Advise the UK government on which primary energy resources would be best to develop over the next 20 years

Energy is a fundamental part of our lives; however, can we continue to rely on fossil fuels? By 2030 global energy demand will be 40% higher and there are also growing concerns over increased greenhouse gas emissions and the resultant warming of our planet which causes us to ask questions about whether our current energy supply is truly sustainable. The UK is running out of energy, without massive investment in new power plants there will be regular black outs in 10 years. There are several factors to consider when evaluating different primary energy resources; these include economic, environmental, political and social implications. However, the most important factors to consider would be economic viability (which is particularly significant due to the UK’s current economic situation) and environmental sustainability. In this essay I will be looking at these factors in order to try and come up with the most sensible solution to the growing energy problem in our country and therefore what primary energy resource should be developed to solve it.Government Regulation on Media in America Natural Gas Natural gas is a major source of electricity generation through the use of gas turbines and steam turbines. It burns more cleanly than other hydrocarbon fuels, such as oil and coal, and it also produces less carbon dioxide. For an equivalent amount of heat, burning natural gas produces about 30% less carbon dioxide than burning petroleum and about 45% less than burning coal. Gas from the North Sea has provided Britain with a regular supply since the mid 1960s when the first discoveries were made. However, UK supplies from the North peaked in 1999, since when production has fallen by around half (see graph to the right). The trade secretary says that the UK is now a net importer of gas – this growing dependence on imports means increasing vulnerability to rising prices and instability in gas-producing regions. Also the CO2 emissions are still significant so you can’t consider this energy resource as completely ‘clean’. Gas fracking in the UK is a very contro versial issue, especially after the recent earthquakes at test drilling sites near Blackpool. Coal 33% of our current energy sources come from coal; it is well established, cheap and reliable. However economically viable UK coal will run out in 10-15 years and is already expensive to mine. Half the coal used in the UK is now imported. The huge environmental implications involved with coal also remain to be a concern – there are high emissions of CO2 and SO2 (which causes acid rain.) Earlier this year the government invested  £1 billion in cleaner technologies, in particular carbon capture technologies which prevent CO2 from escaping into the atmosphere. â€Å"The potential rewards from carbon capture and storage are immense: a technology that can de-carbonise coal and gas-fired power stations and large industrial emitters, allowing them to play a crucial part in the UK's low carbon future† says Ed Davey, Energy and Climate Change Secretary. However this still remains to be a controversial strategy as some say that carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology is in i ts infancy and does not work yet. Nuclear Power Nuclear power is the use of sustained nuclear fission to generate heat and electricity – it provides about 20% of the UK’s energy, utilising 16 operational nuclear reactors at nine plants. Nuclear power is the primary source of electric power in France; 76% of France’s electricity comes from nuclear power, the highest percentage in the world. France's nuclear power industry has been called â€Å"a success story† that has put the nation â€Å"ahead of the world† in terms of providing cheap, CO2-free energy. The main positive environmental implication is that it creates minimal CO2 emissions after construction and therefore it isn’t contributing to global warming however this shouldn’t indicate that it is environmentally friendly; there are high levels of radioactive waste involved and the Chernobyl (1986) and Fukushima (2011) incidents raise concern over nuclear disasters. After the 2011 Fukushima incident, the head of France's nuclear safety agency said that France needs to upgrade the protection of vital functions in all its nuclear reactors to avoid a disaster in the event of a natural calamity, which will inevitably increase the cost of electricity. There are further negative economic implications as there are high costs of building and decommissioning reactors. Planning and building a power station takes at least 10 years so this will not help meet Kyoto agreements. However a positive economic implication is that Nuclear energy is not as vulnerable to fuel prices fluctuations as oil and gas. There are several pros and cons to nuclear power which makes it a controversial matter; all of the above points would have to be considered if this resource would be developed over the next 20 years. Hydropower This is the most widely used form of renewable energy, accounting for 16 percent of global electricity consumption but just over 2% of the UK’s current consumption. Natural flow hydro is reliant on rainfall and vulnerable to drought which is ideal for the UK. There are no CO2 emissions involved and no vulnerability to fuel prices or political instability and is very cheap once the dam has been built. In theory this sounds like the ideal option for the UK to develop over the next 20 years however in practice there are several negative implications involved. For instance, hydropower projects on mega dams in China have caused species extinction and serious water pollution issues. The three gorges dam in China has had many negative impacts; huge areas of land has been flooded resulting in a large scale relocation of people, villages etc. This case study indicates that a large scale hydropower system within the UK would not be completely sustainable. The Three Gorges Dam Oil Oil only accounts for 1.2% of the UK’s energy consumption and although it is a reliable technology and well established it has many negative implications with it. It is a finite stock resource – many oilfields are depleting; meaning production has peaked and prices will rise (price instability). This has also led to searching for unconventional reserves of oil e.g. in the Arctic. There could be 16 billion barrels of oil in Alaska and big oil TNCs are keen to extract it from this fragile wilderness which causes many harsh environmental impacts. The oil industry has a large dependence on politically unstable regions which causes many problems; the recent Arab spring conflict in Libya meant there were no exports of oil from this major producer. As well as creating a lot of CO2 emissions which contributes to global warming a major environmental implication is oil spills; the deep water horizon oil spill disaster caused extensive damage to marine and wildlife habitats and to the Gulfs fishing and tourism industry. Biofuels Biofuels are crops or organic matter such as agricultural wastes which can be used as fuels. They are defined as renewable because they are based upon plants which have trapped the sun’s energy during photosynthesis and converted it into chemical energy. In the UK it accounts for 0.6% of energy consumption – there are only a few facilities burning Biofuels such as waste wood products and straw that are already operating. Energy crops could be grown in the UK, but some will not be cost effective unless yields improve. These energy costs are considered to be carbon neutral because carbon released when crops are burned is balanced by carbon absorbed from the atmosphere during growth. One of the main issues concerned with Biofuels is that it uses up a lot of land which could be used for other things such as growing crops – there is a link between the spread of Biofuels across the world and rising food prices. Brazil is considered to have the world's first sustainable Biofuels economy and is the Biofuel industry leader; the UK could learn a lot from Brazil’s 37-year-old ethanol fuel program which is based on the most efficient agricultural technology for sugarcane cultivation in the world. This program has led to there no longer being any light vehicles in Brazil running on pure gasoline which has huge environmental benefits. However, again Biofuels cannot be considered completely environmentally friendly as you need to take into account the direct and indirect effect of land use changes; Brazil and other developing countries convert land in undisturbed ecosystems, such as rainforests, savannas, or grasslands to Biofuel production. Some experts call bioethanol â€Å"deforestation diesel†. Wind Wind is a key renewable resource that is not vulnerable to fuel price fluctuations. Turbines are emission free and quick to build, with the costs of building them decreasing. The UK is very suited to wind farms – some say that the UK has the best wind resources in Europe. The UK is ranked as the world’s eighth largest producer of wind power; at the beginning of March 2012 the installed capacity of wind power in the United Kingdom was 6,580 megawatts with 333 operational wind farms and 3,506 wind turbines. However, even though it is a leading producer, wind power only accounts for 0.5% of our energy consumption therefore there is a large amount of room for development. There are several issues with this source of energy to be considered; it uses up a lot of land which inevitably leads to NIMBYISM issues – there is local opposition and concerns about the noise pollution and the impact on the landscape. This energy source is also intermittent as wind levels fluctuat e. Solar Solar is also a key free and renewable energy source. It can generate electricity from photovoltaic cells, be used to heat water directly, or be maximised by good building design. Spain is one of the most advanced countries in the development of solar energy however it is one of the European countries with the most hours of sunshine. This suggests that this source of energy would not be right for the UK as the UK sunshine is unreliable and limited. Solar power is also confined to daylight hours unless photovoltaic cells are used to store power in batteries. The solar power industry within the UK is developing however the potential may not be big enough for it to be developed further in the UK in my opinion. Wave and Tidal This has large potential in some parts of the UK and is a key renewable resource. However there are large development costs and it is still in the research stage with technology not being completely developed yet. There are also environmental issues involved with wave and tidal power; the barrier will act as a physical barrier to fish movements to spawning grounds etc. The wave and tidal barriers will also detract from the visual beauty of the coastline. Conclusion In this essay I have evaluated the pros and cons of several forms of primary energy which have the potential to be developed within the UK over the next 20 years. I have considered the environmental, political, social and economic implications of each in order to try and come up with the most sustainable option for the UK’s future. Forms of renewable energy seem to be the most obvious choice to be developed in the UK with the ever increasing concerns over global warming and climate change. The environmental impacts involved with using natural gas, coal, nuclear energy and oil all seem to be too big for them to be considered. The political impacts concerned with oil in particular is a strong indication of an energy resource that should be avoided by the UK; oil is already making a small and declining contribution to electricity generation in our country. With the focus being, in my opinion, on renewable energy it leaves the controversial decision over what particular primary energy source should be developed. At first glance, maximising the potential of hydropower seems to be the most sensible option as this is already having the largest contribution to our energy consumption out of all the renewables. However, much of the UK’s hydropower potential has already been exploited with large scale future development unlikely. I also believe that solar power isn’t the right renewable energy to go for as the UK’s climate is simply not suitable enough for it to have a large impact on our growing energy consumption. Wave and tidal energy does however have large potential in the UK however I am worried that due to its early stage in development it would need massive investment for it to reach its potential; this I believe would not be economically viable in the UK considering our current economic climate. This leaves me with wind power. I believe that this should be the energy resource that should be further developed over the next 20 years for several reasons; it is currently the fastest growing renewable in the UK and there is already heavy government backing to support it. There are little environmental impacts to be considered and with costs falling it is also economically viable. NIMBYISM objections can also be solved with the development of off-shore wind farms further out to sea, for example the world's biggest offshore wind farm off Kent with the 100 turbines being expected to generate enough electricity to power 200,000 homes. The success of this particular development will in my opinion become a catalyst for further development of more wind farms in the UK and will hopefully help solve the growing energy problem in our country.

Check Point

#1 The three types of leadership styles that should be used for the Denver Airport Project are transformational, directive and empowering leadership. Transformational leadership should be used because the City of Denver seemed to have high expectations and this type of leadership motivates the team to work toward the goals and do more than expected. Issuing instructions and commands that align with the goals would include the use of Directive leadership. Lastly empowering leadership should be used as it encourages independent action, opportunity thinking, teamwork, self-development, self-reward and participate in goal setting.Similar to what our book says about transformational leadership, it can be defined as â€Å"Transformational leadership is essentially leadership that motivates followers to transcend their self-interests for a collective purpose, vision, and/or mission. This form of leadership tends to foster trust and admiration toward the leader on the part of followers, and thus they may be inspired to do more than they were originally expected to do. † The Denver Airport project can benefit from this type of leadership since the collective purpose is to complete the building of the airport to meet the needs of the City of Denver.This type of leadership suggests that there is a consensus and collective mindset among team members. This type of leader demonstrates positive behaviors. The team members tend to perceive the goals and activities the same way as the leader. Everyone is on the same page and the tasks and goals can be completed successfully. â€Å"A transformational leader is one who should have been able to provide a consistent image to followers through his or her actions and behaviours and thereby create consensus among followers† (1). A directive leader issues instructions and commands based on the goals.This will help to keep all members of the team on track to complete the tasks of the entire Denver Airport Project. Accordin g to Bernard M Bass who developed this model, the directive leader tells his followers what to do, and how to do it exactly. He specifics standards required of his followers and exercise firm authority over them. (2) The last type of leadership that should be used is empowering leadership. According to our text, empowering leadership includes encouraging independent action, opportunity thinking, teamwork, self-development, self-reward and participates in goal setting.They observe the team and behaviors they display. Based on these observations, they make the proper adjustments to get the work done. From my research, empowering leaders can’t rely on innate observation abilities. They need to hone their awareness to make their interpretations reliable guides for action. (3) This will be beneficial to the Denver Airport project to keep the employees engaged in what needs to get done as the project had many extensions added to get completed. Using these recommended types of leade rship styles should set the Denver Airport Project up for success.Hopefully, minimizing conflicts and providing the proper tools to overcome any obstacles along the way. The combination of these styles will provide the communication, teamwork and the completion of tasks to meet the goals of the project. Thompson, Leigh L. Making the Team; A Guide for Managers, 4th edition. Prentice Hall, 2011 (1) Feinberg, B. J. , Ostroff, C. , & W, W. B. (2005). The role of within-group agreement in understanding transformational leadership. Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology, 78, 471-488. Retrieved from http://search. proquest. com/docview/199371433? accountid=44759 (2) Yihan, L. 2011). Five styles of leadership. Retrieved from http://www. leadership-with-you. com/directive-leadership. html (3) Derby, E. (2011, June 17). Empowering leadership. Retrieved from http://www. estherderby. com/2011/06/empowering-leadership. html #2 The traits of the leader and the type of team will dis play how confidence is managed based on the statement â€Å"When a project seems well within reach, dampening overconfidence can ensure that energy remains focused on achieving it; when it appears almost out of reach, encouraging greater confidence can ensure that the motivation remains focused on achieving it† (Useem, 1998, p. 22). The Denver Airport project encountered many delays in opening which could impact the performance of the team to get the tasks done to complete the project. According to our text, â€Å"Self-directed teams offer the most potential for innovation, enhance goal commitment and motivation and provide opportunity for organizational learning and change. (Thompson 9)†. This type of team would depend on each other to adjust confidence based on where the project is, within their reach or out of reach. 3M has proven that hanging to self-directed teams has increased productivity, the 3M Hutchinson facility increased production gains by 300 percent. â⠂¬Å"By backing self-directed work team efforts with effective training for both employees and management, 3M has developed a high-involvement work culture that contains multiskilled jobs, promotes empowerment, is customer-focused, has moved decision making to the lowest effective level and rewards group performance and continuous improvement†. (Williams, 1995) Communication of many different parts of the project (The City, UPS, the airlines) seemed to cause the delays in the Denver Airport project.Communication between the different companies is crucial and can make or break a project. March 1993, October 1993 and March 1994 were all delays announced by the city, each blamed another part of the project for the delay. Scheel Construction states that communication is a critical component to failure or success of a project. Construction of the Denver Airport was obviously a big part of the project. â€Å"We must not allow distractions or pressures to meet deadlines detract from due diligence in setting up proper communication prior to beginning work. (Scheel) It seems as if proper communication was not setup before hand among all that were involved, The City, UPS and the different airline companies. The organizational structure can impact confidence and focus. It seems that the project management company for the Denver Airport Project was possibly using a functional structure, one manager who assigns and monitors their work. The disadvantage of this for this project was that nobody was knowledgeable about the baggage system (DCV system). They were already designing and building the terminals before a decision was made about the baggage system.The matrix organizational structure may have been a better fit in this case. This type of structure works best for long term projects. This type of structure creates teams based on the skill set of the employee. Employees would be placed based on their skills and they can focus on that task and not be pulled in many d irections or multiple tasks at one time. Communication will improve. Since employees have constant contact with members of different functional areas, the matrix structure allows for information and resources to travel more fluidly between those functional areas.The collaboration between functional areas allows a project team to better handle complex challenges and objectives. ( Guzman, 2012) By utilizing self-directed teams, improved communication will enable the teams to achieve the proper confidence that is needed whether the project is well within reach or almost out of reach. Using the matrix type of structure will also enable the right employees to do the right job based on their skills. The proper information and resources provided to the employees will allow the project team to handle each situation to meet the project goals.Thompson, Leigh L.. Making the Team: A Guide for Managers, 4th Edition. Pearson Learning Solutions. . Williams, R. (1995, November). Quality digest. Ret rieved from http://www. qualitydigest. com/nov95/html/self-dir. html Scheel. (n. d. ). Communication: Key to project success. Retrieved from http://www. scheelconstruction. com/communication-key-to-project-success/ Guzman, O. (2012). The advantages of matrix organizatoinal structure. Retrieved from http://smallbusiness. chron. com/advantages-matrix-organizational-structure-286. html

How Competitors Affect Competitive Advantage of Pepsi Essay

Pepsi is one of the world’s top carbonated drink company established in 1893. Today it has grown into a multibillion company which produces some of the most popular soft drinks, cereals and franchise eateries (Our History 2011). But Pepsi, like most of the other companies is unable to escape competitors in their general task environment who directly affect their competitive advantage. Competitive advantage is the advantage a company or product has over other companies in terms better attributes such as cost advantage, differentiation advantage, network distribution, and customer support that will help the company gain better sales compared to other companies (Hao, Ma 1999). For decades, Pepsi’s main competitor has been The Cola-cola Company, which is the world largest beverage company, followed by companies such as Cadbury Scheweppes Plc, Kraft, Dr, Pepper Snapple Group, Cott Corporation and Nestle (Joys M, Wolburg 2003). All these competitors are coming up with more innovative ideas to gain sales. Pepsi’s competitor affects Pepsi’s competitive advantage in terms of cost structure and cost advantage. A general sales key is to avoid price war between competing companies in the same industry because the companies must reduce their prices below the production price. This would affect the cost structure of a company and put the company in competitive disadvantage because sales below price margin means the company is selling at a loss. An example of price war between Pepsi and the Coca-Cola Company would be in the 1970’s. Coca-Cola bought most of the packaging bottles in the market to ensure lower production price beating its other competitors. In response, Pepsi had to cut its advertising and drop its selling price, decreasing its cost advantage (Coke and Pepsi’s uncivil). The price war between Pepsi and its competitors has been continual for decades. This tremendously affected and cost advantage of Pepsi, thus reducing the company’s competitive advantage. The distribution network of its competitors also disrupts Pepsi’s competitive advantage. Pepsi must compete with its competitors to expand their distribution network in more countries to expand their sales because only one company can dominate the industry. Companies unable to dominate would lose competitive advantage and sales. For example, Coke controls 75 percent of the soft drink market in Israel and Pepsi is unable to penetrate the market due to Coke’s strong distribution (Hellman, Ziv 1991). Coca-Cola and Pepsi is also always competing to expand their vending activities in every district to increase sales (Pierce, Gala 2005). A research also shows that Pepsi, Coca-Cola and Dr Pepper Snapple are continually fighting for ‘calendar marketing contracts’ with supermarkets in United States, which allows an exclusive promotional shelf space of the product for a period of time. During months when other soft drinks brands are promoted in this promotional shelf space, there is a drop in sales of Pepsi. This shows that the presence of competitors trying to expand their distribution network, vending activity and shelf space activity will cause decreases Pepsi’s competitive advantage (Klein 2008). Main competitors also contribute negative impacts on the differentiation advantage and product offerings of Pepsi, decreasing its competitive advantage. For example, Pepsi’s competitors are always imitating Pepsi’s new products. The competitor’s impeccable speed in producing similar products in the market affects the sales that Pepsi should get for their investment in research and development. For example, when Pepsi launched its Pepsi Light, Coke came up with Diet Coke soon after. Soft drinks companies that are always imitating their competitors or are being imitated is causing competitive disadvantage whereby there is little product differentiation in the market (MacArthur 2006). However if the company does not imitate or come up with new innovative products they will also lose competitive advantage to their competitors who are always developing new products. When Cadbury Schweppes caught Pepsi off-guard by producing new beverages such as Hawaiian Punch, and Nantucket Nectar, Pepsi’s market share was heavily defeated (O’Connor, Brian 2002). Pepsi’s competitor also affects Pepsi’s competitive advantage through advertisement and promotions. Every time Pepsi advertises, Coca-Cola will immediately respond by doubling its advertisements, making Pepsi’s advertisement and sales target redundant (Rivalry on various fronts 2001). Coca-Cola is always competing with Pepsi to be the main sponsor in every Olympic game as this sponsorship significantly affects the consumers’ brand choice during the event period (Cho 2011). Competition by other competitors and their advantages directly affects Pepsi. Competitive advantages by other companies will affect  company’s sales, revenue, reputation and even customer support and loyalty. Mangers must also have a great understanding their company’s environmental opportunities and threats as well as internal strengths and weakness (Barney, Jay B 1995). This can be found by a planning technique called the S.W.O.T analysis. S.W.O.T analysis will allow managers at different corporate level will select business, corporate and functional level strategies to help gain competitive advantage (Waddell, Jones and George 2012, 148). Another model that managers should consider carrying out is the Michael Porters five-forces model. This model helps managers isolate particular forces in the external environment that are potential threats to the company (Waddell, Jones and George 2012, 148). In conclusion, managers must be aware of what their competition companies are doing and what their competitive advantages are and try to come up with a strategy to overcome their competitors’ competitive advantage. Reference Barney, Jay B. 1995. â€Å"Looking Inside for Competitive Advantage.†The Academy of Management Executive† 9 (4): 49-49. http://search.proquest.com/docview/210515505?accountid=10382. Cho, Sungho, Minyong Lee, Taeyeon Yoon, and Charles Rhodes. 2011. â€Å"An Analysis of the Olympic Sponsorship Effect on Consumer Brand Choice in the Carbonated Soft Drink Market using Household Scanner Data.† International Journal of Sport Finance 6 (4): 335-353. http://search.proquest.com/docview/912868591?accountid=10382 Coke and Pepsi’s Uncivil Cola Wars-Case Study Analysis. 2012. csinvesting. http://csinvesting.wordpress.com/2012/03/21/coke-and-pepsis-uncivil-cola-wars-case-study-analysis/ Hellman, Ziv. 1991. â€Å"Getting in Tempo with Pepsi Cola.† Jerusalem Post, Jul 05, 16-16. http://search.proquest.com/docview/321035209?accountid=10382. Klein, Benjamin and Kevin M. Murphy. 2008. â€Å"Exclusive Dealing Intensifies Competition for Distribution.† Antitrust Law Journal 75 (2): 433-466. http://search.proquest.com/docview/197278523?accountid=10382. Ma, Hao. 1999. â€Å"Creation and Preemption for Competitive Advantage.† Management Decision 37 (3): 259-266. http://search.proquest.com/docview/212092410?accountid=10382. MacArthur, Kate and Stephanie Thompson. 2006. â€Å"Pepsi, Coke: We Satisfy Your ‘Need States’.† Advertising Age 77 (48): 3-3,23. http://search.proquest.com/docview/208357645?accountid=10382. O’Connor, Brian. 2002. â€Å"How Giant Killer John is Winning Soft Drinks War ; the CITY Interview.† Daily Mail, Apr 11, 69-69. http://search.proquest.com/docview/321285141?accountid=10382. Our History. 2011. Pepsico. http://www.pepsico.com/company/our-history.html Pierce, Gala. 2005. â€Å"‘no Coke, Pepsi’ to be Replaced Under New Contract.† Daily Herald, Jul 11, 1-1. http://search.proquest.com/docview/313097832?accountid=10382. The Rivalry on Various Fronts. 2001. The Coke Pepsi Rivalry. http://www.icmrindia.org/casestudies/catalogue/Marketing/The%20Coke%20Pepsi%20Rivalry%20-%20Marketing%20Case.htm#II%20-Advertising Waddell, Dianne, Gareth R. Jones, and Jeniffer M. George. 2012. Contemporary Management. NSW, Australia: McGraw Hill. Wolburg, Joyce M. 2003. â€Å"Double-Cola and Antitrust Issues: Staying Alive in the Soft Drink Wars.† The Journal of Consumer Affairs 37 (2): 340-363. http://search.proquest.com/docview/195909317?accountid=10382

The history of Ottoman empire Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

The history of Ottoman empire - Essay Example The Empire was founded by Osman I. In 1453, following its capture from the Byzantine Empire, Constantinople, modern stanbul, became the new capital of the Ottoman Empire under the name 'Kostantiniye'. In the 16th and 17th centuries, the Ottoman Empire was among the world's most powerful political entities, with the powers of eastern Europe constantly threatened by its steady advance through the Balkans and the southern part of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. Its navy was a powerful force in the Mediterranean. On several occasions it even invaded central Europe, sieging Vienna, in its attempts to conquer the Habsburg domain, and was only repulsed by coalitions of European powers. In this period, the discussions among the elites of Ottomans on how to organize a new state constitute the most important detail. The location of this movement gave it access to many different cultures and experiences. Given the historical facts of other great empires, Ottoman elites believed that the power of the sword was not enough to build and maintain a powerful state. Swords must be wielded by men. It was important to find strong and capable men and bind them together in willing cooperation to conquer large sections of Europe, Asia, and Africa. It was also important to organize and govern their conquests in a fairly satisfactory fashion, and to establish a structure which would take great effort to dismantle. Ottoman elites gave precedence to the political ideas that constituted the life of the empire, which became their ruling institution. Only with these ideas was it possible to attract a great body of men from many directions and races and unite them in a common effort. The ideas and culture that were shaped during this period took three hundred years to decay and be destroyed. While it is arguable the empire had injustice, violence and destructive forces involved in the development of its structures, these must be considered within the context of their eight centuries of history, during which Turks began to drift southwestward away from the declining Saracen Empire Even though the Ottoman state existed before Osman I, he is regarded as the founder of the Empire, having given it its name and being the first bey to declare his independence. He extended the frontiers of the empire towards the Byzantine Empire, while other Turkish beyliks suffered from infighting. Under Osman I, the Ottoman capital moved to Bursa. He published the first coin under his name, demonstrating the trust he built. The economical structure of the Empire was defined by the geopolitical structure. The Ottoman Empire stood in between West and East, thus blocking the route eastward forcing Spanish and Portuguese navigators set out in search of a new route to the Orient. The Empire was holding the same path that Marco Polo once used. Ottoman studies imply that the change in politics between Ottomans and Central Europe did depend on the opening of the new sea routes. It is also possible to see the decay of the Ottoman Empire by tracing the loss of significance of the land routes. Decay is a very relative term, in reality while central Europe is moving forward, Ottoman were holding on to their traditions. The pragmatic thinking of Ottomans that once helped to reform the systems left behind by Roman Empire was once again giving out the same signs

Resort and Casino Management Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Resort and Casino Management - Case Study Example Sun City Casino Resort is a big casino and entertainment resort that’s located in the northern province of South Africa. Its niche is that it is a resort that attracts people who like going to casinos along with enjoying adventurous trips and great scenic beauty. It is a part of the Sun City chain of hotels that have four different hotels with different themes and attractions. It is located next to the Pilanesberg National Park and is surrounded by natural vegetation and an old inactive volcano. The hotel complex has 2 casinos that provide the visitors the Vegas atmosphere and entertainment. It has 4 luxury hotels that include the fabled Palace of the Lost City, Cascades, Main Hotel and Cabana. The casinos are situated within the complex and are open throughout the year. There are hundreds of slots machines and all the basic and popular table games such as stud poker, Texas Hold’em, blackjack, American roulette and Punto Banco.Apart from its main attraction, it caters t o many other common management characteristics that make it appealing to people. It provides sporting facilities that allow the visitors to play their favorite sports and games. It has a world famous Golf course which hosts â€Å"home of the Sun City Million Dollar Challenge which is an extravagant event and the main attraction for international professional tour calendar every year.Big singing celebrities such as Queen, Black Sabbath, Frank Sinatra and Bryan Adams have performed concerts at the Sun City Super Bowl venue. This is very important for any resort as one of its management functions is to provide customers unique experiences and events that would make their trip memorable and create goodwill for the resort as well. As the services business is all about making the customer happy, Sun City Resortprovides many facilities and rewards for its guests. As Sun City is global and is a part of the Sun International hotel and casino group the guests are eligible for rewards such as the Most Valued Guest program. This program has four different categories which are termed as maroon, silver, gold and platinum. these categories are decided by the no. of loyalty points you have earned as a guest of the Sun

Organisational and Stakeholder Ethical Considerations Living under a Case Study

Organisational and Stakeholder Ethical Considerations Living under a Cloud - Case Study Example Ethical Organisational Culture Approach One of the approaches to analyse the case is through ethical organisation culture. Alvesson (2002, pp. 4) states that organisational culture refers to those shared rules that guide cognitive and behavioural aspects of membership to an organisation and the avenues through which they are developed and expressed hence a system of shared symbols and meanings. Ferrell, Fraedrich and Ferrell (2010, pp. 17) state that the concept of ethical culture in an organisation means the values and norms that an organisation puts forward as appropriate conduct to guide its employees in decision making process in determining whether their response to ethical issues is right or wrong. In this approach, the formal and informal efforts developed by an organisation to guide its operations in respect to being ethical are analysed. The organisation under study here is Xstrata which we can establish that it has in the first place failed to tame its mining process emissi ons that have the potential of causing lead-poisoning to the surrounding community; â€Å"Homes, gardens and waterways have been contaminated, and a recent study found that more than one-tenth of young children have high levels of lead in their blood† (Marks 2009). ... Body, another resident, indicates that the firm has also failed to take responsibility of the poisoning claiming that the natural environment is the source. As Trevino and Nelson (2010, pp. 157) indicate it is the responsibility of the top management to guide organisations in the direction of ethical culture, something that is largely missing in Xstrata. Instead the management strives to shun ethics hence the rest of the firm follows suit (158). The leadership at Xstrata can be regarded as unethical since their cover-up actions and lack of responsibility indicate weakness in morality (161). This analysis indicates that the top management at Xstrata has failed to pursue ethical leadership; in one situation, an employee whose views on the source of lead pollution is contradictory to theirs, they let the interviewer know that the employee is presenting his personal views rather than what the firm stands for hence showing unethical leadership which is mutually exclusive with ethical orga nisational culture. Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and stakeholder theories Approach Examining the CSR issues in Xstrata’s case is another way of analysing the case. Bueble (2009, pp. 5) is of the view that CSR refers to the strategy through which organisations achieve their commercial objectives in a manner that takes into consideration ethical values and respects individuals, communities and the environment. The stakeholder theory is a concept in CSR that maintains that organisations have responsibility and obligation towards constituent groups within the society (groups that may benefit or be harmed by organisational operations) other than

The Price Wristle-Blowers Pay for Secrets Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

The Price Wristle-Blowers Pay for Secrets - Essay Example For example, according to the article â€Å"Whistle-Blower Awarded $104 Million by I.R.S†, written by David Kocieniewski, Bradley C. Birkenfeld, who used to be a banker at UBS, was caught helping a rich Californian developer to avoid paying income taxes in the US. After being arrested, he informed that he would disclose important information about the Swiss banking system which would help the US government retrieve lost taxes that amounted to billions of dollars. Many wealthy Americans had used their Swiss banks to avoid paying income tax in their country. Now the valuable information provided by the banker allowed the US government to get back a large sum of unpaid taxes from the Swiss banks. In return for this, the banker was given an award of $104 million, the highest amount ever paid to a whistle-blower. This whole idea of a person benefiting from a crime he committed is pretty ironical. A person involved in activities such as tax fraud is arrested, and when he complies with the authorities’ demands and reveals some vital information, he is rewarded. This means that, in effect, the person is actually being paid for the crime he has committed. The irony of the situation seems amusing. If a person accused of committing several crimes asks for freedom and some monetary reward in exchange for valuable information, he or she will get it. This will allow him or her to return to his previous life and no lesson will be learnt. Moreover, it has become a norm in the society that people demand some kind of reward before they can do something helpful. Many people realize that giving out valuable information is a great and easy way to make money, so they demand a reward before revealing any secrets even if the secrets can actually benefit their own country. The fact that many people want to be paid before doing the right thing is alarming, as it shows that the society is well down the downward path. In today’s

Teachers_ perceptions of the use of technology in teaching language Article

Teachers_ perceptions of the use of technology in teaching language - Article Example First an introduction has been given as to what contribution has technology made in education and especially the teaching of language. Then, teachers’ competencies and barriers to the integration of technology have been discussed. After that, various technological tools and concept are discussed like CALL and ICT, which the teachers can make use of to facilitate their language teaching process. The report is summarized in a concluding paragraph and MLA referencing style has been used properly. Introduction Since the advent of sophisticated technological means, the educators have been trying to modify the instructional process with the help of technology. According to Baker, early 1960’s brought with it â€Å"new curricula, instructional models, and approaches to individualization† (3) of instruction but the drawback with these instructional schemes was their poor management. An ideal classroom environment is so dynamic in which each student presents his own under standing and is comfortable with his own set of instructional materials. Thus, the teacher needs to organize instructional schemes in such a way that all students with their unique calibers are equally attended to. Teachers started feeling the necessity of incorporating information and communication technology in teaching language. According to Kaka, â€Å"Technology (internet) in another side can be the most effective way to increase the student’s knowledge.† Teacher Perception, Competencies and Barriers Kong and Kwok studied teacher perception of the use of information technology in teaching languages in a school in Hong Kong and examined this perception under four domains that included â€Å"teacher perception of their computer training, computer facilities and assistance available, their confidence and comfortability in using computer in daily lessons, and their perception of their roles in using IT in classrooms.† Their survey results supported the idea tha t teacher perception had a positive effect in the usage if teacher-centered technological approaches in the teaching process. They also found that the teachers and the school administration worked in a collaborative environment for the implementation and usage of IT in classrooms especially in language learning. Another similar research has been conducted by Ismail, Ghaleb and Almekhlafi (37) who studied teacher perception teaching Arabic and English languages in schools in UAE. They also found that teachers’ support and willingness to incorporate technology in their teaching languages is very important to obtain positive outcomes. They discussed the benefits of the usage of IT both for the teachers and the students and found from their qualitative and quantitative research that teacher perception should be considered seriously for better implementation of technological tools in classrooms. Hence, as Woodrow (qtd. in Ismail, Ghaleb and Almakhlefi 37) asserts, â€Å"teachers are seen to be active agents in the process of changes and implementation of new ideas as their beliefs and attitudes may support or impede the success of any educational reform such as the utilization of an innovative technology program.† Technological advances have greatly facilitated the language learning. The teachers today can use many technological too

Organized Crime Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Organized Crime - Research Paper Example Keywords: organized crime, criminal behavior, business organization, profit Description or definition of organized crime Organized crime could be defined or described in such a way there would be involvement of people in illegal activities that are obviously for monetary gain, which could only be implemented by influencing others to join and intimidating, harming or killing those who get in their way. In other words, there is an inclusion of criminal organization which has the potential to put all possible crimes in order, so as to generate its entire advantage or benefit. What makes these kinds of criminal groups so powerful is due to the fact that they are highly have strong connection with legitimate businesses and political entities (Lyman & Potter, 2007). In other words, they have substantial power that would be enough to mobilize their entire machinery and force even if they would either be operating together or apart. These groups therefore should have adapted a powerful syste m that has the purpose of not destabilizing their entire organizational objectives, but rather obtaining them for them to perpetuate their staying in power. Organized crime can also be potentially defined based on evidences (Lyman & Potter, 2007). However Lyman and Potter point out that these could be subjected to different interpretations. This makes it hard enough to substantially define or describe organized crime without any presence of ambiguity or subjectivity. In fact, American debate existed for a long while whether organized crime really existed. However, there has been a productive way to look at the organized crime in detail. This can be implemented by understanding principles from legitimate business organizations (Mallory, 2007). After all, organized crime is highly concerned with monetary gain so it is not far from normal business organizations on how it exactly operates. What makes it however different from common business organizations is the presence of illegal acti vities and even heinous crimes if it would be necessary just to ensure achievement of its organizational objectives. My perception compared to the readings I perceived that this is how Russian Mafia, Italian Mafia and biker clubs operate. Their activities involved people for illegal actions in order to achieve monetary gain which could only be made possible if there is influential move, intimidation and killing from the part of groups which actually organized the crime. I think my perception based on the ideas presented in the textbooks is a bit more specific which needs to be interpreted from the general point of view of understanding organized crime. However, consistent with how the textbooks defined it, my perception about organized crime involves the idea of business and highly systematic and illegal ways of making profit. In other words, just as how the normal business operates, there is entirely no difference when it comes to how the organized crime functions. However, on how it acquired profitability may be a bit of an issue and this would substantially qualify organized crime as it is. A usual business organization following the law does not need to inflict any criminal means just to ensure achievement of profit. Although this might be too broad in context, as there are also typical organizations deliberately commit crimes such as tax evasions or avoidance, organized crime may be more systematic and should be identified on the nature or context of its

Britain In a Global Society Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Britain In a Global Society - Essay Example Political system of UK is multi-party system- the political system in which more than one party is involved. Labour party, conservative party and liberal democrats are the parties of UK. Political system of the UK under the constitution is unmodified. Parliament has the responsibility to select the prime minister. Prime minister is basically the head of the majority party. UK is a constitutional monarchy which is the form of a government in which Queen is head of the state. The Members of Parliament are elected by the common citizen of UK. But the members of House of Lords are not elected. House of Lords member inherit sit from their fathers. The United Kingdom works on diversified economy. Diversified economy of UK is one of the largest in the world. The UK economy system follows mixed economy like many other nations. In mixed economy, both public and state sector direct the economy. Due to this private firms are free and can enable to produce and sell commodities and goods but it would be controlled by the government. UK is a trading nation. Domestic market of UK is limited that results to find more companies from outside of the country. One of the world’s largest importers is UK. United Kingdom’s mixed economy enables government to own stake of certain industries which are socialist characteristics (Branch, 2006, p.546). But mixed economy of United Kingdom has almost free market features. UK was one of the most stable economy countries before 2007. But after 2008 GDP growth rate of UK fell to 0.7%. UK is always renowned for its strong economy and rich blend of science and art. UK is the major centre for multinational companies. UK is the sixth largest importer in the world and tenth largest exporter in the world. In the year 2009, UK was one of the largest producers of natural gas in the world. And it is largest in the EU. UK has the third largest aerospace industry in the world. Foreign aerospace companies

These other packet provides information Essay Example for Free

These other packet provides information Essay Nmap done tells you how many IP addresses were scanned and how long it took 8. How many total IP hosts (not counting Cisco device interfaces) did Zenmap GUI (Nmap) find on the network? 5 IP host on the network 9. Based on your Nmap scan results and initial reconnaissance and probing, what next steps would you perform on the VSCL target machines? Use the file transfer buttons to download the Lab #1 LMAP scan. xml and Lab #1 topology fisheye chart. pdf Soft copy of the Zenmap GUI Intense Scan report in XML format . xml Topology fisheye bubble chart in PDF format Perform a Vulnerability Assessment Scan Using Nessus This lab demonstrates the first three steps in the hacking process that is typically performed when conducting ethical hacking or penetration testing. The first step in the hacking process is to perform an IP host discovery and port/services scan (Step 1 : Reconnaissance and Probing) on a targeted IP subnetwork using ZenMap GUI (Nmap) security scanning software. The second step in the hacking process is to perform a vulnerability assessment scan (Step 2: Scanning) on the targeted IP subnetwork using [emailprotected] vulnerability assessment scanning software. Finally, the third step in the hacking process (Step 3: Enumeration) is to identify information pertinent to the vulnerabilities found to exploit the vulnerability. 1 . What is the application Zenmap GUI typically used for? Describe a scenario in which you would use this type of application. This application is used to perform an intense scan of all 36 test scripts using the profile selection or you can Just select a specific IP address using the Target selection. I would use this application to determine the vulnerability of my computer by completing an assessment scan of my ntire system. 2. Which application is used for Step 2 in the hacking process to perform a vulnerability assessment scan? Nmap-Zenmap GUI 3. What must you obtain before you begin the ethical hacking process or penetration test on a live production network, even before performing the reconnaissance step? Create a custom Security Policy 4. What is a CVE listing? Who hosts and who sponsors the CVE database listing website? CVE listing is standardized identifiers for common computer vulnerabilities and exposures. Cybersecurity and Communications at the U. S. Department of Homeland Security, the MITRE Corporation 5. Can Zenmap GUI detect which operating systems are present on IP servers and workstations? Which option includes that scan? Yes, service info: OS: Linux 6. If you have scanned a live host and detected that it is running Windows XP workstation OS, how would you use this information for performing a Nessus vulnerability assessment scan? I would know that would be able to perform this scan 7. Once a vulnerability is identified by Nessus, where can you check for more information regarding the identified vulnerability, exploits, and the risk mitigation solution? Ports/Protocols, 443/tcp, Plugin Name: Service Detection 8. What is the major difference between Zenmap GUI and Nessus? Nessus scans for vulnerabilitys and Zenmap GUI is used to map network host within an open port. 9. Why do you need to run both Zenmap GUI and Nessus to perform the first three steps of the hacking process? The Zenmap has already run an intense scan on the 254 IP address to map out the network which makes Nessus able to find the vulnerability located within the 254 IP address. Zenmap GUI scan report in soft copy with your notes on what you found Nessus vulnerability scan report in HTML soft copy

Evilness beyond comprehension Essay Example for Free

Evilness beyond comprehension Essay This story depicts how a certain innocent person was condemned and was sentenced to death for a crime he did but with an innocent motive. The story goes on around a certain person’s life in a ship where he was said to be one of the crew. Billy as a character depicted in the story is a person whose innocence can not be changed into hatred for other people. Though his surrounding is full of people with evil motives, he is still into trusting them with full innocence. Evilness beyond comprehension Such evilness is beyond the main character’s understanding, and his being weak causes him to lose his sense of defending himself. With this state of the character’s condition, some people around him tend to abuse his weakness, such as the character which is depicted as an evil person in the story who’s Claggart. Claggart as an evil influence in the story caused Billy to use a brutal way to express Billy’s madness because he is speechless; Billy was then susceptible in making an attack due to the evil atmosphere on the ship. By Billy’s innocence, he was dragged to the wilderness of violence. It is beyond his comprehention that it is indeed the evil’s intention to ruin the goodness in his heart. Indeed the evilness had him offguard that had caused him to be condemned. The writer depicted his main character’s innocence as something to be really loved and liked by other people but also a personality which is something to be pitied about. Billy depicting Jesus Christ In simple but complex ways, the main character was said to be somehow depicting Jesus Christ’s sacrifice for the betterment of everyone. He was, as Jesus was condemned to death though they are both innocent. It is showed in the story that the main character’s innocence is really a great lost of its essence in the humankind; though it is said to be wrong depicting Christ’s figure in an ordinary man such as Billy who is said to be an unsound person. The distinction between the divine characters of Christ with that of Billy is that; Billy will not intentionally give up his life or sacrifice himself for other people’s good. On the contrary, Christ accepted being condemned to death for people in the world’s salvation. Another way in which the story of Billy could depict the story of Christ is the story when Pontius Pilate tends to wash his hand to show that he is not responsible for Christ condemnation. On the other hand in Billy’s story, Captain Vere pushed through the military view of law and condemned Billy because he was thinking about what his mates would think of him if he will not punish Billy with what they think would suit the latter for his crime. Both of the character who’s Pontius and Vere, are playing innocent for an unjust case. Between innocence and evil, the author depicted Claggart as the evil one, and goodness was depicted by Billy. The character of Billy in the story is paralleled to many of the bibbles characters and some of those are Adam which is said to be the first man who is born innocent in the world and was also presented as having the same figure of Christ. On the contrary, Claggart was depicted as characterized by evil wher he was paralleled to Satan’s characteristics and figures who motivated and/or influenced Billy to do evil. Billy died simply because he could not defend himself from the evilness that’s in this world, he could not understand the role of evil, and mostly he could not do any defense from evil because he don’t understand what is meant by being evil. Conflict after Billy’s death After Billy had been condemned, there had been a lot of conflicts that had happened after his execution; such as the Bellipotent engaging in a ship war where captain Vere died. The continuous spread of Billy’s story which had became a chronicle for the others, and mysteriously there were a continuous condemnation that happened to different ports in the manner that Billy was condemned. Themes There were themes considered in the story such as a certain Conscience Versus Law this was shown when captain Vere had a confusion of how to decide for Billy’s case. Captain Vere as a friend, he had difficulty on deciding what to do with Billy’s case because Billy was a dear friend to him but then Captain Vere’s responsibility as an authority caused him to sentence Billy for condemnation. After that, the captain was chased by the thoughts of Billy and was bothered by his own conscience because he know that he did not consider Billy’s reasons until he died and repeatedly uttered his friend’s name. Another one is a person’s Vulnerability of Innocence; the story was all about the main character’s innocence versus the evilness around him. It is said that innocence versus evilness is different from goodness versus evilness. Billy was a person who is innocent about almost everything which caused his weakness to do evil. He was a person who is morally weak and so naive about evilness because it is shown that evilness is beyond his comprehension. The story showed how Billy’s heart was corrupted and changed into evilness because he was unable to distinguish which is evil when he encountered it. The result is that he let alone violence to come out of him that caused him to kill Claggart unintentionally. Individual Versus Society is also considered as a theme of the story. In the story, the author tried to depict how the society pushed its forces for a certain person to be individually oppressed, that the society limits a certain person of his/her being as an individual. It is shown in the story when Captain Vere encountered difficulty dealing with Billy’s case; he had difficulty in considering what the society wants according to his obligation and what he feels. In deciding for the main characters condemnation, Captain Vere considered his obligation and followed what the law implies; hence he knows and feels that Billy is an innocent person by nature. He then as a leader by profession, pushed through to the jurors about Billy’s execution. It is depicted in the story how society dictates a certain person of how to decide, that their view is more important than that of a persons own view. Considered law The law is made by a constitution for all the people to follow in order to maintain a peacefull world to live in hence a law can still be bend or altered by the people who work on it such as jury and society. They can change law according to their own views and consideration thus it can also be altered through the views of others. One example of a circumstance in the story is when Captain Vere sentenced Billy to death though he knew to himself that Billy is innocent. He decided to condemn billy because hye was afraid of what other people would think if he considered Billy and gave him a simple punishment. The law which Billy’s case was considered was in a military law where the people who are considered as enemies are brutally punished. And that the law was very different from the law in which Billy was supposed to be considered; in a civilian law, where considerations to human were given. There are a lot of strategies and different views when it comes to law, but the best way in viewing law in which it is not considered in Billy’s case was seeking for a principle that would lead them into a just result to both sides. On the contrary, the law which is depicted in the story is really unjust. The loss of correct judgment of the law in the story was shown when Billy was condemned even without hearing his side of the story or considering his motive why he had done such crime. Billy’s justice was also deprived when the ship’s captain did not tell the true story about what had really happened, instead, he pushed the case through until poor Billy was sentenced death. In the context of the story, mercy came in when Billy’s death was given justice. It happened when the ship, Bellipotent, lost from a ship war and captain Vere was wounded and eventually did not survived. In the captain’s last minutes of his life, he was continuously murmuring Billy’s name. This only depicts that â€Å"evil ones who do not give justice are also not given justice in the end†. â€Å"Those who deprive other’s life are also deprived in life in the end†. What the story meant for the readers We can learn a lot of moral values in the story. We can learn in the story that innocence is indeed an admirable character hence it should not cover a person’s knowledge about evilness because it could cause a person to be easily influenced in doing evil. We can also learn from the story that innocence could cause a certain person weakness and vulnerability that could be the main cause for him/her to be deprived by others by his own life. Thesis This story only tends to show the readers how difficult it is to live in this world full of evil forcess thus a person like Billy is innocent about such thing. It depicts how a human would only suffer of his innocence in this kind of world. And that innocence is vulnerable to evilness and deprivation to life. as the character was deprived of his life due to his innocence and lack of comprehention about evilness. Also that the law which is supopsed to give justice; it is the one that deprives people by not considering a certain accused persons statement or side. The kind of law in the story is the one that manipulates a person to view the case in a right manner according to the true essence of justice (Melville, 1924). Works Cited Melville, H. (1924). Billy Budd [Electronic Version] from http://www. sparknotes. com/lit/billybudd/canalysis. html.

Breakfast Food Industry Analysis And Strategic Marketing Essay

Breakfast Food Industry Analysis And Strategic Marketing Essay Breakfast, defined as the first meal of a day, has become a common diet of Americans since the rise of human civilization. 10,000 years ago Neolithic farmers learnt how to cultivate and so they created first a steady food supply. Romans revolutionized the first meal with a cereal version which has dominated the world since with wheat, oats and barley being the main ingredients. Cereal is currently the only major breakfast component in the present worlds and has built an 8 billon dollar industry in the 21st century. In 1890 John Harvey Kellogg single handedly built the first modern breakfast-food industry in greek Michigan. This led to dominion of four big cereal companies namely, Kellogg, General Mills, Post, and Quaker Structure Economic Analysis There are four big cereal companies holding 86.4% and a few small companies holding 13.6% of the market share. Price competition is nonexistent. In 1993 the industry earned a net profit of 6.7% barriers to entry and numerous government attempts to finish it have failed. Cereal industry is at $8 billion any approach that can gain 1% increase is substantial for the companies. Porters Model Rivalry The cereal being highly consolidated market. The dominance 1970 by the four companies to 90% of ready to eat cereal, which has dropped recently the market, is still consolidated Buyer Power Due to the fact that there are only a few major companies, consumers do not have a big impact on the industry because they purchase small quantities of cereal weekly. Hence Cereal Companies are not dependant to their views. Grocery stores are their main threats because they decide who gets shelf space and this is what cereal companies need. Supplier Power There are a few substitutes to cereal thus they give suppliers in cereal industry a lot of power since they are common and do not swing the consumer precedence. Secondly is there is a capability of suppliers merging with these substitute companies. For example sugar companies trying to merge with cereal company. Substitutes In 1970s and 1980s pop Tarts and breakfast bars began to compete with cereals and consumers had more to choose from. Consumers need for a healthy diet led to another substitute i.e. hot cereal Potential Competitors Cereal Companies has so much power due to lack of competition, but there are a few barriers which make this impossible. The cereal company takes advantage of the cost and economics of scale. This stems from advertising, in 1993, 1.3 million of advertisement aired costing 762 million dollars daily .with this amount a new company can create a new cereal. It there for becomes very difficult to compete with these large markets which have also used cartoon characters which have become related to children hence fixing their presence in consumers minds. Technological Environment Technology creates a barrier in that most companies have spent many years developing new products hence this makes it impossible to innovate a new product of cereal . To maintain the crispy of cereal in milk is a technology question that poses as huge barrier. Macro-Economic Environment With the American economy growing, and inflation steady the average person has more purchasing power and consumers are better able to afford cereals. Social Environment Demographics These are very vital in any industry. Currently, 49% of Americans consume cereals in the morning. This shows that the social environment has a major influence. With the increase of the median income from $31,341 in 1970 to $32,264 it suggests that income hasnt increased proportionally. This means that consumers are paying more for breakfast. The economic scenario of both working parents has led to the need of a quick breakfast in order to get their kids to school and get to their own work place. Political and Legal Environment In 1970s, the cereal industry rose to90% from 68% in 1940. This saw the critics come up with strategy of cooperating and creating a monopoly. The Trade commission started to investigate the alleged cooperation but the cereal industry blocked the allegations. In 1970s, there was a delay in handling of profits which went on until early 1980s, and FTC found barriers to break the industry. First a great relationship between manufacturers and congress members and the mass advertising budget, this continued for 15 years. Strategies Competitive strategies of the industry cycle include: low-cost, differentiation, and focusers. However, The cereal industry, uses two of these strategies, low-cost and differentiation. Low Cost Strategies The effective tolls of low cost strategies include use of coupon reduction was used in 1994 by general mills this year they cut it by $175million others have followed suit. The industry has turned to streamline marketing meaning a company marketing a variety of products to reduce marketing cost by using economies of scale the cereal industry also attempted to manufacture low-cost strategy. The companies in this industry use high capital production methods instead of labor intensive methods. This is proved by decreasing the amount of workers and the increasing the capital investments. It is also supported by high levels of value added in between raw materials and the final product Differentiation Strategy Cereal industry uses the strategy of differentiation. A range of name brands are produced aiming different market segments.ie for children and adults being health conscious, this is known as product proliferation that is pursuing a big product line. In the cereal industry, production of new products leads to completion. Now there are over 75 new brand names Pricing Strategies Historically the company has worked with one pricing strategy, this being the price discrimination. But some of the key players now use price competition. Price Discrimination Coupons have been a staple aspect used by cereal companies. They are designed to give consumers a lower price that is if they take time to obtain and use them Price Slashing In 1994 share general millis slashed their prices but with little success. For the cereal industry, price cuts will not be hurting since profits are high TRENDS The cereal business is all about market domination through marketing and promotion budgets causing evolution of four companies barriers to entry and promotional ware has led to market share for small companies unattainable. Consumer Trends Consumers have finally let go the high-priced products opting for private labeled products because they are cheaper. Industries are aware of this problem and are pursuing a better solution Trends in Product Development This is a strategy that will see the improvement of the product. For example, entirely coming up with a new product. New cereal flavor and many more will see to a companys improvement Growth Trends Global expansion as well as operating cost reductions may ensure success and growth in the Companies. Consumers are gaining a similar taste as a result of technology leading to a market growth. Breakfast Cereals in Canada Overview Market Definition The ongoing emphasis on health and wellness as well as on breakfast being the most important meal of the day continued to drive consumer demand. In particular, high fibre has become a growing trend within breakfast cereals due to promotion of the nutritional value of wholegrain by dieticians, government and subsequently The Canadian breakfast cereals market consists of mainly hot cereals and ready-to-eat cereals. The ready-to-eat (RTE) cereal industry is uniquely qualified by a high concentration, a large advertising-to-sales ratio, high price-cost margins and a very aggressive entry of new products. These facts have turned this industry into a concentrated differentiated-products industry where price competition is unanimously cooperative and brand rivalry is left to marketing, product promotion and new product development. Due to this aggressive marketing, rapid development of new products and a certain surge in consumer awareness of natural cereals, the sales of breakfast cereals has grown steadily in recent times with the retail sales figures increasing by 3% last year alone. This translates to about C$ 1.4 billion and a volume of 181,000 tonnes of cereal. During this period, the structure of this industry changed dramatically into a more concentrated market from an earlier largely fragmented state. Market Segments analysis Among adults à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ An equal number of women, 82 percent and men, 79 percent aged 20 years and above eat cereal daily. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Older adults consume cereal more than younger adults. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ More Caucasian, 82 percent adults aged 20 and above eat cereal than do adults from all other races combined. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢19% percent of adults with a 12th grade educational level and below skip breakfast, compared to 15% of those with college education. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ About 75 percent of Canadians earning less than C$25,000 eat breakfast compared to 86 percent earning $75,000 and above. Among Children and Adolescent à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Adolescent Girls are more likely to skip breakfast than boys à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ White children are more likely to eat cereal for breakfast than black or Hispanic children. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Children, 36% consume Whole grain cereals more frequently, followed by snacks, 33%, lunch and dinner, 15% each and brunch, 1%. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Children and adolescents aged two to eighteen years who eat cereals, 30.9 percent, contribute the most to the whole grains diet, followed by corn and other chips at 21.7%, and yeast breads at 18.1%. Strategies To Successfully Market MUESLI In Canada à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Develop an aggressive marketing campaign around the whole grain quality, tasty and a non-traditional breakfast cereal that is MUESLI. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Advocate for an on-the-go MUESLI breakfast option. Suggest enjoyable ways such as portable breakfast for MUESLI consumers together with other fun beverages such as 100 percent fruit juice. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Sell the MUESLI idea to parents and sensitize them on the importance of being good role models for children and teens over the breakfast meal. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Sell the natural whole grains cereal flakes, dried fruit, nuts and pumpkin seeds by education to weight-conscious consumers on their effectiveness in weight management à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Since most of Cereal consumers are children, introduce MUESLI on a marketing gimmick that fruits, nuts and seed may actually sharpen their performance in school. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Since economics is also a major player in cereal statistics, use the platform to launch MUESLI as a new affordable whole grain breakfast option. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢Concentrate in the participation of school breakfast programs which may be a very appropriate and cheap market launching pad.

Understanding the Social Contexts in which Art Works are Created :: essays papers

Understanding the Social Contexts in which Art Works are Created When analyzing artwork, in any form, there are often times social contexts in which can be interpreted. Not always does the history behind the painting need to be revealed to fully understand the concept of the artwork, yet it is helpful in determining if the artwork is truthful in its representation. Although in analyzing artwork it is likely that there are drawbacks to considering the social context. To illustrate this point, I'm going to use the visual arts as my medium of choice. Understanding the social context can be an important tool. An advantage of knowing the history of the painting or sculpture can really enrich our knowledge, being in the 21st century, about some of the social periods from previous times. It can demonstrate how traditions were carried out, how they had an impact on the different social classes. It's a visual teaching aid of a sort. Even in the time period of which the artwork was created can be used as a tool to show how the life was in different parts of the world. It was also used as a hammer in the realist movement to show the upper classes that life for the poor was horrible. The visual arts is the only medium in which the pictorial image creates a universal language in which anyone, regardless of nationality or social class can interpret. The text which is created by this language often creates a context which is left open to interpretation. Contexts are created by the artist, critics, judges, the public, essentially, any one who views the work and forms an opinion relating to it. The contexts stem from subject or content of an artwork, and are usually facts regarding the content. Yet, the contexts almost always have backgrounds themselves, therefore making the original contexts, texts. This will be more clearly illustrated later. The chain is seeming to be a never ending process. There are always more conditions to the previous ones. All context, therefore, is in itself, textual. This concept of all context in itself textual i s a post-structuralist strategy. A man named Derrida is a man who has developed this idea that the post-structuralist concept of every statement made, can be interpreted in infinite ways, with each interpretation triggering a range of subjective associations. Every statement has an association, therefore it's a sort of domino effect.

Portrayal of Eve in John Miltons Paradise Lost Essay -- Milton Paradi

Milton's Portrayal of Eve in Paradise Lost      Ã‚  Ã‚   The seventeenth century poet, John Milton, takes the attitude common to the time period while portraying Eve in Paradise Lost.   This epic, telling of Adam and Eve's fall from Paradise and the story of creation, constantly describes Eve as a weak individual, while Adam is often compared with God.   The idea of women's inferiority has been fixed through time, making Milton's characterization of Eve not surprising, but rather expected and accepted.   However, Milton shows a suggestion of women's inner strength while describing the control Eve has over Adam.   Nevertheless, except for this instance, Eve is depicted as subordinate to Adam.   This is evident through Adam and Raphael's treatment of Eve, her own actions, and Milton's description of her.    The first weakness Eve shows is her vanity.   Following her creation, she finds herself staring into a stagnant pool.   She tells Adam, " There I had fixed Mine eyes till now, and pined with vain desire" (IV 465-6).   From the beginning of Eve's life in Paradise, it was understood that she needed Adam to guide her.   During her first talk with him, she whimpers, "And from whom I was formed flesh of thy flesh, And without whom am to no end, my guide And head!" (IV 441-3).  Ã‚   Thus, she believes that only with Adam's guidance will she be able ... ...Elledge, Scott, ed. Paradise Lost: An Authoritative Text, Backgrounds and Sources, Criticism. New York: Norton, 1975. Fox, Robert C. "The Allegory of Sin and Death in Paradise Lost." Modern Language Quarterly 24 (1963): 354-64. Lewis, C. S. A Preface to Paradise Lost. Rpt. New York: Oxford UP, 1979. Milton, John. Paradise Lost. In John Milton: Complete Poems and Major Prose. Ed. Merritt Y. Hughes. Indianapolis: 1980. O'Keeffe, Timothy J. "An Analogue to Milton's 'Sin' and More on the Tradition." Milton Quarterly 5 (1971): 74-77. Patrick, John M. "Milton, Phineas Fletcher, Spenser, and Ovid--Sin at Hell's Gates." Notes and Queries Sept. 1956: 384-86. Portrayal of Eve in John Milton's Paradise Lost Essay -- Milton Paradi Milton's Portrayal of Eve in Paradise Lost      Ã‚  Ã‚   The seventeenth century poet, John Milton, takes the attitude common to the time period while portraying Eve in Paradise Lost.   This epic, telling of Adam and Eve's fall from Paradise and the story of creation, constantly describes Eve as a weak individual, while Adam is often compared with God.   The idea of women's inferiority has been fixed through time, making Milton's characterization of Eve not surprising, but rather expected and accepted.   However, Milton shows a suggestion of women's inner strength while describing the control Eve has over Adam.   Nevertheless, except for this instance, Eve is depicted as subordinate to Adam.   This is evident through Adam and Raphael's treatment of Eve, her own actions, and Milton's description of her.    The first weakness Eve shows is her vanity.   Following her creation, she finds herself staring into a stagnant pool.   She tells Adam, " There I had fixed Mine eyes till now, and pined with vain desire" (IV 465-6).   From the beginning of Eve's life in Paradise, it was understood that she needed Adam to guide her.   During her first talk with him, she whimpers, "And from whom I was formed flesh of thy flesh, And without whom am to no end, my guide And head!" (IV 441-3).  Ã‚   Thus, she believes that only with Adam's guidance will she be able ... ...Elledge, Scott, ed. Paradise Lost: An Authoritative Text, Backgrounds and Sources, Criticism. New York: Norton, 1975. Fox, Robert C. "The Allegory of Sin and Death in Paradise Lost." Modern Language Quarterly 24 (1963): 354-64. Lewis, C. S. A Preface to Paradise Lost. Rpt. New York: Oxford UP, 1979. Milton, John. Paradise Lost. In John Milton: Complete Poems and Major Prose. Ed. Merritt Y. Hughes. Indianapolis: 1980. O'Keeffe, Timothy J. "An Analogue to Milton's 'Sin' and More on the Tradition." Milton Quarterly 5 (1971): 74-77. Patrick, John M. "Milton, Phineas Fletcher, Spenser, and Ovid--Sin at Hell's Gates." Notes and Queries Sept. 1956: 384-86.

Age of reason Essay -- essays research papers

The Age of Reason was a period in time during the 18th century in Europe and America when man become enlightened by reason, science, and humanity. The people involved with the Age of Reason were convinced that human reason could discover the natural laws of the universe, the natural rights of mankind, and the progress in knowledge. Each philosopher had his own ideas and theories about the world, nature, and human beings in general, and every philosopher wrote many essays and books about their own personal ideas and opinions (Sartre4). David Hume was born in Edinburgh, Scotland on May 7, 1711. Educated at home and then at the University of Edinburgh; here he studies law but then decides to pursue an independent study of his own ideas (Sartre 132). From 1734 to 1737 Hume was busy writing his book, A Treatise of Human Nature, which talked about the problems of thoughtful philosophy (Hampshire 105). However, the public ignored this important piece of work making Hume feel like he was "dead-born." After this horrible reaction to A Treatise of Human Nature Hume went back home where he started thinking more about ethics and political economy. Along with these thoughts Hume wrote books expressing how he felt about these subjects (Snyder34). Essay Moral and Political was one book that enclosed an essay written by Hume dealing with ethics and political economy. Hume felt that ethical thinking was the idea of knowing right from wrong and comes about from ones own self-happiness. Benevolence was the biggest moral good as far as Hume was concerned. The unselfish understanding of anybody or anything's general welfare was very important to David Hume. Aside from that, Hume also had a great influence in the development of skep ticism and empiricism, which are two schools of philosophy (Snyder 45). David Hume's greatest influences were British philosophers John Locke and Bishop George Berkeley. Hume was able to find the differences in reason and sensation just like Berkeley, but Hume took his findings to another level. Hume was able to prove that reason and rational judgment are nothing more than usual associations of an individual's prior knowledge. (Hampshire, 115) David Hume contributed many excellent points and ideas about ethics, political economy, skepticism and empiricism, and wrote many good pieces of literature about his idea... ...). Philosopher, Friedrich Schleiermacher, had ideas dealing with a more religious aspect (Sartre 57). He believed that religion was the feeling of absolute dependence on a person. He also stated that sins were a result of the inability to make a difference between a dependence of God and the earth world (Hampshire, 170). There were many intelligent men all over the world that sat down and thought about extremely meaningful things during the Age of Reason. Their ideas and opinions are still talked about. These men are just a few of the hundreds that contributed to the age of reason whether it is a small contribution or an enormous one. Either way, the different aspects of these men have allowed people in modern times to voice their opinion and not be afraid to try, just like these men have. Works Citied Hampshire, Stuart. The Age of Reason: The Seventeenth Century Philosophers. Ayer Company Publishers, Inc. 1977 Paine, Thomas. The Age of Reason. Carol Publishing Group, 1977. Sartre, Jean-Paul. The Age of Reason Vol. 1. Trans. Eric Sutton. Vintage Books, 1973. Snyder, Louis Leo. The Age of Reason. Krieger Publishing Company, 1979.

Why Should We Legalize Gay Marriage?

Why should we legalize gay marriage? Or, in other words, why isn't gay marriage legalized already? Same-sex marriage is just about as humane as opposite-sex marriage. One in ten people are gay. Seems perfectly normal to me. Is it normal to you? And anyway, why don't people like two gays marrying? Let's start out with the facts. The evidence. The nitty-gritty of all this debate. One out of ten people are gay or lesbian. So there's about twenty-eight people in this class, am I right? So that's at least two people that are gay, technically. But if your friend was gay, would you hate them for it?Would you turn around to be the face of injustice and all that is unfair? Would you be the person translating hate to your friend because he or she is homosexual? Would you be the so-called ‘friend' that is the image of degrading human rights? There's this other statement too, which really gets me. A heterosexual woman can get four or five marriages in her life, when two same-sex lovers can 't even get one. How does this work? Oh, religion, religion, religion, you crack us up in so many ways. Apparently, in the Bible, gay marriage is sin. Yet, you say: â€Å"God loves everyone. Yet, it's alright to SELL your children into slavery. Yet, it's alright to DISCRIMINATE someone because he or she likes the same sex. In some cases, religious people stroll around the streets of England with signs stating: â€Å"GOD HATES FAGS. † Is this fair? As Russell Howard once said: â€Å"Jesus isn't gay or straight, he's bisexual because he's in everyone. † What I'm about to say is a true story. Imagine a twenty-one year old student, blonde hair, brown yes, almost six feet in height and has a chiselled chin. This young lad's name is Matthew Shepard.Your average university student, am I right? One the night/morning of the 6th and 7th of October, he was attacked and brutally tortured. He passed away on the 12th of October from fatal head injuries. During the trail, witnesses expressed that Matthew was homosexual. Ask yourselves, is it right to slaughter an innocent person because they like the same gender? The two murderers, Aaron McKinney and Russell Henderson robbed, pistol-whipped and tortured Matthew, and then tied him to a fence in a rural area, leaving him to rot and bleed to death all on his own.After this, Aaron and Russell acquired Matthew's home address and were intending to burglarize his own home. My fellow students, look at me in the eyes, is this more humane than accepting your friend for being gay? Bullying is a common occurrence when students and teenagers admit they are homosexual. Stupid expressions like: â€Å"OI FAG, GO CRY ON YOUR BOYFRIEND'S SHOULDER! † can emotionally disturb someone. A so-called joke such as: â€Å"Eww, lok, there's the local lezzo. † can tear someone to pieces. Are you going to be that self-centered, halfwit who bullies someone because of their sexuality?Let me tell you this, this is one of the stu pidest mistakes you can make in life. Bullying someone is low. In fact, you could high-five the Devil because you stooped that low. In some cases, bullying takes a unusual turn of events and the victim bites back. Like Frankie Boyle said: â€Å"I would have loved to have a gay dad. Do you remember at school, there were always kids saying â€Å"My dad's bigger than your dad, my dad will batter your dad! † â€Å"So what? My dad will have sex with your dad. And your dad will enjoy it. â€Å"I envision a world where people can openly admit they are gay without feeling oppressed or scared of the reaction. I envision a world wherein homophobia ceases to exist. I envision a world where a same-sex marriage occurs without any fuss from religion and/or politics. I envsion a world where families will not abuse their child for being homosexual. This is why we should legalize gay marriage. By doing this, you are bringing more equality to the world, and you are bringing smiles to the fa ces of those who can now marry their dearly beloved.By accepting homosexuality instead of denying it, we are now creating a healthier atmosphere for all. I want to go home next week thinking that we have made a change for the lesbian, bisexual, gay and transsexual community for all. So, please, next time you see a gay or lesbian couple walking down the street, accept them and don't shout crude words at them. Next time, if you see a fellow student in school which rumours tell him or her is a ‘fag', don't jump on the abuse bandwagon. Because all this world needs is a bit of love. Thank you all for listening.

Question: How the concentration of acid (HCl) can be determined by titrating it using base (NaOH)? Essay

How the concentration of acid (HCl) can be determined by titrating it using base (NaOH)? Chemicals needed: 1- Phenolphthalein (color indicator). 2- Sodium hydroxide (NaOH) concentration of 0.5 molar. 3- Hydrochloric acid (HCl), with unknown concentration. Equipments needed: 1- Flask. 2- Pipette (uncertainty à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½0.05cm3). 3- Burette (uncertainty à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½0.05cm3). 4- PH meter. 5- Gloves, lab coat and plastic eye protection. Steps: 1- Add a known volume of HCl using pipette in the flask. 2- Add 2 drops of phenolphthalein in the flask using the pipette. 3- Shake the flask until the color changes to red. 4- Start to add NaOH on the HCl, drop by drop. 5- After each drop shake the flask to accomplish the mixing of the acid with the base. 6- Take readings of PH value using the PH meter, after each drop. 7- When HCl color turns to blue, immediately stop adding NaOH, this indicates the neutralization point. 8- To be sure that HCl is neutralized add few drops of NaOH on HCl. 9- Repeat the experiment to obtain more accurate data. Data collection and processing: The table below shows the values of PH recorded over the five trials and indicates the neutralization point at a specific volume of NaOH added: (1.0) table shows the data collected during the trials Below is the table produced after changing the volume of NaOH to the better measurable unit, also after adding the PH values for each volume added of NaOH then divide them by the number of trials to come out with the average PH value. (1.1) table showing the processed data Average PH value 0.0193 13.3 0.0194 13.4 0.0195 13.5 0.0196 13.5 0.0197 13.5 0.0198 13.5 0.0199 13.3 0.0200 07.3 0.0201 01.7 0.0202 01.5 0.0203 01.3 The graph below shows the graphical relationship between volume of NaOH added in dm^3 versus average PH value: As calculated at the neutralization point which is nearly equal to 7, the volume of NaOH added is approximately 0.0250 à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ (0.0000450) dm^3 To calculate the concentration of base, it is most desirable to use the equation below: Now substituting the concentration, also volume of the acid (HCl) and the volume added of the base (NaOH), then: 0.6 Molar Conclusion and evaluation:- Conclusion: – It is concluded that the concentration of HCl in the lab that all the trials occurred in is 0.6 Molar. – It is concluded that titration of acid using base must be repeated many times to accomplish more accurate results. Evaluation: – The usage of a digital PH meter may affect the accuracy of the data, as it produces systematic errors. – The volume of phenolphthalein may play a role on the volume of HCl in the flask. – Concentration of NaOH may not be exactly 0.5 molar as there might be impurities. – The PH value as shown from the data collected is changing at a high manner near to the neutralization point; therefore it is not easy to know the precise concentration of NaOH. – Calculating the PH value to indicate the rate of reaction, is not precise, because the PH has a logarithmic function not a linear function, then there will be a small change in the PH value while there will be big change of H+. Improvements: – Using a digital instrument to drop exactly 1.0 cm^3 in each drop. – Using a base with primary standard to titrate HCl may be more accurate to indicate the value of it is concentration. – Using a pipette with less uncertainty may help in improving the data collected. – Using a burette with less uncertainty can determine more accurate results.

Counselling and Psychotherapy Essay

Carl Ransom Rogers (1902 – 1987) was amongst the most influential figures of humanistic psychology, a school of psychotherapy that rejected medical and psychoanalytic models of treatment, and instead put forth a theory of personality and behaviour that presumed the source of psychological health ultimately resides in the individual person rather than in a programme based on the expert knowledge and authority of a psychiatric professional. Rogers’ specific form of humanistic psychology is broadly based on his view of human personality, which he believed naturally tended to develop in what he considered a healthy manner unless it is adversely influenced by life-experiences. From this theoretical basis, Rogers created a form of therapy that he called ‘client-centred’, (or person-centred) as opposed to forms of treatment that are directed by the expertise of the therapist. In the field of Counselling and Psychotherapy there are many differing theories which are used to help those who seek counselling, including client-centred therapy. In many parts of the world client-centred therapy is seen as a family of therapies, including Experiential Psychotherapy and Focusing. Closely associated with client-centred therapy are existential therapy and various integrative approaches. Since Carl Rogers’ death, there has been much debate regarding what can and cannot rightly claim to be called ‘client-centred therapy.’ Proponents of the differing ‘Tribes’ argue for their schools of thought. (Warner 2006). At the heart of all the differing thoughts and modes of delivery are the six conditions for therapeutic change which Rogers described as being needed before a client could move towards the changes that they wanted to make in their lives. Carl Rogers, along with Abraham Maslow, was the founder of the humanist approach to clinical psychology. Maslow was known as the ‘Third Force in Psychology’ but is mainly known for his thoughts on self- actualization. Prior to Maslow it was thought that human behaviour was just a set of behaviours to satiate the drive for deficits. For example the ‘lack of nutrients – feel hungry – seek food – and eat’ model. Maslow proposed a wide range of human needs in a dynamic and changing system, where needs at higher levels would only be addressed when needs at lower levels had been satisfied (see Fig 1): Rogers’ person-centred theory emphasised the concept of ‘self-actualization’ which implies that there is an internal, biological force to develop one’s capacities and talents to the fullest. The human organism’s central motivation is to learn and to grow. Growth occurs when individuals confront problems, strive to master them and, through experience, endeavour to develop new aspects of their skills, capacities, and views about life, and move forward towards the goal of self-actualization. By way of example, Rogers (1980) often illustrated the concept with reference to organisms in the natural world. He wrote about a potato in the root cellar of his boyhood home: â€Å"The actualizing tendency can, of course, be thwarted or warped, but it cannot be destroyed without destroying the organism. I remember that in my boyhood home, the bin in which we stored our winter’s supply of potatoes was in the basement, several feet below a small window. The conditions were unfavourable, but the potatoes would begin to sprout pale white sprouts, so unlike the healthy green shoots they sent up when planted in the soil in the spring. But these sad, spindly sprouts would grow two or three feet in length as they reached toward the distant light of the window. The sprouts were, in their bizarre, futile growth, a sort of desperate expression of the directional tendency I have been describing. They would never become plants, never mature, never fulfill their real potential. But under the most adverse circumstances, they were striving to become. Life would not give up, even if it could not flourish.† So it can be seen that Rogers was saying that this effective and strong constructive tendency is the underlying basis of the client-centred approach. Rogers’ groundbreaking understanding was that for a person to be truly helped, the important healing factor is the relationship itself. His view of human behaviour is that it is â€Å"exquisitely rational† Rogers (1961). Furthermore, in his opinion: â€Å"The core of man’s nature is essentially positive† Rogers (1961), and he is a â€Å"trustworthy organism† Rogers (1977). Rogers focused on ways in which the therapist could promote certain core conditions between him/herself and the client. Central to his theory was that the actualizing tendency was a natural process, yet in order for each human organism to do so it required the nurturing of a caregiver. Rogers understood that inherently people need people, and that we are fundamentally dependent on others for our being. Many critics of the theory have misunderstood Roger’s concepts and commented that this is outmoded today, and, according to Bohart (2007) the critics were saying that it â€Å"glorifies the individual at the expense of others†. Wilkins (2003) argued that Rogers’ concept of self-actualization is culturally biased, reflecting a Western cultural emphasis on the separate, autonomous individualistic self. However, Bohart states that Rogers’ concept of self as culture-specific is compatible with cultures which view the self in relational rather than individualistic terms, even cultures that have no concept of self. Self-actualization means enhancing or actualizing the self as the self is defined for that person and culture. Rogers did believe that the tendency of actualization of a person in therapy was to always go in a positive pro-social direction, but critics state that it may lead to self-centred, narcissistic behaviour (Bozarth and Brodley, 1991). Rogers recognised that environmental and social factors could inhibit or distort the process of actualization so that a negative rather than positive outcome may occur, but also that the fully functioning person is ‘soundly and realistically social’ (Rogers 1961). Rogers postulated that therapeutic movement will only occur if, and only if, the six conditions for therapeutic change were in place between the therapist and the client. 1. The first condition of client-centred therapy is that therapist and client should be in psychological contact. The first condition specifies that a minimum relationship must exist. Rogers (1957) stated: â€Å"I am hypothesizing that significant positive personality change does not occur except in a relationship†. (Sanders 2006) â€Å"The relationship is not seen as a third object in the room with the counsellor and the client, but is the client and the counsellor. They bring themselves into the room, and in doing so a unique and ever-changing relationship is the result.† Research into contact between animals and people who live in social groups has shown that in order to grow and become confident then it must be in a psychologically interactive way. Those who were deprived of such conditions, like the children in the orphanages of Romania and the monkeys in Harlow’s experiments, grew up with permanent behavioural and emotional problems. (Harlow 1959, Carlson 1999, Bowlby, 1953, Warner 2002). Rogers thought that psychological contact was an all-or-nothing, one-off event, but others like Rose Cameron (2003) and Whelton and Greenberg (2002) see psychological contact as a variable and dynamic quality in relationships, and Margaret Warner (2002:79) says that the â€Å"contact can be viewed as a continuum†. In my opinion, despite the differing views of the various ‘Tribes’, the one over-riding view is that psychological contact is essential if the therapeutic process is going to work. It can simply be the mere recognition of the other person in the room, or a deeply-shared experience between the therapist and the client. 2. Client incongruence, a state of being vulnerable and anxious, is presented as the second of the six conditions which Rogers defined as a ‘discrepancy between the actual experience of the organism and the self-picture of the individual’s experience insofar as it represents that experience’ (Rogers 1957), and which he saw as being necessary for therapy to be successful. Pearson (1974) thought that this condition had created some confusion, since the relationship between incongruence and felt anxiety or vulnerability is complex. All people are incongruent to some degree all of the time (since human beings can never fully symbolize their experience), and some sorts of incongruence may actually lower anxiety. Rogers’ concept of incongruence was simply saying that clients sense that they have underlying issues that have distorted their sense of equilibrium and therefore are motivated to seek counselling. I believe that this second condition affects how clients will respond to counselling because the change that needs to happen has to come from within the client and cannot happen against their will. For example, if someone is referred by a doctor, or school, or made to attend counselling with a spouse or parent, then the client will be in a state of incongruence and the first condition will not take place, without which there is no therapeutic relationship. 3. The third core condition is that the second person, the therapist, is congruent in the relationship. By congruent Rogers understood it to be real, genuine and transparent. As early as 1946 he wrote about the fact that the therapist should have a â€Å"genuine interest in the client†. Rogers makes it very clear in a video on the internet where he is talking about what it means to be congruent when he says: â€Å"Can I be real in the relationship; this has come to have an increasing amount of importance to me over the years. I feel that genuineness is another way of describing the quality I would like to have. I like the term congruence, by which I mean that what I am experiencing inside is present in my awareness and comes out though my communication. In a sense when I have this quality I am all in one piece in the relationship. There is another word that describes it for me; I feel that in the relationship I would like to have transparency. I would be quite willing for my client to see all the way through me and that there would be nothing hidden, and when I’m real in this fashion that I’m trying to describe, I know that my own feelings will often bubble up into awareness and will be expressed, but be expressed in ways that won’t impose themselves on my client.† (You Tube 2010). Despite Rogers’ insistence that being congruent with clients is of paramount importance, a number of studies over the years have shown that no significant relationship exists between levels of congruence and outcomes in the therapeutic relationship (Klein et al 2002, Orlinsky et al 2004, Burckell and Goldried 2006, Feifel and Eells, 1963). In contrast Cooper (2008) has suggested that this may be because it is a ‘high frequency’ event in therapy and therefore the correlation between genuineness and outcome are not truly recognised†. Without an empathetic response from the therapist I believe that the client would not feel valued or understood and the therapeutic relationship would break down. 4. In the development of self-concept Rogers also stated that the fourth condition – unconditional positive regard – the complete acceptance and support for a person no matter what they say or do – is necessary for self-actualization. By showing unconditional positive regard, or prizing, clients are said to feel valued and so accepted and take responsibility for themselves (Rogers 1957:98). Conversely, I believe self-actualization is thwarted by conditional positive regard when acceptance is dependent on the positive or negative evaluation of a person’s actions. Those raised in an environment of conditional positive regard, Rogers felt, only feel worthy if they match conditions laid down by others – conditions of worth – which, in turn, can lead to shaping themselves determined not by their organismic valuing or actualizing tendency, but by a society that may or may not truly have their best interests at heart. 5. The fifth core concept states that the counsellor should experience an empathic understanding of the client’s internal frame of reference. Each of us perceives and responds to our environments as a unified and organised whole, and each forms their unique frame of reference. Our understanding of the world is shaped through our experiences, and each time these are interpreted on the basis of our personal value system. In order for a therapist to understand a client’s behaviour it should be from the internal frame of reference of the client. Empathy is not just listening but trying to feel the experiences and feelings that the other person has at that moment in time. It involves stepping into their shoes and laying aside one’s own perceptions, values, perspectives and meanings as far as possible. If the therapist attempts to understand the client on the basis of his/her own personal experiences, this would be an external frame of reference. When the therapist remains within the client’s frame of reference, which is his/her own understanding of the world, it enhances empathy and promotes unconditional positive regard. Holding an external frame of reference might convey to the client that the therapist has their own agenda or is criticising the client. The question is, would the therapeutic process take place if the counsellor did not enter the client’s world so personally? From the large number of studies that have been carried out in an attempt to measure client’s reaction to the therapist’s empathy, the evidence shows it to be a ‘demonstrably effective element of the therapeutic relationship’ (Steering Committee, 2002). 6. The sixth and final condition – client perception – is as important as all the others, and is complementary to the idea that the first condition – psychological contact – is continued. Rogers (1959:213) wrote: ‘that the client perceives, at least to a minimal degree, conditions 4 and 5 – the unconditional positive regard of the therapist for the client – and the empathetic understanding of the therapist’. To some degree client perception has been ignored over the years. Tudor in 2000 referred to it as â€Å"the lost condition†. Sanders (2004) states that â€Å"Carl Rogers made it clear that the client was the centre of the therapeutic process, and furthermore it was the client who had the final say as to whether the ‘therapist-provided conditions’ were actually provided (as opposed to being assumed by the therapist)†. Dagmar Pescitelli (1996) argues that the theory of client-centred therapy may not be effective for severe psychopathologies such as schizophrenia (deemed to have a strong biological component) or other disorders such as phobias, obsessive-compulsive disorder, or even severe depression (currently effectively treated with drugs and cognitive behavioural therapy, or CBT). Pescitelli (1996) cites one meta-analysis of psychotherapy effectiveness that looked at 400 studies, and person-centred therapy was found least effective. In fact, it was no more effective than the placebo condition (Glass 1983; cited in Krebs & Blackman, 1988). In contrast, meta-analyses of client-centred therapy as a whole support the theory that it is an efficacious and effective form of therapy, no matter what ‘Tribe’. It is similar to other orientations such as CBT and psychodynamic therapy, with evidence indicating that all schools may be efficacious for clients with depressive, traumatic, schizophrenic and health related problems, but there is less evidence on the impact of anxiety disorders (Elliott, Greenberg et al., 2004).