Movie Analysis essays

Movie Analysis essays The film, Charlies Angels was a visually motivated movie. This film fit under the genre of action/comedy. The action and camera work moved the story forward while keeping the audience attentive. The primary characters were Dylan, a rebellious tomboy, Natalie, a ditzy encyclopedia, Alex, a no nonsense achiever and Eric Nox, a criminal mastermind. Dylan, Natalie and Alex are the main protagonists who work as detectives for a mysterious figure known as Charlie. Dylans motivation is her yearning to have a father figure, which ultimately leads her to protect her boss, Charlie. Natalie and Alexs motivations are tied to Dylans while Natalie is also searching for love and Alex is trying to open up to her boyfriend. Eric Noxs motivation is to have revenge for the death of his father. Our three heroines, Alex, Dylan and Natalie are highly trained super detectives who are hired to find a missing voice recognition computer program and the programs creator, Eric Nox. The three girls determine through some detective work that their main suspect is Noxs main competitor, Redstar Communications. The three go undercover and plant a link to Redstars main computer network. They soon discover that they have been double crossed by Eric Nox who only used the girls to gain access to Redstars communication satellites which he will use in conjunction with his voice recognition program to locate the elusive Charlie whom he blames for the death of his father. Bosley, the liaison between the girls and Charlie, is kidnapped in order to locate Charlie. The girls must now find Bosley and Eric Nox and prevent Eric from locating Charlie. The girls free Bosley but Eric Nox has already located Charlie and flies to kill him in an attack helicopter. Alex, Dylan and Natalie manage to get aboard the helicopter and reprogram the missile, which Eric Nox is planning on using to ...

Electrum Metal Alloy or Green Gold

Electrum Metal Alloy or Green Gold Electrum is a naturally occurring alloy of gold and silver with a small amount of other metals. The man-made alloy of gold and silver is chemically similar to electrum  but usually is called green gold. Electrum Chemical Composition Electrum consists of gold and silver, often with small amounts of copper, platinum, or other metals. Copper, iron, bismuth, and palladium commonly occur in natural electrum. The name may be applied to any gold-silver alloy that is 20-80% gold and 20-80% silver, but unless it is the natural alloy, the synthesized metal is more correctly termed green gold,  gold, or silver (depending which metal is present in the higher amount).  The ratio of gold to silver in natural electrum varies according to its source. Natural electrum found today in  Western  Anatolia contains  70% to 90% gold. Most examples of ancient electrum are coins, which contain increasingly lower amounts of gold, so its believed the raw material was alloyed further to conserve profit. The word electrum has also been applied to the alloy called German silver, although this is an alloy that is silver in color, not elemental composition. German silver typically consists of  60% copper, 20% nickel and 20% zinc.   Electrum Appearance Natural electrum ranges in color from pale gold to bright gold, depending on the amount of the element gold present in the alloy. Brassy-colored electrum contains a higher amount of copper. Although the ancient Greeks called the metal white gold, the modern meaning of the phrase white gold  refers to a different alloy that contains gold  but appears silvery or white. Modern green gold, consisting of gold and silver, actually does appear yellowish -green.  Intentional addition of cadmium may  enhance the green color, although cadmium is toxic, so this limits the uses of the alloy. The addition of 2% cadmium produces a light green color, while 4% cadmium yields a deep green color. Alloying with copper deepens the color of the metal. Electrum Properties The exact properties of electrum depend on the metals in the alloy and their percentage. Generally, electrum has a high reflectivity, is an excellent conductor of heat and electricity, is ductile and malleable, and is fairly corrosion resistant. Electrum Uses Electrum has been used as currency, to make jewelry and ornaments, for drinking vessels, and as an exterior coating for pyramids and obelisks. The earliest known coins in the Western world were minted of electrum and it remained  popular for coinage until about 350 BC. Electrum is harder and more durable than pure gold, plus the techniques for gold refining were not widely known in ancient times. Thus, electrum was a popular and valued precious metal. Electrum History As a natural metal, electrum was obtained and used by early man.  Electrum was used to make the earliest metal coins, dating back at least to the 3rd millennium BC in Egypt. The Egyptians also used the metal to coat important structures. Ancient drinking vessels were made of electrum. The modern Nobel Prize medal consists of green gold (synthesized electrum) plated with gold. Where Can You Find Electrum? Unless you visit a museum or win the Nobel Prize, you best chance of finding electrum is to seek the natural alloy. In ancient times, the chief source of electrum was  Lydia, around the Pactolus River, a  tributary of the Hermus, now called the  Gediz Nehriin in Turkey. In the modern world, the primary source of electrum is Anatolia. Smaller amounts also may be found in Nevada, in the USA.

The Nurses Role in Prevention of Central Venous Line Infection Essay

The Nurses Role in Prevention of Central Venous Line Infection - Essay Example The problems identified for this research are that CVLI presents a serious health risk to patients, nurses are frequently in a position to contribute to the problem, and that training and prevention strategies should be employed to reduce the frequency and severity of CVLI. Significance of the Problem. The significance of CVLI cannot be overstated. It increases the morbidity and mortality rates of patients who suffer infection as a result of bacterial introduction and growth in what is often an immunosuppressed environment. This issue is important to nursing for two primary reasons; nurses are in a position to contribute to the frequency and severity of the problem, and they are also the first line of defense in prevention, detection, and resolution of CVLI. Research Hypothesis. The expectations for this research are that it will clearly demonstrate; that most cases of CVLI are preventable, the incidence of nurse contribution to the condition is high, a program of training and preventative strategies would reduce the frequency of infection, and that more research is needed to determine the protocols for a program of prevention. Literature Review. There are several studies on the subject of CVLI and the contributory issues involved. While this body of literature is informative, it does not obviate the need for the research proposed herein. From Hadaway, we know t... The expectations for this research are that it will clearly demonstrate; that most cases of CVLI are preventable, the incidence of nurse contribution to the condition is high, a program of training and preventative strategies would reduce the frequency of infection, and that more research is needed to determine the protocols for a program of prevention. CHAPTER TWO Literature Review. There are several studies on the subject of CVLI and the contributory issues involved. While this body of literature is informative, it does not obviate the need for the research proposed herein. From Hadaway, we know that central venous lines are much more likely to increase the frequency, as well as the seriousness, of infections than are short peripheral catheters. She points out that two factors that contribute to this fact are that the patients themselves tend to be more vulnerable, and the exposure to microorganisms is increased due to the more frequent access required in maintaining central venous lines (Hadaway, 2006, p. 58) These infections, particularly those at the site of the intravascular device, are a major source of morbidity, occur frequently, and have the ability to increase both the length of a patient's stay at the hospital as well as the costs associated with that period of convalescence (Musher, el al., 2002, p. 769). The research of Dr. Oudiz and his co-authors has found that early detection of infection in such patients is crucial, though it can be difficult given the fact that the symptoms often present in a generalized way and do not initially appear as an acute infection (Oudiz, et al., 2004, p. 92). When those symptoms do present, however, it is often necessary to remove the central venous line in order to eradicate the infection (Brooks &

Article review Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 12

Article review - Essay Example The author also makes suggestions on how corporations can do something about this dissatisfaction. John Baldoni (2010) states that during his work presentations there was a time when he discovered eight out of ten workers were not content with their employment. Although the Great Recession made employees stick to their jobs, their dissatisfaction did not go away and new research manifested the fact. (Baldoni, 2010) Workers complained of being overworked, underpaid and underappreciated. The article continues with the research showing six out of ten workers wanting to leave the company. Baldoni goes on further to explain that managers must face the fact that their employees are not pleased. Also, as proven by research, quite a number do not trust upper management thinking that the ones in the higher up do not have as many sacrifices as those in the lower ranks. Ultimately, managers should remember that unhappy workers are unproductive ones and thus steps should be taken to make improve the workers’ disposition. There were three suggestions were made in the article for making work more tolerable for employees. The first one was to address the situation. Baldoni hints that most employers try to ignore the fact that the problem exists. This should not be the case. He encourages employers to try and find out why there is a problem. Asking employees outright is also not a good tactic, Baldoni states, as this would make employees be afraid to tell the truth. A private company resorted to conducting a survey after a number of its professional staff submitted their resignations. (Von Achen, 2010) The results showed that insufficient training and support, infrequent performance feedback and workload issues were the reasons the workers at this company wanted change. The next step Baldoni wrote is to encourage alternatives. He suggests to work together with the employees in making improvements to the

The drunkard Essay Example for Free

The drunkard Essay Develop the five-paragraph essay BEFORE you write so that you know Where you are going. The Use of Irony and Humor of The Drunkard In the story, The Drunkard the author Frank OConnor uses a point of view to primarily reveal humor and Irony. In the story, OConnor uses first person point of view. First person point of view is told through the eyes of the main character in this story. The main character is named Larry. Larry is a young boy who has to go along with his father one day to a funeral. Larrys father Mick Is the person referred to as the drunkard. Larry seems to know what will happen when he goes with his father but Is hoping that his father might consider his presence and not drink. Since the story is told through little Larrys eyes and thoughts the reader mainly focuses on how Larry feels about his dad being a drinker. The Irony and humor that is found in human nature is revealed through Larry, first person point of view. and what happens on his outing with his father Mick. Irony, the incongruities between the expected and actual results of events and humor, the quality of being laughably ludicrous are interweaved in this story. In the short story, The Drunkard Frank OConnor uses tlrst person point ot view to reveal the humor and irony that is created in this musing story. Humor is seen many times In the story after Larry and his father Mick reach the bar following the funeral. Larry is thirsty and takes a drink of his fathers beer. Larry finishes his fathers drink and becomes drunk afterwards. While this Is occurring his father is talking away with a man named Peter Crowley who is also a drinker. When Mick realizes Larry is drunk he knows he must take him home immediately. This scene is described as, They all stopped gabbling to gape at the strange spectacle of two sober men, middle aged men bringing home a drunken mall boy with a cut over his This could not be better told than through the eyes of Larry who at the time is observing all he sees happening around him. Two usually drunk men carrying home but a young boy who Is not sobers enough to walk. This humorous scene described by the main character reveals more enjoyment because little Larry is the one who is drunk. It is also a bit ironic that the two grown men are carrying a drunken young boy home and it Is not the other way around. Larry is watching all the people around him and knows how ridiculous he must look In between the arms of his father adepter Crowley. The humor Is revealed in an entertaining way from the first person point of view because of the situation the main character is in and how he is describing it. t Of2 Irony seems to occur In a Tew Instances since Larry Is settlng up tne reader wltn certain expectations. Larry tells us how his father is and knows exactly what will happen after the funeral. His father will wind up in a bar drunk like he had been described doing since his best friend passed away. Larrys first conclusion about the circumstances that are likely to occur is, l know I might have to bring him home, blink runk, down Blarney Lane, with all the old women at their doors, saying: Mick Delaney is on it again (302). This is Larrys prediction to how the day would end up. To the readers hilarious surprise, this is not what happens. Larrys thirst at the bar gets him in to an unusual situation and bewilderment from the liquor he has drunk. Larry as he realizes he is drunk says to himself, But, drunk and all as I was (301). both the Larry and the reader are surprised by this ironic event. Larrys prediction is reversed. He no longer has to take his drunken father home down Blarney Lane. Now Larrys father has to take Larry home blind drunk. The twist of events that Larry the main character is going through mainly reveals the irony also in a more humorous way. Humor through the eyes and words of Larry, the main character, provide the reader with more enjoyment as his day continues. As the men carry Larry by the arms he knows he is going to stroll down Blarney Lane drunk. So as Larry is proceeding down the lane he cries out to the women laughing, Ill make ye laugh at the other side of year faces if ye dont let me pass Go away ye bloody bitches Take care or Ill come back and show ye! (302). this scene described by Larry is very comical. He knows he father usually passes down this same lane drunk but does not get to realize what it is like until now. Its especially worse for Larry because he is not a grown man yet who is allowed to drink. It is ironic also because Larry never thought hed be the one walking down this lane drunk after the funeral. The humor being revealed is more amusing through the words of Larry who is telling the story from the first person point of view.

Carl Sagan And Swifts A Modest Proposal :: essays research papers

"Carl Sagan would be pleased. It is his The Demon-Haunted World that opens with a story concerning a taxi driver: The driver, once realizing it is Carl Sagan, â€Å"that scientist guy,† in his cab’s backseat, proceeds to bombard Sagan with questions about truly scientific issues in the vein of â€Å"channeling,† â€Å"Nostradamus, astrology, the shroud of Turin.† And the driver presents each of these subjects â€Å"with a buoyant enthusiasm.† Yet Sagan disappoints him. With a list of facts, Sagan tells the man why there is a 99% chance each of his pseudoscientific theses are not true or why sometimes there is just a much simpler explanation which Occam’s Razor dictates we take. This respectful and modest logical deconstruction of absurd ideas is a compelling aspect of Sagan’s writing style. Enter Jonathan Swift: Jonathan Swift’s essay â€Å"A Modest Proposal† parallels Sagan’s style in its logical, mathematic al, and unpretentious tone. However instead of Sagan’s deconstructing of absurd ideas, Swift constructs one. A second difference is purpose: Sagan’s is science; Swift’s, satire. Swift lets us know right off the bat that the fictitious author of his essay is a cultured man. One finds the first evidence of Swift’s authors formal background in the title, â€Å"A Modest Proposal: For Preventing The Children of Poor People in Ireland From Being A burden to Their Parents or Country, and For Making Them Beneficial to The Public.† Swift then continues to drive the point home by using complex sentences throughout the rest of the essay, as well as maintaining a relatively high level of diction (there’s not a contraction to be found in his essay). Swift uses â€Å"sustenance† in instead of â€Å"food† and â€Å"prodigious† instead of â€Å"large† to help accomplish the writers status as sophisticated. With some knowledge of the time period this essay was written in, one realizes that Swift’s fictitious author satires the way the English treated the poor during Ireland’s potato famine. It is the complex sent ences and formal diction which are supposed to indicate that the author is one of Ireland’s English Occupiers. Only a few lines in the essay begins to stress its logical approach by describing babies and their mothers in the most scientific of ways; â€Å"It is true, a child just dropped from its dam may be supported by her milk for a solar year.† First, one may note the connotation Swift’s phrase â€Å"dropped from its dam† gives. This phrase does refer to birth but is normally reserved for farm animals, which is how Swift shows the author’s feelings towards the Irish poor (or lack there of).

Organizational Objectives and Total Compensation Essay

Compensation laws designed to protect the employees of an organization. A compensation package comprises of monetary and non-monetary benefits to help an organization in retaining the highly qualified, to spark high performance, and to attract quality applicants. Those compensations will vary from industry to industry and from employer to employer within those industries. The size of the organization and the number of employees will dictate how many benefits are offered in a total compensation plan. The list of benefits is too plentiful to mention more than once and are covered later in this paper. This list could go on and on as it continues to grow with the diversity of America’s workforce. One particular item of interest in the biotech industry would be the health coverage portion of the total compensation plan. Laws and Regulations Influencing Total Compensation The Patient Protection and Affordable Health Care Act is one law that companies need to consider in creating a total compensation plan. It was initiated to aid individuals in obtaining healthcare coverage, even those who were unemployed. â€Å"The Affordable Care Act actually refers to two separate pieces of legislation — the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (P.L. 111-148) and the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 (P.L. 111-152) — that, together expand Medicaid coverage to millions of low-income Americans and makes numerous improvements to both Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP)† (Affordable Care†¦n.d.). There are several laws that relate to compensation plans and the different aspects of pay. The first being The Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938. â€Å"The Fair Labor Standards Act is responsible for establishing minimum wage, recordkeeping regulations, overtime pay rates and youth employment  standards, which affect employees in both the private sector and in Federal, State and local governments† (What you should†¦n.d.). The Equal Pay Act (1963) was an amendment to the FLSA and restricts any kind of discrimination based on sex for men and women working at similar jobs and in the same workplace.   Another law is â€Å"The Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) is a federal law that sets minimum standards for most voluntarily established pension and health plans in private industry to provide protection for individuals in these plans† (U.S. Department of Labor, n.d.). An important thing to remember is that â€Å"Compensation systems must be consistent with the existing legislation in the areas of Labour Standards, equal pay, Human Rights, Employment Insurance, pension or retirement benefits, labor relations and Occupational Health and Safety† (Compensation & Benefits, n.d.). Similarities and Differences in Total Compensation between Organizations Biotechnology in simple terms deals with biology, and as such this industry is at a greater risk for health issues and must take into consideration a compensation plan placing emphasis on health insurance and monetary rewards. These two combined areas will attract better quality applicants and keep those deserving of mention on-board. This company with only 200 employees will begin with a total compensation plan consisting of: competitive pay, health insurance, matching 401(k) contributions, bonus programs based on job performance. Eli Lilly & Company offers their employees so many benefits it makes it easy to choose them as an employer: financial wellness, career development, health insurance, time off, lifecare resource and referral service, on-site child development centers, support groups, no-stress dress code, food services, â€Å"free gym membership, Lilly fitness centers, Lilly recreational park & sports and hobby clubs† (One decision†¦2014) just to name a few. This list is very extensive and far too long to list on this paper. SC Johnson’s total compensation is ever evolving and includes: â€Å"bonuses, long-term incentives and benefits, profit sharing, matching on 401(k) contributions; and potential bonus payments based on job performance, subsidized health care benefits, maternity/paternity/adoption leave, recreation and fitness centers, vacation purchase options, paid sabbaticals, flexible work arrangements, counseling services, child care, onsite training, family-oriented programs, maternity/paternity/adoption leave, child care, and family volunteer events, scholarships for students and more† (Compensation and benefits, n.d.). Conclusion In order to attract â€Å"only the best† it is paramount that any compensation package offered be the deciding factor. The total compensation package being offered is comparative, similar and acceptable in the industry. References: Affordable Care Act. (n.d.). Affordable Care Act. Retrieved from Medicaid.gov: http://www.medicaid.gov/AffordableCareAct/Affordable-Care-Act.html Compensation & Benefits. (n.d.). Compensation & Benefits. Retrieved from hrcouncil.ca: http://www.hrcouncil.ca/hr-toolkit/compensation-systems.cfm Compensation and benefits. (n.d.). Compensations and Benefits. Retrieved from SC Johnson, A Family Company: http://www.scjohnson.com/en/Careers/culture/benefits.aspx One decision†¦many benefits. (2014). One decision-many benefits. Retrieved from Eli Lilly: http://www.lilly.com/Documents/2014-FTE.pdf U.S. Department of Labor. (n.d.). Retirement Plans, Benefits & Savings. Retrieved from United States Department of Labor: http://www.dol.gov/dol/topic/retirement/erisa.htm What You Know About The Fair Labor Standards Act. (n.d.). What you should know about the Fair Labor Standards Act. Retrieved from: Laws: http//employment.laws.com/fair-labor-standards-act

Different Aspect of Chinese Culture and Their Impact on Marketing Essay

Chinese culture is one of the richest and oldest cultures. What makes Chinese culture unique and catchy is the fact that the Chinese all over the world observe their culture with huge amount of enthusiasm and commitment. Four Major aspects of the Chinese Culture that we have analyzed in this paper are: * Collectivism * Degree of uncertainty avoidance * Masculinity, and * Power Distance Collectivism: China as a society is more toward collectivism then individualism. Historically china has long been a family-run country, major portion of the society belongs to agriculture and live in rural areas of a country. Farm and family are the two basic institutions in china which are collectivist in nature. From childhood they trained and learned to work together and believe in â€Å"we† not in â€Å"I†. So from childhood they are integrated into strong cohesive in-groups. In China it is really hard to disagree with someone opinion in public. A direct argument is always avoided. Harmony and oyalty in any institution (in the form of company, family and even in country) is always important. You do not say in public â€Å"free Tibet†. They are highly context society. Instead of saying â€Å"No†, expressions or phrases are used for disagreement. We have seen many examples of their collectivist thinking in business e. g. in case of Lenovo where Chinese and Americans started to work together as business partner. Chinese believe on team’s performance as the criteria for company’s success where as American believes on individual performance. So for any company coming to lead china this aspect is matter of concern for them. They believe that relationship between employee & employer and in between businesses partners are deeply rooted in trust. Family has huge influence in consumer decision making procedure. Family is led be by father/husband who has absolute power and be in charge of family. They are more sincere towards their families than toward non-family organization. In contrary Japanese who are also collectivist in nature have no difficulty in changing their loyalty from their family to institution? The collective culture is deeply rooted in society and a tight political control sometime put multinational companies in great trouble. As we saw in Avon China, company is highly successful in their direct marketing of their cosmetic product throughout the world and even they are successful in china also but government ban their direct sales operation in china due to which they have to change their all sale force strategy. Today some of the manager/leader in china believes that collectivism will soon end in China. Now they believe that people is started to move toward individualism because of globalization. And other huge reason for this is their one child policy especially in their cities. This restriction left society with many young citizens who have been raised to believe that they hold a special place in the world. So they think that this sort of upbringing lower the collectivism in the society. Similarly this one child policy put young one in extra pressure as they have to take care of their family (spouse and child), parents and some time grandparent also. In summary china still is highly collectivist society where they want to put harmony in in-group and work for the interest of their group and not necessarily for themselves. Employee is more committed towards his/her family than to their organization. People belong to in-group in exchange of their loyalty. Uncertainty Avoidance: Level of a culture or society deals on a reality that the future is uncertain: should people try to control the future or just let it happen? This ambiguity brings with it anxiety and different cultures have learnt to deal with this anxiety in different ways. Some studies on the culture of china argue that china has strong uncertainty avoidance but majority of the studies argue that the Chinese culture has a very weaker uncertainty avoidance which avoids too many rules and formalities. Chinese culture is more towards stimulating innovations and emphasizing new ideas. It is flexible and more acting than reacting on changes occurring inside and outside of business. While cultures with very high uncertainty avoidance demonstrate their emotions in such a way that everything which is different becomes dangerous for them. They often resist in changes and worry about their future. In china obedience to laws and rules may be flexible to suit the actual situation and simplicity is a fact of life. The Chinese people feel comfortable with ambiguity, even Chinese language is full of ambiguous meanings that can be difficult to follow or learn for other people. Chinese are good in adaptability and entrepreneurship. The majority of Chinese businesses which constitutes to around 70% -80% of their total businesses use to be small and medium size and most of which are family owned. Martinsons (1997) and Lametal(2005) studies on East Asians shows that for Chinese people unclear information give them more comfort level than any other nation. The example of which their studies demonstrate that informal communication path between Chinese who rely more on personal experience rather than the clear or detailed information. They are more of introvert people who keep more information between themselves, rather than explicitly expressing it. It is more common in China than any other country that apart from the information that is being discussed on table people who interact with them need to interpret the â€Å"real† meaning of conversation yourself, because Chinese people usually prefer to use references to explain something they think you should know and they suppose that other people would understand. We are biased towards the studies that uncertainty avoidance in Chinese culture is weak mainly because for Chinese people importance of information is for the power, instead of than unable to tolerate the uncertainty. So the idea that Chinese culture is uncertainty tolerant is supported. Contrary to the traditional thinking of most of the people and authors of various studies that Chinese people are more conservative in regard to change and Chinese culture has a strong uncertainty avoidance, the facts in this section and in most of the article Chinese people’s attitude tend to be more positive toward change and towards new technology when it comes to experience change or new technology or whatsoever which is a clear indication of weaker uncertainty avoidance of Chinese culture. Other Studies such as Collis (1995) and Brownetal(1998) also compared Chinese culture with various countries culture which supposedly have a weaker uncertainty avoidance. According to their study on people and cultures of various countries â€Å"people from China hold more positive attitudes on change and new technologies than those from countries that they compare, namely, UK, US and Japan†. Masculinity: The Chinese culture is dominated by masculine traits overall, mainly driven by Confucianism in which the focus was not to compromise and women were regarded inferior. Chinese culture was also affected by Daoism which was more feministic in nature but its impact was far less then Confucianism. Following of strict principles as laid down in Confucianism has led the Chinese people to form a masculine society. Observing the priorities of Chinese people one can easily see that they prefer work and income over quality of life, they would leave home for better working opportunities and would sacrifice leisure for better and more income. Success is important and the means to achieving it are not actually given much importance, even if it involves steps that are not beneficial for everyone the main objective is to achieve the end result. Success is defined by who is the winner and not by the path followed towards success. As a nation they rate economic growth as a very high priority and do not consider factors such as environmental or labor issues as crucial, we can see that most of the counterfeit products around the world and manufactured in China which is not limited to small products but even stretches to copying automobiles where exact replicas are made without any regard to patents or original design e. g. cheery qq copied form Daewoo’s matiz for which general motors filed a suit against the Chinese manufacturer. Conflicts in China are not solved by negotiations rather hierarchy and in some cases force is used to suppress the voice of all involved and the will of people at the top is enforced. This leads to lack of ingenuity although increased efficiency because of very clear understanding of what is required from everyone leads to lowest costs which is the benchmark of Chinese production. Also long working hours are not considered a bad thing and leisure time is sacrificed for work willingly. The masculine qualities do help china to efficiently make products, but hamper the services part in general. There is huge gap with respect to gender in China when it comes to leading, very few women can be seen at management posts and women are not considered equal in all walks of life. Also the ratio of girls to boys has been disturbed severely because of the one child policy and people seeking medical procedures to opt for boys instead of girls. Failing in Chinese culture is not a minor accident but considered a disaster and one is expected to be deeply embarrassed in case of facing some failure in life. Even suicides are committed to save one from the shame of facing others after failure, this approach hinders the generation of new ideas and research since the rate of failure is really high in trying new things. As a whole, Chinese people are mainly concerned with the result and being good at achieving them in the most efficient way possible but are not that much concerned about how they do it. Liking what they do is not as important as being the best in it. Power Distance: Chinese culture is considered as high on Power Distance. Being a socialistic society, it is expected of them to be relying on those on top to make decisions. If we look at the Chinese history we could find numerous examples of submission to Government Decisions, however vague or absurd they might look. Strict compliance by the Chinese people on one child policy of the government is one of the examples. From my personal experiences of working at one of the Chinese ventures in Pakistan (Zong), I have witnessed quite a few examples of their obsession towards following the hierarchy. From not contradicting with the seniors even knowing that they are wrong to adjusting their chair height to ensure that they sit lower than their senior are some of the behavioral instances that I have observed about their culture. Now, for a business working with the Chinese whether in a Business to Business or a Business to Consumer relationship, one needs to give due respect and concern to the Power Distance they observe and practice in their daily life. Taking Business to Consumer first, buying behavior in the consumer markets is driven by the parents or elders. Marketer in this case again will have to alter his marketing mix to ensure that his product and promotion catches the attention of the people entrusted with the decision making responsibilities. Similar techniques are required of a marketer seeking Business to Business relationship. Again recalling from my personal experiences at Zong, Chinese vendors adopted this technique of keeping the higher management involved in everything. I had witnessed CEO’s of Chinese vendors visiting zong’s premises even for the trivial things like picking up a cheque or dropping an invoice or some letter etc. as they knew that Zong’s Management personnel will never like to talk to an executive or an officer of the vendor, because of the fact that hierarchies are embedded in their minds. Mistakes were made on the same grounds by the Pakistani Vendors who could send in their lower staff for such jobs, which used to annoy the management and resultantly Pakistani Vendors had very little or no business with Zong. Another threat that High Power Distance poses on a Marketer Pitching his product in China is the impact of Government Regulations. There are numerous examples of Corporate Failure of International Chains in China because of the Government Bans. E. g. Direct Selling by AVON was banned in China by the government because of which they had to change their Marketing techniques for China in order to ensure that they still sell in the market. Even a mere recommendation from the Government on adopting or abstaining from a product can have a great impact on your sales. Organizations in societies who are high on power distance are highly bureaucratic in structure. This is also true for the Chinese organizations as well. This means that the Banking, Finance, Taxation and Insurance sectors of the Economy are highly bureaucratic thereby implying that the process flow is slow and cumbersome. To sum up, Power Distance is one of the ground realities in China and as a Marketer; one could not ignore this fact while pitching his / her products. If you have taken this fact into account and have addressed it properly, you are on the right side of what could be a successful business story.

Interview With Socrates Essays - Socratic Dialogues, Free Essays

Interview With Socrates Essays - Socratic Dialogues, Free Essays Interview With Socrates Greek philosopher and educational reformer of the fifth century B.C.; born at Athens, 469 B.C.; died there, 399 B.C. After having received the usual Athenian education in music (which included literature), geometry, and gymnastics, he practised for a time the craft of sculptor, working, we are told, in his father's workshop. Admonished, as he tells us, by a divine call, he gave up his occupation in order to devote himself to the moral and intellectual reform of his fellow citizens. He believed himself destined to become a sort of gadfly to the Athenian State. He devoted himself to this mission with extraordinary zeal and singleness of purpose. He never left the City of Athens except on two occasions, one of which was the campaign of Potidea and Delium, and the other a public religious festival. In his work as reformer he encountered, indeedhe may be said to have provoked, the opposition of the Sophists and their influential friends. He was the most unconventional of teachers and the least tactful. He delighted in assuming all sorts of rough and even vulgar mannerisms, and purposely shocked the more refined sensibilities of his fellow citizens. The opposition to him culminated in formal accusations of impiety and subversion of the existing moral traditions. He met these accusations in a spirit of defiance and, instead of defending himself, provoked his opponents by a speech in presence of his judges in which he affirmed his innocence of all wrongdoing, and refused to retract or apologize for anything that he had said or done. He was condemned to drink the hemlock and, when the time came, met his fate with a calmness and dignity which have earned for him a high place among those who suffered unjustly for conscience sake. He was a man of great moral earnestness, and exemplified in his own life some of the noblest moral virtues. At the same time he did not rise above the moral level of his contemporaries in every respect, and Christian apologists have no difficulty in refuting the contention that he was the equal of the Christian saints. His frequent references to a divine voice that inspired him at critical moments in his career are, perhaps, best explained by saying that they are simply his peculiar way of speaking about the promptings of his own conscience. They do not necessarily imply a pathological condition of his mind, nor a superstitous belief in the existence of a familiar demon. Socrates was, above all things, a reformer. He was alarmed at the condition of affairs in Athens, a condition which he was, perhaps, right in ascribing to the Sophists. They taught that there is no objective standard of the true and false, that that is true which seems to be true, and that that is false which seems to be false. Socrates considered that this theoretical scepticism led inevitably to moral anarchy. If that is true which seems to be true, then thatis good, he said, which seems to be good. Up to this tome morality was taught not by principles scientifically determined, but by instances, proverbs, and apothegms. He undertook, therefore, first to determine the conditions of universally valid moral principles a science of human conduct. Self-knowledge is the starting point, because, he believed, the greatest source of the prevalent confusion was the failure to realize how little we know about anything, in the true sense of the word know. The statesman, the orator, the poet, think they know much about courage; for they talk about it as being noble, and praiseworthy, and beautiful, etc. But they are really ignorant of it until they know what it is, in other words, until they know its definition. The definite meaning, therefore, to be attached to the maxim know thyself is Realize the extent of thine own ignorance. Consequently, the Socratic method of teaching included two stages, the negative and the positive. In the negative stage, Socrates, approaching his intended pupil in an attitude of assumed ignorance, would begin to ask a question, apparently for his own information. He would follow this by other questions, until his interlocutor would at last be obliged to confess ignorance of the subject discussed. Because of

The Scarlet Letter Study Guide

The Scarlet Letter Study Guide Nathaniel Hawthorne’s 1850 novel, The Scarlet Letter, is a classic of early American literature. Written at a time when American cultural identity was starting to develop, the author portrays a believable representation of a Puritan colony during the nation’s earliest days. The book tells the story of Hester Prynne, a woman in 17th century Boston- then known just as the Massachusetts Bay Colony- who is forced to wear a scarlet â€Å"A† on her chest as punishment for having a baby out of wedlock. Through the story of Hester, Hawthorne explores the community as a whole and the norms and mores under which it operates. Fast Facts: The Scarlet Letter Title: The Scarlet LetterAuthor: Nathaniel HawthornePublisher: Ticknor, Reed FieldsYear Published: 1850Genre: Historical fictionType of Work: NovelOriginal Language: EnglishThemes: Shame and judgment, public vs. private, scientific and religious beliefsMain Characters: Hester Prynne, Arthur Dimmesdale, Roger Chillingworth, PearlNotable Adaptations: The 2010 teen comedy film â€Å"Easy A,† starring Emma Stone was partially inspired by the novel.Fun Fact: Nathaniel Hawthorne’s last name originally didn’t contain the â€Å"w,† but he added it to distance himself slightly from his family’s past. Plot Summary In mid-17th century Boston, then known as the Massachusetts Bay Colony, a woman named Hester Prynne is made to stand on a scaffold in the town square and endure abuse for several hours as punishment for birthing a child out of wedlock. The townspeople heckle her and implore her to reveal the child’s father, but she refuses. While this occurs, a stranger arrives in the colony and watches from the back of the crowd. When Hester is brought to her cell, the stranger visits her, and it is revealed that the man is her presumed dead husband from England, Roger Chillingworth. Once  Hester is released from jail, she lives alone with her daughter, Pearl, and dedicates herself to needlepointing. She lives in isolation from the rest of the community, which has scorned her. As Pearl grows up, she develops into a rambunctious young child, so much so that members of the town say that she should be removed from her mother’s care. Upon hearing this, Pearl makes an impassioned plea to the governor, who rules in her favor after the popular town minister, Arthur Dimmesdale, speaks to support her. While Hester is living alone with Pearl, Dimmesdale, whose health has begun to deteriorate, has found a new roommate: Chillingworth- who, as a physician, was assigned to take care of the beloved minister. This poses a problem for Dimmesdale, who is desperate to hide his shame from the rest of the community. At one point, though, the doctor sees a dark mark on the priest’s chest. Later, Dimmesdale is out walking one night, and winds up at the scaffold, where he reflects that he cannot bring himself to admit his guilt. He runs into Hester and Pearl. They talk and Hester reveals that she will tell Chillingworth the identity of Pearl’s father. This sends Dimmesdale into an even deeper depression, and he ultimately reveals himself to be Pearl’s father in front of the town upon the scaffold, shortly after giving one of his most rousing sermons. He then dies in Hester’s arms. Hester moves back to England (though she ultimately returns) with Pearl, who receives a large inheritance from Chillingworth upon his death. Major Characters Hester Prynne. Hester is the protagonist and wearer of the eponymous totem. She is a very independently minded woman, as evidenced by her committing adultery and her behavior after the fact. She is also a morally upright person in general- as opposed to the rest of the townspeople who believe themselves to be but aren’t. She eventually works her way back, somewhat, into the town’s good graces through her deeds, and ultimately rejects both of her suitors in favor of blazing her own trail. Arthur Dimmesdale. Dimmesdale is the town’s beloved minister, a public role he uses to shield his private involvement in an affair with Hester. Throughout the book he feels deep guilt and inner conflict over his behavior and public deceit- which ultimately kills him. Roger Chillingworth. Chillingworth is Hester’s older husband from England, but he did not come over with her, and is presumed dead by Hester, making his arrival quite surprising. He is a physician by trade, and is therefore assigned by the town to take care of Dimmesdale when his health begins to worsen. Pearl. Pearl is Hester’s (and Dimmesdale’s) daughter, and, as such, is the living embodiment of Hester’s â€Å"guilt†- and of her love and goodness, too. Pearl is often referred to as devilish, and at one point the townspeople try to have her taken away from Hester as further punishment. She never learns her father’s identity, or the meaning of the â€Å"A.†Ã‚   Major Themes Shame and Judgment. From the very beginning, the colony judges Hester and makes her feel ashamed for her actions, even though she was just following her heart and didn’t really hurt anybody. Dimmesdale, too, feels shame for his role in the affair, but he isn’t judged for it, since it remains a secret to all but him and Hester. Public vs. Private. Hester’s role in the affair is very public, and she is, therefore, punished very cruelly for it. Dimmesdale, on the other hand, escapes punishment because his role is unknown. As a result, she must bear her burden outwardly, which is painful no doubt, but she can exorcise it, whereas Dimmesdale must keep it to himself, which ultimately kills him. Scientific and Religious Beliefs. Through the relationship between Dimmesdale and Chillingworth, Hawthorne explores the differing roles in Puritan society of science and religion. The story is set at a time just before the Scientific Revolution, so it is still a deeply religious community. This can be seen through Dimmesdale, who is quite popular and an established authority figure, as opposed to Chillingworth, who is an outsider and new to the colony.   Literary Style The novel is framed by an opening story, â€Å"The Custom-House,† in which the narrator, who bears many biographical similarities to Nathaniel Hawthorne, tells of his time working at the customs house in Salem. There he discovers a scarlet â€Å"A† and a manuscript that tells of the happenings in the colony a century earlier; this manuscript then forms the basis of the novel, which is written by the narrator of â€Å"The Custom-House.† The book creates a convincing representation of life in one of America’s earliest communities, and makes use of the lexicon of that time. About the Author Nathaniel Hawthorne was born in 1804 in Salem, Massachusetts, to an old Puritan family; one of his ancestors was the only judge involved in the Salem Witch Trials who never repented his actions. Hawthorne’s work, which focused mostly on life in New England, was part of the Romanticism movement, and usually contained dark themes and love affairs, and deeply moral and complex psychological portraits. He is considered a pioneer of American literature and one of the nation’s greatest novelists.

Lab. report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Lab. report - Essay Example There were two distinct kinds of images observed after the experimental procedure – the train images and the fork images. Both these original images obtained had high contrast with sharp edges and more detail. When some noise was added to the two original images, two types of noisy images for the train and the fork were observed. In addition, to smooth the images and reduce/ remove the noise in the noisy images, the moving average filter was employed on these particular images. The first span to smooth the noisy images was 10. The noise in both images was reduced, the images smoothed and the image details blurred when the first span was 10. With the moving average, however, the edges of both the images became blurred and when compared with the original images, the images with span 10 exhibited lesser contrast and detail. On the other hand, when the smoothed image with span 10 was compared with smoothed images with span 20 and 30, the smoothed images with span 10 exhibited the best results in terms of contrast and detail. The next span used was 20, where the noise in both images was eliminated and disappeared completely along with the images becoming smoother and the images edges more blurred hence a considerable difficulty discerning the image details. The resultant two images were, in addition, clearly more obscure. The third span used for both the image types was 30. Herein, the resulting images were smoother than the other images and more blurred too (in comparison with the other images). With span 30, the details of the smoothed images were unrecognizable with the edges more blurred than other smoothed images with span 10 and 20. Conclusively therefore, the moving average filter smoothes the image by blurring the image details with increase in average pixel value creating lower contrasts. In addition, smoothing reduces the noise level of the images. On the