Barilla Spa Case Report

Executive Summary As per our conversation last week I would like to revisit the idea originally brought to life by Brando Vitali before he was promoted to head one of our company’s new divisions overseas. In order to address the issue which will be a direct result of introduction of JIT Distribution system, I would like to present the issues and my recommendations to you before our meeting with Marconi’s executives to discuss JITD proposal.As the meeting is scheduled for the of November I would like to hear your thoughts on JITD before the end of this month so I can make appropriate changes to address any issues you might foresee as a direct result of our proposal. The decision to adopt the Just-in-Time Distribution will most likely be met with our sales and marketing team’s resistance to change. Our old-fashioned distribution system has been nurtured since the early development of our channels of distribution.Promotions and advertising were key to our success of achieving a certain level of trust within our Supply Chain both internally and externally. I recommend a staged implementation of the JITD to allow our staff to adapt to our new philosophy. Our distribution networks could become more efficient rather than being all about relationships based on pushing the product out of our facilities. It appears that our Supply Chain executives are not looking for ways to reduce waste within our distribution channels as we are not even clear on how we measure our success.Applying Lean principles to our Supply Chain is misleading to our staff as they think their job security is on the line. This is met with internal resistance that needs to be addressed before we can communicate the advantages and benefits of JITD to our external distribution networks. I believe that Vitali’s approach will fit our new Supply Chain management strategy of Just-in-Time Distribution which will allow us to ship products as needed, rather than building enormous st ock to deal with volatile demand patterns.We need to break down the silos and secrecy of our distribution processes to our customers to allow for more efficient channels of distribution. A more transparent approach with fewer layers along the way will allow for a much more efficient Supply Chain. Working closely with our distributors will allow us to reduce our own inventory and manufacturing costs along the way. We also need to consider our own forecasting systems to built the trust within our channels of distribution.Scheduled monthly meeting will allow for an open dialogue between various groups that might be affected by this implementation. I believe that open lines of communication both internally and externally will contribute to the ultimate success of JITD implementation. We will have to address issues as they come up to ensure the peace of mind of those who will be affected the most. We need to be more flexible to address problems and bottle necks of our distributors as tha t would be crucial to success of JITD.The main idea we need to communicate across our Supply Chain is that JITD would allow us to eliminate waste and get rid of extra layers which our in the way of addressing our issue of volatile demand patters which result in stockouts. Giorgio Maggali, MBA, SCMP Director of Materials Management Barilla Fresh Products Group October 16, 2012 Barilla Spa Case Study Issue Identification As the decision maker in this case I believe that the main issue presented in this case study is resistance to change.To be more specific, DO’s (Organized Distributors) resistance to adopt a new Just-in-Time distribution (JITD) system which would replace the old-fashioned distribution system used by Barilla’s Supply Chain traditionally. This traditional distribution system has always been viewed as a successful one, as it worked for everyone within the channels of distribution supplying dry products to supermarket chains and independent supermarkets. The re was a certain level of trust achieved between the marketing group, sales reps and buyers who are a part of the Supply Chain built around trade promotions.DO’s expectations of frequent trade promotions were considered the only means to cost reduction during the â€Å"canvass† periods where distributors were able to buy as much product as desired to meet current and future needs. This is a well nurtured traditional system which took a lot of years to develop. Environmental and Root Cause Analysis Approximately 65% of Barilla’s dry products were supplied through outside distributors to supermarket chains and independent supermarkets who would eventually get the product into the hands of the ultimate user.Distributors would receive their product from one of the two Barilla’s central distribution centers (CDCs) where movement of product would be assessed based on its category which would be either â€Å"dry† or â€Å"fresh†. Barilla maintained different distribution systems for its dry and fresh products due to their differences in perishability and retail service requirements. Brando Vitali’s JITD proposal focused solely on dry products sold through Barilla’s distributors who I am going to examine. There is an industry culture around the supply and demand of Barilla products.Internal and external politics are at the root cause of the resistance to change around the distribution channels. There are issues that Barilla needs to address internally before the idea of JITD can come to life externally. Barilla’s sales and marketing personnel have expressed a range of concerns because this new philosophy could potentially cost some staff and executives their jobs from the bottom to the top of the sales organization as it is developed further. Sales executives are clinging to the idea of promotion based strategy which the old-fashioned distribution system is based around.This is not a good sign as efforts t o reduce costs should be made from all aspects of the Supply Chain Management. Executives should be concerned with efficiency of their supply chains from different tiers of suppliers all the way thru different tiers of their customers until the product reaches its ultimate user. Barilla executives are not looking for ways to reduce waste within their distribution channels as it’s not even clear how they measure success of their sales force. Barillas distribution network is only based around relationships, not necessarily around efficiency of their supply chain.They should be looking at ways to eliminate waste, even if it means â€Å"leaning out† their sales force and only keeping those who truly perform well. Staff will always resist change as it is uncertainty that scares everyone when new ideas are introduced within an organization, especially if it might put their job security on the line. Once the internal issues are addressed and the new philosophy starts taking p recedence they can effectively communicate JITD to their DO channels. Sales reps would be successful at communicating the ideas and benefits of JITD system to the buyers of the Organized Distributors.Those buyers would then facilitate the flow of this information from the bottom to the top of the organization before a meeting can take place with Marconi and other DOs. Alternatives and/or Options Giver the current situation, I believe there are only two options to consider here. First one is to remain status quo and run the risk of stockouts as the effect of fluctuating demand which due to variation in demand leads to cost increases. The other option would be to embrace the new philosophy of JITD internally and communicate it further down the supply chain to the DOs.Brando Vitali had it right all along with the idea he referred to as Just-in-Time Distribution (JITD) which was modelled after the renowned â€Å"Just-in-Time† manufacturing concept. His philosophy was to consider JITD as a selling tool rather that a threat to sales. Vitali’s view was that as a supply chain we should focus on demand from end user as that is the supply we trying to address at the time it’s required. In order to effectively address the issues of fluctuating demand we need to be able to respond to unexpectedly high demand from the end-consumer and the quickest way to do that would be to eliminate as many layers as possible.Additional inventories to dampen fluctuations costs money, costs of maintaining certain service levels should also be taken into consideration. Rather than filling distributors demand, according to their planning department, we should be looking at distributors data directly and only send what is needed rather than supply distributors with inventory they can hold to anticipate demand swings. By doing so, we would be able to improve operations for ourselves and our customers if we were responsible for determining the quantities and delivery schedu les.This will allow us to further reduce costs as transportation could be handled by our CDCs based on sales volume variations. Recommendation and Implementation I recommend the JITD system as it will address the stockouts issues we’re currently experiencing as the effect of fluctuating demand. Our distributors already carry too much inventory (see Exhibit 13) which doesn’t resolve the stockouts issues we’re seeing despite the fact that they are holding a couple of weeks inventory.We should be able to improve operations for our distributors if we were allowed to be responsible for determining quantities and delivery schedules based on end users demand. This would allow us to ship product as per demand required rather than trying to manufacture stock large enough to supply both of our facilities. Furthermore we would be able to reduce our own distribution, inventory and manufacturing costs and pass those savings onto our customers if we didn’t have to worr y about volatile demand patterns.Ultimately this will work the same way it does with Barilla sales representatives assisting with setting up in-store promotions analyzing competitive information including competitor’s prices, stockouts and new product additions. This would be effective because no one knows our product better than we do. If our sales reps are allowed at distribution facilities, they would be able to assist, gather and exchange a lot of valuable information about our needs and those of our DOs. The more we know about each other’s business the better off our Supply Chain will be.The fewer layers we have, the quicker we can get our product to our ultimate customers; reducing our own inventory and manufacturing costs along the way. We’ll have to improve our own forecasting systems of course as it is imperative to our business that our distributors have that extra confidence in our abilities. Monitor and Control This sort of an idea would require a lo t of back and forth communication both internally and externally. Cross functional teams would be required to address issues and concerns which might arise from this sort of implementation.The whole process should be done in stages to allow staff to adapt to the changes gradually. Keeping everyone informed would be key as the only way to reassure staff and address uncertainty would be to educate them on pros on cons of the system being brought to life. Regularly scheduled monthly meetings are an absolute must to address issues as they arise. New KPI’s should be clearly communicated to the sale reps. Our reps should be clear on all of the aspects of JITD implementation as they would play an important role of facilitating the flow of information down the Supply Chain.Once DOs are up to speed on JITD, a simulation should be considered with external distributors to demonstrate the benefits of the new distribution system once it is implemented. Inviting DO representatives to see o ur manufacturing facilities and addressing their concerns with solutions would go along way on establishing rapport and strengthening relationships. Probing and addressing bottle necks of our distributors with JITD would also be beneficial to everyone as our ability to eliminate wastes and get rid of extra layers would reduce costs across the Supply Chain.

How does Salinger present the character of Holden in the opening pages of the text? Essay

Salinger uses a variety of linguistic and literary techniques to create a realistic voice for the protagonist, Holden Caulfield, and to give the reader an idea of how this is achieved and presents the major concerns and thoughts of the character and the novel through these techniques. Salinger attempts to create the voice of a contemporary teenager through writing in the vernacular of this intended voice – the use of crude, colloquial lexis that Holden uses resembles this through his repetitive and continuous use of â€Å"phony† throughout the novel, for example â€Å"what a phony slob he is.† The use of colloquial language, coupled with the protagonists conditional direct address to the reader â€Å"If you really want to know†, is used by Salinger as an allusion to Holden being somewhat reluctant to telling us about himself and his past which leans the reader towards thinking that Holden is not well and that there may be something in his past which has caused Holden to be the way he is. The conditional also suggests that Holden views his life as boring and uninteresting, ergo the intensifier â€Å"really† and the conditional â€Å"if† are used by Salinger to convey Holden’s minor reluctance. In addition, the direct address also creates an immediate tenor with the audience which is engaging for the reader. Moreover, the reader learns that the protagonist is a social pariah –â€Å"the whole school was there except me† – an outcast that actively rebels against society and life and this is the reason the character adopts a studied boredom approach to questions. Furthermore, Salinger reinforces Holden’s apparent dismissive attitude towards his own life through the use of the literary reference â€Å"David Copperfield kind of crap†. This conveys the impression that the protagonist does not think his life is worth telling when, further on, it becomes apparent that Holden does actually want to tell the reader about the â€Å"madman stuff† that has happened to him. The reader learns that Holden is uncertain about his future and, indeed, his life in general through the vague expression â€Å"when I go home next month maybe.† This makes the reader wonder if Holden is well mentally and physically, which would explain the â€Å"madman stuff.† The reader becomes aware that Holden as a character has a very limited ability to express himself, and often relies on idiosyncratic phrases to convey his thoughts and feelings where he is unable to with words. An example of this would be Holden’s use of the adjective â€Å"old† in â€Å"old Selma Thurner† which he uses to convey friendly affection feelings towards the character. The protagonist also uses hyperbole to convey his emotions and thoughts, too, though generally in a much more sarcastic manner as illustrated by â€Å"supposed to commit suicide if old Pencey didn’t win†. As noted above, the reader learns that Holden uses the adjective â€Å"old† in a usually affectionate way, but in this instance he is using it sarcastically to convey a negative opinion toward his school. When the reader reads on, they learn that not only is Holden iconoclastically rejecting the education system but he is also rejecting the ideology of capitalism wh ich he views as the main source of the â€Å"phony† population. From this, the reader realises that not only is Holden a countercultural figure but also a cynic towards the capitalism ideology his society is based on. In addition, the protagonist’s repetitive use of blasphemy is used to express his thoughts on a topic, for example â€Å"cost him damn near four thousand bucks† though the reader realises he does not mean the blasphemy – seemingly, Holden does not notice it; it is simply part of his idiolect and is used by the protagonist in an effort to connect with the reader, creating an informal tenor between Holden and the audience. The use of contractions is used by Salinger to create an informal tenor between the protagonist and the reader and are shown to be common in Holden’s idiolect, and indeed the teenage sociolect that Salinger was writing in throughout the novel. This use of contractions, along with the taboo language used throughout the novel, is used to reinforce this image of Holden being a countercultural, rebellious teenager that controversially rejects capitalism and the education system through his countercultural behaviour. Furthermore, the reader becomes aware of Holden’s seemingly strained relationship with his family, particularly his seemingly implied coldness towards his brother, D.B. who is a writer. The italics â€Å"and he’s my brother and all† is used by Salinger to convey the mixed feelings of the protagonist to the reader. The italics is used by Salinger to reflect the sarcastic, verbal intonation of Holden and implies that Holden once liked and possibly admired his brother, but now he views him as â€Å"being a prostitute† – a sell-out, in Holden’s eyes. This reveals to the reader that Holden does not approve of â€Å"phony† actions like selling out your talent just to be successful. In addition, the audience also becomes aware that Holden’s strained relationships extend not only to the general public but to his own mother and father, too; â€Å"my parents would have about two haemorrhages apiece† illustrates to the audience that Holden has little avenue for expressing his emotions which causes the reader to wonder what the cause of Holden’s introversion is, later revealed to be the death of his younger brother who he was close to, Allie. In addition, the reader becomes aware of the protagonists opinions and thoughts on certain topics and their views on people in particular through the constant digression of the main character; Holden uses digression in place of actively expressing himself and it is present throughout the entire novel. Through this digression, the reader gains a valuable insight into Holden’s mind, especially when family and women are concerned: â€Å"she’s a pretty nice girl† reveals to the readers that Holden, despite being a teenager, is not interested in sex with girls despite his later claims to be a maniac, which illustrates an insecurity in Holden towards sex.

Strategy management case study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Strategy management - Case Study Example Hikma Pharmaceuticals Company has experienced expansive growth and success over the years (Gillespie & Hennessey, 2011). To match the world’s current competition status in the pharmaceuticals industry, the company needs to implement the following recommendations. Hikma has defiled odds of political turbulence to become one of the world’s top drug producing companies in the world. However, there is a challenge of political risks especially from MENA community. Hikma should therefore carry out thorough international relations to win the politically unfriendly countries. The move will see the company enjoy good customer relations in all its marketing environments. Hikma should have continued investment in the research and development (R&D). The R&D investment will be crucial in maintaining pharmaceutical company’s efficiency through development of innovative and new drugs that current world market demands (Chrysostome & Molz, 2014). The company should also take part in genericization process in which it develops and modifies the already existing drugs. Hikma should put more efforts to acquire FDA approval as quality drug manufacturers to penetrate US market effectively and efficiently (Johnson & Scholes, 2006). Successful acquisition of FDA means Hikma shall have acquired quality-manufacturing standards to assure it of a wide market base. In addition, Hikma will also overcome the restrictions and regulatory measures that bar it from manufacturing certain products as well as accessing some markets. To fulfill and reach its global market ambitions, Hikma should create more opportunities for a profitable future by increasing the demand for its shares and improving its liquidity (OBG, 2010). Consequently, employee commitment and profits will increase significantly. Finally, Hikma should focus on advocating patent expiries and increase in demand for medicines that are cost-effective. Such strategies will help in easing the current pricing pressures

Adult Learners Postsecondary Academic Persistence Dissertation

Adult Learners Postsecondary Academic Persistence - Dissertation Example Actually, most community colleges rely on mature students with most of them learning part-time and staying outside the school. In the recent past, the mode of enrollment for most students has undergone a transformation with majority of them preferring to commute to and back from colleges (Bean and Metzner 485). The rise in the number of mature students was occasioned by massive dropouts of traditional students thus forcing college administrators to come up with a model that could take in mature students to replace those who were dropping out. Despite the high number of adult students joining colleges, trends also show that such students have an unlikely possibility of completing their studies. Majority of the non-traditional students live outside the school setting and this aspect alone sets them apart from the traditional students. Majority of these non-traditional are also part-timers since most of them are either working or taking care of families. Due to lack of adequate contact with the student’s faculty, non-traditional students are less likely to complete their study program (Bean and Metzner 485). Q.2 Commuter can come from any part of the country. Given the nature of these students, they are unable to reside within the schools and they therefore have to commute hence earning themselves the name commuter students. On their part, traditional students are classified as 18-24 years and they attend college full-time. By virtue of being mature, the commuter students have already developed self-control and values that usually come with being mature. This makes them less susceptible to socialization unlike their traditional counterparts (Garni 465). In many instances, traditional students are registered for degree programs than any other. While on the other hand, commuter students might be registered for a degree or any other programs. The commuter student is not mostly likely to be affected by what the college has to offer and most of them do not conti nue with the program after they are assured that they have attained the qualification that they were looking for. Most commuter students are usually in a certain location for some time and if for example one is transferred from their place of work, then they have to discontinue the program. This means that commuter students are less likely to continue with their academic programs as compared to their residence counterparts (Garni 466). Q.3 It is evident; there is a clear connection between a student’s high school GPA and their college performance. Students who demonstrate a low academic performance are most likely to drop out compared to their counterparts who perform well. Research has also shown that a student’s college GPA is strongly linked to their past academic performances. Although a student’s high school grades may not be directly linked to the rate of dropout, there is a clear link between high school grades and college grades and low grades are a key factor in the rate of drop-outs (Bontrager 9). Ideally, the academic outcome has a direct link with the psychological outcome. Students who attain good grades are more likely to stay in school compared to those who perform poorly. Research shows that most commuter students had a low GPA in high school and this translates to low GPA in their college education. In reality, even if a student has a low academic outcome but get adequate psychological support,

Control Charts Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Control Charts - Research Paper Example The items that are being considered may have one or more quality characteristics that should be inspected at the same time. The item is considered non –conforming or flawed if one of the characteristics under assessment does not match or correspond the laid down standards. The proportional charts can be said to track the proportion of defects and are used when evaluating a product with regard to a certain standard and hence classifying it as being defective or otherwise. These charts plot the proportion of defective items per subgroup. The data collected are the number of flawed items and is assumed to follow a binomial distribution with an unidentified proportional parameter P. The C chart is applicable when a product is known to have various defects, which are controllable. C charts track the number of flaws per unit sampled. C charts are usually used when dealing with an intricate product or service. The C chart requires the following assumptions in order be effectively utilized: it assumes that the likelihood of non-conformity is small at any given location; secondly, the C charts assume that the probable locations for conformity are very huge. The C charts plot the number of defects per unit and the data composed is the total number of defects in every subgroup, which is known to follow poisons distribution with an unknown mean number of defects in each subgroup. Control limits for control charts are basically in the control phase of a six sigma project. These charts should be sensitive enough be able to quickly give a signal when a special cause exists. Assessment of sensitivity is achieved by calculating the number of subgroups needed to signal a special cause. Good control charts should never give a false alarm when the process is controllable.     

Impact of Oil Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Impact of Oil - Assignment Example Moreover, during the same period there was increased demand for oil in numerous nations including China and India due to their increased industrialization (United States, Maloney, and Schumer, 2007). The subsequent instabilities in oil production and increase, in oil price per barrel of the 2000, s had no destructive effect on the United States’ Economy. Therefore, it is apparent that the current effects or instabilities on the oil prices have little effects on the United States’ economy, as it was the case in the 1970s and 1980s. The main reason towards these changed effects is that there has been a reduction on energy (oil and gas) spent in producing each dollar in the United States’ output. Additionally, there has been a shift in production techniques, that is, the current technologies only require a small amount of energy for production compared to the 1970s and 1980s technologies (United States, 1991). Economic experts estimate the current United States’ economy to be less than 33 percent dependent or sensitive to oil price fluctuation unlike over 55 percent less sensitivity in early 1980s and even more in the mid-1970s. (United States, Maloney, and Schumer, 2007) Finally, the Federal Government has since developed vigilant and adept monetary policies of handling inflationary

Critically evaluate the implications of public services outsourcing Essay

Critically evaluate the implications of public services outsourcing for the management of labour and industrial relations - Essay Example the outsourcing as an issue has drawn wide attention from different scholars, mostly those interested in the disentangling the effect of the value chain restructuring in the private firms. Nevertheless, there has been extremely limited systematic comparative research on the topic within the public sector organisations whereby the practitioners and the scholars majorly focus on the economic implications. The adoption of outsourcing strategies in the public sector has significantly impacted on the management of labour and industrial relations. Thus, drawing from the above, this paper aims at filling the gap, discussing the impacts of the outsourcing of the public services on the on the labour and the industrial relations structure in the public sector in the comparative perspective. The goal of this paper is twofold. First, it aims at disentangling the interplay of the restructuring towards the outsourcing of the public services, the terms of the employees and the dynamics and conditions of the employment relations in the various sectors across countries. Secondly, the study is focused on the examination of whether the impacts of the outsourcing cluster to result in the discernable convergent trajectories in any given sector or the country. Value chain analysis has been the alternative approach that revises on the thinking about how the outsourcing relationships should be structured and conceived. Outsourcing can be described as the form of the restructuring whereby â€Å"one organisation contracts with another for the provision of the particular goods and services† (Asher, 1987) instead of providing the goods or services directly. This inter-firm relationship directly impacts on the employment conditions and work organisation of the public services. The value chain analysis is a fundamental analytical tool for the disentangling how the external restructuring process impacts on the quality of the work and the employment relationships. The position of the

3D Printing in the world Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

3D Printing in the world - Research Paper Example This technique is a modern technique which differs in many ways from the machine techniques that were traditionally used. The traditional methods relied on the methods involving removal of materials such as cutting. This is why they were known as subtractive processes whereas 3D printing is known as additive process. The 3D printing uses the digital technology and these printers were initially manufactured by China. These printers came in the late 1980’s and ever since then they have been increasingly used all over the world. In the beginning of the 21st century, as the digital technology became more popular and advanced, the growth in the sales of the 3D printers was greatly observed. The sales of these printers increased in various parts of the world where they were used for new and innovative purposes. Gradually, as the sales and the demand grew, the costs of these printers fell immensely since they were first manufactured. Some of the purposes for which these machines were used were in industrial uses, architecture, jewelry, aerospace, engineering, medical, education, information systems and many others (Griffith, 2012). 3D printing is the technology to create materials and objects using a sequential layers technique. The materials which are produced by using the layering process can be anywhere in the product life cycle. However, the subtractive methods of manufacturing objects can be used as traditional methods in manufacturing. 3D printing was invented by Charles W. Hull (Chuck). In the mid 1980’s when it was invented, it used a stereolithography technique. This technique used a UV laser which was shined in the vat of an ultraviolet-sensitive photopolymer, and then it traced the object so that it was created on the surface. The polymer would solidify wherever it was touched by the beam, and that beam would print the particular object layer by layer as per the instructions fed in the CAD/CAM file through which it is working. CAD file is comp uter-aided design and CAM is computer-aided manufacturing. Chuck also founded a company which was called 3D Systems. The company made stereolithography machines which expensive machines of over $100,000 used in commercial techniques. 3D Systems is still operating today and now it sells the 3D printers of advanced technology. There is a variety of printers that are manufactured using different advanced technologies ranging from entry-level kits to the advanced commercial systems. The company also provides on-demand services manufacturing parts for business users. Many businesses and industries use the 3D printers and they need the machines to be up to date and maintained. There are many benefits of 3D printing which is why it is immensely used in the world today. Many designers use the 3D printing techniques to rapidly design the concepts and turn them into 3D models or rapid prototyping. It also allows for the rapid design changes which enables the designers to carry out their work rapidly and smoothly using the up to date technologies. The manufacturers are also allowed to produce the products rapidly on demand rather than on large run, which also increases the management of the sufficient amount of inventory and reduces the warehouse space. 3D printing techniques can help the people living in remote locations to fabricate the objects that would be inaccessible to them otherwise. 3D printing must be a onetime cost because once the designers and businesses have bought the machinery for 3D printing; they can save a lot of material and money which is used in subtractive techniques of manufacturing. The material in this technique is drilled, cut and shaved off; hence raw material can be wasted. 3D printing is

How the media portrayals Los Angeles Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

How the media portrayals Los Angeles - Essay Example However, issues such as homelessness, poverty, and unemployment are seldom brought to the limelight. In this perspective, the paper will argue that although there are people who lead lavish lifestyles in Los Angeles, there are numerous poor people who are unemployed and some even do not have houses to live in. LA is known for its celebrity culture as well as the film and television industry (Time Out). LA, nicknamed the City of Angels is known around the globe for the creation of television productions, recorded music, and video games, thus being the leader in the production of motion pictures as shown in the documentary Los Angeles Plays Itself. The media has often portrayed LA as place where people live lavish lifestyles and is full of celebrities, including dancer, filmmakers, musicians, actors, and writers living and working in LA. Such media include movies, television series, music, and video games. Some of the movies that talk about LA comprise of the following: Blade Runner (1982) that shows the dystopian LA in November 2019; the Terminator series that depicts the post-apocalyptic 2029 LA; LA Confidential (1997); Escape from LA, and The Core (2003) among others. Furthermore, some of the most popular television series that reference LA include FOX, Angel TV series, Law & Order: LA, Entourage TV series, L.A Law, and Real World: Los Angeles among others. However, in spite of the media showing LA as a place that is full of celebrities who own expensive cars and live in luxurious homes, there are numerous unemployed people and some are even homeless. Many are of the belief that homelessness is as a consequence of laziness or poor work ethic. Baker (417) argues that the increasing costs of acquiring living and poverty are other factors that contribute to homelessness in addition to unemployment and global conflict. Hafetz (1215) defines the homelessness as a person or family that has no access to fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime

One Is One and All Alone Essay Example for Free

One Is One and All Alone Essay â€Å"One is One and All Alone† by Nicholas Fisk is a science fiction story, set in 2045. The main character is Trish, an 11-year old girl who is the only child on a spaceship to Trion. Her father is the Executive Officer of the spaceship and her mother is in Trion helping to set up a space station. She will only meet her mother in mid January 2047. After three months, she feels lonely and bored as she does not have any real friends to talk to except her private, multi-functional diary: the Voice Printer (VP). VP is an intelligent computer which keeps Trish entertained with its ability to perform many functions. Through her dialogue sessions with VP, Trish learns about clones and the cloning process. The idea of cloning fascinates Trish and she soon decides to create a clone to keep her company in the spaceship Bio lab without her father’s knowledge. She names her new identical twin â€Å"Clo† and initially it becomes her perfect friend and companion. They have fun playing and sharing their time together. However, certain mannerism of Clo begins to irritate Trish as the clone behaves and thinks like her. Soon they start to argue and disagree with each other over trivial matters. The last straw happens one night when Clo starts referring to Trish’s mum as her mum and this upsets Trish as she feels her privacy is being invaded. The next day, Trish opens up her diary and confides in VP that she does not like to be â€Å"swamped, invaded and taken over.† At that instant, she decides to dispose off Clo forever through the â€Å"DISPOSAL† hatch near her cabin. The story ends with a twist when it is Trish who is disposed by Clo. Clo then assumes Trish’s identity and Trish’s dad is not aware of the change at all. Clo then enjoys being â€Å"one is one and all alone† and her new lease of life as Trish in the spaceship.

The Discourse And Discourse Analysis

The Discourse And Discourse Analysis The chapter elaborates the theoretical frameworks used in the present study. It covers the elaboration of mass media, fear and the theories of representation. This chapter also explains Discourse Analysis, the concept of Critical Discourse Analysis, Van Leeuwens framework-discourse as a recontextualization of social practice which is followed by Van Leeuwens notion of representing social actors and action (2008) and Kress and Van Leeuwens theory on Reading Image (2006). 2.1 Mass Media Mass media have become an important part of human life. People can not imagine how they would live without media, such as television, newspaper, magazine, or internet. Mass media today cover global phenomenon such as the programs on health risks, political elections, royal weddings, armed conflict, financial crises, and natural or man-made disaster. However, mass media are not free from ideology (ibid). Any reality (this may include fear) showed in mass media possibly adopts the perspective of dominant groups or the owner of mass media (Van Dijk, 1995). Thus, the following will discuss the concept of fear and mass media with CDA as the tools of analysis to unearth the ideology in particular online news (Kompas.com Detik.com). Here, CDA is very useful to discover hidden messages behind news as part of media discourse (Van Dijk, 1995). The construction of fear in news could also be revealed by employing CDA as the tool of analysis. To start the investigation of fear in the Indonesia online news, the concept of fear and mass media is discussed in the following section. 2.2 Mass Media and Fear Mass media also have potential to arouse and shape emotions locally as well as globally (Doveling, Scheve, Konjin, 2010).The examples are falling in love with one of the characters in a film, shedding tears in a dramatic event, shouting out loud to soccer player who fails to score, and many more. Those examples about specific characters and events are exclusively known via the media, although the audiences or the readers of the media have never met the characters or experienced the events yet. However, the audiences are moved by these examples emotionally. It is the reason why mass media have the potential to play with emotions while in fact nothing real needs to be going on. So, mass media are technically construed means to convey messages, yet they do not have emotions themselves (Doveling, Scheve, Konjin, 2010). Fear as noun is defined as an unpleasant often strong emotion caused by anticipation or awareness of danger; an instance of this emotion; a state marked by this emotion; anxious concern; profound reverence and awe especially toward God and reason for alarm (Merriam Webster Online Dictionary, 2012). Meanwhile, fear can also be regarded as a verb (transitive and intransitive). Merriam Webster Dictionary defines fear as follow: Transitive verb archaic : frighten archaic : to feel fear in (oneself) to have a reverential awe of to be afraid of : expect with alarm Intransitive verb to be afraid or apprehensive Fear pervades in mass media because mass media play a large role in shaping public agendas by influencing what people think about (Shaw and McCombs 1977 cited from Altheide et all, 1999). discourse of fear. It is defined as the pervasive communication, symbolic awareness and expectation that danger and risk are the central feature of the effective environment (Altheide et all, 1999) Altheide et all (1999) elaborate that there are three objects to help discovering fear in mass media. The objects are frame, theme, and discourse. The third object to reveal fear in mass media is through discourse. The investigation of construction fear in discourse is the focus in this study. Thus, the theory of representation which is a departing point to explain discourse and CDA is described in the next part. 2.3. Representation Representation as uncountable noun is the way that someone or something is shown or described while as a countable noun; while as countable noun, representation is understood as a sign, picture, or model of something (Cambridge Advance Learners dictionary 3rd Edition). The same view is also proposed by Longman Advanced America Dictionary which describes representation (countable or uncountable noun) as a way of showing or describing something in art, literature, newspaper, television, etc. Understanding representation is important since this theory can reveal how fear is represented in the online news media. Stuart Halls theory of representation is one of the prominent theories of representation. Hall does not define representation as just a way something described or shown but he goes deeper by defining representation as the production of meaning through language (Hall. 1997 p.1). He argues that language is able to construct meaning since it operates in operates as representational system (Hall, 1997 p.1). In representational system (language), signs are used to symbolize or represent objects, people, or events in real world (Hall, 1997). Moreover, signs can also represent imaginary, fantasy or abstract things (Hall, 1997 p.17), such as the concept of fear. Furthermore, there are two general models of representation; Ferdinand De Saussures and Michael Foucaults approaches to representation. Saussures model is semiotic model that can be defined as the link between the forms of expression used by language (signifier) and the mental concept with them (signified) (Hall, 1997). The second model is Foucaults model to representation. In contrast with Saussures model, Foucault (in Hall 1997 p.44) sees discourse as the system of representation (not language). He argues that meaning and meaningful practices are constructed in discourse, so it implies that nothing meaningful outside discourse (Foucault in Hall, 1997 p.44). Foucault is, then, defined discourse as a way of representing the knowledge about a particular topic at a particular historical monument. From this definition, it can be inferred that Foucault model of representation is historically and context specific where certain power and ideology are involved in producing discourse and knowledge. So far, the discussion of representation has elaborated how meaning is constructed. Two views are raised; meaning is constructed in Language (Saussures model of representation) or Discourse (Foucaults model of representation). This study, then, employs Foucaults model of representation (in Hall, 1997) since this model is more relevant to the tool of analysis of the study which is Critical Discourse Analysis (Van Leeuwens Framework, 2008). The model is chosen since the model of representation is more attached to the concept of knowledge, power, and ideology which are also the main notions of CDA. In order to enrich the understanding of discourse and critical discourses analysis, the elaboration of these concepts is explained in the following section. 2.4. Discourse and Discourse Analysis Discourse often means as an extended stretch of connected speech or writing a text (Van Leeuwen in Wodak and Meyer, 2009). However, some scholars develop a more profound definition of discourse; one of them is Foucault who defines discourses as socially constructed way of knowing some aspect of reality which can be drawn upon when that aspect of reality has to be represented. (Foucault, 1977 cited in Wodak and Meyer, 2009). From different point of view, Fairclough defines discourse as the representation of the world (Fairclough, 2003:124). It involves the representation of processes, relations and structures of the material worlds, the mental world of thought, feelings, beliefs, and the social world (Fairclough, 2003:124). He also distinguished discourse from text since discourse is used to refer to the whole process of social interaction while text is only the output of that process (Fairclough, 1989:24). These two scholars definitions of discourse give implication that discourse is not a just mere connected speech or writing. The notion of discourse raises the concept of reality, knowledge and power (Foucalt 1977 in Wodak and Meyer 2009) and the concept of world representation and social interaction (Fairclough 1989 and 2003). The discussion of discourse raises the question of how discourse is analyzed. Dicourse Analysis is, then, the process of analysis which aims to reveal the relationship between text and the elements of social practice in the society (Paltridge, 2006:2). Zellig Harris is first scholar who introduced the term Discourse Analysis in 1952. He defines Discourse Analysis as a way of analyzing connected speech and writing (Paltridge, 2006:2). Harriss study deals with the examination of language beyond the level of sentence and the investigation of relationship between linguistic and non-linguistic behavior. Afterward, the development of Discourse Analysis influences some areas of applied language study. One of these areas is Critical Discourse Analysis (abbreviated as CDA). CDA was developed based on the fact that the values which underlie texts are often hidden (Paltridge, 2006). The critical approach to Discourse Analysis will help reveal some of these hidden values. Corresponding to this, Fairclough (1992) also states that CDA focuses on how a discourse is produced in relation to power and ideology as well as the effects of the discourse on social identities, relations, knowledge and beliefs. Therefore, this study is geared toward investigating the construction of fear in online news media from discourse perspective (Altheide, 1999). The study is aim to reveal what the construction of fear signifies. These significations may lead to the relation of power, hidden values and ideology in the construction of fear. These significations are also the main notions of CDA. Thus, the more detailed explanation of CDA is explained in the following section. 2.5. Critical Discourse Analysis Paltridge (2006) elaborates Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) as the examination of the use of discourse in relation to its socio-cultural phenomena. It examines the way language is used in the discourse and social and cultural situation where it occurs. Distinctively, Van Dijk explains that CDA is a type of discourse analysis which studies the way social power abuse, dominance and inequality are enacted, reproduced and resisted by text and talk in the social and political context. (2008:85). Thus, it can be inferred that one of main purposes of CDA is to try to understand, demonstrate, and resist social inequality. Furthermore, Fairclough and Wodak elucidate eight main principles of CDA. First, CDA addresses social problems by observing the linguistic forms. The concept of power relations are negotiated and performed through discourse is the second principle. The next one is that discourse represents society and culture. Ideologies are produced and reflected in the use of discourse is the fourth principle. The fifth one regards discourse as historical which means that a discourse cannot be separated from discourses before it. The concept of CDA mediates text and society is the sixth principle. Next Principle, CDA is interpretative and explanatory. Last principle, discourse is a form of social action (Fairclough and Wodak, 1997, cited in Van Dijk, 2008:86). These eight main principles of CDA construct the basis for CDAs aim which is to gain a good understanding of how language functions in constituting or transferring knowledge or in exercising power (Wodak and Meyer, 2009). In order to achieve this understanding, CDA requires an interdisciplinary approach. Thus, CDA is not attempted to provide one specific theory. Researches in CDA are varied and come from different theoretical backgrounds. They are also concerned with different data as well as different methodologies. Theo Van Leeuwen is one of the CDA researchers who contributes his approach to CDA. His framework of discourse as the recontextualization of social practice is greatly affected by four important notions from Bernstein, Foucault, Halliday, and Martin (Van Leeuwen, 2008). Thus, the present study employs Van Leeuwens framework of discourse as the recontextualization of social practice (2008) as the main tool of analysis. This study focuses on how social actors and social actions are represented in the construction of fear. Van Leeuwens framework of CDA is also used to reveal what the construction of fear signifies (the power relation, hidden values and ideologies). The elaboration of Van Leeuwens approach to CDA is, then, presented in the next section. 2.6. Van Leeuwens Framework: Discourse as the Recontextualization of Social Practice Van Leeuwen (2008) explains discourse as outlines for the interpretation of reality. His framework on discourse presents methods for reconstructing these outlines through text analysis. It is based on four important notions from four theorists. It is built on Bernsteins concept of recontextualization, Hallidays theory of Transitivity, Foucaults theory of discourse, and Martins theory of activity sequences. (Van Leeuwen, 2008). First, the frameworks based on Bernstein concept of representation (1996). Bernstein defines recontextualization as one of the three fields of pedagogic devices (Bernstein, 1996, cited in Van Leeuwen 2008). It lies between the field of knowledge production and reproduction. The field production of new knowledge takes place in higher education institutions. The recontextualization of knowledge takes place in institutions which interpret education policies into curriculum. Furthermore, the reproduction of knowledge mostly takes place in schools. Bernstein argues that recontextualization regulates rule for delocating a discourse, for relocating it, for refocusing it. (cited in Van Leeuwen, 2008), Thus, it can be inferred that from Bernsteins perpective, recontextualization is shifted from its original position of production to another position where it is changed as it is related to other discourses. However, Van Leeuwen employs this concept in a more general sense. He also associates it to the theory of discourse constructed by Foucault. In Foucaults sense, discourse is a socially constructed knowledge of some social practices (Foucault, 1977, cited in Van Leeuwen, 2008:6). At this point, discourses are seen as the resource of representing social practices in text. It implies that texts can be used to reconstruct discourses. Subsequently, Van Leeuwens framework is also based on Martins concepts of the field of discourse, using lexical cohesion analysis to construct activity sequences-sequences of represented activity (Cited in Van Leeuwen, 2008:5). In building his framework, Van Leeuwen is motivated by the work of Martin concerning the represented activities, roles, setting, etc. Although Martins example is in the form of procedural text, Van Leeuwen argues that all texts should be interpreted as representation of social practices that consist of series of represented activities (van Leeuwen, 2008). 2.7. Representing Social Actors Theo Van Leeuwen (2008) has built an analysis framework regarding the representations of social actors in a text. The following section explains these categories further. 2.7.1. Inclusion and Exclusion In a text, not all of the social actors are presented directly for the readers to see; sometimes the readers have to infer them in one or two places, and sometimes the social actors are not at all present in the text. Whenever the social actors are present in a text, it is called inclusion; and whenever they are absent, it is called exclusion (Van Leeuwen , 2008). Excluded social actors can either be backgrounded or suppressed. If they are backgrounded, it means they can still be referred to somewhere in the text. However if the social actors are suppressed, it means they are not mentioned at all in the text. If the social actors are included in the text, we shall then see their role allocation, whether they are playing an active or passive role, whether they are presented generically or specifically, presented as an individual or as belong in a group, presented as unspecified or specified, referred to by name or category, referred to personally or impersonally, or whether they appear in more than one social practice at the same time (Van Leeuwen , 2008). Therefore, one way to reveal the construction of fear is to see how actors are represented in the discourse. It is important to reveal the representation of social actors since actors play vital role in creating meaning (fear) (Hall 1997, Altheide 1997, Bell, 2003). The exclusion and inclusion of the social actors in the discourse is able to reveal the relation of power and hidden values and ideology in the construction of fear in online news. The following figure is the network of representing social actor. Nomination Inclusionionion Exclusion ionion Supression Backgrounding ionion Activation ionion Passivationionion Participationionion Circumstatialization ionion Possesivation Impersonalization ionion Personalization ionion Determination Indetermination Genericization Specificization Abstraction Objectivation Individualization Assimilation Association Disassociation Differentiation Indifferentiation Categorizationh Single Determination Overdetermination Collectivization Aggregation Functionalization Identification Appraisement Formalization Informalization Titulation Detitulation Semiformalization Inversion Symbolization Connotation Distillation Classification Rel. Iden Physical Iden. Honorification Affiliation Anachronim Deviation FIGURE 1 Social Actor Network (Van Leeuwen, 2008:52) 2.7.2. Role Allocation Role Allocation in Van Leeuwens Framework of representing social actors is the role give to the actor to play in the representation (Van Leeuwen, 2008). The first role allocation is that social actors in a text can either be activated or passivated. Activation and passivation of the social actors can be realized through participation, circumstantialisation and possessivation. When social actors participate in a given activity, participation occurs. While, Circumstantialisation happens when social actors are put within the circumstance. Furthermore, Possessivation happens when social actors become the possession of others (Van Leeuwen 2008). When social actors are passivated, they can either be subjected or beneficialised. Subjected social actors are treated as objects in the representation, while beneficialised social actors are the ones who benefits, either positively or negatively, from the action (Van Leeuwen , 2008). 2.7.3. Genericisation and Specification Talking about genericisation and specification means talking about whether the social actors are represented as classes, or as specific individuals which can be identified. Genericisation can be realized through the plural without article, the singular with the definite article, or mass nouns (a group of participants). Meanwhile specification can be realized through specific nouns or using numerative before the noun. In addition, mass nouns can also signify specification if the tense is not present tense (Van Leeuwen , 2008) 2.7.4. Assimilation and Individualisation The third distinction of role allocation is assimilation and individualization. This role allocation concern about whether the social actors are represented as groups or individuals. The difference lies in the singular and plural form of the social actors. Genericisation and specification can represent social actors either in singular or plural form. Meanwhile, assimilation represents social actors as groups, represents them in plural form. Individualization, The reference of social actors as individuals is called Individualization. Individulaized social actors always be represented them in singular form. Furthermore, assimilation consists of two types; aggregation and collectivization. Aggregation is understood as quantifying groups of participants and treats them as statistics, while collectivization does not. Aggregation is also realized by the presence of definite or indefinite quantifiers which either functions as the numerative or as the head of nominal group. Meanwhile, Collectivization can be realized by a mass noun or a noun denoting a group of people (Van Leeuwen , 2008). 2.7.5. Association and Dissociation A further distinction of the social actor is association and disassociation. It deals when social actors or a group of social actors represented in a text as forming a group, however the group is never labeled. Association can be realized through parataxis, circumstance of accompaniment, possessive pronouns and possessive attributive clauses with verbs such as have and belong (Van Leeuwen , 2008). 2.7.6. Indetermination and Differentiation The notion of indetermination and differentiation deals with whether or not social actors are represented as unspecified or specified. Indetermination, which anonymizes social actors, can be realized through indefinite pronouns and generalized exophoric reference, while differentiation can be realized through specific adjectives (Van Leeuwen , 2008). 2.7.7. Nomination and Categorization Nomination occurs when social actors are represented based on their unique identities, while categorization occurs when they are represented based on their identities and functions which they share with others. Nomination is generally realized by proper noun, in the form of formal (surname only, with or without honorifics), semiformal (given name and surname) or informal (given name only) (Van Leeuwen , 2008). 2.7.8. Functionalization and Identification When social actors are categorized, they can either be represented by means of functionalization or identification. Functionalization occurs when social actors are represented based on what they do; or blatantly put, what they function as, while identification occurs when social actors are represented based on what they are. (Van Leeuwen , 2008). Functionalization is usually realized in one of the following ways: first by a noun formed from verb by adding suffixes, such as -er in interviewer; second by a noun denoting a place or tool closely associated with an activity through suffixes, such as -ist in violist; and third by compounding nouns denoting places or tools closely related with an activity and highly generalized categorizations, such as compounding swords and man into swordsman. In addition, identification has three types, namely classification, relational identification and physical identification. Classification happens when social actors are represented based on their class, age, gender, race, religion, etc. Relational identification happens when social actors are represented based on their relationship or kinship with others. It can be realized by possessive pronoun, postmodifying phrase, or genitive. Physical identification happens when social actors are represented based on their physical characteristics (Van Leeuwen , 2008). 2.7.9. Impersonalisation and Personalisation Impersonalisation and personalization deal with whether social actors are represented as human beings or not. All of the aforementioned categories of social actors representation fall into personalization, because all of them represent social actors as having the quality of human beings. On the other hand,impersonalisation does not represent social actors as having the quality of human beings. Moreover, impersonalisation is divided into two types, namely abstraction and objectivation. Abstraction occurs when social actors are represented by means of quality assign to them, and objectivation occurs when social actors are represented by a place or thing closely related either with the person or with the action in which they are engaged. If they are represented by a place, it is called spatialization; if they are represented by their utterance, what they say or what they write, it is called utterance autonomization; if they are represented by the instrument or tool they use for action, it is called instrumentialization; and if they are represented by a part of their body, it is called somatization. In addition, Leeuwen noted that impersonalisation can background the identity and/or role of social actors, can lend impersonal authority or force to an activity or quality of a social actor, and can add positive or negative connotations to an activity or utterance of a social actor. Impersonalizing social actors takes the audiences focus or attention away from the social actors themselves, emphasizing on the abstract concept, quality or object that is assigned to them (Van Leeuwen , 2008). 2.7.10. Overdetermination Overdetermination occurs when social actors are represented as participating, at the same time, in more than one social practice. It is one of the ways in which texts can legitimize practices. There are four kinds of overdetermination, namely inversion, symbolization, connotation and distillation (Van Leeuwen , 2008). Inversion happens when social actors are connected to two practices which are each others opposite. A well-known example for this, as mentioned by Leeuwen as well, is The Flintstones. The Flintstones family is depicted as people from pre-historic era, as seen from their clothes that are made of animals hides and their house that is made from rocks and stones, yet they do activities that are common in modern era, like watching television, playing bowling and hanging out in a night club. Symbolization happens when fictional social actors stand for actors in non-fictional social practices. Distillation is the combination of generalization and abstraction. It connects social actors to several social practices by abstracting the same feature from social actors involved in these several practices (Van Leeuwen , 2008). This present study utilizes this role allocation in the chosen online news article as the main analysis of the social actor. As mentioned before, the analysis of role allocation aims to reveal how representations of the social actors are allocated in the discourse. This allocation, then, reveals the power relation, hidden values and ideologies in representing social actors in the discourse of fear. 2.8. Representing Social Action The main question that encourages Van Leeuwen in constructing the social action network is that What are the ways in which social action can be represented in English discourse? (2008:3). He believes that the representational choices of actions in the discourse contain meanings that could help to understand the whole discourse. The next section presents the main ways in which social action can be transformed in a discourse (Van Leeuwen , 2008). 2.7 Van Leeuwens Social Action Network This social action network presents the ways in which actions and reactions can be represented in discourse. Figure 1 shows the social action network that is developed by Van Leeuwen. Social Action Reaction Action Activation Deactivation Agentialization Deagentialization Abstraction Concretization Unspecified Cognitive Affective Perceptive Material Transactive Nontransactive Interactive Instrumental Semiotic Behavioral Nonbehavioral Single Determination Overdetermination Form specification Topic specification Rendition Quotation Objectivation Descriptivization Generalization Distillation Eventuation Existentialization Naturalization Symbolization Inversion FIGURE 2. The Social Action Network: The Representation of Actions and Reactions (Van Leeuwen, 2008:73) 2.9.1 Reactions Reactions is understood as the emotions and attitudes toward belong to these actions of the social actors (Van Leeuwen, 2008). Typically, a discourse presents the social actions along with the reactions following them. The way to differentiate the reactions from actions grammatically is by using the criteria in Hallidays transitivity theory of mental processes. According to Van Leeuwen (2008), there are four conditions of mental processes which distinct them from the processes that realizing actions (such as, material, behavioral, or verbal processes). Van Leeuwens argument in mental process is based on Hallidays theory of transitivity (`967-1968, 1985). He argues that the mental processes cannot be probed by a do question. Second, mental processes use the simple present form while material, behavioral, and verbal processes take the progressive present form. Third, the participant of a mental process, the senser, must be a human or is treated as competent of human mental processes. Conclusively, the object of the mental processes can be realized by a clause as well as by a nominal group. (Van Leeuwen, 2008 These four criteria, however in Van Leeuwens view, are not always fully adequate to identify the actions and reactions in the actual text (2008). It is because the identification of actions and reactions is bounded by the grammar of the clause and fails to provide recognition criteria for actions and reactions in the text that use other linguistic level such as nominal group. Another problem is that many reactions are not represented dynamically by mental process clause, for instance, they feared . They can also be represented statically by descriptive clause such as they were afraid. (Van Leeuwen, 2008:57). Halliday solves those problems through his theory of grammatical metaphor (1985). It covers the idea that the concept of mental process is realized literally when it is realized by the grammatical category of mental process; it is realized metaphorically when it is realized in other ways. For examples, it is realized by a static descriptive clause or by elements of nominal group. Those two ways of representing reactions-metaphorically or literally-suggest that there are different metaphors available for representing the reactions. Reactions can be formulated in a number of ways. They can be unspecified through verbs like react and respond denoting a reaction directly. They can also be specified; they are represented as particular types of reactions. In accordance to these, Halliday (cited in Eggins, 2004) differentiates three types of reactions: cognitive (verbs of thinking, knowing, understanding, etc.); affective (verbs of liking, fearing, etc.), and perceptive (verbs of seeing, hearing, perceiving, etc.). 2.9.2 Mat

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Parental styles have a well-documented influence on children, and play a strong role in a child’s development. Authoritative parenting has been proven to potentially reduce a child’s risk of associating with antisocial peers, and deter engagement in delinquent behavior. Authoritative parenting has also been shown to raise adults that have healthy emotional adjustment and prosocial behavior. My parents used an authoritative parenting style that created a stable, engaging, warm and nurturing childhood for me. I plan on being an authoritative parent. It worked well in my family, and because research both contemporary and historically states that authoritative parenting is the preferable style. My family is an American nuclear family composed of a father, mother and two siblings. My father Jim is a very successful architect and entrepreneur and my mother Michele is the CFO of their businesses, which allowed her to be a stay at home mother for me and my older brother Kristopher. My parents are a solid example of the authoritative parenting style; their parenting style created a stable, engaging, warm and nurturing childhood for me. I believe the productive and effective business relationship they developed as business partners directly influenced how well they parented, and that their experience in joint decision making especially benefited their parenting, and ultimately me as well. Throughout my childhood and adolescence they were a solid authoritative parenting team, which helped them create a home with a lot of structure. Minuchin, as quoted by Omer, Steinmetz, Carthy and Schlippe (2013), says â€Å"Structure plays a crucial role in promoting a stable and secure frame for family life (Minuchin, 1974).† I strongly feel that the structure positively affected my development by minimizing conflict and confusion. I believe my parent’s personalities also greatly influenced why and how they are authoritative parents. My mother is intelligent, articulate, willful, persistent, ethical, logical, and astonishingly organized. My mother has a dominate personality, and is a woman whose actions are generally the result of reason not her emotions, which is rare for women. However, she is an incredibly warm and nurturing mother who has always been emotionally available for me. I feel these positive traits influenced why I generally listened to her advice and direction, as she was a reliable and available mother. I have always immensely respected and loved

Child Abortion Essay

Pregnancy is the common we always see as a result of marriage and love. For some people, it is a good news to be pregnant, but it is also a very bad and unexpected thing. There are many reasons to says that it is appropriate to have a baby.There are many difficulties to have an abortion in the past; nowadays, couples can do that legally. As the abortion become a common thing, many people abuse and see it in an improper perspective, which results in loosening their aborting decisions. Abortion comes in many forms because of different reasons causes it. The biggest reason which causes abortion is sex-selection. Sex-selection has been practiced in the past; but in the modern world, they reduced much but some are still doing it silently. A very clear example of how abortion is practicing nowadays is from the article of Artemisia Ng., when she mentioned a story refers to the abortion that happens in China. In â€Å"Protecting women and girls in China, where one child per family is the rule – and a boy the preference†, Chai was a protester who was being wanted in China. Artemisia Ng. included Chai’s thought in the article: â€Å"Chai was referring to China’s one-child policy, in which officials force pregnant women to abort their babies. In place since 1979, the â€Å"one child† rule has prompted many Chinese to practice sex selection, using ultrasound screenings to determine whether the fetus is a boy or girl and then aborting females or abandoning them after birth to orphanages. More than 35,000 forced abortions were performed in China each day in 2009.†( Ng.) This information is really shocking; just in China, that is an average of over ten millions of babies is being killed each year. Since the Chinese refer to male babies, the ratio between boy and girls will increase dramatically. The effect of this abortion affect the geography factors; but more importantly, it is breaking the society morals. New technologies may be the cure to end abortion in developed countries. As in the essays by Rajani Bhatia, United States has discovered the new method to have a baby without a wife or husband. This is the solution to eliminate the issue which stated above, society morals. In â€Å"Constructing Gender from the Inside Out: Sex-Selection Practices in the United States†, Rajani Bhatia states factors that makes the sex-selection in United States become normal. According to the author, one of the factor is: â€Å"They are the emergence of a second generation of medicalized sex-selection technologies performed prior to pregnancy, the increasing publicity about these technologies in the popular media, and the formation of active Internet support groups for individuals who desire to preselect the sex of their children† (Bhatia). The other factor that would result couples to have an abortion is the disease or disability of the future baby. Parents often decide not to have the baby if they get bad results from the analyzing of their baby’s health. Sometimes, in analyzing, if there are posibilities that the baby have disease or disability, the couples may also abort the baby instead of taking the risk. The immoral here is that if the baby is healthy, then they have killed one innocent life. Analyzing and screening the baby before giving birth has became a trend all over the world; that makes the possibilities of abortion quickly increase. This factor might be the reason for people to use to justify their abortion action, make it become less significant. But the truth is that it is still an abortion; every child deserve to live. Work Cited Bhatia Rajani. â€Å"Constructing Gender from the Inside Out: Sex-Selection Practices in the United States.† Feminist Studies Summer 2010, Vol. 36, Iss. 2; pg. 260, ProQuest. Web 21 Nov. 2010. Artemisia Ng. â€Å"Protecting women and girls in China, where one child per family is the rule – and a boy the preference. † The Christian Science Monitor 16 Aug. 2010, ProQuest National Newspapers Expanded, ProQuest. Web. 21 Nov. 2010.

Leadership and Roles of Graduate Nurse

After taking the leadership quiz, it was revealed to me that I am a Participative leader. This type of leadership style describes me very well and up holds my beliefs and values in leadership. Understanding the meaning of participative leadership style helps me understand to roles that are required for this style of leadership. As a participative leader one listens to what the team has to say and allow them to express their opinions, ideas, and suggestions to make decisions and solve problems.However, as the leader of the team he or she has the final say in making the decisions. A participative leader supports and encourages his or hers team. The effectiveness of this leadership leads to correct decision for all that is involved. The leader of participative style uses the team's creativity, knowledge, skills, and education to help reach the decisions. A leader who does this is considered fair and not favoring one side or the other.Leaders with the above qualities and characteristics lead to great leadership. The attributes of participative leaders has great respect from their team. From my experience as a staff nurse in the ED, it takes great teamwork to deal with the everyday stress and the call of duty in the ED; this only can come from a department with great leadership. I have had leaders who will server right beside you and help when things go crazy and I have had leaders who will sit in their offices and not come out to help at all.I prefer the lead that will come out and will answer the call light, place a patient on the bedpan, take a patient to the floor, and give you a bathroom or lunch break. My leaders have allowed me to cry when needed too, and not appear weak, vent when a patient or family is being demanding, listen to my concerns and not view them to being negative or complaining and willing to take my concerns and make changes to help all. A good leader does not allow the authority to overcome the reasons why he or she became a nurse in the firs t place.I believe that one of my strong attribute to participative leadership is encouraging others and lifting them up with words of appreciation and gratitude. From my experience a few words of appreciation and a pat on the back builds relationships and teamwork. I have always lived by the motto â€Å"Lead by example† and that is what I believe we all should do not just in nursing but also in everyday life. Actions speak louder than words in any type of leadership one has.A would have to say that one of my weakness in leadership that I would need to work on is being too sensitive at times and not taking constructive critism very well. Therefore, this is an area that I am willing to grow and learn from as I continue my education as APN. A quote that I feel that goes along with participative leadership: â€Å"Recognize the talent of others and acknowledge it† by Gloria Smith, PhD. , RN, FANN of the W. K. Kellogg Foundation (Burnham, 07). This quote covers all the meani ngs of participative leader style from listening to praising.

Dominant Position of a Company

According to the European competition case law, a dominant position is defined as â€Å"the power of a firm to behave to an appreciable extent independently of its competitors, customers and consumers†. It is obvious that a firm or several firms which hold a dominant position can determine price, the amount of production, supply and this is because these firms can act independently of their competitors and customers.As a result, dominant position can lead to the market power and in this situation a firm or several firms have an ability to individually make a big influence on the price and total quantity produced which could result to the market failure. But does this definition make an economic sense and how it should be interpreted in monopoly and oligopoly? Firstly, we need to understand exactly the actual meaning of a dominant position.It is a situation when a firm has an ability to behave independently of its competitors, customers and ultimately the final consumer. A well known example of monopolistic dominance is Microsoft’s market in PC operating systems. In monopoly some members in a market can gain market power allowing them to stop other important gains from trades and this can make the allocation of recourses inefficient due to imperfect competition. As going back to my example, Microsoft illegally used its market power by bundling its web browser with its operating system.In economics, market power is the ability of a firm to independently determine the market price and the production of a good or a service, of course, in perfectly competitive markets – market power vanishes. From this example we actually see that Microsoft has an ability to make a big influence on the price or other outcomes in the market by using its dominant position because that kind of a firm can raise price, outcomes without worrying of losing its customers.On the other hand, not only one firm can hold a dominant position, but also a dominant position can be held among several firms and this is called oligopolistic dominance. For example: in 2008 Verizon, AT&T, Sprint, Nextel and T-Mobile together controlled approximately 89 % of the United States cellular phone market. In this situation sometimes firms can decide to make some secret agreements in order, for example, to raise prices of cellular phones leading to the profit maximization, knowing that they still are not going to lose their costumers.Of course, there is opinion that oligopoly is better than monopoly, because oligopolistic dominance (several firms who have a dominant position) could help to stabilize unstable markets, for example dominant firms could set some kind of prices which could help other producers to survive in the certain market and this is called a price leadership, however the welfare of economics in oligopoly is not easy to analyze and to determine if it is going to have a positive reaction.Furthermore, now we know that the definition of dominant position ma kes an economic sense, because when a firm has a power to behave independently and can make a big influence on the welfare of the economics (prices, total quantity produced, efficiency in allocating the resources), market power and later market failure could occur. We also know that a market failure is a situation when the allocation of recourses is inefficient due to imperfect competition when not all sellers and buyers can be satisfied.In order to prevent market failure, each government imposes some policies such as subsidies, taxes, minimum wage, some price controls, however sometimes happens that these policies also create inefficiency in allocating the recourses and it is called government failure. Going back to the original topic, dominant position is not an exception.According to the European competition case law, dominant positions are not forbidden but in order for firms not to abuse that position they have a special responsibility: dominant firms must not allow their strat egic decisions to make a negative influence on competition in the market, in other words, dominant firms cannot intentionally prevent or eliminate competition. Moreover, in order to determine the definition of dominant position in monopoly, at first we need to understand the basic aspects of it.Monopoly is a situation when a certain agent is the only one who supplies a particular good, of course, it is obvious that this market has a lack of economic competition. In monopoly a company has a much bigger profit than it could expect in competitive market, because that only firm regulates all the prices and services for that certain good. As a result, it can raise the price and maximize its profit without worrying of losing its customers. So, the dominant position in monopoly is a market with a single agent which has a power to operate independently and has an ability to make a big influence on the prices and production.Finally, to do the same in oligopoly we also need to understand the basic aspects of it. Oligopoly is the market share of several firms which together make a big influence to the price or other outcomes of a certain market, however the difference between monopoly and oligopoly is that in oligopoly firms do not operate independently, because then they could lose some of their customers to their competitors. That is why several dominant firms always try to cooperate together and sometimes they even make some secret agreements in order to maximize their profits.So, the dominant position in oligopoly is the market share of several dominant firms who have an ability to make big influence on the prices and production. To sum up, we actually see that a dominant position can be defined variously in different areas but still all definitions will have the same meaning: a dominant position creates a market power which evidence to the inefficiency of allocating the resources in economic markets and sometimes leading to the market failure, but in some cases domi nant position is the key of stabilizing unstable markets.

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

Summery - Essay Example (Richardson) Most of the people believe that teachers are reluctant in implementing changes in their teaching strategies because they feel threatened, defensive, and perhaps rushed when somebody demands change in their methods. In fact teachers undertake change voluntarily, following their sense of what their students need and what is working. Voluntary change is what teachers actually do in their classrooms; it does not necessarily lead to exemplary teaching (Richardson) The induction teacher’s and experienced teacher’s approach to the change management may be different. The induction teachers experienced more change in their beliefs than their practices, whereas experienced teachers demonstrated more change in their practices than their beliefs. (Luft,p. 531) The experienced teachers always have a strong belief in the traditional methods of teaching; but they were forced to change their practices because of the external pressure from the authorities. On the other hand, the induction teachers may not have much practical experiences and their beliefs also may not be adequate. So they will be more flexible as far as change in beliefs is concerned. â€Å"If all teachers make decisions autonomously, the schooling of an individual student could be quite incoherent and ineffective. This, too, suggests that help, direction, or encouragement provided to staff rather than to individuals could be necessary to promote change that is valuable to the learner† (Richardson) Beliefs are critical when it comes to understanding a teacher’s practice. For example, two mathematics teachers with similar knowledge may taught in different ways. Understanding of beliefs was more useful in predicting teachers’ classroom decisions (Luft & Roehrig p.40) Institutions cannot behave like a market place where all the deals were based on competitions and bargaining. It should be functioned in a

Lorenzo's Oil Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Lorenzo's Oil - Essay Example Also featured as an important aspect of this film is the way that the home care nurses treated their patient whom they knew was an invalid. Their negativism was poisonous to the childs environment and contributed to the undue stress that the child and the family were already experiencing. The main thing that inspired me about the family in this movie was the fact that they never allowed anyone to tell them what they could and could not do for their son. The Odones are the epitome of parents who put everything on the line in order to give their son a life. Granted that it may have not been a life that the boy would have chosen for himself and maybe, the boy at a certain point was already begging to die, but what kind of person would give up on his own life when his own family has fought so hard to keep him alive? Lorenzo himself was an inspiration as he bravely battled his physical and inner demons in order to continue with his life and his mission. Unbeknownst to the boy, he became a symbol of hope for all those suffering from ALD and his own family was a beacon of light for those who needed more than just medical jargon being spouted at them. It is because of this positive attitude of the Odones that I was saddened to see Lorenzos two medical nurses display such unprofessional behavior while caring for him. A nurse is by profession a care giver. A person who helps care for those who are ill and assist the family in dealing with their already trying situation. It is never the place of the nurse to dictate to the parents of the patient regarding what kind of medical treatment they think the patient should be having. A nurse should also display an uncanny sense of empathy for the ill and his parents. The attitude of the second nurse in the movie was something that should be disapproved of by any parent. Whether the patient is conscious of his position and condition or not, the latter should always be assumed

History about Elizabethan theatre Research Paper

History about Elizabethan theatre - Research Paper Example Christopher Marlowe, Edmund Spenser, Sir Philip Sidney and William Shakespeare were a major influence on the progression of the Elizabethan Theater. William Shakespeare’s comedies and tragedies influenced the primary theoretical performances during their era. It is, therefore, imperative to assert that Elizabethan Theater exemplifies England’s structural, historical and theatre production principles that were shaped to a large extent by the influence of William Shakespeare. William Shakespeare’s limelight debut as a famous playwright was largely influenced by the death of Christopher Marlowe who was also influential in the molding of early theaters. At this time, he was famous for the play â€Å"Henry VI†. In 1954, when â€Å"Romeo and Juliet† and â€Å"Love’s Labour’s Lost† were performed, he became an icon in the theatre performance (Lee, 1898). Shakespeare influenced the Elizabethan Theater by determining the theme of the plays, drama and other performance as well as the role of different people in the theatre. During his time, playwrights, actors, and theaters owners acquired a new status of upper classmen in England, they got acknowledgment and rose higher in the society. Shakespeare lay the foundation for performance entertainment where comedies and tragedies were intertwined as more people were shifting from just wanting to watch comedies alone. The popularity of comedy and tragedy during Shakespeares er a led to a distinction between the two through a differentiation in their writing. Tragedy writers were guided by Aristotle’s definition of tragedy where a hero or heroine would be brought down by forces under their own control, but fate or through hubris. However, Romeo, Macbeth and Timon did not seem to adhere to this definition. Comedy was inspired by Plautus and Terence Roman "New Comedy". As such, comedies were happy tales about family affairs, domestic troubles and love but avoided politics (Arnold, 1989).

Commentary on Endo Shusakus When I Whistle Essay

Commentary on Endo Shusakus When I Whistle - Essay Example When Ueda finally mentions a teacher that he knows will make Ozu recognize him, he touches him, a gesture considered an affirmation to reaffirm the recall of what transpired. At the mention of the teacher ('old Rat Hole'), Endo has slowly started to weave a tapestry of events by which Ozu will recall his past. Ozu's "half pleased and half pained smile" elicits questions from the readers - was he half pleased to realize he actually remembered, or that he was meeting someone from his past Was he half pained because he realizes how distant it was Ozu's pronouncement that he does not attend any of the reunions reflects his personality as a simple man. Reunions are not a special event for him, especially with those who did not contribute much in his life and therefore weren't actually given a special place in his memory; the same does for him during reunions. He was not within the capacity nor is he the type to spend time to mingle and socialize. Of the three characters, Ozu is the most interesting. He is indeed the main protagonist, but rather have the entire novel revolve around him, the first part starts with the narration of how special people and events in Ozu's life was guaranteed to last a lifetime. Endo plainly presents the setting and environment by which his novel is to start - a time when industrialization was sure to stay in Japan. The train passed Lake Hamana. Smoke flowed slowly from the factor chimneys. In the distance, the white buildings of a housing development stretched out in the afternoon sun. (Endo 2) It was during the 1970s that Japan experienced a tremendous shift since the arrival of manufacturing, where industrialization became widely implemented, and a new way of life was slowly being suggested and eventually superseded the traditional way of life in Japan. Settlers in the cities grew in number as jobs in industrial factories also increased. Upon mentioning by Ueda that their former school, Nada Middle-School, has now become the topnotch education institution in their country, Ozu recognizes the immense change - it used to be a place that housed "a lot of the students who couldn't make it into any other middle school" (1). Ozu was not ignorant; he has already heard of the news about their former middle-school, even learning that some parents move near the school in order to have their children attend the school. Such efforts just so parents can support their children as they attend the brightest school in the country affirms the notion of how attaining a grand education has now become the primary goal of families inculcated from parents to children to grandchildren, forgetting the simplicities of a basic life that used to be what Japan had, usually traditional way of life that is content with produce from the farm or from fishing. When Ozu's son tells him , "I just can't believe you went to Nada, Dad," (2) Endo introduces us to this new character who, as we learn through the novel, was a young struggling doctor with desires constituting the Western concepts of life, particularly skilled workers and industrialization, at a time when investing on securing children a good education to declare their social status as somewhere up the

Importance of teaching methods in graduate programs Essay

Importance of teaching methods in graduate programs - Essay Example In the University’s English program, teachers are highly qualified who hold great experience in teaching. They hold majors in English and have the expertise to bring quality education for students. Teachers are mostly native speakers which make them highly presentable and communicable. This is sufficient for international students as they get a chance to learn a foreign language in a native manner. At Guelph University, teachers are well trained in tutoring. They make the best use of text books, training guides and group works to bring comprehensive learning experience for students. Teachers also use the help of multimedia in assisting students to learn visually because students tend to remember and recall things quite well with the visual sightseeing. Collaborative learning practices are exercised in the university which helps them in deeper learning and understanding of a particular subject. The students also feel less isolated and enjoy study in groups which increases their interest tenfold. While performing in the group work the students are less burdened with work and tasks are divided.Teachers organize regular tutorial programs to enhance students writing and verbal communication skills. Moreover, they engage international students with Canadian locals, and this is to improve students’ interpersonal skill and talent. By doing so, international students have the opportunity to practice their vocal skills while communicating with Canadian speakers. It also develops better frequency of speaking in English.