Levi Strauss Signature Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Levi Strauss Signature - Case Study Example Levi’s brand is not as elastic as he put it because it has only been targeting a certain group in the market, for example, it could not design women jeans and younger people. The elasticity is low and this has overstretched the name of the brand with the introduction of the signature line (Levis Strauss & Co, 2011). 4. Develop the â€Å"brand schema† that you think existed for the overall Levis brand before and after the introduction of the Signature line (i.e., an associative network map of links and nodes). What are the marketing implications of the differences? The Levi’s Eco is a new product launched in 2006 and the difference with the rest is that it is made of organic cotton and sells at 30-68 dollars. The six environmental activism segments attracted to this type of jeans would be women in blue collar jobs, young children below 10 years, men aged above 55, I do not think that Levi’s Eco helps the brand with younger customers because young people do not prefer organic cotton clothes. They also feel that they are too warm for their bodies and are for old people. I think that Levi’s Strauss Signature may survive in the market as it is of a lower priced and designed in a way that taps the mass market. The Signature line also has styles for the entire family. The other advantage is selling at mass merchandisers, for example, in Wal-Mart where most people shop, therefore, easier access.  

Risks of noncompliance in corporate governance

Risks of noncompliance in corporate governance In Management, the aspect of compliance is one of the most important element in most businesses whether service or product. It involves the transformation of inputs of production and operation into outputs that, when distributed, have the needs satisfying abilities to the consumers. The concept of compliance refers to a state of being in accordance to certain rules and regulations. The process compliance involves the application of independent factors but mainly focuses on the overall corporate function of the organization. In corporate world we tend to associate compliance with leadership and decision making. The concept of Leadership is referred to as the progression of social influence which an individual can sign up in aid and support of others in the accomplishment of a common task. Leadership as a tool of effective management and compliance remains as one of the most pertinent aspects of the organizational context (Bicheno Elliot, 1997). When individuals are put in leadership positions, they are effectively authorized to comply with certain rules and regulations on of other people. They are expected to make wise decisions that serve the interests of the people that elected them, their organizations, state or country. Since compliance involves making tough decisions, its only leaders in involved in corporate governance who are in position to pass authority and influence other people. Good compliance technique is an indispensable skill for success and successful leadership. In the business world, many organizations especially those involved in financial services have compliance workforce whose function entails the idea of making sure the company comply with the laid down rules and regulations (Sparrow, 2000). Relationship of the cost of compliance against the degree of risk of noncompliance Corporate governance refers to a system by in which corporates or organizations are managed. It entails building of relationships between the management, committees of the Board, and employees. Effective corporate governance structure maximizes value and proficiency. Since compliance involves certification to do a particular task, it enables organizations to fulfill its goals and objectives for the reason that its functions are not delayed down by risks of non compliance. Organizations should concentrate on issues relating to compliance to ensure they fulfill their functions. There are numerous problems associated with failing to comply with certain regulations. Technically, the extent of risks found in organizations differs from one compliance element to another.  Ã‚   Regardless of issues involved, the cost of compliance is much smaller than the risks emerging out from noncompliance. In observing business ethics, the funds involved in compliance assist states and governments to c reate jobs and improve social status of its citizens. By enlarge; compliance is beneficial in that it makes corporate bodies to fulfill their social obligations to members of the public. Some of these costs also involve aspects of direct expenditures made by organizations to comply with safety issues, when complied; these regulations ensure consumers obtain high quality goods and services. Though high in some cases, the costs of compliance ensure fair trade and allow productions of goods and services that meet consumer requirements, needs and wants (Wong, 2001). The major risks of non compliance are the ability of the government to sue the organizations for compliance violations. This in the part of the organizations mostly its more expensive than the initial cost of complying with the required rules and regulations. For any organization to function well and achieve its goals and objectives, it must comply with all laid down rules and regulations to avoid risks of loss of clients resulting from closures, to avoid stiff penalties from regulatory bodies which are at times more costly that the cost of compliance and finally to avoid losing consumer confidence. To be effective in compliance matters, organization should do Self-Assessments of their functions and identify their risks. (Bicheno Elliot, 1997). Organization that uses committees within their corporate governance structure Organizations that implement the use of committees in their corporate governance structures have shown to be very effective, efficient and successful, and have shown potential to operate with utmost accountability and independence. this Committees perform duties on behalf of the organization management and shareholders and with efficient delegation of duties , they build stronger capital rights ,increase production and sales and increase the organization profitability ensuring they comply with necessary corporate rules and regulations . One of the most well recognized organization that uses committees with their corporate governance structure is PepsiCo. This company is found in beverage industry and its committee charters are very definitive and its purpose well structured. The organization consists of internal and external audit committees which guide the organization management in regulating quality and efficiency, financial position and organization compliance to regulatory bodys requirement and wants. Use of committees by McBride to mitigate noncompliance issues Like PepsiCo, McBride financial company should use the committees to mitigate the risks associated with noncompliance. The concept of compliance is a very significant issue for any organization. In the case of McBride Financial Services, the knowledge and execution of appropriate rules and regulations are ominous to the organization potential growth and development. Recommendations involving Self-Assessments and identification of risks should be used to mitigate issues of noncompliance in the company. McBride financial company should conduct self-assessment of their program in time before the time the regulators come knocking on their doors. The company should use internal committees to develop a risk-based compliance approach that include identification of risks of non-compliance and the factors required to ensure compliance. The committee analyzes the organization risks and assists the company come to a decision of which risks to focus on. When established, committees serve the fun ction of determining negative consequences of noncompliance. Committees perform quantitative analysis of the company performance and gives guidelines of what to do in order to achieve the companys goals and objectives (Causey, 2008). Conclusion Its a general business objective for most successful organizations in the world today to strategies on ways of improving their productivity, quality of products and services so as to satisfy the needs of their consumers as well as retaining their hare of the market. The success of the organization in the long-term requires that the organization considers the dynamism of management trends in their operations and comply with necessary rules and regulations. In conclusion we can say that concepts of compliance in corporate governance and s Management is one of the most important aspects of most businesses whether service or product. Compliance promotes creation of products that satisfies basic wants of customers and regulatory bodies. Happy customers promote productivity of a company in that the management produces more to be at level with their requirements. More production leads to increased yields and high profits.

Hamlet - The Theme of Revenge Essay example -- William Shakespeare

â€Å"Hamlet,† Critical Essay Alexander Pope believed that, â€Å"to be angry is to revenge the faults of others on ourselves.† I think this is pertinent to â€Å"Hamlet,† by William Shakespeare because the main character is portrayed to bring great mental suffering upon himself in his search for revenge. Shakespeare enhances the reader’s appreciation of the play by effectively conveying its theme of revenge through characterization and plot in addition to other literary techniques. â€Å"Hamlet,† tells the story of a Danish prince who aims to avenge his father’s murder after his ghost appears before Hamlet and reveals that he was murdered by his own brother. To Hamlet’s disgust, his uncle, Claudius, has stolen Hamlet’s place as King by marrying the prince’s mother, Gertrude. In Hamlet’s search for the truth, he makes the fatal error of stabbing Polonius, the King’s advisor. Polonius’ death causes his daughter, who is Hamlet’s former lover, to go insane. Polonius’ son, Laertes, decides to take revenge upon Hamlet for his father, and Claudius sees an opportunity to get rid of his nephew. He sets up a fencing match between Hamlet and Laertes, then poisons Hamlet’s drink and Laertes’ rapier. Hamlet needs verification of his uncle’s murder of the former king before he can take revenge upon him, as he has a fear of the metaphysical consequences of murdering a man who has done nothing wrong. He seems to be wary of his father’s ghost and the allegations it makes about Claudius’ regicide. The ghost first appears in the play before Horatio, who is Hamlet’s friend, and two guards of Elsinore castle. Hamlet is then told by his father’s ghost to avenge his death after he follows the spirit into the forest. In Elizabethan times, when Hamlet was writte... ...enges his father’s death, the consequences are harsh. He has to watch his mother die and realises he has used Laertes own weapon to kill him. His death is, of course, the saddest consequence of his revenge. Hamlet’s murder of Claudius improves the reader’s appreciation of the text as they understand that although Hamlet is moribund, he has avenged his father’s murder, which is what he set out to do in the first place. I think that â€Å"Hamlet,† is a thought provoking play. It made me think about what I would do in Hamlet’s situation, and how I would handle the burden of vengeance of a loved one’s murder. I believe that although times have changed significantly since the first performance of â€Å"Hamlet,† in 1607, the themes are still relevant to audiences today. Shakespeare effectively depicts many different aspects of revenge in an interesting and fascinating way.

Gun Control Outline

Gun Control Outline I. Introduction A. American Dream, means different things to people (needs to be fought for) B To many people, freedom is owning a gun C. Gun control is strict enough. The United States government puts down laws strict enough to deal with firearms. II. Body A. Who Can Own A Firearm? 1. Why officials can use firearms a. Military and authorities use firearms to protect, not to attack b. These people have been trained and know how to handle firearms 2. Why do authorities and military need firearms a.Military and authorities know how to use them b. They use them to protect society, when civilians have them, they will most likely be used for good B. Why Civilians Can Handle Guns 1. Responsibility a. People use firearms for protection, what do they want protection from? Other people with guns and weapons b. If guns were illegal to the public, then the need to defend ourselves against people with guns would still not even be close to gone 2. Laws a. If guns were outlawed , then crime rates would maintain their levels or increase (facts insert here) b.Guns can lead to many terrible things such as school shootings that have taken place in the past BUT 3. Guns hurt people, people dont hurt people. Guns need to be in the hands of responsible people. III. Conclusion A. Guns are not bad things, it’s what you do with them that makes them bad B. In years to come, the use of guns will soon get out of hand C. Banning guns will never solve the problem completely.. it will make criminals more determined to get what they want with other, possibly more dangerous methods other than using a firearm. Gun Control Outline GUN CONTROL Thesis Statement – There is no doubt that this world would be a safer place without a license to carry, but we need to consider that guns are needed to hunt. Possible introduction – A lot of questions were raised about the effects of everyone being allowed to carry guns. The rise of crime and murder are certain areas to think about being most impacted by the state carrying side arms. We also need to ask ourselves, how often are guns used for protection?Is the law helping citizens protect their family or is the law just making it easier to commit murder? I – Are guns being used for protection? Is there enough prescreening done before selling a gun? Are citizens comfortable enough using a gun? II – Are guns falling into the wrong hands due to this law? Gangs and guns Kids and guns III – Are citizens taking the proper measures to secure their weapons? Should everyone one in the household be required to take a class on gun safety?Should all members of the household be required to learn how to shoot the gun? IV – How does gun control affect the hunters? Many hunters depend on their guns in order to feed their family? Hunting is a major source of income for many Possible conclusion – Although gun control is a very controversial subject, one thing is clear we need to seriously address this issue quickly. Until we get some kind of control over the purchase of weapons there are going to be many more senseless shootings.We have to find a way to prevent our youth from staring down the barrel of a loaded gun or being in prison for being on the other end of that gun. References Dickinson, Amy. â€Å"Mother Against Guns† Time Magazine. Web Monday. May 15, 2000 Lott, John R. â€Å"Why People Fear Guns. † Web 3 January, 2011 â€Å"Gun Control†. Guninformation. org 6 April 2002 Web 14 July 2011 Johnson, Rick â€Å"How to police the Police†. 16 March 2009 timemagazine. com Web â€Å"Firearm s Bill Defeated† mayorsagainstillegalguns. org. federal. congress 14 July 2011

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles: Application and Human Factor

Unmanned aerial vehicle, or UAV, is one of the latest aircrafts recently being utilized by the United States Military. Its conception has provided Air Force pilots with assurances of safe return after a combat mission, a feat never before attained in warfare’s history. Since its invention in the 1920’s, several technological advances have been made; extending flight distance and duration capabilities, and pay loading armaments comparable to those of manned fighter jets. Since UAVs are usually controlled by an external pilot on Ground Control Stations, or GCS, it is unavoidable for this system to be faced with human factors, sometimes resulting in mission failures, at times even in aircraft crashes. Unmanned Aerial Vehicles: Applications and Human Factor Recent technology has introduced to us a new form of aircraft in aviation. Perhaps due to the increasing incidents of aircraft accidents during these past decades, which often resulted in the deaths of even the most experienced pilots, airline conglomerates and military authorities had painstakingly searched for the completion of the invention of Unmanned Aircraft Vehicles, or UAV. In this paper, we shall be witnesses to a technology that has the potential to virtually eliminate pilot casualties, whether in war, espionage missions, or even in commercial flights. We shall also see how human factors affect such technology, in terms of control and manipulation of the aircraft, and the causal possibilities of human error in accidents. Background The United States’ Department of Defense defines the UAV as, â€Å"powered aerial vehicles that do not carry a human operator, use aerodynamic forces to provide vehicle lift, and can fly autonomously or be piloted remotely† (Bone, 2003, p. 2). United States’ war on terrorism has put UAVs missions as important in the gathering of intelligence data. Its unquestionable successes in the wars in Iraq, Kosovo, and Afghanistan had opened the military minds on its advantages during wartime. Missions that used to be reserved for Air force top guns, now the UAVs are slowly taking the front seat. UAVs have two obvious advantages over manned aircrafts: first is, they are found to be cost efficient; and it eliminates the dangers faced by the pilots’ during missions (Bone, 2003, p2). Bone cites a number of reasons on the seeming delay of the technology of UAV. One is because the technology to effectively fly a UAV mission has only recently been made available. Another is due to the Air Force’s slowly fading silk scarf syndrome, which gave preference to manned over unmanned flight missions, thus allowing for the UAV to gain more flight hours. Yet another is due to the earlier absence of a global crisis, which could have allowed for a quicker invention of the UAV due to the extreme shortage in the U. S. military of an espionage aircraft (2003, p. 5). UAVs size varies from a few centimeters in length to that of a 747 jet liner. U. S. Department of Defense currently has in its possession five types of UAVs: The Predator and Global Hawk of the Air Force; the Pioneer by the Navy and the Marines; the Hunter and the Shadow by the Army (Bone, 2003, p2). Despite the notion that UAVs have only recently been developed in the United States, it has been in existence in aviation for almost a century. UAVs were first tested in 1920, during World Wa r 1, but the United States did not put it into combat action. It was Germany who had laid the foundations on this technology during World War 2, with the invention of the V-1 Flying bomb. But it was to be in the Vietnam War that UAVs were first used as an espionage plane, with AQM-34 Firebee. Firebee epitomized what the UAV should be: versatile, easy to operate, transportable to other areas, and can easily be converted to payload missiles. In a speech by former President Bush in December of 2001, he had expressed his belief in the UAVs technology, particularly The Predator, as the future of warfare; as stated in a report to the American Congress in 2003 by Elizabeth Bone: This unmanned aerial vehicle is able to circle our enemy forces, gather intelligence, transmit information instantly back to commanders, then fire on targets with extreme accuracy†¦We’re entering an era where unmanned vehicles of all kinds will take on greater importance† (p. 7). U. S. Military U. A. V. s 1. MQ-1 Predator: It is about half the size of an F-16 fighter jet, a tail shaped like an inverted V, and is 27 feet in length and 7 feet high. It reaches a maximum altitude of 25, 000 feet, but for the fitted video cameras to work at its best, it needs to be at about 10,000 to 15,000 feet in altitude. Its take off and landing capabilities are similar to that of the normal aircraft, with the pilot on ground control. The Predator’s main job is airborne reconnaissance and accurate target pinpointing. It is equipped with a Synthetic Aperture Radar, or SAR, enabling it to see through bad weather conditions. Newer models also have capabilities to launch smaller UAVs to carry out varying missions. Each Predator unit’s estimated cost is $4. 5 million, and $30 million for the whole system (Bone, 2003, p. 25). 2. RQ-2 Pioneer: This UAV is the only type on the Navy’s and Marine’s arsenal (Bone, 2003, p. 29). It was obtained by the U. S. Navy in 1986 from Israel after proving its worth with their war with Lebanon. RQ-2 Pioneer is about half the size of the Predator, at 14 feet in length, and its maximum attainable altitude is 15,000 feet. It can remain airborne for 5 hours straight, and since its acquisition, it has accumulated over 23,000 flight hours giving suppo rt to the Navy and the Marines. The cost of Pioneer is estimated at $250,000 to $1 million, depending on the payload (Bone, 2003, p. 30). 3. RQ-5 Hunter: The Hunter weighs 1,600 lbs, is capable of flying at 25,000 feet altitude, and can stay airborne for 12 hours straight. It is equipped with E-O/IR sensor which enables it to fly in night missions. Recently, plans have been made to use Hunter to act as a reconnaissance to a squadron of attack helicopters, such as the Apache and RAH-66 Comanche, to maximize the helicopters’ attack zone. In 2002, a successful experiment was made wherein Hunter’s control was linked to the mainframe computers of the Apache’s during flight missions. The success of the experiment greatly maximized Apache’s efficiency during battle conditions. Weapons payload includes the Brilliant Anti-Armor submunition, or BAT, an effective annihilator of tanks and armored personnel carriers. Hunter’s cost with payload is $1. 2 million, ad the whole system at $30 million (Bone, 2003, p. 33). 4. RQ-7 Shadow 200: Shadow 200, a product of AAI Corporation, is 11 feet in length and has a wingspan of 13 feet. It was strategically designed for brigade operations, thus its range is only 30 nm and has a flight duration of 4 hours. And although its maximum attainable altitude is 14,000 feet, it works best at only under 8,000 feet altitude. The Shadow is equipped with an E-O/IR sensor video camera for day or night missions, and has the capability to transmit data to ground control in real-time. The Shadow cost is pegged at $350,000 while the whole system is at $10. 7 million (Bone, 2003, p. 36). 5. FQM-151 Pointer: All the branches of the U. S. military have, in the past, tried to develop their own type of hand-launched Pointer that measures around 6 feet in the last 15 years, and some of them had been on war missions, particularly in gulf War and Dessert Storm. However, the design officially approved by the Military is the AeroVironment’s Pointer UAV, which weighs 10 pounds, and has a wingspan of 9 feet. It can stay afloat for 90 minutes and has an up to 3-mile operational distance from ground control, within altitudes of 100-300 feet. Pointer UAVs have been best-suited for pay loading experimental miniscule sensors and have been a popular choice for Drug Enforcement Agency, National Guard, and Special Operations Forces (Bone, 2003, p. 37). 5. RQ-4 Global Hawk: This UAV is by far the most expensive ever produced, with per unit cost amounting to $75 million (Bone, 2003, p. 39). It specializes in high altitude, long duration flights that provides near real-time videos of large geographical sections. It is also the first ever UAV to make a successful trans-Pacific flight, when it travelled from California to Australia in April 22-23, of 2001 (Bone, 2003, p. 37). Its effectivity was tested in Afghanistan, when it flew more than 50 combat missions accumulating more than 1,000 combat hours, despite still being on its experimental stage. Global hawk is about the size of a corporate jet, measuring 44 feet in length and weighing 26, 750 lbs. Its maximum altitude limit is almost double than that of a commercial liner, at 65,000 feet, and is capable of flying over 35 hours without refueling. However, Global Hawk’s most apparent advantage is its capability of taking off, flying, and landing autonomously in any kind of weather. Commanders in the battle field aptly call this UAV as, â€Å"the theater commander’s around-the-clock, low hanging surveillance satellite† (Bone, 2003, p. 38). Global Hawk’s pay load consists of a 2,000 pound group of sensors, which is much larger than on any of the previous UAVs. it includes an all weather SAR with a Moving Target Indicator capability, E-O digital camera, IR sensor, and a Signals Intelligence Sensor, or SIGINT, making it a virtually multi-intelligence UAV (Bone, 2003, p. 8). As a testament to its technological superiority, Global Hawk’s radar-sensors and IR cameras were able to accurately pinpoint Iraqi targets in March 24-27, of 2002, despite of having a near-zero visibility on the ground due to a relentless sandstorm in Iraq. 6. Unmanned Combat Air Vehicle: UCAV is the first ever unmanned aero-system designed primarily and purely for combat missions. It is similar in size to the Air Force’s Predator, at 27 feet in length and a wingspan of 34 feet. Equal to manned fighter jets in weaponry and stealth capabilities, the U. S. Armed Forces plan on having one-third of its deep-strike fighter jets be unmanned by the year 2010 (Bone, 2003, p. 42). Due to its 1,000 to 3,000 pound-weapons payload, UCAV’s primary combat mission would be SEAD, or Suppression of Enemy Air Defense, to be followed by precision targeting of enemy installations. 7. Vertical Takeoff and Landing Tactical UAV: Commonly known as VTUAV Fire Scout, it is a helicopter-looking design intended as a replacement for the Pioneer. It is about 23 feet in length, with a maximum altitude of 20,000 feet and maximum flight duration of 6 hours. Its maximum distance of operations is 110 nm from the control ship and has a speed of 115 knots (Bone, 2003, p. 43). UTUAV Fire Scout, unlike the Pioneer which utilizes a net in order to be recovered in a ship, ha the capability of autonomously taking off and landing through the use of sensors. Fire Scout is an unmanned equivalent of the commercial-use Schweitzer helicopter, it ahs an E-O/IR sensor that also serves as a laser targeting designator. It is also capable of mine-detecting, and is equipped with Hellfire missiles. Fire Scouts are being utilized in special operations support and homeland security services (Bone, 2009, p. 4). 8. Dragon Eye: it is the opposite of the Global Hawk in terms of range and size. Being a 5-pounder, with just a 45 inch wingspan UAV, the Dragon Eye can provide marines with over-the-hill surveillance of enemy troops, making it an ideal UAV for urban warfare, chemical, as well as biological-oriented missions. It is portable enough to fit in a backpack and can be launched by hand or with a bungee cord. This UAV can stay aloft for 1 hour, at a height of 300-500 feet, with speeds of up to 40 mph. Because of its small frame, its production cost which includes three planes, is only at $90,000 (Bone, 2003, p. 7). 9. Dragon Warrior: Resembling a small helicopter of about 105 inches long and flight range of 50 miles, and maximum duration of 3 hours, this will be a vertical take off and landing UAV designed for surveillance in urban areas. It will also be equipped with E-O/IR sensor camera and a laser target designator. 10. A-160 Hummingbird: The Hummingbird is also an unmanned helicopter designed to have longer flight duration and distance over the other models, with a range of 2,000 nm and a duration lasting for 48 hours, respectively. With its maximum flight altitude of 30,000 feet and a speed of 130-140kt, it will greatly assist in surveillance, targeting thru laser designation, communications relaying, weapons delivery to infantries, and special operations missions (Bone, 2003, p. 49). 11. Scan Eagle: Boeing’s UAV can be optionally launched from a ship, on land, or even from a submarine. The idea if to have a horde of 4-foot UAVs linked directly on a submarine for reconnaissance purposes. 12. Eagle Eye: This type of UAV takes off like a helicopter, and then flips its rotor blades to fly like an airplane. Its speed is up to 220 knots and has a distance of 300 miles. This type of UAV is suited for patrolling the coastline, locating ships in distress, and also has the capability to transmit videos to command centers. Production cost for the Eagle eye is at $3 million per plane (Bone, 2003, p. 50). 13. Micro Air Vehicle, MAV: unlike the UAVs, MAV is only inches in length, and production costs would be in the thousands and not in millions. As an example, the Organic Air Vehicle, or OAV, measures only 9 inches wide. It has a ducted fan design, and carries an E-O sensor, which comes in infrared or acoustic models. Because of its very small size, MAVs can be programmed for watch-and-stare missions on enemy troops while on air, and also while on land. These MAVs can autonomously lift off and land on itself. Modifications have also been done, resulting in the advent of UCAR, or Unmanned Combat Armed Rotorcraft. These will have the capability as a reconnaissance to ground troops, as well as offensive purposes. It will also be capable of system-linking with other manned and UAVs for performing synchronized attacks (Bone, 2003, p. 51). Human Factor in UAV Flights Since unmanned flights have slowly been gaining popularity in both military and commercial uses, perhaps it will be sooner than we expect for UAVs to replace manned flights permanently. It would be wise for us to give insights on issues concerning cognitive factors affecting the pilots, especially since accident occurrences in UAV flights have been proven to be over thirty times more common than in manned aircraft flights (McCarley & Wickens, 2005, p. 2). It is also possible for UAV pilots to be manning more than one aircraft simultaneously, entailing never-before-encountered workload pressures. Manual v Automated Flights 1. It has been widely accepted that the effect of automation has not resulted in the elimination of human workload but the introduction of new ones, forcing the pilots to develop new strategies (McCarley & Wickens, 2005, p. 4). The changing of strategies is often the result descriptive of an imperfect system, not of the computer software type, but of the factors that even a perfectly-running automation system would not be able to detect, such as the icing of an UAV wing. 2. The present UAV take off and landing automated procedures differ according to the model. Such that the Hunter and the Pioneer require an on-site external pilot; the Predator to be controlled on a separate aircraft within the Ground Control Site; while there are some cases, as in Global Hawk, where full automation is integrated. These differences seem to be significant, take off and landing errors make up for a majority of accidents attributed to human factors; Hunter with 67% and the Pioneer with 78%, both are externally controlled (McCarley & Wickens, 2005, p. ). 3. An external pilot of a UAV basically relies on computer imagery in controlling the aircraft. The visual quality of the imagery, however, has the possibility of being diminished due to factors affecting bandwidth, resulting in poor resolution or a delay in image uploading. Situations such as these may prejudice overall aircraft control and visibility of air traffic. This poses a clear danger in military missions, more so in the planned commercial implementation of autonomic control of commercial flights. 4. On way of solving the problem stated in #3 is by the use of enhanced reality, or synthetic vision (McCarley & Wickens, 2005, p. 7). In this system, images from the actual camera shots of a UAV will be converted to display landmarks on a given terrain, thus creating a virtual reality world that the external pilot can manipulate. The problem with this system is that pilot’s over reliance on synthetic imagery would lead to a possible neglect of some natural landmarks not visible in the imagery system. Thus, using this method would be beneficial for the UAV performance but comes with a potential risk. . One of the resulting effects of separating the pilot from the aircraft is that the pilot would be denied of his real-time sensory reactions otherwise available in a manned aircraft, and that he would have to rely on computer monitors provided for by the cameras onboard the UAV. Hence, we can conclude that the external pilot only functions in a relatively sensory isolation from t he UAV he is controlling. It would be of utmost importance for the developers to design an alarms system to keep the pilots abreast of the real-time environmental situations and probable system failures. . Since UAV pilots are not in danger of injury or death in the event of their aircraft crashing, this could, in theory, prove to be a big difference in the pilot’s risk-taking decisions, such as in going through a flight plan on a bad weather. Sensory isolation factor could be magnified during these situations (McCarley & Wickens, 2005, p. 10). 7. The accepted norm during long endurance UAV flights had been to switch control among different external pilots within a single flight. This process usually takes on three types: First is the transfer of UAV control from one Ground Control Station to another; second is through the transfer of control from one team of operators to another, within the same GCS; and last is through the transfer of control from one pilot to another within the same team. It has been documented that a significant number of UAV accidents happened during the transfer from one pilot to another, because the GCS taking over control of the UAV was not properly briefed beforehand (McCarley & Wickens, 2005, p. 0). 8. Instances of a total failure of the Ground Control Station-UAV communications link would prove to be disastrous. This scenario can be considered as a human factor because of the need for the Automated Traffic Center, or ATM, to be aware of the default programs of the UAV system in order to properly manage air traffic within their area. It would also be of the utmost importance for the external pilots themselves to be aware of the comm unications link failure as quickly as possible. 9. Researches on whether experienced manned pilots are better operators than novice manned pilots have ended in differing conclusions. Although generally, as the experiments revealed, experienced manned pilots reached the desired level of performance in landing and basic maneuvering skills faster than that of the novice’s. Other studies, however, based on the Army’s Job Assessment Software System, or JASS, revealed that piloting skills does not constitute a great deal in UAV operations, thus making the selection of top pilots as UAV operators insignificant (McCarley, & Wickens, 2005, p. 3). 10. Questions on medical qualifications of the UAV operator should also be brought into light. Since physical factors concerning high altitude temporary mental perception failure does not concern AUV pilots, still some type of medical fitness qualifications must be practiced. These must be able to determine if: the said qualifications should be more stringent or less for the UAV pilo ts; and, work duration limits should be established for long endurance missions. 11. Since the pressures and work load of a UAV pilot differs from that of a manned aircraft, and since formal training in flight schools are usually focused on instructing pilots for manned vehicles, which constitute less amount of time on simulations and more on the actual flight, the need arises for a training more attuned to giving more flight simulations to pilots of UAVs. This should be able to determine up to what extent trainee pilots should spend time on simulations in order to obtain a UAV certification. 12. Technological researches must be made to improve on the controls of the external pilot. At present, the controls of the UAV are similar to that of a radio-controlled hobbyist’s plane. This design poses a problem in the directional movement of the UAV with respect to the controller. As such, when the UAV and the pilot differ in position by 180 degrees, a rightward movement on the rudder will result in leftward movement of the UAV, and vice versa. Control rudders must be made to conform to the principle of human motion compatibility as to avoid further confusion for the pilot (McCarley & Wickens, 2005, p. 6).

Free Essays on Satire In Gullivers Travels

SATIRE OF GULLIVER’S TRAVELS Jonathan Swift’s satirical prose, Gulliver’s Travels, is the subject of a wide variety of literary critique and social interpretation. Although many readers, at first glance, take this tale to be simply a fantastic narrative of a common man and his encounters with unusual locations and people through several journeys, further inspection reveals Swift’s true purpose of creativitysatire. Using the contemporary style of the Travel Narrative, Swift is able to insert his own personal criticisms of modern life into the experience of Gulliver. Swift focuses entirely on satirizing humanity in Book IV of Gulliver’s Travels. Gulliver, representing a common man, encounters a wide variety of characters along his travels, each representing a subject Swift wishes to criticize. His satire ranges from relatively simple political criticism in his experiences in Book I and II to a socio-political criticism in Book III, to the social, philosophical criticism of man in Book IV. If Book IV is read literally, with no knowledge of satire, it appears to be another bizarre journey of Gulliver, no more unusual than his other travels. It is obvious, however, that Book IV criticizes the nature of man as a rational being. Of interest to the readers of today is Swift’s choice of creatures inhabiting this land; There is a barbaric, man-like creature dubbed the Yahoo and the civilized, good-natured horse-like creature, the Houyhnhnms. â€Å"Upon the whole, I never beheld in all my Travels so disagreeable an Animal, or one against which I naturally conceived so strong an Antipathy† (IV,193). His opinion of the Yahoos contrasts with his opinion of the Houyhnhnms. The Houyhnhnms think Gulliver is another Yahoo capable of outstanding intellect, but Gulliver is offended that they want to classify him as a Yahoo. â€Å"I expressed my Uneasiness at his giving me so often the Appellation of Y... Free Essays on Satire In Gulliver's Travels Free Essays on Satire In Gulliver's Travels Jonathan Swift’s standard satirical technique of irony is best exemplified with the use of vivid, nameless descriptions. In Gulliver’s Travels, Swift sets out describing something, neglecting to bestow a name on it, purposefully trying to create a vivid picture in your head. Once his description reaches its apex, and you truly believe you know what he is talking about, he names it something completely different. A perfect illustration of this is seen when the Yahoos are first being introduced in chapter 1. Swift writes, â€Å"Their heads and breasts were covered with a thick hair†¦ they had beards like goats, and a long ridge of hair down their backs, and the foreparts of their legs and feet†¦.† His vivid description continues on, further cementing a picture in your head of a wild, repugnant animal. In a pure ironic fashion, he waits until the middle of chapter 2 to let you know that this detestable animal most resembles a human being. Another depiction of this technique can be found in chapter 12, when he writes about inhabitants of a land being massacred by groups of men looking for their gold and jewels. You are led to believe he is talking about ruthless men, pirates for example, but you soon find out he is describing the divine act of colonialism. Swift’s use of irony is highly affective as a means to a satiric end, because of its shock effect. He takes mankind’s virtues, like the moral excellence we attach to our governmental practices, and turns them into vices. He causes you to stop, examine, and rethink all your old assumptions. For further debunking of man’s vices and follies, Swift turns to the fantastic Yahoos and Houyhnhnms. He use these two characters, each positioned completely on opposite ends of the rational spectrum, as a means for showing the fault of man when he is governed by either pure emotion or pure reason. The Yahoos, although human in form, are savage animals in character; they serve as a depictio... Free Essays on Satire In Gulliver's Travels SATIRE OF GULLIVER’S TRAVELS Jonathan Swift’s satirical prose, Gulliver’s Travels, is the subject of a wide variety of literary critique and social interpretation. Although many readers, at first glance, take this tale to be simply a fantastic narrative of a common man and his encounters with unusual locations and people through several journeys, further inspection reveals Swift’s true purpose of creativitysatire. Using the contemporary style of the Travel Narrative, Swift is able to insert his own personal criticisms of modern life into the experience of Gulliver. Swift focuses entirely on satirizing humanity in Book IV of Gulliver’s Travels. Gulliver, representing a common man, encounters a wide variety of characters along his travels, each representing a subject Swift wishes to criticize. His satire ranges from relatively simple political criticism in his experiences in Book I and II to a socio-political criticism in Book III, to the social, philosophical criticism of man in Book IV. If Book IV is read literally, with no knowledge of satire, it appears to be another bizarre journey of Gulliver, no more unusual than his other travels. It is obvious, however, that Book IV criticizes the nature of man as a rational being. Of interest to the readers of today is Swift’s choice of creatures inhabiting this land; There is a barbaric, man-like creature dubbed the Yahoo and the civilized, good-natured horse-like creature, the Houyhnhnms. â€Å"Upon the whole, I never beheld in all my Travels so disagreeable an Animal, or one against which I naturally conceived so strong an Antipathy† (IV,193). His opinion of the Yahoos contrasts with his opinion of the Houyhnhnms. The Houyhnhnms think Gulliver is another Yahoo capable of outstanding intellect, but Gulliver is offended that they want to classify him as a Yahoo. â€Å"I expressed my Uneasiness at his giving me so often the Appellation of Y...

The Difference Between a City and a Town

The Difference Between a City and a Town Do you live in a city or a town? Depending on where you live, the definition of these two terms may vary, as will the official designation that is given to a certain community. In general, though, cities are larger than towns. Whether any given town is officially designated with the term town, however, will vary based on the country and state it is located in. The Difference Between a City and a Town In the United States, an incorporated  city  is a legally defined government entity. It has powers delegated by the state and county and the local laws, regulations, and policies are created and approved by the voters of the city and their representatives. A city can provide local government services to its citizens. In many places in the U.S., a town, village, community, or neighborhood is simply an unincorporated community with no governmental powers. County governments typically provide services to these unincorporated communities.Some states do have official designations of towns that include limited powers. Generally, in the urban hierarchy, villages are smaller than towns and towns are smaller than cities, though this is not always the case.   How Urban Areas are Defined Throughout the World It is difficult to compare countries based on the percentage of urban population. Many countries have different definitions of the  population size necessary to make a community urban. For example, in Sweden and Denmark, a village of 200 residents is considered to be an urban population, but it takes 30,000 residents to make a city in Japan. Most other countries fall somewhere in between. Australian and Canadian cities have a minimum of 1,000 citizens.Israel and France have a minimum of 2,000 citizens.The United States and Mexico have a minimum of 2,500 citizens. Due to these differences, we have a problem with comparisons. Let us assume that in Japan and in Denmark there are 100 villages of 250 people each. In Denmark, all of these 25,000 people are counted as urban residents but in Japan, the residents of these 100 villages are all rural populations. Similarly, a single city with a population of 25,000 would be an urban area in Denmark but not in Japan. Japan is 78 percent  and Denmark is 85 percent  urbanized. Unless we are aware of what size of a population makes an area urban we cannot simply compare the two percentages and say Denmark is more urbanized than Japan. The following table includes the  minimum population that is considered urban in a sampling of countries throughout the world. It also lists the percent of the countrys residents which are urbanized. Not surprisingly, some countries with a higher minimum population have a lower percentage of ​urbanized population. In addition, the  urban population in almost every country is rising, some more significantly than others. This is a modern trend that has been noted over the last few decades and is most often attributed to  people moving to cities to pursue work. Country Min. Pop. 1997 Urban Pop. 2015 Urban Pop. Sweden 200 83% 86% Denmark 200 85% 88% South Africa 500 57% 65% Australia 1,000 85% 89% Canada 1,000 77% 82% Israel 2,000 90% 92% France 2,000 74% 80% United States 2,500 75% 82% Mexico 2,500 71% 79% Belgium 5,000 97% 98% Iran 5,000 58% 73% Nigeria 5,000 16% 48% Spain 10,000 64% 80% Turkey 10,000 63% 73% Japan 30,000 78% 93% Sources Hartshorn, Truman A.  Interpreting the City: An Urban Geography. 1992.Famighetti, Robert (ed.).  The World Almanac and Book of Facts. 1997.World Bank Group. Urban Population (% of total). 2016.

How to Study for the SSAT 8 Top Prep Tips

How to Study for the SSAT 8 Top Prep Tips SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips If you're interested in attending an independent school, you may have heard the termSSAT being batted around and may now be wondering how to studyfor the test. In this article, we'll briefly cover the basics of what the SSAT is and does,listthe best studymaterials to use, and offerkeySSAT prep strategies and tips. SSAT Prep Basics Before we diveinto how to study for the SSAT, let's make sure we're clear on some basic characteristics of thetest itself. What Is the SSAT? The SSAT, or Secondary School Admission Test, is a standardized test required by a number of independent schools worldwide as a part of any hopeful student's application. It's offered at three levels: Elementary, for students currently enrolled in Grades 3 or 4 Middle, for students currently enrolled in Grades 5 through 7 Upper, for students currently enrolled in Grades 8 through What Does the SSAT Test? The SSAT measures verbal, quantitative, and reading skills, all the while emphasizing critical thinking and problem solving. The quantitative sectiontests things likebasic operations, basic fractions, and ordering numbers (for the elementary-level students) and algebra, geometry, and data analysis (for the upper-level students). The verbal section consists of responding to synonym and analogy questions at an appropriatelevel for the student's age. The reading section is focused on answering comprehension and analysis questions related to short passages from a variety of genres. The test is almost entirely multiple-choice, withthe exception ofone15-25 minute free- response writing exercise. Younger students will be asked to write a short story, while older students will have the choice of constructing an essay if they prefer. The SSAT is designed to measures skills rather than achievement; in other words, it's not intended to rely on your mastery of specific material. This is supposed to help keep the test fair across all different backgrounds from which a student might originate. By its own admission, the test can't measure the other factorsthat make you a great student, like determination and creativity. That's why the test is only part of any application. It takes a golden combination of qualities to get admitted to a selective school. How Is the SSAT Scored? The SSAT is norm-referenced, meaning your final score is based on how well you do compared to other test takers. You will receive a scaled score and a percentile ranking. The scaled score's range will depend on the student's grade level: For Elementary, the range is 300-600 per section, or 1200-1800. For Middle, the range is 440-710 per section, or 1320-2130. For Upper, the range is 500-800 per section, or 1500-2400. The percentile ranking is always on a scale of 1-99, and it representsyour performanceas comparedto students of the same grade who tested on the SSAT for the first time within the past three years in the US or Canada. While the test is designed to be of "middle difficulty,"this is a very competitive group of students against which you're being scored- these are the select students applyingto the finest independent schools. BestSSAT StudyMaterial Before we get into how to study for the SSAT, let's talk about where to find theprep materials you need. The Official SSAT Guide The Official Guide is free to download for the Elementary Level and can easily be ordered for the Middle or Upper Level. The Official Guide is an essential component of preparing for the SSAT; it provides exposure to and an explanation of the format and content of the test. It answers a number of the essential questions you may have about the SSAT, including more in-depth information about its purpose and use, a detailed explanation of the scoring, and tips for how to prepare. It also includes official practice test problems, and, for Middle and Upper Level students, complete practice tests. SSAT Practice Tests Though these may be drawn from the Official Guide, I'm considering them a separate element here- same source, different resource. Use practice tests to familiarize yourself with the format, instructions, time constraints, and content. They're a great opportunity to practice as well as to ease the uncertainty you are likely to feel when facing a test of unknown characteristics. Practice tests also provide the perfect opportunity to assess your own strengths and weaknesses. From there, you can ask a teacher or parent for help on the specific areas where you struggle. Other SSAT PrepResources Once you've determined your weaknesses, you shouldscour the internet and the world of printfor extra study resourcesin those areas. Always check a source's legitimacy before you commit to using it; see who published it, what audience it's intended for, and, if possible, what kinds of results it's gotten. Also don't underestimate your teachers' valuable knowledge when it comes to finding workbooks and other practice problems; asking a teacher or librarian for help is a great place to start. Finally, you may want to consider findingsomeone to help you with your studying, whether that's a tutor or just a friend who can cheerlead you along the way. Again, don't be afraid to ask adults for help; teachers, librarians, and parents know a lot. As with most skills (like playing the violin), practice makes perfect. How to Study for the SSAT: 5 Steps Let's go though the prep process step-by-step. #1:Take an Official Practice Test You should start prepping at least three months before you plan to take the SSAT. The first step is to take a practice test and then analyze your performance: what are your strengths and weaknesses, and what growth will you need to see in order to reach your goal? Quantify where you are and where you want to be. Note your performance in each of the three scored content areas. #2: Study Regularly Having a regular study scheduleis vital to raisingyour score, since you need to put in real time and effort to improve Are you way behind your goal- say, more than 200 points? Think about scheduling at least an hour or two a weekfor Elementary students or up to three or fourhours a weekfor Upper students. Are youlooking to make a more moderate score increase of 100 - 200 points? You'll still want to study regularly, but can cut down to an hour or less per week for Elementary-level or roughly two hours per week for Upper-level. Are you right about where you need to be in your score? You don't need to put in quite the same level of sustained SSAT prep, but I still recommend taking one or two more practice teststo keep your scores stable (or even improve them!). #3: Focus on Your Weaknesses In your prep, focus in on the topicsthat were hardest for you, but don't forget to dust the ones you've mastered off pretty routinely, too. For the quantitative section, pay close attention in your math class; especially review/practice the topics that are slated to come up on the test, according to the Official Guide. For the verbal section, make a game of playing with synonyms and analogies in everyday life. Get your friends and family in on it, too, if you can! For the reading section, the best thing you can do is actively engage with reading on a daily basis. Draw from multiple genres, and force yourself to answer questions (your own or someone else's) about the text you've read. For all sections, complete practice problems as often as you can. Answering questions: one of the best ways to practice. #4: Take Another Practice Test- In Fact, Take a Few Take a practice test every three weeks or so- more often if you are uncomfortable with the test and want a greater improvement, less often if you feel at ease testing and are near your goal score. Use these practice tests as a time to increase your familiarity with the format and feel of the test. Also perform a check-in to see how your trouble areas are progressing. Ask where your focus needs to be at this point in time. #5: Slow Down About a Week Before the Test Give yourself plenty of time to relax; cut down on your study time, and get plenty of rest. Stop studying altogether a day or two before the test. You need to start storing up sleep for the big day! Everyone needs to relax sometimes! 3 More SSAT Prep Tips Here you'll find some additional helpful how-to's. Take the SSAT More Than Once If taking an actual SSAT as a sort of practice run is possible for you and your family, it's the best way to get a feel for the experience of the test. Figure out early on when you want to take this practice trial and when you want to take the real thing. Know the Format Inside and Out For example, Middle and Upper Level students will be up against a guessing penalty and will lose points for wrong answers, so they should only guess if they can eliminate choices. Elementary Level students do not have a guessing penalty and should fill in a bubble for every question. Also, Middle and Upper Level students will be asked to complete an unscored experimental section, which Elementary Level students will not. Don't Stress Too Much About the Test It's an important test and should be taken seriously, but excessive stress won't help anything. Keep the test in perspective; it won't make or break your life. When I was younger, I thought my gradesin elementary and middle school would help me get into the right program in high school, my grades there would get me into the right college, and attending the right college would set me up for a life of success. It doesn't work that way in real life. Yes, your grades and test scores look good on applications, but no school has the magical power to make you successful if you're admitted- or unsuccessful if you're not. Life is full of unexpected choices and alternateoptions, and colleges don't really care about the first report card you ever got. Remember: it's going to be OK. Conclusion Studying the SSAT is really a matter of knowing the format of the test and alternating between practice tests and good old-fashioned content review. It's a good idea to take at least a few practice tests before the real thing- it may even be bright to take an official SSAT for practice. As with any standardized test, remember that it represents just one part of you, and don't let it hang over you like a dark cloud. If you've been paying attention in school, you already know most of this material. Studying is still essential, but remember that the test has no power to define you. What's Next? Once you've got the SSAT out of the way, there may be other tests you want to study for. If you need to take the SAT, check out our guide to getting a perfect score on that particular exam. You may also appreciate our top five tips on how to study for the SAT. If you're not quite sure why the SAT might be so important, read about its importance in the process of college admissions. Want to improve your SAT score by 160 points or your ACT score by 4 points?We've written a guide for each test about the top 5 strategies you must be using to have a shot at improving your score. Download it for free now:

Answer Questions Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Answer Questions - Assignment Example However, the word â€Å"theatre† also acquired different meaning that was also called non-Vitruvian. It appeared when it becomes fashionable to show performances outside. Thus, â€Å"theatre† also meant â€Å"performance†, not building, as performances did not need a construction to be showed in anymore (Anderson 7). The term â€Å"illusionistic perspective background† is used by Anderson, when he wants to explain to readers Sulpicio’s reference to â€Å"painted scene†. According to the author, this reference remains obscure as it was not believable that the theatre of this time used such background (Anderson 5). According, to Anderson, â€Å"theatres† were impermanent in the 16th century mainly because performances were rarely showed in special places for performances, which we call â€Å"theatres† now. Teatro Olimpico remained the only permanent place, but performances were showed rarely even there. If some constructions were created, they were dismantled soon. The word â€Å"theater† still was used as a synonym for the word â€Å"performance† and not â€Å"a building for performances†. Moreover, in the 16th century it was fashionable to invite actors to private houses to see the performance. People preferred performances to be showed in their houses and did not usually visit theaters (Anderson 16). Anderson does not state that â€Å"theatre buildings† were really important for art and its development. He writes about outstanding performances, which were held in 15th and 16th centuries and they did not need any special buildings, they could be held everywhere and this was a real art. I think that art in a free form is more pleasant and this is a great art. Actors worked without any special preparation, they were really gifted people who could start playing their performance at any moment without any special effects and costumes modern actors use. However, I agree with

Nursing leadership Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Nursing leadership - Essay Example The perception of nursing is fundamentally described as the execution of clinical practices for the motive of facilitating every individual to enhance well as recover from different difficulties relating to their health. The major aim of nursing is to promote health along with growth and also to prevent the individuals from any sort of disease or injury. However, the other purposes of nursing include assisting speedy recovery of the individuals or the patients, facilitating independence in terms of health, complying with the needs of the patients and most importantly enhancing the well being of the individuals (Royal College of Nursing, 2003). Apart from the purposes, the notion of nursing entails certain significant responsibilities. It can be stated in the similar context that the responsibilities include performing physical examinations of the individuals or the patients, delivering health education along with counseling and managing care in association with different healthcare p rofessionals (Meleis, 2011). In this discussion, the significance, effectiveness as well as the applicability of nursing leadership on patient and staff outcomes in contemporary clinical practice contexts will be taken into concern. Discussion The term ‘leadership’ is principally described as a comprehensive procedure of recognizing a specific aim as well as motivating other people to perform deliberate activities for the purpose of attaining the desired objectives. Moreover, the notion of leadership is also defined as a method in which an individual broadly influences a collection of people or individuals in order to accomplish the common objectives (Northouse, 2009). The aspect of nursing leadership is defined as those activities which are usually performed by a nurse practitioner for enhancing the health as well as the safety of the individuals or the patients. The different leadership capabilities of a nursing leader comprise frequently consulting with the patients about their health, appropriately administering their treatments, making valuable decisions and coping up with the problems which arises within the team members or multidisciplinary colleagues. In relation to the aspect of leadership, it has been apparently observed that the various qualities of an effectual nursing leader encompass courage, integrity, initiative and most significantly possessing the capability to manage stress. Additionally, the other characteristics of a nursing leader are making effective communication with the team members or the multidisciplinary colleagues, incorporating new as well as creating innovative ideas, making deliberate work planning and encouraging staff participation within the background of healthcare settings (Frankel, 2008). The term ‘applicability’ is generally described as relevant or appropriate which may be applied in order to attain any significant response. Furthermore, the term can also be defined as a premeditated activity o f applying any sort of sensible applications for a particular purpose. The application of different methods as well as logical planning schemes can ultimately support the organizations along with their leaders to attain the preferred objectives successfully. The objectives may include attaining considerable market share, enhancing the profitability and accomplishing a significant competitive position over the chief market contenders (Medina, 2002). Conversely, the term ‘effectiveness’ is primarily described as the capability of accomplishing a desired result by the implementation of various policies or procedures. The term also depicts the extent towards which the goals are attained and the degree towards which the targeted difficulties are solved (Waldt, 2004). The significance, applicability as well as the effectiveness of nursing leadership on patient and staff outcomes in contemporary clinical practice context relates to the important fact that a ‘clinical nur se leader’ plays an imperative part in enhancing the hea

Summerize articles Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Summerize articles - Article Example This book narrates the success story of a group of English craftsmen who took to labor with the aid of some capitalists which can be used as a guide for others. Though there was acute commercial depression, the Guild of Craftsmen successfully functioned when they worked in group minimizing the use of machines. 2. Ceastlake It is ironic to see how awkward the beauty concept of many people is as the design of household items is concerned. Many of the objects in our everyday use are poorly designed, which, often, are unsuitable to practical use and pathetic in artistry. Far from being progressive, we have gone backward in the quality of manufacture and design. Fields like metal-work, joinery have all ruined in artistic quality due to the eagerness to reduce labor and increase price but the general public is still unaware of it. It is possible to bring the universally accepted principles of good design into practice. The design of the item should indicate the purpose, and the character o f ornament should depend on the nature of material and the use of the article. In industrial art, beauty and use are closely associated though it is not so for partially educated ones. In fact, real art sticks to the simplest and most practical shapes. 3.

The Physical and Virtual Fences in Different Arenas of Politics, Essay

The Physical and Virtual Fences in Different Arenas of Politics, Economy, Land and Their Correlation - Essay Example He employs different examples of sufferings and failures by different communities or countries on account of such policies inspired by the idea of boundary-making. He explains their harmful effects as envisaged in the form of financial insecurity as faced by people of Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia etc.He mentions the plight of refugees from China, Romania desperate to cross the suffocating boundaries of their countries in their quest to taste the freedom. In the name of globalization, capitalism and democracy, restrictive elements are being introduced in the determining of strategies for the security of countries against terrorism, economic lapse, contamination and dearth of natural resources which are overly detrimental to the moral of people and to the development of society due to their obvious adherence and propensity towards measures prescribed by prejudice, force and constraint.The writer consciously puts the topic of ‘fencing’ on the debate, with the basic flow of es say showing an inclination towards his dislike towards the concept of fencing as apparent by the name of the essay. The examples presented by the writer evidently justify his stand against fencing which are a cause of uncertainty and distrust amongst countries and which tries to cover various selfish intentions of various societies on the smaller scale, whereas, of various developed countries on the larger scale through the exploitation of their weaker counterparts, by alienating them from giving contribution in deciding economic.

Pre-1500 And Post 1500 History Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Pre-1500 And Post 1500 History - Essay Example History is paramount in learning about our obligation and responsibilities as global citizens. The people who lived in the pre-1500 possess the same humanness we have today and thus their hopes, egos, as well as dreams we still have them today. Therefore, through the study of those who lived before us enable us gain understanding and know their mistakes and how to rectify them for our own good? It is because people remain the same, although technology may change. The memory of the past is the key to our identity. For example, in 1492, Columbus led the invasion of America where he found a new land (Tignor, 2011). This history gives us an account of how America was founded and makes the citizens develop a sense of identity. This is a historical event that has significance in our today global citizenship. The knowledge acquired helps us establish a clear understanding of the American history and the changes that has been realized in today’s America. Moreover, the global history h as enabled us gain knowledge that help in shaping the present. Migration Migration is another aspect of understanding global citizenship reflecting on migration that took place before 1500 especially in Europe. For example, the knowledge of the Europe invasion starting 800 BC to 400 BC is useful in our modern world as global citizens.

The Impact of Exercise, Jumping on Heart Rate and Blood Pressure Research Paper

The Impact of Exercise, Jumping on Heart Rate and Blood Pressure - Research Paper Example During exercising process, the body acclimatizes by enhancing its capacity to draw in the oxygen by increasing the breathing rate; the lungs expand in volume to accommodate the extra oxygen requirement (Raj et al., 2005; Watanabe, 2003). The availability of oxygen and force increase the circulation of blood rich in oxygen to the muscles for the continuation of exercise. However, during rest, the muscle capacity decreases, which lowers the blood flow and the breathing capacity leading to reduced pulse rate. The experiment aimed to test the differences in heart rate and blood pressure before exercise (resting status), jumping, and two minutes after jumping. The materials needed to carry out the experiment include the pencil and paper for recording the data, the room for carrying out the jumping jack, a group of participants (14) with equal numbers from both sexes, and a timer or a stopwatch. The participants were prepared by allowing them to rest for about 15 minutes. Besides, they were allowed to take enough water during the exercises because bodies lose water while exercising. The procedure involves requesting participants to place their fingers under their wrist and count the heartbeat for 30 seconds. The number gotten was multiplied by two to get the heartbeat, the same procedure was repeated after taking 20 jump jacks. The same procedure was used to record the heart rate while resting. The findings relate to previous findings that found that continuous exercising conditions the heart to get more efficient in carrying out the exercise (Raj et al., 2005; Watanabe, 2003). There were significant differences between the resting data and the data obtained during exercising. These show that increase in exercise increases the heart output to acclimatize with the requirement of oxygen and blood to the muscle cells involved in the exercising process.

Pre-1500 And Post 1500 History Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Pre-1500 And Post 1500 History - Essay Example History is paramount in learning about our obligation and responsibilities as global citizens. The people who lived in the pre-1500 possess the same humanness we have today and thus their hopes, egos, as well as dreams we still have them today. Therefore, through the study of those who lived before us enable us gain understanding and know their mistakes and how to rectify them for our own good? It is because people remain the same, although technology may change. The memory of the past is the key to our identity. For example, in 1492, Columbus led the invasion of America where he found a new land (Tignor, 2011). This history gives us an account of how America was founded and makes the citizens develop a sense of identity. This is a historical event that has significance in our today global citizenship. The knowledge acquired helps us establish a clear understanding of the American history and the changes that has been realized in today’s America. Moreover, the global history h as enabled us gain knowledge that help in shaping the present. Migration Migration is another aspect of understanding global citizenship reflecting on migration that took place before 1500 especially in Europe. For example, the knowledge of the Europe invasion starting 800 BC to 400 BC is useful in our modern world as global citizens.

Public Law Human Rights Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Public Law Human Rights - Essay Example (Legal Briefing) The Act has sufficient clauses to assist those enmeshed in legal complications with the fourth estate. Its provisions hold out the olive branch to hapless victims of snoopy, uncouth journalists, and those taken into custody for serious offences such as acts of terrorism. It is a step in the right direction for fairer trial and accurate justice. The courts are empowered to impose corrective, punitive or deterrent measures, although in the context of law relating to civil liberties in the United Kingdom, sometimes the sentences delivered by the honorable judges are found either too lenient with rogue elements or unduly harsh on law abiding plaintiffs. The media in UK has lobbied hard to dilute the provisions of the Human Rights Act 1998 in its original form, and continue to do so to this day. The reasons are obvious. The HRA is permanent hindrance to their right to free expression. This Act has come as breath of fresh air especially to celebrities and powerful individuals caught in the glare of an uncompromising media. (Privacy And The Press) The Human Rights Act 1998 came into force in the UK on 2nd October 2000. ... The Act makes public authorities in the UK more accountable in their dealing with citizens who can access any British court and seek redressal for infringement of rights enshrined in the Act. Evolving from the Council of Europe, a conglomerate of different European nations formed in 1949 as an aftermath to World War II, and the European Common market formed in 1957, this Act is the creation of the present day European Convention on Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms to which UK is a signatory from among 41 European nations. (Protecting and promoting your rights) Reactions to this Act have been mixed in a continent accustomed to extreme emotions of ecstasies, turmoil, triumphs, blas and even stony nonchalance since the renaissance. Nevertheless, it has drawn the attention specifically two groups of the people in UK. One of them are those desperate for help from any quarter having exhausted all legal means for justice, and secondly, they are all those keen to get away from the piercing gaze the indicting Act, especially the media. The Act applies specifically to public authorities responsible for the general welfare of the populace. Never before in the history of the British administration was the common man more empowered to confidently take on the government for judicial lapses. It is important to bear in mind the two important factors of judicial interpretations or misinterpretations and recalcitrant occurrences such as terrorism in the present scenario which make issues for the Act more complex and difficult. Under the threat of terrorism, it is but natural for majority of the people to willingly sacrifice some civil liberties for safety and security. On the other hand, in the name of national

Sociological Perspectives And The Functionalist Perspectives Sociology Essay

Sociological Perspectives And The Functionalist Perspectives Sociology Essay The first sociological perspective that I will use to try to explain the Bertram family scenario is the functionalist perspective. The functionalist perspective evolved from the work of Emile Durkheim (1858-1917), though it was shaped by Harvard sociologist Talcott Parsons during the mid-20th century.    Functionalism can be summed up simply: the world is a system of interrelated parts, and each part makes a necessary contribution to the vitality of the system (Bohm, 1997: 82). Functionalism examines society through a functional framework which stresses that everything, no matter how seemingly strange, out of place, or harmful, serves a purpose. A useful analogy to use would be all the different parts of the body and how they function to keep the human body alive. All organs in the human body depend on each other and each is vital, performing an overall function. Social systems work in much the same way as an organic system. Societies have established structures within which are es tablished beliefs and practices. All members of society are expected to conform and behave acceptably. The institutional arrangements, for example, political or religious arrangements, exist in society not by choice of its citizens but because they perform a specific function for the social structure as a whole. People within these social structures know and agree on how to behave, living their lives in the right ways from which society benefits (Jones 2003:39). Functionalism holds that everyone and everything in society, no matter how strange it may seem, serves a purpose.   Crime, for example, is viewed almost universally as a nuisance.   Functionalists, however, point out that crime serves several purposes.   Durkheim concluded that crime and deviance serve three major functions for society: deviance clarifies or reaffirms societal norms, it promotes social unity, and it challenges the status quo.   Deviance can bring into question the status quo, forcing society to reth ink previously held norms.   For example, acts perceived as criminal or deviant were critical in shaping the rights movements for African Americans, women, and homosexuals in the United States.   Without questioning the traditional way of treating disadvantaged groups, the norms of discrimination and prejudice could not be broken. Criticisms of functionalism focus on its acceptance and rationalization of social inequality and societal evils.   Since functionalism holds that all aspects of society are necessary, human rights issues like poverty, hunger, slavery, and genocide must be accounted for.   Critics suggest that functionalism can be used as a rationalization of such issues.   The perspective is also criticized for its lack of testability, which is critical for upholding any social science theory.   Several questions stand against its reliability.   Still, it has its strong points, such as its ability to explain crime and deviance.   Functionalism essentially s erves as the most traditionalist of the sociological schools of thought. As with all the other different parts of society family has a role to play in the functioning of society and each family member has a role to play. Mrs Bertram is no longer able to perform the social roles that society expects of her (for example, mother and wife). In the scenario of the Bertram family, Mrs Bertram could be seen to have taken on the sick role. The functionalist perspective of illness is that it disrupts society; it too is a form of deviance. A functionalist perspective would suggest that social services would need to control the deviance by either putting Mrs Bertram into residential care or by providing services for her at home, in order to bring her back in line with societys expectation of her. Similarly the social worker would also expect Mr Bertrams deviant behaviour to be dealt with. The fact that he is leaving his wife alone for extended periods of time and is generally not caring for her as would be expected of a husband could be viewed as deviant behaviour. The Bertrams are from a generation where gender roles were very specific and Mr Bertram is probably struggling with the role reversal, so would need support with this. Mr Bertrams possible alcoholism could also be viewed as a form of deviance that would need to be brought under control by perhaps providing him with support to overcome it. Feminist theory became established in the 1960s. What defines feminism is the view that womens relative subordination must be questioned and challenged (Abbott, Wallace and Tyler, 2005:16). The feministic view is that women are oppressed and their freedom to act and express themselves is limited by the relative power of men, as they tend to possess more economic, cultural and social resources than women. There is a wide range of feminist views due to the failure to agree on ways to explain subordination of women or how women can be liberated or what actually constitutes oppression (Abbott, Wallace and Tyler, 2005). As a result there are many varying feminist perspectives drawing on a wide range of disciplines. According to Abbott Wallace and Tyler (2005) early feminists have focussed on issues relating to questions of power, knowledge and subjectivity. Liberal feminism sees gender prejudice as a matter of individual ignorance (Jones 2003:91). Liberal feminists believe inequalities ca n be eradicated by putting in place anti-discrimination laws and by promoting non-sexist attitudes. Marxist feminists believe that womens subordination serves the needs of capitalism (Jones 2003:92). Marxist feminists argue that subordination of women in capitalist societies is best explained by understanding the economic disadvantages that they face. Radical feminism sometimes referred to as gynocentrism affirms that patriarchy is the key to understanding social structures and patriarchal relations are universal and elemental (Jones, 2003:94). The term patriarch is used widely to refer to a society based on universal male supremacy and female subordination (Abbott, Wallace and Tyler, 2005:33). This perspective is concerned with womens rights rather than gender equality and it emphasises the difference between men and women. Within radical feminism the family is seen as a key instrument of womens oppression through sexual and maternal obligation. Feminists who adopt this perspective are concerned with the way women perpetuate mens control when they become so oppressed by patriarchal ideologies. Feminist theories of social work have been criticised recently for treating women generically and displaying insufficient sensitivity to the complex ways in which other social divisions such as race, age, disability, etc impact on gender relations. (Dominelli 2002) Mrs Bertram could be seen by feminists to be suffering at the hands of a patriarchal society. She has been lured into dependency by Mr Bertrams charming ways. It could be argued that Mrs Bertram found the prospect of marrying into a higher social class rather appealing. Radical feminists argue that all relationships between men and women are institutionalised relationships of power (Abbott, Wallace and Tyler, 2005:35). Mrs Bertram does not appear to be an equal in the marriage and her illness has further exacerbated her powerlessness. Mr Bertram has all control of the finances and probably all major decisions affecting Mrs Bertram, especially as she now lacks capacity, further reinforcing her subordination. It is unclear whether Mrs Bertram has ever worked, if she has not Marxist feminists would argue that this was to the benefit of a capitalist society as she provided, when she was able, free domestic services to sustain her husband. Mrs Bertrams reasons for wanting to stay with her husband may be due to her ideological view of marriage. Feminists argue that married women do not have an identity separate to their husbands (Abbott, Wallace and Tyler, 2005) and she may be trying to hold on to what little she has left of her identity as she is slowly losing her faculties due to the Alzheimers. Her ideological view masks the real subordination she faces at the hands of her husband. This is further reinforced by his neglect of her needs and failure to care for his wife as a husband would be expected to. The psychodynamic theory was pioneered by Freud and later developed by a number of writers. Freud argued that there were various levels of conscious and unconscious thought. The id which is the source of basic urges and the drive to survive. The superego is the conscious, public expression that seeks to convey that we are doing what is acceptable to society. The ego is the part of the unconscious that attempts to mediate between the id and superego. Individuals may not be aware of the interactions within themselves and engage in behaviours that are expressions of their deep unconscious, seeking to rationalise them through the ego and superego. The psychodynamic approach includes all the theories in psychology that see human functioning as based upon the interaction of drives and forces within the person, particularly unconscious conflict between the different structures of the personality (Baker, 2003:39). The psychodynamic approach attempts to explain the motivation of behaviour. Th e basic assumptions of the psychodynamic theory are that behaviour is motivated by conscious and unconscious mental processes, and that behaviour reflects current motivation and past experience (Glassman and Hadad, 2009). The approach claims that early negative experiences may become buried in the unconscious and manifest themselves in how an individual behaves in relationships with people later in life. Bion (1962) cited in Maclean and Harrison (2009) believes that the quality of childhood relationships in early life shapes the development of personality and character. According to Freud various defence mechanisms are developed by people to cope with difficult emotional situations. These defences include denial, repression, projection and displacement. Freud was of the opinion that people could overcome their problems by making conscious those thoughts and motivations hidden in the unconscious. He used several methods to gain access to the unconscious, such as free association whic h involved allowing the individual to say whatever came into their mind and if the client became blocked talking about something this signified something deeper was occurring in their unconscious. Freud also use dream analysis as he believed that unconscious thoughts were revealed in dreams and could be interpreted. Transference was another method used as clients projected and displaced their own thoughts and feelings onto their therapist. The psychodynamic approach is criticised for its subjectivity and gender, cultural and historical bias (Barker, 2003). The psychodynamic approach could be used to better understand Mr Bertram. Problems that are identifiable in the case scenario are his poor management of money, his neglect of his wife and his suspected alcoholism. His behaviour could possibly be a result of what is happening in his unconscious mind due to a negative experience in early childhood. The amount of time he spends at the golf club away from his wife could be explained as him using denial as a defence mechanism against painful emotions. He may have experienced painful losses in the past and this may have affected his unconscious mind. It is possibly too painful for him to accept his wifes illness and his coping strategy is to refuse to accept what is happening. His suspected alcoholism may be due to him regressing to an earlier stage of development where he felt safe or comfortable, possibly the oral stage when developing children focus on oral pleasures such as feeding. It is possible that the stress of his wifes illness h as triggered the regression and he may not even be aware of how his unconscious is leading him to use alcohol to cope. His use of alcoholism could also be explained as fixated behaviour, if Mr Bertram experienced trauma when he was at the oral stage (stage where according to Freud child gains satisfaction from sucking, eating, etc) in his development it is possible that he then became confined to this particular stage. His conscious choice to drink alcohol has its origins in the repressed depths of the unconscious mind (Ingleby 2006:8). His use of alcohol as a way of managing a difficult situation is inappropriate behaviour and generating its own set of problems as he is neglecting his wife and the home is in an awful state. A social worker using this approach would have to proceed with caution as behaviours may not be the result of unconscious assumptions. Behaviourism rose in prominence in the early 20th century through the ideas of thinkers such as Pavlov and Watson. The behaviourist approach lays emphasis on the role of environmental stimuli in determining the way that we act. A key idea in behaviourism is that all individuals enter the world as a clean slate (Ingleby, 2006:5). Social factors are then responsible for shaping the individual. The basic assumption is that humans learn behaviour by learned relationships between stimulus (excites the sense organs) and a response (reaction to stimulus). The main behaviourist theories of learning are classical conditioning and operant conditioning. Classical conditioning occurs when we make an association between a neutral stimulus that reliably produces a response, so that the neutral stimulus comes to produce the same response (Baker, 2003:43). It is most well known through Pavlovs experiment where dogs were given food at the same time as a bell was rung. The result was that the dogs wou ld salivate when the bell was rung even if no food was presented. Pairing of an unconditioned stimulus led to an unconditioned response and when the unconditioned response was paired with another stimulus, the stimulus eventually produced a response on its own. Operant conditioning has had a considerable influence on psychology and is used regularly in social care (Maclean and Harrison, 2009). Operant conditioning recognises that the environment effects behaviour. Much behaviour occurs randomly and whether we repeat it or not depends on the response we get. For example, if a person says they want to kill themselves, they may not know how or fully understand what they are saying but whether or not they say it again may depend on the response of those around them. The behaviourist approach is criticised for be oversimplified as it ignores mental processes and limited as not everything can be accounted for by simple learning (Barker, 2003). It is possible that Mr Bertram has learned behaviours over the years due to the responses he has received. As he is from a white upper class background he has led a fairly privileged life. Even though his financial status is now in question he has learned over the years that his exceedingly charming manners are able to get him what he wants. He was able to use his charm to sweep Mrs Bertram off her feet and so far has managed to use this same charm offensive to keep the landlord and social services at bay. If we apply the principle of operant conditioning to the situation we can see that Mr Bertrams behaviour has been shaped by the way that those he has come into contact with have responded by conceding to his charming ways. The consequence has been that he continually uses this behaviour to mask the problems he and his wife are experiencing. I was born and raised in Zimbabwe just before independence and I am the second child of a nurse and a self-made business man. Education was very important in my family and although it went unsaid there was always an expectation that we would be successful in life. The culture I was raised in had a very patriarchal framework and this extended to state policies and procedures. For example, in order for me to obtain a passport or national identity card I had to either go to government offices with my father or a male relative with the same surname or produce my fathers identification documents. My mothers presence or her documents would not have been acceptable. If I view this from a feminist perspective, women in my culture were placed in a position of subordination because of economic dependency and because generally they were constructed as socially inferior (Abbott, Wallace and Tyler, 2005: 28). Despite the fact that my mother worked all financial decisions were made by my father. M arxist feminist would argue that subordination of women in Zimbabwe served and continues to serve to enhance capitalist interests. My mother tended to my fathers every need so that he could go out and be productive at work. Education was a very important part of my life. Emphasis was always placed on the fact that I needed a good education in order to succeed in life. I remember getting very good reports at school while my sister got the opposite. My parents would sit her down every time her report card came home. If I apply the behaviourist principle of operant conditioning to my situation I learned that if I came home with a good report card my parents response would be a positive one. I therefore endeavoured to always have a good report so that that positive response from my parents would be repeated. My background will provide me with insight on how women can feel oppressed even in environments that they are supposed to feel safe, so that I can effectively challenge oppressive practices. My background also helps me understand how responses I may have as a social worker will shape future behaviours of service users to other social workers or professionals. It is clearly important to have an understanding of sociological and psychological perspectives in social work as both make a significant contribution to understanding different service user needs.

Cinderella Syndrome Essay -- essays research papers

Cinderella Syndrome I think the time has come for someone to write â€Å"Cinderella: The Sequel.† How did we get here? In 1697, French writer Charles Perrault updated an age-old fairy tale about a young woman named Cinderella to appeal to his contemporaries, French nobility and bourgeoisie. So many of the early versions of the tale boasted a very resourceful young woman who played an active role in her destiny. Perrault, however wrote his Cinderella as a well-mannered, docile, selfless women who would fit seamlessly with the ideal 17th century upper-class society. Historically, fairy tales have reflected the values of society in which they were written or revised mirroring its preoccupations, obsessions, ambitions, and shortcomings. What do these updates say about our culture’s view of women and marriage? It was this version that Walt Disney made famous in the 1950’s and to which feminists strongly reacted to in the 1960’s and 1970’s and ultimately co-opting the story to their own needs. What do these updates say about our culture’s view of women and marriage? In her famous poem, â€Å"Cinderella, Ann Sexton mocks the happily ever after. â€Å"Cinderella and the prince lived, they say, happily ever after, like two dolls in a museum case that was never bothered by diapers or dust.† Today’s teenage girls have been brought up by women who read Sexton and her peers and who have taught their daughters that they can want it all, marriage, career, family. But can they have it all? I feel that ...

Marginalization of Women During the Cold War Essay -- gender roles, Co

At the height of the Cold War in 1959, Vice President Richard M. Nixon visited the Soviet Union to discuss political ideology with Soviet premier Nikita Khrushchev. In what was labeled the â€Å"kitchen debate,† Nixon presented Khrushchev with an American â€Å"model home† that highlighted the merits of capitalism to a global audience. But as the politicians entered the Americanized kitchen, Nixon took a step further. Instead of keeping the focus on economic systems, the Vice President turned the discourse to the two nations’ construction of gender roles. While looking at an American dishwasher, Nixon said, â€Å"This is our newest model†¦In America, we like to make life easier for women†¦ I think that this attitude towards women is universal. What we want to do, is make life more easy for our housewives† (teachingamericanhistory.org). While the accessibility of consumer products that reduced labor for homemakers was an achievement of American capitalism, Nixon’s comments promoted a new American vision of the family. The traditional family in Cold War culture, which featured men as breadwinners and women as homemakers, was now an important component of the American Dream. By referring to women as â€Å"housewives,† Nixon effectively reinforced the pervasive sentiment that women could not only be homemakers in a financially prosperous capitalist society, but that it was also expected of them. As these expectations became fully engrained into the mainstream, gender roles became increasingly rigid, which discouraged many women from considering professional careers, let alone pursue them. As the Cold War era prompted Americans to find refuge in the traditional family, women were expected to operate within the framework of the home and in resul... ...represented an escape from the uncertainty of the future. But with the rise of a new traditional family in America, complete with strict and separate gender roles, women were denied opportunities in the workplace and forced to embrace the task of homemaker. While Nixon argued in the â€Å"kitchen debate† that American strength rested on each member’s ability to rise and fall, the marginalization of woman in Cold War culture masterfully highlights the distance between political idealism and reality. Works Cited Books May, Elaine Tyler. Homeward Bound. Friedan, Betty. The Feminine Mystique. Movies The Home Economics Story. Online Resources â€Å"The Kitchen Debate.† Articles Stevenson, Adlai E. â€Å"A Purpose for Modern Woman.† Chambers, Whittaker. â€Å"Witness.†

Project: South African Aluminum Essay

At the beginning of 1994, Alusaf was considering building the world’s largest greenfield primary aluminum smelter, a 466,000-ton-per-year smelter at Richard’s Bay, a deepwater port on the east coast of South Africa’s province of Kwa-Zulu Natal. Alusaf was the sole primary aluminum producer in South Africa, operating 170,000 tpy of capacity at the existing â€Å"Bayside† facility at Richard’s Bay. Alusaf’s 1993 revenues were $220. 2 million, up 1% from 1992. Income was $8. 6 million, up 122% from 1992. A feasibility study for the proposed â€Å"Hillside† smelter had been completed over the past two years. During this time, South Africa’s political regime had undergone a dramatic transformation with the 1993 passing of the Transitional Executive Council (TEC) Bill. This bill removed absolute power from the hands of whites and created a multi-racial body that would share responsibility for organizing and overseeing the general elections to be held in April 1994. Within days, Nelson Mandela, leader of the African National Congress party, addressed the UN Special Committee Against Apartheid in New York, calling on the international community to lift sanctions against South Africa. The European Union, the Organization of African Unity, Canada, China, Sweden, Singapore, India, and the United States all responded quickly with announcements that they would begin the process of restoring normal economic relations with South Africa. Aluminum prices had fallen dramatically since the feasibility study was begun, as Russian aluminum continued to flood the market. Now, with aluminum prices near their all-time low in real terms in early 1994, Alusaf had to decide whether to embark on this massive project. The South African Aluminum Industry The South African aluminum industry’s origins could be traced to investments made by Alcan in the 1940s. As part of its efforts to create demand for its ingot, Alcan built semifabrication capacity in South Africa to serve the local market. A government-coordinated development effort at the port of Richard’s Bay, together with a desire to reduce dependence on imported ingot, led to construction of South Africa’s first primary production facility nearly 25 years later. The original Bayside plant came onstream in 1972 with ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Professor Kenneth S. Corts prepared this case as the basis for class discussion rather than to illustrate either effective or ineffective handling of an administrative situation. Copyright  © 2002 President and Fellows of Harvard College. To order copies or request permission to reproduce materials, call 1-800-545-7685, write Harvard Business School Publishing, Boston, MA 02163, or go to http://www. hbsp. harvard. edu. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, used in a spreadsheet, or transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise—without the permission of Harvard Business School. This document is authorized for use only in PGDM 1st Year – 1007 by Rakhi Singh at IILM Institute for Business and Management, Gurgaon (IILM-IBM, Gurgaon) from October 2013 to April 2014. 799-130 Aluminum Smelting in South Africa: Alusaf’s Hillside Project capacity of approximately 85,000 tpy. Less than a quarter of Bayside’s production was exported. Ten years later, the Bayside plant was expanded through the relocation to Richard’s Bay of a similarly sized plant in Niigata, Japan, that had been shut down due to escalating energy costs. Over three quarters of the new plant’s production was exported as ingot. In 1989, South African mining and metals giant Gencor acquired a controlling interest in Alusaf. The other primary shareholders were Swiss aluminum producer Alusuisse and South Africa’s quasigovernmental Industrial Development Corporation (IDC). Gencor was founded in 1980 by the merger of two major mining companies, each founded in the late nineteenth century. Since that merger, Gencor had been a diversified financial, mining and industrial conglomerate. In May 1993, Gencor announced it was spinning off its financial and industrial interests in order to refocus on its mining, metals, and minerals businesses. In addition to Alusaf, the companies retained in the â€Å"unbundled† Gencor included the world’s third-largest gold producer, the world’s second-largest platinum producer, the world’s largest producer of ferroalloys, and the world’s largest supplier of titanium dioxide feedstock. Basic financial results for Gencor are given in Table A. Table Aduction of secondary aluminum had held relatively steady at about 30,000 tpy since 1980. Together with primary production, this brought total domestic production to about 200,000 tpy (see Exhibit 1). In 1994, semifabrication in South Africa remained primarily focused on domestic demand. South African aluminum exports totaled approximately 100,000 tpy, of which 20,000 tpy were semifabricated products and 80,000 tpy were ingot. Domestic consumption totaled about 130,000 tpy, of which about 30,000 was imported products (see Exhibit 2). The Hillside Project Escom, South Africa’s electrical power utility, initiated discussion of the Hillside project with Alusaf in mid-1991. With aluminum prices around $1,300 per ton, Alusaf had suggested to Escom that the Bayside smelter was not economically viable given market conditions and might be shut down. Escom responded with an offer to reduce power rates dramatically if Bayside were kept open and an additional facility at Richard’s Bay constructed. Escom offered to supply the smelter’s approximately 680 Mw electricity requirements under an unusual long-term contract. About half the world’s smelters operated under contracts guaranteeing discounted electricity for multiple years; often these contracts tied the price of electricity to the price 2 This document is authorized for use only in PGDM 1st Year – 1007 by Rakhi Singh at IILM Institute for Business and Management, Gurgaon (IILM-IBM, Gurgaon) from October 2013 to April 2014. Aluminum Smelting in South Africa: Alusaf’s Hillside Project 799-130 of aluminum and employed complicated formulas that imposed caps and floors on prices. The 25year Escom/Alusaf contract was unique in its simplicity: Alusaf would pay Escom 16% of the per-ton price of aluminum for every ton of aluminum produced, assuming the plant produced at its designed efficiency. While the contract did contain provisions protecting Escom from inefficient production, it did not protect Escom against fluctuations in the price of aluminum. Escom and Alusaf were also discussing whether Escom might take an equity stake in the facility. As a result of high growth projections in the 1970s, Escom had built enormous generating capacity of 38,000 Mw, of which 8,000 Mw now stood idle. Rob Barbour, managing director of Alusaf, claimed that the high energy requirements of aluminum production made aluminum essentially â€Å"frozen energy† and that therefore Alusaf â€Å"will become an exporter of South African energy with i high value-added. † For provision of all the basic engineering and technology for the plant, Alusaf planned to contract with Pechiney, the French firm whose technology had been used in over three quarters of all recent smelter projects. Lacking bauxite and alumina operations, Alusaf intended to import the full 900,000 tpy alumina requirement of the new smelter and had negotiated a tentative alumina supply agreement with Alcoa of Australia and Billiton (a subsidiary of Royal Dutch Shell). This contract tied the price of alumina to the price of aluminum, a common contracting practice employed by about half the world’s smelters. For the Hillside plant, this contract ensured that per-ton alumina and power costs would always amount to 41% of the price of aluminum. Estimates for other operating costs at Hillside are given in Table B. Capital costs were estimated to total $2 billion. Table B Hillside’s Projected Operating Costs ($ per ton) Other raw materials $143 Plant power and fuel 17 Consumables 32 Maintenance Labor Freight 38 68 40 General and administrative 32 Before the feasibility study was complete, Barbour announced that he believed there was a â€Å"high probability† the smelter would be approved. â€Å"In the meantime we hope to deter others from thinking about aluminum smelter projects,† he added. â€Å"We want to frighten them off by convincing ii them that this one is unstoppable. † The Decision In early 1994, tentative contracts for power, alumina, and the smelting technology were all in place, and willing investors had been lined up. The financing plan called for $1. 9 billion of new capital to be raised, about $830 million of it in equity. Gencor was to contribute $340 million in 3 This document is authorized for use only in PGDM 1st Year – 1007 by Rakhi Singh at IILM Institute for Business and Management, Gurgaon (IILM-IBM, Gurgaon) from October 2013 to April 2014. 799-130 Aluminum Smelting in South Africa: Alusaf’s Hillside Project equity, the IDC $270 million in equity, other local institutions $140 million in equity, and Escom $80 million in convertible debt. Three new smelters using the Pechiney technology had been completed in recent months. Now, Hillside was the only planned smelter project, and a number of other proposed projects had been cancelled. Equipment suppliers were quoting Alusaf prices 20% to 30% below those supplied for the feasibility study, and the capital cost of the new plant was now projected to total only $1. 6 billion. At the beginning of 1994, aluminum prices stood at $1,110. Aluminum-producing countries had scheduled meetings in the coming months to address the world glut of aluminum, but it was unclear whether prices would recover anytime soon. Barbour wondered whether he should commit to this enormous and ambitious project in the face of these uncertain industry conditions. 4 This document is authorized for use only in PGDM 1st Year – 1007 by Rakhi Singh at IILM Institute for Business and Management, Gurgaon (IILM-IBM, Gurgaon) from October 2013 to April 2014.