl 1: Wow! I have never tasted such delicious ice cream. Girl 2: The best thing about the ice cream is that it is made from organic ingredients. Girl 1: Really. I love organic foods. How many flavors does it have? Girl 2: Peppermint, chocolate, and vannila. Girl 1: I will definitely start buying Euphori Gelato ice cream. Note: Advertisement figures are estimates as seen from: 4webmarketing.biz/images/theaustralianadrates.pdf

Monday, October 21, 2019

Opposition to the DREAM Act Legislation

Opposition to the DREAM Act Legislation Imagine for a moment that you are a teenager: you have a group of close friends whove been with you since elementary school; youre one of the top students in your class; and your coach tells you that if you keep it up, you could have a shot at a scholarship, which you really need since your dream is to go into medicine. Unfortunately, you wont be able to fulfill your dream because of your parents undocumented status. As one of the 65,000 undocumented students in the U.S. who graduate from high school each year, you are barred from higher education and cannot legally obtain employment after graduation. Worse yet, there are people who in the U.S. who believe that all undocumented immigrants should be deported. Through no fault of your own, you could be forced to leave your home and move to a foreign country. Why Do People Think the Dream Act Is Bad for the U.S.? Does that seem fair? The DREAM Act, legislation that would provide a way for undocumented students to gain permanent residency through education or military service, is taking a hit from anti-immigrant groups, and in some cases, migrant advocates. According to the Denver Daily News, anti-illegal immigration advocate and former Colorado congressman Tom Tancredo said the bill should be renamed the NIGHTMARE Act because it will increase the number of people who come to the United States illegally. FAIR thinks the DREAM Act is a bad idea, calling it amnesty for illegal aliens. The group echoes many anti-DREAMers saying that the DREAM Act would reward undocumented immigrants and encourage continued illegal immigration, it would take education spots away from American students and make it more difficult for them to obtain tuition assistance, and passage of the DREAM Act would put additional strain on the country since the students could eventually petition for their relatives residency. Citizen Orange explains that the military provision within the DREAM Act is a cause for concern for some migrant advocates. The author says that because many undocumented youth are underprivileged, joining the military could be their only path to leg al status. Its a concern that depends on a persons view of military service: whether it is seen as being forced to risk your life, or an honorable way to serve your country. There will always be differing views and opinions on any type of legislation, but especially so when it comes to a controversial topic like immigration. For some, the debate is as simple as whether or not to make children suffer because of the actions of their parents. For others, the DREAM Act is only one small part of comprehensive immigration reform, and the effect of such legislation would be widespread. But for the DREAMers - the undocumented students whose futures depend on the outcome - the outcome of the legislation means much, much more.

Sunday, October 20, 2019

Cinderella A Comparative Critique Essay Example

Cinderella A Comparative Critique Essay Example Cinderella A Comparative Critique Paper Cinderella A Comparative Critique Paper As children we have all heard the story of Cinderella many times before. In this story we are enchanted by a magical idea that fairy tales exist, true love is real, and that there is such a thing as a happy ending. Two authors, Catherine Orenstein and Peg Streep, both write articles based off of the story of Cinderella and what they believe are the true hidden meanings behind the story. The article â€Å"Why the story of Cinderella Still Enchants† by Peg Streep is more focused on the happily ever after ending than Catherine Orenstein’s article â€Å"Fairy Tales and a Dose of Reality†. Orenstein thinks people have made Cinderella into a reality fairy tale that is not so much based on true love but more on the false appearance that there is one. Many people when they were children heard of â€Å"Cinderella† as long with many other children stories. It sparked their imaginations and their beliefs in fairy tales. Some children did grow out of the true love fairy tale and some grew up to still believe in it. Orenstein’s article exceeds all the childish magic, unlike Streep’s article. Orenstein says the story has blinded many in the hopes of looking for a fairy tale love, and they focus too much on the reality of true love and happily ever after’s. However, Streep’s article states that â€Å"Cinderella† is a story that children fall back on whenever they feel left out. It is a story that is relatable to the child’s emotions. The children will see that Cinderella is unwanted and underappreciated but that she then gets what she wishes for all thanks to magic. Both authors give more of their opinions than actual facts on how people were truly affected by the â€Å"Cinderella† story. Orenstein concentrates on reality television bringing up our childhood fairy tales and how they use illusions on try to portray our fairy tale fantasies in real life. She uses shows such as â€Å"The Bachelorette,† â€Å"Married by America,† and â€Å"Th

Saturday, October 19, 2019

The Colonial southeast Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5750 words

The Colonial southeast - Essay Example From this research it is clear that the Caddo’s inhibited in the southwest of the Arkansas and the surrounding areas of Texas, Louisiana, and Oklahoma from 1000 A.D to 1800 A.D. when they were visited and approached by the French and Spanish explorers; they were branched into three segments. The kadohadacho, right on the great bend of the red river, the Natchitoches in west Louisiana, and lastly the Hasinai in east Texas. The Caddo were native villagers and farmers, and their culture had a class system as part of their social structure. They lived in grass houses that were around fifteen feet tall and almost twenty to fifty feet in width or diameter. The houses of the tribe members were conical or doomed in shape that was framed with poles, and covered with a patch of grass thatch. On the territorial perspective, the Caddo’s inhibited isolated farms, small villages, and some larger villages. The economy of the Caddo’s was mainly inclined on the production of agri culture, maize, beans, watermelons, tobacco, pumpkins, and squash. Maize was the premier food material that was consumed by the communities of the Caddo’s. The Caddo’s were also very efficient in fishing, they practiced a traditional mode of fishing using trotlines, which symbolizes a fishing line loaded with baited hooks across streams. Caddo’s mainly inherited their maternal traits than the paternal ones. In the Caddo community, the Xinesi inherited a position of spiritual leadership, the Caddi, the inherited position of principal headman of a community. While the Xinesi were in charge of the communication with the supreme god and meditation, the caddi, were responsible for religious leadership, influencing decision making between villages, and to lead important rites, like the rights for harvesting and naming. Inspite of being in the medieval period, the Caddo’s maintained their community in a well organized government system. The Caddo’s been a lso involved in the trading of guns, fur and horses to Europeans and other Indian, by developing a trade and economic network (Texas history). Unlike the Caddo’s, the creeks were primarily called Muskogee’s. They are a powerful nation of Indians inhibiting the middle parts of Georgia, alongside the river mobile. The name creek Indians came from the fact that creeks and rivulets abounded in their country. The soil in the region is extremely fruitful, and the climate is also environment friendly. The creeks are cultivator of the soil; spirituous liquors are prohibited from entering the town of the creeks. By nature, creeks are faithful as friends, but also incorrigible as enemies, to strangers they provide the warmest welcome, and are thoroughly honest and fair in their dealings. The women of their tribe are significantly short in height, their hand and feet are no larger than those of nine or ten year old European girls. The body is well formed, the features are regular and beautiful, and the eyes are large, black, and languishing. Unlike the women of the tribe, the men in general are larger in size than the European. On the marital perspective, the mode of marrying is unique and traditional. The bridegroom takes a cane and fixes the same upright in the ground, and then the bride lays down another cane by the side of

Friday, October 18, 2019

The History of Terrorism and Special Forces Research Paper

The History of Terrorism and Special Forces - Research Paper Example An extensive investigation on terrorism has to be carried out especially on the historical background of the US in order to gather a broader perspective about terrorists’ intentions. I strongly believe the research will assist government agencies and legal systems to make timely decisions on how to tackle the deadly threats. The historical background on terrorism dates back to the French revolution (Mitchell, 2010). For the last ten years, however, a dramatic increase in this barbaric act has been observed. To pursue their political agenda they use hijacking, murdering, kidnapping and bombing. Armstrong indicated that modern suicide terror was first noted at an American embassy in Lebanon in 1983 near Beirut (Simpson & Robert, 2004). The group behind the attack was known as Hezbollah, meaning an army of God. The group later led another attack against the French multinational force and the Marine headquarters resulting in the death of 300 people (Bernstein, 2002). The terror attack made western forces to leave Lebanon. A suicide terror attack is presumed to be the most devastating form of terrorism. The terrorists usually use religion to justify their awful acts though the assaults are politically motivated. Hezbollah as I noted uses suicide terror attacks against Israel as a retaliatory apparatus. For example, after their secretary general Abas Musavi was assassinated by Israeli military personnel in 1992, the Hezbollah bombed an Israeli embassy stationed in Buenos Ares (Mann, 2004). Twenty-nine people died while two hundred and fifty people were seriously injured. I also noted that whenever a terror group achieved a political goal their terror activities were observed to reduce. This was a clear indication that the perpetrators were politically motivated rather than being religiously influenced. Islam is also the most dominant religion in the Middle East and terrorists use this opportunity to their advantage. The objective of

Percocet Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Percocet - Essay Example As the drug can cause breathing problems in the unborn infant and can pass into breast milk, it is necessary to inform the doctor about pregnancy and lactation. Only prescribed doses of the drug should be taken as it is addictive and an overdose can damage the liver. The dosage, however, varies with the patient condition and the strength of the medicine is varied accordingly. Interaction with other medicines, food and beverages As acetaminophen may be present in many other combination medicines it is necessary to consult the doctor before taking any other medicines for cold, allergy or pain, muscle relaxants, seizure medication, bladder or urinary medications, bronchodilators, medication for irritable bowel and CNS depressants along with Percocet. When taken along with medicines containing Rifampicin or isoniazid, the risk of side effects increases. Percocet should not be taken along with alcohol and foods such as cabbage. Storage and side effects Percocet should be stored in a close d container at room temperature away from heat, moisture and sunlight. It should be away from children and those past the expiry date should be disposed. Along with its physiological effects most medicines cause certain side effects.

Thursday, October 17, 2019

Network Forensics in the Cloud Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Network Forensics in the Cloud - Research Paper Example lenges of performing network forensics are presented due to the decentralization nature of data processing and lack of physical servers making the traditional approaches redundant. The examined challenges in network forensics in cloud infrastructures are as below; The expertise required to handle sophisticated cloud forensic crimes is lacking in many institutions since most investigations are conducted by digital forensic experts using conventional tools and procedures applied traditionally. Laws and regulations are slowly evolving with respect to swiftly changing cloud technologies (Peterson, & Shenoi, 2013). The forensic data accessed is dependent on the cloud model that is implemented in every service and deployment model. For instance; Infrastructure as a service (IaaS) clients have a comparatively unrestricted access to the statistics forensic investigators consider sufficient. On the other hand, the clients to software as a service (SaaS) will be provide with limited or no access to such information. This limited access to forensic information means that users of systems have limited knowledge and control of the physical locations of their data. The providers of cloud service omit the terms of use that would assist forensic preparedness of the cloud service (DeFranco, 2013). This limited access to metadata and log files by customers also reduces the ability to carry – out real time monitoring and auditing. The spread of mobile endpoints is a challenge for the collection of evidence and recovery of data and this is due to the impact of a crime, extensive number of resources linked to the cloud, and the workload of an investigation being considerable. The traditional forensics faces the challenge of disparate log formats and this is aggravated by cloud since there is prevalence of proprietary log formats and it holds large volumes of data logs. Since deleted data is sensitive to forensic investigations then remote access is hardly possible when the

Petroleum Economic and Oil field management Essay

Petroleum Economic and Oil field management - Essay Example dvantageous to tax rent rather than profits because they yield more because they can be taxed to slightly less than 100 percent and cannot distort behavior providing an ideal non-distorting tax (Passant, 2011:3). The concessionary system was used as the very first system in the oil industry especially in mining operations in Greece in 480 B.C. In modern times, the use of this method allows oil companies to explore, develop, sell and export oil from a country for a specific time. Examples of countries using this method include Kuwait, Angola and Sudan. The contract-based system of taxation is those where there are two types of systems namely the production sharing contracts and risk service contracts. The contractor has no claim or title over the oil produced but undertakes exploration. The contractor is expected to pay the government in form of tax and non-tax revenues. An example of a country using this system is the UK (Agreement, 2004:4). For the Oceania government, it should adopt the contract-based system of taxation. This system allows the state to own the reserves. The government and oil companies negotiate on how long the company will have a right to extract on the oil reserves. Despite the fact that it could be many years, exploration cannot be beneficial until it is completed. This could go into losses especially for the company doing the exploration and could save the country from such losses. The most beneficial part for the government is that it has the right to draft and negotiate a contract system that can help it maximize on the revenue and limit a company’s access to oil while at the same time create a legal regime that will allow the state to modify the terms of the contract. Back-end loading system refers to a taxation system where fiscal measures are low in terms of compensating project and sovereign risk, recoups capital outlay in a short time, maximizes the long run post tax returns and has no windfall profit taxes when prices of goods

Wednesday, October 16, 2019

Network Forensics in the Cloud Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Network Forensics in the Cloud - Research Paper Example lenges of performing network forensics are presented due to the decentralization nature of data processing and lack of physical servers making the traditional approaches redundant. The examined challenges in network forensics in cloud infrastructures are as below; The expertise required to handle sophisticated cloud forensic crimes is lacking in many institutions since most investigations are conducted by digital forensic experts using conventional tools and procedures applied traditionally. Laws and regulations are slowly evolving with respect to swiftly changing cloud technologies (Peterson, & Shenoi, 2013). The forensic data accessed is dependent on the cloud model that is implemented in every service and deployment model. For instance; Infrastructure as a service (IaaS) clients have a comparatively unrestricted access to the statistics forensic investigators consider sufficient. On the other hand, the clients to software as a service (SaaS) will be provide with limited or no access to such information. This limited access to forensic information means that users of systems have limited knowledge and control of the physical locations of their data. The providers of cloud service omit the terms of use that would assist forensic preparedness of the cloud service (DeFranco, 2013). This limited access to metadata and log files by customers also reduces the ability to carry – out real time monitoring and auditing. The spread of mobile endpoints is a challenge for the collection of evidence and recovery of data and this is due to the impact of a crime, extensive number of resources linked to the cloud, and the workload of an investigation being considerable. The traditional forensics faces the challenge of disparate log formats and this is aggravated by cloud since there is prevalence of proprietary log formats and it holds large volumes of data logs. Since deleted data is sensitive to forensic investigations then remote access is hardly possible when the

Tuesday, October 15, 2019

Personal statement for master in business administration

For master in business administration - Personal Statement Example For me giving back to the community is very important, thus I was highly involved in volunteer work. Some of the places in which I volunteered include the House of Care of the Elderly, Handicapped and Orphans, Al hajj services, Al-Mataf company, and KAU Research Endowment Fund. I learned from my volunteering experiences the value of collaboration and teamwork. During my college years I also dedicated a portion of my time towards working. I worked as a summer trainee in Saudi Aramco for two months in the supplier performance unit. Another work experience that I had the opportunity to complete was working as a call center reservation agent in Makkah Clock Royal Tower. These two work experiences taught me the importance of being disciplined. They also help me improve my written and verbal communication skills. As a student I also knew that it was important to learn English. I completed level 112 in the intensive English program from ELS. All these experiences have prepared me to become a graduate student in business. I want to pursue an MBA because I realized that in todays competitive job marketplace a bachelors degree is not sufficient move up the corporate ladder. One of my long term goals is to reach the managerial level. To be a good manager a person needs to have a solid educational background. Enrolling in a business graduate program will open the doors of opportunity for

Explain the Concept of Ideals in Plato’s Writings Essay Example for Free

Explain the Concept of Ideals in Plato’s Writings Essay â€Å"The unexamined life is not worth living† according to Plato. He argued that we should always pursue knowledge and ask questions to do this. A key part of Plato’s philosophy is epistemology – his theory of how we know things. His concept of Ideals, also known as Forms, is Plato’s explanation of how true knowledge can be sought. Plato understood that there are concepts that we can all recognise in various things, for example the concept of beauty. We all recognise beauty in art, nature, people, or music, and we all understand the idea when we hear the word used. Although we can all recognise beauty, our opinions of what classes as beautiful are widely varied and subjective. The conclusions Plato drew from this is that beauty must exist, otherwise we would not know it at all. This is the Perfect Form of Beauty. However, we must have only partial knowledge of it or we would not have subjective opinions. Forms are absolute versions of concepts and ideas. They are perfect ideas of everything and therefore they do not change – perfect things cannot change for the better and would not change for the worse. They are also eternal as to begin or to stop existing is a change. They cannot live in this world as it is constantly changing and forms are unchangeable, so they can only exist in the Realm of the Forms. The form of Beauty is absolute and true; it is not an opinion but an idea or concept, therefore no-one can know the real meaning of Beauty as it cannot exist in this world and it is eternal. We will never know forms fully as we are imperfect. Forms give us knowledge and allow us to have some understanding of the truth. Although, we know that we do not know them fully as we can form our own opinions on things, e.g. what is beautiful and what is not. Forms are in the Realm of the Forms, we can recognise them as this is where our soul originates from, however because they come from there and not from where we are, we do not know them fully. Also as they are perfect we cannot understand them fully. In the Realm of the Forms there are Ideals of everything we have a concept of such as Beauty, Justice, Truth, and the Form of the Good. The Form of the Good is the highest of the forms and is the foundation and essence of everything. The Form of The Good represents Plato’s idea of goodness and is what you should most want. For Plato this was eudaimonia, living a good and fulfilled life. All other forms such as beauty, justice or truth are part of eudaimonia and so part of Good. The Form of the Good is therefore the most important Form as it gives us full and true knowledge of what we should pursue. It is our ultimate goal and the source of all truth and goodness. In this way, it has influenced the development of the Christian idea of God. Plato uses the Cave Allegory to present his ideas about Forms. He does this by using symbolism, by representing the Forms as objects outside of the cave. He then represents the Form of the Good as the sun; the sun shines light onto the objects outside, allowing us to see them. The light represents knowledge and the objects represent Forms – the Sun shows us the Forms and gives us knowledge. The prisoner’s journey illustrates Plato’s concept of Ideals or Forms – they provide truth but must be pursued individually and by looking away from things that keep us ignorant.

Monday, October 14, 2019

ASDA Human Resource Management

ASDA Human Resource Management The objectives of this report are to stimulate the Human Resource Management, Human Resource Planning and Development, and Performance of ASDA. Furthermore, it explains the human resource management activities, models of human resource management, effectiveness of organisational objectives, performance monitoring of ASDA. Additionally, it also address, the importance of staffing, performance appraisals, compensation and benefits, training and development, employee and labour relations, safety and health, and human resource research. It discusses how the Human resource management works to ensure that employees are able to meet the organizations goals. A brief introduction of ASDA: ASDA group of company operates as one of the largest food retailers in the United Kingdom. The companys stores sell a wide variety of merchandise including food and apparel, along with house wares, music videos, and books. ASDA has approximately 259 stores in its arsenal-each avenging nearly 42000 square feet with some as large as 100000 square feet. The company, once known as a dairy conglomerate, was acquired by Wal-Mart stores Inc. in 1999. TESCO has 31.1 per cent of the UK grocery market while ASDAs share is 16.4 percent. My familiar organisation is ASDA and I will answer these tasks using ASDA. Human Resource Management (HRM) Human Resource Management activities: HRM activities designed to enhance the effectiveness of an organisations work-force in achieving organisational goals. HRM consists of numerous activities, including: Equal employment opportunity (EEO) compliance. Employee recruitment, selection, motivation and orientation. Performance evaluation and compensation. Training and develop skills. Development and evaluation. Safety, health and wellness, etc. Recruitment and selection: The success of an organisation depends on having the right number of staff, with the right skills and abilities.Recruitment involves the utilization of organizational practices to influence the number and types of individuals who are willing to apply for job vacancies (Rynes, 1991; Rynes Cable, 2003). ASDA has always tried to keep it as simple as possible but theyre a big company and want to be sure that application is seen by the right person. Step one: At First ASDA score submitted application. ASDA has a specific jobs advertisement on their website. Step two: The application process of online will usually include some verbal, numerical and personality tests, as well as an application form. Step three: ASDAs employer may ask applicant to attend an interview. Objectives Of recruitment and selection: The objectives of the recruitment and selection process of human resource management are given below: To acquire, retain and develop the best talent and skills. Keep the expenditure of selection down. Make certain that the applicant selected will desire the job and stick at ASDA. To obtain the number and quality of employees that can be selected in order to help ASDA to achieve its goals and objectives. To identify the most appropriate candidate to fill each post. Achievement of recruitment and selection: ASDA always look for a candidate with solid experience and new ideas and a fresh perspective. Applications may be completed online or visiting an ASDA store and getting an application form. ASDA is determining for present and future manpower requirements to coordinate with planning and job analysis activities. Training and developing skills: Training is a planned process to modify attitude, knowledge or skill behavior through learning experience to achieve effective performance. Training is to develop the abilities of the individuals and to satisfy the current and future needs of the organization. A company like ASDA if an employee lacks training is risky for fire, chemical and other health hazards. Induction: ASDA have Award Winning Best Welcome induction is the best way to get up to speed with their business and find to feet as quickly as possible. Store Appreciation Day: A new comer will have the opportunity to attend a store appreciation day after his Best Welcome induction to understand how their stores operate. Growing career: ASDA will work to help grow talent to build up career with them. The new training programme is divided into two parts the first is the service day, the second day is devoted to selling skills. Objectives of training and developing skills: The objectives of the training and develop skills of HRM are given below: To staying competitive, training is the key to sustainability. Reduce wastage and accident rates. To keep staff motivated and up-to-date with industry trends and new technologies is essential to achieving that goal. Increase job satisfaction and motivate workers. Establish the most effective and efficient working methods. Achievement of training and development: ASDA follow an ideal step by step process to train and develop their human power. They hire attitude and train for skill and practical experience. ASDA have created some innovative and effective ways for staffs to learn. Their training and development programs have been designed to reach a senior role within five years. Benefits and rewards: Benefit and Reward may cost a lot but it is important for further achievement. It promote employee to give high performance. Likewise, holyday payment, Colleague discount voucher, Pension etc influence people to give their 100% effort where they works. Colleague discount: After 12 weeks, ASDA provide Colleague Discount Card. Bonus: Their bonus scheme is designed to recognize and reward colleagues for their valued contribution. Flexible working: ASDA offers the opportunity to do everything from swapping a shift.Pension: ASDA Pension Plan is a great addition for retirement. Night Manager Allowance: Night Managers receive an extra allowance of either  £3000 or  £5000 per year depending on the responsibility of their role.Voluntary benefits: ASDA gives colleague benefits, like recognition, Long service awards etc. [Source: http://www.asda.jobs/all-about/index.html] Objectives of benefits and rewards: The aims of benefits and rewards of HRM are to: Achieve high performance from the staffs of an organisation. Make better life and certain future for staffs to get total output. Ensure workers concentrate 100% on their work. Encourage employees to think and better plan for the success of the company. Achievement of benefits and rewards: To achieve organisational success, a company must have to maintain the benefit, reward and compensation scheme. In 2008, ASDA paid out nearly  £38 million to 17,000 colleagues who planned to spend their cash on anything from horses, to shark dives to laser eye treatment! Voluntary benefits, Safety, Compensation, Wellness, Rewards, etc encourage employee to work or give 100% for the organization. Theoretical models of human resource management: Human Resource Management is generally performance or behaviour based. There are different types of theoretical Models of Human Resource Management. Among them two models are explained as below: Guests model of HRM: David Guests (1989, 1997) adapted the Harvard model to develop his model based upon four outcomes. These are: 1. Strategy integration, 2.Commitment, 3. Flexibility, 4.Quality. The guest model has 6 components: HRM strategy HRM practices HRM outcomes Behaviour outcomes Performance outcomes Financial outcomes Following Guest model ASDA takes some HRM strategies and practices to achieve some outcomes. It also tries its best to encourage employees through different activities for obtaining behaviour outcomes. Along with Handy, there are four types of culture; Power, Role, Task and Person. ASDA culture combines two of these. Top management of ASDA reveals power culture that makes the overall decisions. Other one is the task culture. In ASDA the overall aim of the organisation is task orientated and focussing on team customs, and powerful message between all levels of staff. ASDA has integrated the contingency approach by considering the environment culture. The Harvard model of HRM: The Harvard model was produced by Beer, Spector, Lawrence, Mills, and Walton in 1984, which is consists of six components 1. Stakeholders interests 2. Situational factors 3. Human Resource Management policy 4. Human Resource outcomes 5. Long term consequences 6. A feedback loop through which the outputs flow directly into the organisation and to the stakeholders The Harvard Model is emphasised as the soft approach to HRM, employees like stakeholders of the company. In this model has discussed four areas such as, reward system, employee influences, human resource flow, and work systems, there are also included situational factors such as influence of trade unions, labour market, and laws. According to the Harvard theory, employees are an asset rather than a cost. In ASDA, the line managers are in charge for people and store managers are in charge for the day to day running as a combination of both the hard and soft approach. In Task-2: Human resource planning and development Introduction: Organizations must be highly selective in identifying talented employees and developing and enhancing their skills to reach their full potential. HR planning: identifying human resource needs, career building, succession planning, and the development and implementation of a career development program. Human Resource Planning is systematic continuing process of analysing an organisations human resource needs under changing conditions and integrating this analysis with the development of HR policies appropriate to meet those needs. [Stephen P Marjorie C, Peoples Resourcing Contemporary HRM in practice, Chapter 4, Page-90 (3rd edition)] Human Resource Planning (HRP): HRP is not just the production of manpower plans and futuristic scenario planning, but needs to be seen as an important dimension of almost all aspects of HR. The planning of human resources becomes a search for those individuals who now and in the future will contribute most to the success of the organization. Employers have not only to acquire appropriate people to resource it, but they also need to train and develop them, for the following reasons as illustrated by Dressler, G (2003). Human Resource Development (HRD): Human Resource Development (HRD) is about develop people to improving recruitment and retention, improving competitiveness, implementing competitiveness, implementing new technology, improving customer service for enhance the organisations ability to compete with globalisation or competitive business world effectively. For worker development, human resource development (HRD) is the structure. By which, workforce can develop their personal and organizational skills, knowledge, and abilities. (Source: RDI DMS course material of HRM) Three HR Planning and development models: There are various human resources planning or development models. We look at three models which given below: Open new product line Open new Store and distribution system Develop staffing for new installation: -production workers -Supervisors -Technical staff -Other managers Recruit skilled workers Develop technical training programs Transfer managers from other facilities Recruiting and training programs feasible Transfers infeasible because of lack of managers with right skills Basic Human resource planning model and its effectiveness in ASDA: Too costly to hire from outside Develop new objectives and plans Recruit managers from outside Human Resource models are made according to the organizational objectives and plan requirement for attaining human resource goals. Furthermore, human resource objectives are straight related to the organizational objective and planning. To open a new branch of any company, Human Resource department need to think about production staffs, line managers, business manager, technical staffs and etc. Workforces are valuable for implementing the new product line, factory, distribution system, and achieving organizational goads. HR department of ASDA recruit skilled workers, develop technical training programs, and transfer managers from other facilities with right skills. ASDA involves forecasting outcome of various HR programs for employee flowing into, all the way through and out a variety of job classifications. They develop training programs regularly and broadly which are reflected in their activities. Attwoods Human Resource planning model and its effectiveness in ASDA: Human resource planning attempts to analyse likely influences on the supply of and demand for people, with a view to maximising the organizations future performance, Attwood (1989) Attwood decorated the planning for people in organizations that involves trying to obtain the right people, in the right numbers, with the right knowledge, skills and experience, in the right jobs, in the right place, at the right time, at the right cost. Following the Attwoods Human Resource Planning model, ASDA tries to do actions of supplying and making demand for the people to maximizing its future performance. ASDA also makes projects of future availability of key staff. This model adjusts and matches between current staff and future plan for its staffing terms. Then it makes evaluation of substitute approaches of dealing with these. Then ASDA selects the best substitute to reach its better HR planning. Following the Attwoods Human Resource Planning model, ASDA does analysing of current staff in organization and personal trends from personal records. Workforce planning model and its effectiveness in ASDA: Workforce planning is the system of analysing an organisations probable prospect needs for people in terms of data, skills and locations. This model allowed the company to diagram how those requirements can be met through recruitment and training. The main policy of this model is to make a right proportion of recruitment which is suitable for the organisation. It is very significant for a company like ASDA to plan ahead by following this model for better performance of workforce. ASDA is applying a workers planning diagram to set up the possible require for new workforce. This one considers executive and non- executive positions. In 2009/2010, for instance, ASDA estimate that to maintain their trade development there will be a demand for approximately 1,800 new managers. So, ASDA can adjust employment levels and recruit where needed. ASDA is looking to fill many vacancies within the company following this model. Task-3: Performance Introduction: Performance management is a process for sharing an understanding about needs to be achieved and then managing and developing people in a way that enables such shared objectives to be achieved. It is always important for managers and supervisors to get the best performance from their workforce in terms of levels of production and quality of output. Armstrong and Baron (2005) define performance management as a process which; contributes to the effective management of individuals and terms in order to achieve high levels of organisational performance. As such, it establishes shared understanding about what is to be achieved and an approach to leading and developing people which will ensure it is achieved. The purpose of performance appraisal is to enable employees to gain a clear picture of how they are performing in the organisation and to identify areas where they need additional support and training. Performance management is the method of making a work environment or setting in whic h people are enabled to perform to the best of their abilities. The five key elements of the performance appraisal are: Measurement Feedback Positive reinforcement Exchange of views and contract. Monitored HR Performance in ASDA: In ASDA, performance development reviews throughout the year and also formal appraisal interviews at regular intervals. ASDA can improve Benchmarking but they have to set standards and monitor the progress of themselves and competitors. For instance, setting goals, monitoring the employees accomplishment of those goads, contributing feedback with the employees, evaluating the employees performance, rewarding performance or firing the employee. ASDA is a huge organisation and they know that the secret to being successful and reliable is to provide good Customer Service. ASDA monitor the customer service progression via Benchmarking. This method in used by many organisations and is helped to show the performance of Customer service with other supermarket outlets. ASDA believe that the best approach to accomplish value for money is to monitor the performance levels of staff and want to reduce wasteful actions. Effectiveness of Performance in ASDA: By monitoring improvement, departmental managers or business managers can assess the efficiency of employees and determine which ones are meeting the terms of their agreement and contributing to ASDAs success. ASDA monitoring is the quality of work being produced that is one of the features and the efficiency levels within departments. 1. Assurance that the right people are in the right place at the right time. 2.  The improvement in the short-term outcomes such as attracting applicants, maximizing performance, and minimizing dissatisfaction and stress is made in order to retain valued employees. 3. HR planning will serve as a thread that ties together all other human resource activities and integrates these with the rest of the organization. 4.  Balancing present needs-of organizations and their employees for the future. Balance score card (BSC): The balanced scorecard (BSC) is the most widely applied performance management system today. The BSC was originally developed as a performance measurement system in 1992 by Dr. Robert Kaplan and Dr. David Norton at the Harvard Business School. Unlike earlier performance measurement systems, the BSC measures performance across a number of different perspectives-a financial perspective, a customer perspective, an internal business process perspective, and an innovation and learning perspective. Through the use of the various perspectives, the BSC captures both leading and lagging performance measures, thereby providing a more balanced view of company performance. Leading indicators include measures, such as customer satisfaction, new product development, on-time delivery, employee competency development, etc. ASDA balanced Scorecard: Total Management commitment IT solutions for results reporting SMART Target setting how does this Work? Linking reward and recognition to scorecard performance Cascading the BSC throughout the business Transferring ownership of the target measures to individuals Business planning the BSC way. Suggest ways to make Improvements: Sometimes, we see that poor performance lead to dismissal. Without checking, if wastefulness is allowed to continue, staff will lose interest, motivation will be concentrated and no encouragement to produce good quality products or services. Extra information on how to make improvement in the HR of ASDA is summarized as a suggestion as follows: 1) Choose the composition of the audit team: There has to be a representative from the HR function and from among senior line managers. 2) Recognize the functions main customers: The key decision is to clarify who makes the final decision to buy the services provided by the function. 3) Reconsider the HR functions mission statement: This statement describes the reason for the HR functions existence. 4) Reconsider the HR functions role in developing relevant HR policies and practices 5) Make internal comparisons to establish best practice: The organization need to build and constantly update a unique database of HR practices that gives an overview. Recommendations: They should to do constant reviewing of their Human Resource Development, and make adjustment are necessary. They should do demonstrate a model implementation of HRP. They should improve their HR sector to reach an ultimate goal. Suggested improvements: ASDA should- reduce employee turn over give confidence to long-term employment support training allowing employees progression to superior job opportunities increase their employees wages make recruitment strategy efficient let the employee enjoy more wealth of benefit include bonus keep continue environmental improvement

Sunday, October 13, 2019

Rev. Arthur Dimmesdales Character in Nathaniel Hawthornes Scarlet Letter :: Scarlet Letter essays

The Character of Arthur Dimmesdale in The Scarlet Letter      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The Scarlet Letter is a story of characters that have to live and deal with the effects of sin in different ways.   Of these characters, the Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale is the character portrayed as the most weak and unnoble. Despite this portrayal Dimmesdale was a stronger character than given credit for.   His unbelievable amount of control in his way of handling his burdens displays his great sense of strength and intellect.         Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   We first see Dimmesdale portrayed as a nervous and sensitive individual. Despite his outer appearance, inside Dimmesdale is a very stable, strong person. Chapter Three states that he showed, à ¿nervous sensibility and a vast power of self restraint.à ¿Ã‚   While this seems to give Dimmesdale great strength, it is also his largest flaw.   His body refuses to do what his heart says is right. Dimmesdale instructs Hester to reveal the truth, but when she refuses he doesnà ¿t have the willpower to confess himself.   Therefore, his sin becomes even larger than hers, because while hers is an exposed sin.   He continues to lie to himself and his followers by keeping his secret hidden, so his is a concealed sin. Here Hawthorne shows us just how strong Dimmesdale actually is, by allowing him to hide his sin and bear the weight of it, he creates an extremely interesting and tremendously strong character.         Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     The scaffold is the place that Dimmesdale shows the amount of pain and self-loathing he is truly capable of concealing.   He realizes that he is as much at fault for Hesterà ¿s torment as any common villager, if not even more so. Seven years prior, Hester stood in this place and took the punishment for both of them while he quietly stood aside and led people to believe that he also condemned her.   During those long seven years he made no move to lessen her load or his own.   Now Dimmesdale has had all that he can bear and lets out a yell that draws the attention of fellow villagers.   He curses himself for his silence and cowardice.         Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   On the scaffold in the chapter 23 the true sign of strength ids revealed.

Saturday, October 12, 2019

We Have the Right to Use Cell Phones While Driving :: Argumentative Persuasive Argument Essays

We Have the Right to Use Cell Phones While Driving Imagine driving in a car and not being able to adjust your radio, roll down your window, or even talk to your passenger. This may sound a bit extreme, but little by little a person's rights are being infringed upon by those who think that using a cellular phone while driving should be illegal. Using a cell phone while driving is no different than a mother tending to her children in the backseat, a person eating in a car, or even someone engrossed in conversation with their passenger. Can these rights be taken away, can common sense be legislated? Cell phones first became available in the year 1984 and have only grown in popularity since (Stutts et al.). Today there are over one hundred and twenty-eight million users (Pickler). In recent years, cell phones have been in the spotlight for causing drivers to be distracted, resulting in a number of crashes. New York has become the first state to ban the use of hand-held phones when driving on public highways. This new law went into effect on December 1, 2002. Drivers may only use a hand held phone "in an emergency, to call for help or to report a dangerous situation." However, drivers are allowed to use hands free devices such as speaker phones ("New. . ."). Currently, there are thirty-eight other states with bills like this one in the process (Breslau and Naughton 46). Many are upset about these laws because data on the actual number of cell phone related car accidents is not complete. According to a spokeswoman for Cellular Telecommunications and Internet Association, " There ar e not a lot of substantial findings" (Pickler). It's too early to tell if New York's new law is lowering the number of deaths caused by cell phones (Alonso-Zalvidar). Although around 2,600 people die each year from cell phone related accidents, a cell phone user only has around thirteen chances in a million of dying in a cell-phone related automobile accident. This is three times less than the chances of being killed by not wearing a seatbelt. Other motorists and pedestrians have a four in one million chance of being killed by a driver using a cell phone; the chance of getting killed by a drunk driver is four times as high (Pickler). Granted, every single human life is important, but these figures show that cell phones pose only a very small risk.

Friday, October 11, 2019

Health Care Reform Essay

Healthcare reform or as it’s formally known, the Affordable Care Act, is a volatile and polarizing issue among healthcare insurers. When President Barack Obama’s Affordable Care Act passed in 2010 it sent ripples throughout the healthcare insurance industry. No other single issue has caused so much controversy in recent years among insurers and politicians alike. It is a multibillion dollar enforcement that will affect nearly every American at some point in their lifetimes. Opinions vary from enthrallment to treasonous. There are a multitude of websites that portray all types of bias, pseudo-authoritative dictation and questionable authenticity. I will present a comparison of two well known but differing websites for this study: Whitehouse.org and Wikipedia.com. Authenticity, authority and objectivity will be discussed and presented in this research paper. The first website in this discussion is Whitehouse.org. Since this is the federal government’s official presidential website, the authority is without question. It is important to note that while that authority is challenged by member of opposing political party, the implied authority has been established by the constitution of the United States. Whitehouse.org provides a comprehensive â€Å"myths and facts† page regarding the Affordable Care Act. The site’s authority is undoubtedly written and constructed by technical analysts rather than the President himself. This is more of implied reason instead of stated fact as no one named author is listed for the site. The federal government has defined authority over all United States citizens and as such the President’s authority and respect is implied through the site. In regards to its authority, Whitehouse.org clearly obtains the highest level. In reviewing Whitehouse.org accuracy is highly debated by all United States political parties. Plenty of facts are presented yet without access to confidential information that accuracy can not be verified. It is certainly current and relevant concerning documentation and data. When evaluating comprehensiveness, the site provides a balanced and comprehensive view. Statistics and valuable metrics along with links to pertinent news articles  are posted on the website validating the comprehensiveness of the data. The intended audience of the site is the United States adult citizen, therefore the audience must be interested in the information regardless of the expertise of the reader. Grammar, punctuation and structure is professionally constructed with a plethora of documentation and properly cited credible sources such as IRS statistics and government data. The documentation and information provided on the site is very credible with the only negative reviews coming from extreme funda mentalists with opposing views. In reviewing objectivity, I have to conclude that Whitehouse.org has a distinct almost palpable bias. The presidential staff maintain the site and censor any and all information that is posted on the site. That alone has a tendency to neutralize objectivity since nearly all metrics point to the success of the Affordable Care Act. The site is reasonable though in that while only positive data is presented there are no extreme views or attempts to discredit opposing views with slanderous text. It most certainly poses a classic sociopolitical slant towards the president’s successes while carefully avoiding any negative issues such as missed deadlines and a faulty user portal for the Affordable Care Act enrollment. While the actual authors of the site are almost certainly staff of the White House, it is implied that President gives his approval for it. In conclusion, Whitehouse.org presents a balanced yet biased view of the positive aspects of the Affordable Care Act. Well known and highly publicized failures such as the faulty user portal are conveniently omitted. It presents the data and facts in an implied authoritative manner while maintaining an atmosphere of accuracy with its supporting metrics. The site is by no means exhaustive yet provides enough criteria to merit its use for graduate research. The second website I have chosen to review for its qualification of graduate research information is the Wikipedia page titled Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Wikipedia is the sixth most popular website in the world and considered to be one of the most popular internet reference sites.  The English version of the site contains over 4 million individual articles. I chose to contrast this site to Whitehouse.org in regards to the Affordable Care Act. The first criteria that any site should be evaluated for is the concept of authority. As mentioned earlier, Whitehouse.org has both direct and implied authority as the implication is that the President of the United States approved the information on the site. The authority of the Wikipedia is questionable as virtually anyone with suspect credentials can post as a subject matter expert. One does not have to be vetted to edit an article and as a result there are factual portions of the article written by laypeople. While sources are often cited, they are not required and could easily passed off as fact when in reality it is strictly unprofessional opinion. Since the Affordable Care Act is a highly polarizing topic that spans every political party, there is every reason to question the authority of the Wikipedia article. The accuracy of Wikipedia is a bit more complex of a criteria to evaluate. It is current as regular edits are added to the page on a frequent basis. Wikipedia frequently includes the date of the most current edit or if an extended time has passed without an edit the site includes a warning about the questionable currency. The Affordable Care Act article on Wikipedia is comprehensive and includes a wide range of data and metrics, both positive and negative. Sources can be cited but are not required and are only self vetted. All articles include bibliographies however since they are not vetted either it is strongly suggested to review all bibliography entries for accuracy. While is considered to be a useful reference it is inferred to be questionable at times. When evaluating Wikipedia’s Affordable Care Act article concerning objectivity I found that this is one criteria that Wikipedia shines. While it has a proclivity towards bias it stays more in the moderate area. Both opposing and approving views and ideas are written in the article. This unchecked balance of multiple authors actually blends quite unexpectedly into an objective article. Views of accolades are written in the same  article with prominent failures. While there certainly is a palpable bias it is kept in an uneasy balance. The Affordable Care Act article on Wikipedia lists more than individual sources. This fact alone suggests an amount of complexity and variation in evaluating objectivity. Wikipedia’s article is in sharp contrast to Whitehouse.org in many research criteria. I believe that while Wikipedia can be used for graduate research it should be used in moderation and only after other publication searches have been exhausted. The information contained within is suspect at times and would require additional research to properly independently authenticate sources. Comparing these two websites from a high level, I would use Whitehouse.org as a credible graduate level information source while Wikipedia would be ore suspect in terms of validity for graduate research.