The Creation of Excitement in Sports Commentaries Essay

Introduction: The 2012 London Olympics was a phenomenal media event, with the BBC reporting that 90% of the UK population tuned in to watch at least fifteen minutes of the television coverage. Televised sport regularly boasts impressive viewing figures, but the Olympic Games generally entices the public more than most, with people all over the world encapsulated by the international contests. On Saturday 11th August 2012, Mo Farah won the Olympic gold medal for the men’s 5000m race to secure a historic double triumph, and Britain erupted with pride. According to many theorists (Gantz 1981, Gantz and Wenner 1995 etc.), entertainment is the main reason why people watch sport, and the nature of the commentary which accompanies such occasions†¦show more content†¦In relation to sport, it could be argued that allegiances to certain sportspeople/teams are the reason why many watch and enjoy it its coverage (Zillmann, Bryant and Sapolsky 1989, and Raney 2006b). This application was later renamed the ‘Disposition Theory of Sports Spectatorship’ in Zillman and Paulus (1993). Finally, while commentators are normally restricted to objective, neutral reporting, when broadcasting an event involving a national team/figure to the country they represent, this practice may be temporarily abandoned. Theodoropolou (2008) has labelled this ‘Triumphalese’, and is clearly relevant to the Mo Farah commentary, where the BBC speaker is undoubtedly supporting the British athlete. Such emotional attachment can further increase spectator excitement, as the public can identify with the passion they hear. Commentary Analysis: ‘Triumphalese’ Theodoropolou coined the term ‘triumphalese’ when analysing Greek media coverage of their country’s surprising success at the 2004 European Championships. She noticed deviation from the standard broadcasting convention of impartiality, and highlighted a number of features which revealed commentator bias. The commentary of the Mo Farah race displays similar characteristics, especially the finalShow MoreRelatedOppression In Women1103 Words   |  5 Pagestheir personal brand. This double-bind leaves little room for individualism, and systemically folds an entire persona into a box (see oppression). This dynamic is prevalent across many social institutions, in particular the world of sports. Spectators of professional sports need to be held accountable for their oppressive interactions with athletes, specifically those who are women of color, because spectators allow internalized racism and misogyny to become a subtle agent of discrete oppression whenRead MoreA Stud y on Singapore Grand Prix13290 Words   |  54 Pagesto identify the advantages and disadvantages of Singapore’s staging of such an iconic event and whether we have the capabilities in regards to both internal and external factors to continue hosting the event and anchor it as one of the many premier sport event in the world. The project also consists of a comprehensive marketing plan that details what Singapore Grand Prix is doing right with additional explanations of target markets and suggestions for the future editions if the contract for the raceRead MoreProduct Placement10682 Words   |  43 Pagesplot of a film or television show is generally called brand integration. An early example of such brand integration was by Abercrombie Fitch when one of its stores provided the notional venue for part of the romantic-comedy film Mans Favourite Sport? (1964) starring Rock Hudson and Paula Prentiss. The 1995 film GoldenEye was the focus of a highly successful BMW campaign, devised by product placement specialist Karen Sortito, which promoted the automakers new Z3 model. Sales of the Z3 surged asRead MoreFor Against by L.G. Alexander31987 Words   |  128 Pagesbest 9 Only strieter traffic laws can prevent accidents 10 Parents are too permissive with their children nowadays II 12 Advertisers perform a useful service to the community Pop stars certainly earn their money 13 Vicious and dangerous sports should be banned by law 14 Transistor radios should be prohibited in public places 15 The only thing people are interested in today is earning more money 16 Compulsory military service should be abolished in all countries 17 Childhood is certainlyRead MoreProduct Placement10670 Words   |  43 Pagesof a film or television show is generally called brand integration. An early example of such brand integration was by Abercrombie Fitch when one of its stores provided the notional venue for part of the romantic-comedy film Mans Favourite Sport? (1964) starring Rock Hudson and Paula Prentiss. The 1995 film GoldenEye was the focus of a highly successful BMW campaign, devised by product placement specialist Karen Sortito, which promoted the automakers new Z3 model. Sales of the Z3 surgedRead MoreFormula One24819 Words   |  100 Pagesbetween Formula One sponsor- ships, enhanced brand image and increased brand awareness. Thereby exploring the possible connection between Formula One sponsorships and brand equity. The dissertation offers an extensive literature review connecting sport sponsorship, in particular Formula One sponsorship, to important marketing topics, such as brand equity and buyer behaviour. The primary research process involved the conduction of a survey carried out on 37 Formula One sponsors. The research wasRead MoreThe World Is Flat8659 Words   |  35 PagesHe is the president of Georgia Institute of Technology. When Clough became president of the college the graduation rate was only 65% and the atmosphere was dull. By altering the admission process to favor students who played a musical instrument or sports, Clough transformed the mood of the college. Students are more creative and have a higher rate of graduation. Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels Marx and Engels coauthored the Communist Manifesto, which has become one of the most influential politicalRead MoreIntercultural Communication of American Tv Series in China6643 Words   |  27 Pagestechnology have made it possible for previously stable cultures to meet in unstructured situations,In fact, American culture is through music, sports, movies and other means, more and more affecting the entire worlds cultural patterns. TV series are a type of mass media as well as artistic works which load the culture as one type of literary and artistic creation. It is a special type of language codes and important cultural carrier. Audiences read or interpret the foreign life style, social customsRead MoreTrends in Workplace17940 Words   |  72 PagesInternet, intelligent tutoring systems, learning objects, and voice recognition. Two important developments in the marketplace for workplace learning, where supply meets demand, are the ongoing consolidation within the supplier community and the creation of an electronic marketplace where buyers and sellers of learning products and tools can meet virtually. Demand and supply--powerful, global forces that cannot be escaped but that can be harnessed to your advantage. So read on for a glimpse of whatRead MoreMarketing Mistakes and Successes175322 Words   |  702 Pagesdevil’s advocate invitation (a devil’s advocate is one who argues an opposing viewpoint for the sake of testing the decision). There are also discussion questions for the various boxes within chapters. While doing these activities, you may feel the excitement and challenge of decision making under conditions of uncertainty. Perhaps you may even become a fast-track executive and make better decisions. QUESTIONS 1. Do you agree that it is impossible for a firm to avoid mistakes? Why or why not?

Speech in Relation to Intelligence and Success - 2427 Words

Speech is an essential part of our everyday lifestyle, and it is likely that very few people stop to think about how much it influences their day. From waking up in the morning and greeting a sibling, spouse, or child, to interacting with coworkers at a job or students in a class, every individual uses speech in one way or another throughout his or her day. It forms such an important part of our lifestyles that without this essential part of communication, many would have difficulty getting their â€Å"needs, desires, perceptions, [or] knowledge† across to others in the world (â€Å"Guidelines†). Without this ability, it would be very hard indeed to know what another person thinks or needs. Because of this, many people within the population assume†¦show more content†¦While a person with speech difficulties may have trouble with the production of answers, it does not suggest that a person with a speech disorder will have lesser intelligence—nor does it s uggest the reverse, that a person with excellent speaking skills will have greater intelligence. It is entirely possible that a brilliant person would have a speech disorder. The skills of spoken speech do not correlate directly with levels of intelligence and chance of success, but there are those within the general population who hold this misconception because they perceive that spoken speech is indicative of intelligence and success. Because of this emphasis upon spoken speech, there can be the misconception that spoken ability directly correlates with measured intelligence levels, as well as assuming that it affects their personality and chance of success as well. In one particular study, the researchers found that within a certain population, the teaching staff perceived that children who had â€Å"trouble speaking† were seen as having a lower intellectual aptitude (Bleile, Mcgowan, and Bernthal 378). The study surveyed professionals within several different areas about the proficiency and intelligibility of a group ofShow MoreRelatedCultural Intelligence Of The Semrush American And Russian Managers And Its Impact On The Cross Cultural Communication1552 Words   |  7 Pagesreasons and explanations for the research on cultural intelligence of the SEMrush American and Russian managers and its impact on the cross-cultural communication within the company. The following literature review consists of three sections. The first section will focus on the concept of cultural intelligence, 4 factors model and training of cultural intelligence. The second section will cover the research of managerial cultural intelligence in different environment, especially in the IT industryRead MoreName That Design Essay646 Words   |  3 Pagesparticipants to a group that gets a non-caffeinated beverage or a group with a caffeinated beverage. They measure how much time the participants spend on a difficult puzzle. 2. To see whether intelligence is important for academic success, researchers look at the relation between scores on an intelligence test and grade point average. 3. In investigating the factors related to marital satisfaction a researcher asks 300 married adults how long they have been married and how satisfied they areRead MoreComputer Science And Artificial Intelligence1712 Words   |  7 Pageslanguages and artificial intelligence. Artificial Intelligence Artificial intelligence can be defined as the theory that a technological system such as computers are able to independently perform tasks that would normally require the operation of a human being to achieve. The primary goal of an artificial intelligence system in a machine is to autonomously make decisions based on its perceived environment and efficiently complete a range of given tasks. Artificial intelligence in all forms seeksRead MoreThe Type Of Speech : An Informative Speech1075 Words   |  5 PagesThe type of speech: An informative speech. The topic: An informative speech on the importance of diverse children’s literature and the relation of diverse children’s literature and youth literacy. My company: I am an employee at a children’s literature publishing company that is looking to branch out into the international/global market. Speech title: The Importance of Diverse Children s Literature THESIS STATEMENT Fostering a love of reading at a young age is important. Childhood literacy isRead MoreHoward Gardner s Theory Of Multiple Intelligences1466 Words   |  6 Pageshumans think and how they learn in different ways. Howard Gardner is considered one of the most influential psychologists of the 20th and 21st centuries because of his cognitive and developmental research, most particularly his theory of Multiple Intelligences. Howard Gardner was born on July 11, 1943 in the small coal-mining town of Scranton, Pennsylvania. His parents Ralph and Gilde Gardner were both German-Jewish refugees who escaped Hitler and the Nazi regime prior to World War II. Gardner wasRead MoreAnalysis Of Booker T. Washington1476 Words   |  6 Pagesa child and his work as an adult. Only 9 years old when the Civil War ended, Washington grew up during the Reconstruction Era. With African Americans able to attend school following Emancipation, Washington worked hard to get an education. Race relations of the era and the challenges African Americans faced would come to inspire Washington to pursue teaching and advocacy. He would come to establish the Tuskegee Normal and Industrial Institute and would play an influential role as a public advocateRead MoreJohn T. Washington Speech1413 Words   |  6 PagesAfrican American Leader Booker T. Washington delivered the opening address to an audience of predominantly white Americans, w hich became known as the Atlanta Compromise and became one of the most significant speeches in American history regarding race relations in America. It had been approximately thirty years since slavery was abolished by the Thirteenth Amendment and many black Americans were still experiencing racial discrimination in the form of â€Å"Black Codes† and â€Å"Jim Crow† laws, the Republican partyRead MoreStudents With Intellectual Disabilities ( Id )1107 Words   |  5 Pageswho works with students of multiple disabilities. Intelligence disabilities (ID) mean the mental capabilities of a child’s knowledge and skills. Intellectual disability can be developed during childbirth or before the age of eighteen. It is imperative for me to know, â€Å"What are the characteristics of students with intellectual disabilities? Ms. Chisolm explained that students with ID have certain limitations which are below- average intelligence level, lacking mental and physical and ad aptive skillsRead MoreMusic And Spatial Task Performance1604 Words   |  7 Pagesworld having been searching to discover if musical training or expertise truly increases your intelligence, and countless studies have been done in which the link between music and cognition or intelligence is closely examined. While great strides have been made and the findings are of significant value, the problem seems to be finding absolute causality between musical training and increased intelligence. Substantial evidence from many different studies has shown higher scores on tests involvingRead MoreEssay Factors Keeping China From Becoming Todays Super Power1058 Words   |  5 PagesThere are significant inhibiting factors keeping China from becoming today’s world power. One of the main arguments is that China’s economic success today is just a replica of the U.S.’ housing bubble before it crashed (Robinson). They are building faster than their expanding middle class can ke ep up with (Robinson), which was the exact problem the U.S. had right before the market crashed and they fell into a recession. China would have to slow their rapid expansion down in order to avoid crashing

Mba/ (Finance and Marketing)Fresher Free Essays

Vivek Ramachandran 10, Lakshmi Nivas, Mullai Street, K K Nagar, Chennai 600 063 Cell #: (91) 9566009700 Email: keviv88@gmail. com Career Objective To work in an Organization, where I can effectively blend my skills as a Management Professional coupled with my Mechanical Engineering Graduation, which will help me explore myself fully and realize my potential, with a zeal to work as a key player in a challenging creative environment. Qualification ? MBA (OPERATIONS / ERP) –FINAL YEAR ? B. We will write a custom essay sample on Mba/ (Finance and Marketing)Fresher or any similar topic only for you Order Now TECH (MECHANICAL) ENGINEER Academic qualification | |Year of |% | |Qualification |Institution |Study | | |MBA |SRM University, |2010-2012 |89%(up to 1st yr) | | |Chennai | | | |B. Tech |SRM University, Chennai | |79. 6% | |Mechanical Engineering | | | | | | |2006-2010   | | |HSC |Sri Sankara Vidyalaya, Chennai |2006 |66% | |SSLC |Sri Sankara Vidyalaya, Chennai |2004 |71% | Mini-Project (MBA) Title: â€Å"A Study of Manufacturing Operations involved in Hi-Tech Fabrication Facility† Company: Team co. Hi-tech Engineering ltd. Period: 2 months Title: â€Å"Crude oil-â€Å"Crude impact on Indian Economy† Under the Guidance of Dr. Samprasatha Joe Project (B. Tech) Title: â€Å"Optimization of Surface Characteristics using RESPONSE SURFACE METHODOLOGY for Ball and Roller Burnishing Process† Description: †¢ Ball and roller burnishing tool are used in CNC machining centre to super finish the milling process. †¢ The tool and work piece material are tungsten carbide and tool steel (T215CR12) respectively. †¢ The input parameters are feed, force, step-over, ball diameter, roller width, no of passes and speed. The output parameters are surface roughness and micro Vickers hardness. †¢ The characteristic of burnishing process is analyzed using ANOVA analysis. †¢ The output parameters are modeled and optimized using response surface methodology. †¢ Surface plots and Contour plots are plotted for the output parameters. †¢ SEM p hotographs are taken for milled and burnished surface. Training Summary (B. Tech) Company name: Ashokleyland, Chennai Duration : 2-weeks Areas covered : Engine Assembly, Chassis Assembly Company name: Diamond Engineering Ltd. , Vandalur Duration : 2-weeks Areas covered : Steel Fabrications, Dispatch Department Software’s known †¢ Implementation in SAP ERP (Materials Management) module. †¢ Operation knowledge of MS Excell, MS Access, MS Word, MS Power point. †¢ Basics in SPSS software. †¢ Operating Systems  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  : Windows 7/XP. Strength †¢ Highly Determined, self motivated committed towards work. †¢ Willingness to learn. †¢ Eager to take up challenging opportunities in life. Extra-curricular activities †¢ Organizer for COMMUNE 2011,a national level event. †¢ Secured 1st place in DUMB-C at SAMS †¢ Secured 1st place inX-FACTOR in Millan 2010, a national level event. Participated in Aurush 2009, a national level event †¢ Certificate course in YOGA at SRM UNIVERSITY . Personal profile Name : R. VIVEK Sex/Status: Male/Single Nationality: Indian Language Known: English, Tamil Hobbies/Interests: Playing cricket, listening to music. DOB : 05th Dec 1988 Job Location : Anywhere in India Declaration I hereby declare that the above-mentioned information is correct up to my knowledge and I bear the responsibility for the correctness of the above-mentioned particulars. Place:  chennai  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  (R. VIVEK) How to cite Mba/ (Finance and Marketing)Fresher, Papers

Burns and Stalker Essay Example For Students

Burns and Stalker Essay CHAPTER 8 Burns and Stalker, The Management of Innovation* . . . The utility of the notions of â€Å"mechanistic† and â€Å"organic† management systems resides largely in their being related as dependent variables to the rate of â€Å"environmental† change. â€Å"Environmental,† in this connection, refers to the technological basis of production and to the market situation. . . . The increasing rate of technological change characteristic of the last generation could plausibly be regarded as a function of fundamental changes in the relationship of production to consumption. If the form of management is properly to be seen as dependent on the situation the concern is trying to meet, it follows that there is no single set of principles for â€Å"good organization,† an ideal type of management system which can serve as a model to which administrative practice should, or could in time, approximate. It follows also that there is an overriding management task in first interpreting correctly the market and technological situation, in terms of its instability or of the rate at which conditions are changing, and then designing the management system appropriate to the conditions, and making it work. Direction,† as I have labelled this activity, is the distinctive task of managers-in-chief. . . . For the individual, much of the importance of the difference between mechanistic and organic systems lies in the extent of his commitment to the working organization. Mechanistic systems (namely â€Å"bureaucracies†) define his functions, together with the methods, responsibilities, and powers appropriate to them; in other words, however, this means that boundaries are set. That is to say, in being told what he has to attend to, and how, he is also told what he does not have to bother with, what is not his affair, what is not expected of him, what he can post *Excerpted with permission of the publisher from The Management of Innovation, by T. Burns and G. M. Stalker, 1961, London: Tavistock. 103 104 PART V OPEN SYSTEM RATIONAL MODELS elsewhere as the responsibility of others. In organic systems, the boundaries of feasible demands on the individual disappear. The greatest stress is placed on his regarding himself as fully implicated in the discharge of any task appearing over his horizon, as involved not merely in the exercise of a special competence but in commitment to the success of the concern’s undertakings approximating somewhat to that of the doctor or scientist in the discharge of his professional functions. . . . Mechanistic and Organic Systems We are now at the point at which we may set down the outline of the two management systems which represent for us . . . the two polar extremities of the forms which such systems can take when they are adapted to a specific rate of technical and commercial change. The case we have tried to establish from the literature, as from our research experience . . . , is that the different forms assumed by a working organization do exist objectively and are not merely interpretations offered by observers of different schools. Both types represent a â€Å"rational† form of organization, in that they may both, in our experience, be explicitly and deliberately created and maintained to exploit the human resources of a concern in the most efficient manner feasible in the circumstances of the concern. Not surprisingly, however, each exhibits characteristics which have been hitherto associated with different kinds of interpretation. For it is our contention that empirical findings have usually been classified according to sociological ideology rather than according to the functional specificity of the working organization to its task and the conditions confronting it. We have tried to argue that these are two formally contrasted forms of management system. These we shall call the mechanistic and organic form. A mechanistic management system is appropriate to stable conditions. It is characterized by: 1. The specialized differentiation of functional tasks into which the problems and tasks facing the concern as a whole are broken down. 2. The abstract nature of each individual task, which is pursued with techniques and purposes more or less distinct from those of the concern as a whole (i. e. the functionaries tend to pursue the technical improvement of means, rather than the accomplishment of the ends of the concern). 3. The reconciliation, for each level in the hierarchy, of these distinct performances by the immediate superiors, who are also, in turn, responsible for seeing that each is relevant in his own special part of the task. 4. The precise definition of rights and obligations and technical methods attached to each functional role. 5. The t ranslation of rights and obligations and methods into the responsibilities of a functional position. The Management of Innovation 105 6. Hierarchic structure of control, authority, and communication. 7. A reinforcement of the hierarchic structure by the location of knowledge of actualities exclusively at the top of the hierarchy, where the final reconciliation of distinct tasks and assessment of relevance is made. 8. A tendency for interaction between members of the concern to be vertical (i. e. , between superior and subordinate). 9. A tendency for operations and working behavior to be governed by the instructions and decisions issued by superiors. 10. Insistence on loyalty to the concern and obedience to superiors as a condition of membership. 11. A greater importance and prestige attaching to internal (local) than to general (cosmopolitan) knowledge, experience, and skill. The organic form is appropriate to changing conditions, which give rise constantly to fresh problems and unforeseen requirements for action which cannot be broken down or distributed automatically arising from the functional roles defined within a hierarchic structure. It is characterized by: 1. The contributive nature of special knowledge and experience to the common task of the concern. . The â€Å"realistic† nature of the individual task, which is seen as set by the total situation of the concern. 3. The adjustment and continual re-definition of individual tasks through interaction with others. 4. The shedding of â€Å"responsibility† as a limited field of rights, obligations, and methods. (Problems may not be posted upwards, downwards, or side ways as being someone else’s responsibility. ) 5. The spread of commitment to concern beyond any technical definition. 6. A network structure of control, authority, and communication. Mill’s Utilitarianism: Sacrifice the Innocent For Essay ThesisIs he the kind of man who thinks 8:00 is the time . . . ? Does he think that 8:15 is all right occasionally if it is not a regular thing? Does he think that everyone should be allowed a 5-minutes grace after 8:00 but after that they are late? Settling questions about how a person’s job is to be done in this way is nevertheless simple, direct, and economical of effort. . . . One other feature of mechanistic organization needs emphasis. It is a necessary condition of its operation that the individual â€Å"works on his own,† functionally isolated; he â€Å"knows his job,† he is â€Å"responsible for seeing it’s done. He works at a job which is in a sense artificially abstracted from the realities of the situation the concern is dealing with, the accountant â€Å"dealing with the costs side,† the works manager â€Å"pushing production,† and so on. As this works out in practi ce, the rest of the organization becomes part of the problem situation the individual has to deal with in order to perform successfully (i. e. , difficulties and problems arising from work or information which has been handed over the â€Å"responsibility barrier† between two jobs or departments are regarded as â€Å"really† the responsibility of the person from whom they were received). As a design engineer put it, â€Å"When you get designers handing over designs completely to production, it’s their responsibility now. And you get tennis games played with the responsibility for anything that goes wrong. What happens is that you’re constantly getting unsuspected faults arising from characteristics which you didn’t think important in the design. If you get to hear of these through a sales person, or a production person or somebody to whom the design was handed over to in the dim past, then, instead of being a design problem, it’s an annoyance caused by that particular person, who can’t do his own job—because 08 PART V OPEN SYSTEM RATIONAL MODELS you’d thought you were finished with that one, and you’re on to something else now. † When the assumptions of the form of organization make for preoccupation with specialized tasks, the chances of career success, or of greater influence, depend rather on the relat ive importance which may be attached to each special function by the superior whose task it is to reconcile and control a number of them. And, indeed, to press the claims of one’s job or department for a bigger share of the firm’s resources is in many cases regarded as a mark of initiative, of effectiveness, and even of â€Å"loyalty to the firm’s interests. † The state of affairs thus engendered squares with the role of the superior, the man who can see the wood instead of just the trees, and gives it the reinforcement of the aloof detachment belonging to a court of appeal. The ordinary relationship prevailing between individual managers â€Å"in charge of † different functions is one of rivalry, a rivalry which may be rendered innocuous to the persons involved by personal friendship or the norms of sociability, but which turns discussion about the situations which constitute the real problems of the concern—how to make products more cheaply, how to sell more, how to allocate resources, whether to curtail activity in one sector, whether to risk expansion in another, and so on—into an arena of conflicting interests. The distinctive feature of the second, organic system is the pervasiveness of the working organization as an institution. In concrete terms, this makes itself felt in preparedness to combine with others in serving the general aims of the concern. Proportionately to the rate and extent of change, the less can the omniscience appropriate to command organizations be ascribed to the head of the organization; for executives, and even operatives, in a changing firm it is always theirs to reason why. Furthermore, the less definition can be given to status, roles, and modes of communication, the more do the activities of each member of the organization become determined by the real tasks of the firm as he sees them than by instruction and routine. The individual’s job ceases to be self-contained; the only way in which â€Å"his† job can be done is by his participating continually with others in the solution of problems which are real to the firm, and put in a language of requirements and activities meaningful to them all. Such methods of working put much heavier demands on the individual. . . . We have endeavored to stress the appropriateness of each system to its own specific set of conditions. Equally, we desire to avoid the suggestion that either system is superior under all circumstances to the other. In particular, nothing in our experience justifies the assumption that mechanistic systems should be superseded by organic in conditions of stability. The beginning of administrative wisdom is the awareness that there is no optimum type of management system.

Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been free essay sample

An innocent young girl is seduced by way of her own vanity† and that â€Å"she confuses death for erotic romance† (419). Oates clearly defines her point when Connie first discovers Arnold Friend at the drive in diner. She catches Friend staring at her with a big smile and Connie â€Å"slit her eyes at him and turned away, but she couldn’t help looking back† (409). The fact that Connie â€Å"slits† her eyes and â€Å"couldn’t help looking back† (409) shows that she is interested, but does not want to put her true feelings on display. Her more erotic interest comes in the form of his style and physical appearance. Oates illustrates this by using diction and imagery; â€Å"she liked the way he dressed† and Connie noticing â€Å"the small hard muscles of his arms and shoulders† (419) when Friend First appears at her house. Unlike Connie, the reader sees Arnold Friend in all of his depravity, we see him as the predator. We will write a custom essay sample on Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page He displays this at the drive in by â€Å" waving his finger and laughing† and saying â€Å"Gonna get you baby† (409). Oates again uses carefully thought out word choice to prognosticate that we could see Friend later in the story to possibly confront Connie in a derogatory way. In this way, we can see that Connie is both seduced by way of her own vanity† and that â€Å"she confuses death for erotic romance† (419). Oates demonstrates how Connie’s life can be seen in two different lights or two sides, â€Å"everything about her had two sides to it, one for home and one for anywhere that was not home† (408). Her life at home was unusual, Connie’s mother is jealous of her beauty and always scalding her about everything. Though Connie’s mother once encompassed external beauty, her looks had dissipated over time.. Her mother finds anyway possible to negatively comment about her, always using her older sister June as an example of how she should live her life. June becomes Connie’s mothers assault weapon because she is not a threat, as described by Oates, June is â€Å"twenty four and still lives at home† and â€Å"so plain and chunky† (407). This fed Connie’s confidence because she â€Å"thought her mother preferred her to June because she was prettier† (409). Connie led a pessimistic life with an attitude, she had no one there whom she felt the need to impress. When she was anywhere else besides her house, everything was different, her clothes, her walk, and even her laugh. â€Å" she wore a pullover that looked one way at home and another way when she was away from home† (408). It was all about impressing, showing off, and being someone she wanted to be, but wasn’t. When Connie was out the house, most likely at the mall or drive in diner, her life turned into a movie, where all reality was turned into a dream. This is evident when she â€Å"goes down an alley a mile or so away† (409) with a boy named Eddie and later remembers the experience as â€Å"sweet and gentle, the way it was promised in movies and songs† (410). Arnold Friend sees right through Connie, for who she really is, a pretty, young, and insecure girl. Connie gets all the attention that she craves, but the moment Friend takes off his glasses, she notices that he is much older than was previously thought. Panic starts to set in when Friend and Ellie won’t leave her house. Friend knows about all her family and friends and where they all are. He starts to come on stronger with every word as he states â€Å"I’m your lover. You don’t know it now, but you will† and later â€Å"I’m always nice at first, the first time. †(414). This is implying that everything is alright now or â€Å"the first time† (414) but is suggesting something bad will happen later. At this moment Connie looses all of her cockiness and vanity and gets a reality check, she is no longer living in a dream, her stress becomes real. She notices everything around her as if she’s never seen it before, as illustrated by Oates â€Å"The kitchen looked like a place she had never seen before, some room she had run inside but which wasn’t good enough† (415). Friend never looses his composure, he is calm, almost sadistic, he promises her he will not enter the house as long as she doesn’t pick up the phone. Finally, Friend threatens Connie’s family, but nothing will happen, so long as Connie goes with him. Connie realizes when Friend says â€Å"The place you came from ain’t there anymore, and where you in mind to go is canceled out. (417) she will not be coming back. All of her pervious vanities are stripped as she makes a generous sacrifice to save the lives of her family. Oates describes distillation; â€Å"Connie is shallow, vain, silly, and hopeful-but capable nonetheless of an unexpected gesture of heroism† (419). Connie surprises us all with her heroism, she ends he r life deep and pure, not shallow and vane as once conceived. Even after her whole world comes crashing down with all of Connie’s insecurities showing, she makes a choice that was thought implausible.

Historical Profile of the Visigoths

Historical Profile of the Visigoths The Visigoths were a Germanic group considered to have separated from other Goths around the fourth century, when they moved from Dacia (now in Romania) into the Roman Empire. Over time they moved further west, into and down Italy, then to Spain where many settled and back east again into Gaul (now France). The Spanish kingdom remained until the early eighth century when they were conquered by Muslim invaders. East-German Immigrant Origins The Visigoths origins were with the Theruingi, a group comprised of several peoples Slavs, Germans, Sarmatians, and others under the recently acquired leadership of Gothic Germans. They came to historical prominence when they moved, along with the Greuthungi, from Dacia, across the Danube, and into the Roman Empire, possibly because of pressure from Huns attacking westwards. There may have been approximately 200,000 of them. The Theruingi were â€Å"allowed† into the empire and settled in return for military service, but rebelled against Roman strictures, thanks to the greed and mistreatment of local Roman commanders, and began plundering the Balkans. In 378 CE they met and defeated the Roman Emperor Valens at the Battle of Adrianople, killing him in the process. In 382 the next Emperor, Theodosius, tried a different tactic, settling them in the Balkans as federates and tasking them with the defense of the frontier. Theodosius also used the Goths in his armies on campaign elsewhere. During this period they converted to Arian Christianity. The Visigoths Rise At the end of the fourth century a confederation of Theruingi and Greuthungi, plus their subject people, led by Alaric became known as the Visigoths (although they may only have considered themselves Goths) and began moving again, first to Greece and then into Italy, which they raided on numerous occasions. Alaric played off rival sides of the Empire, a tactic which included plundering, in order to secure a title for himself and regular supplies of food and cash for his people (who had no land of their own). In 410 they even sacked Rome. They decided to try for Africa, but Alaric died before they could move. Alaric’s successor, Ataulphus, then led them west, where they settled in Spain and part of Gaul. Shortly after they were asked back east by the future emperor Constantius III, who settled them as federates in Aquitania Secunda, now in France. During this period, Theodoric, who we now regard as their first proper king emerged, who ruled until he was killed at the Battle of the Catalaunian Plains in 451. The Kingdom of the Visigoths In 475, Theodoric’s son and successor, Euric, declared the Visigoths independent of Rome. Under him, the Visigoths codified their laws, in Latin, and saw their Gallic lands to their widest extent. However, the Visigoths came under pressure from the growing Frankish kingdom and in 507 Euric’s successor, Alaric II, was defeated and killed at the Battle of Poitiers by Clovis. Consequently, the Visigoths lost all of their Gallic lands bar a thin southern strip called Septimania. Their remaining kingdom was much of Spain, with a capital at Toledo. Holding together the Iberian Peninsula under one central government has been called a remarkable achievement given the diverse nature of the region. This was helped by the conversion in the sixth century of the royal family and leading bishops to Catholic Christianity. There were splits and rebel forces, including a Byzantine region of Spain, but they were overcome. Defeat and End of the Kingdom In the early eighth century, Spain came under pressure from Umayyad Muslim forces, which defeated the Visigoths at the Battle of Guadalete and within a decade had captured much of the Iberian peninsula. Some fled to the Frankish lands, some remained settled and others found the northern Spanish kingdom of Asturias, but the Visigoths as a nation ended. The end of the Visigothic kingdom was once blamed on them being decadent, easily collapsing once they were attacked, but this theory is now rejected and historians still search for the answer to this day.

The effects of globalization in developing countries Term Paper

The effects of globalization in developing countries - Term Paper Example Thus, the result is the replacement of the things previously going on with the new precisely, modern ones (Mobley & Weldon, pp.146). Moreover, the term and the accompanying concept also connote that it is a disruption in a convenient equilibrium that is prominent and notable to the observers and people who are vulnerable to the change. Globalization changes can be cultural, geographical or technological depending upon which way of life it influences (Lall, pp. 3-7). For example, cultural attire can be conveniently replaced by international branded jeans as part of the result of globalization. On the other hand, factors such as global warming, spread of chronic diseases are some of the examples of geographic aspect of globalization; this is not relevant to the culture but is indeed a part of change. The measure of impact that globalization brings about is majorly determined by the media. The intensity of influence that it might have on the common depends upon the attentiveness of the media over the matter (Mobley & Weldon, pp. 146). Since, common people look over to the fourth pillar of the society, which is the media; they perceive the intensity of change in the same way as depicted and their responses are thus, shaped by what they see, and hear regardless of what might be the actual scenario. As part of giving a thorough explanation of what globalization is all about, one may consider some historic example to clarify the points presented in the paper. As part of technological globalization, the adoption of different time zones (Mobley & Weldon, pp. 148) is the simplest example to know how globalization is an integral part of everybody’s lives whether one wants to be a part of it or not. Moreover, any country an individual belongs to, h/she would always have an identity card or a proof showing their birthplace and/or residence. This, as well, is a pat of globalization valid for both developing and developed countries (Lee & Vivarelli, pp. 4-6). Let the p aper consider one more definition of the term explained in a distinct and specified note. There are scholars and thinkers who say that globalization is the name of an extensive process when people from far and wide with no commonalities get a way to be connected to one another whether it being a physical way or a virtual one. Thus, in much simpler form, when people distanced by space and time yet feel connected and associated to each other; this is a depiction of globalization. In this connotation, one can surely say that distances between people do not influence or bar them in being affiliated to one another and whatever they do, can be more specifically defined as deterritorialized. Thus, these links gradually become a source to share and exchange information and ideas, sharing of ideas make them adopt some according to their comprehension and outreach ad also to develop common grounds with the links that they have. It is always said that globalization has certain specific charact eristics like diffusion or the dispersion of ideas, culture, stances and school of thought; interdependence that assumes the position of relating and depending upon the ones whom one connects with who are far by time and space; and consciousness which makes people reasonable adaptable to the newer environment (Lechner, pp. 15). When one says, think globally, one actually means that one needs to consider the whole world as one place without dividing it into regions and

Effect of cancer medical research on tobacco industry Case Study

Effect of cancer medical research on tobacco industry - Case Study Example One of the possible solutions to the industry is selling tobacco products to the young people and women. As noted by WHO (2008) early smokers start as early as the age of 10. Therefore as the tobacco industry faces a lot of challenges, they are compelled to majorly target the youths and women in the society. Teenagers are assumed to be the potential future consumers of tobacco because they are greatly impressionable and in most communities, they have the significant amount of money at their disposal (Mackay & Eriksen, 2002). For this reason, they are easily impressed by any company where the consumption and brand of products are good. Despite many of the tobacco industry’s products killing many customers and forcing others to quit, they make sure they have a new target to consume their products. This is why they go for the young people since they will take a longer span before dying or eventually quitting hence increasing chances of continued salesGenerally, women smoke less t han the potential smokers; men. It is dangerous to the unborn but still, tobacco industry considers women as the untapped group which if tapped can increase and improve its consumption than in men. Hence, unchecked and their greatest motive being profit making, tobacco industries in considerably targets the children and women whom they believe can increase the likelihood of continued sales. Recently, the danger imposed to people’s health by tobacco intake has been confirmed and since they knew this long time ago, but have been attempting not to disclose this research (Mackay & Eriksen, 2002). Other nations, for instance, US have always had the political will and resources to deal with the tobacco’s large corporations. However, rich countries that have smaller but tougher markets have made multinational firms dealing with tobacco to intensify their efforts in different regions especially Asia to keep up the growth and selling of cigarettes alongside expanding advertisement to increase a level of demand if not to meet it completely.

Proposal Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Proposal - Term Paper Example Our people and years of experience in the market have made us an organization of choice. Our extensive network with major health service providers ensures that our customers receive comprehensive health care services. Access Mortgage Company can definitely take benefit from our extensive range of products and services. Besides we are also willing to offer the additional services of psychological counseling as well as substantive abuse rehabilitation with minimum costs. At a total cost of $125 per employee per month, Access Mortgage Company can enjoy both of these benefits besides getting the regular services of our company. Introduction Caring and providing for healthcare of the employees is one of the best investments organizations do in order to ensure that employees remain healthy and motivated. Psychological counseling as well as rehabilitation of the employees are some of the steps which can ensure that the employees are provided the requisite level of support by the organizatio n to remain productive and constructive not only for the organization but for the society as a whole. Psychological counseling as well as the providing help in rehabilitating the employees against substantive abuse is one of the key issues which an organization has to handle. Increasing pressure and stress level can really put a lot of pressure on the employees and can result into low productivity as well as irritating behavior. Offering professional help in such circumstances therefore can serve as one of the key steps towards ensuring the rehabilitation of the employee. United Health Group is one of the diversified health and well being company offering diversified range of services including insurance plans. United Health Group offers these services through its subsidiary with the name of UnitedHealthCare. UnitedHealthCare and Optium are two of the best services in the country offering advance level healthcare services including insurance plans to ensure that every American has a ccess to quality healthcare. In order to achieve this aim, we also partner with different organizations to offer custom made insurance plans which can cater to the different needs of the organization. This proposal will present details about our Company and what kind of products and services it can offer you to comprehensively offer your employees the option of psychological counseling and substantive abuse rehabilitation. History of the Company & Competitive Landscape UnitedHealthCare is part of United Health Group Inc, one of the leading and diversified groups offering health and well being related services across US. Established in 1977, UnitedHealthCare has evolved over the period of time and is now offering insurance plans to individuals as well as small and middle sized employers. Managed by approximately, 30,000 employees, company have been able to develop market for itself and have served as a cost effective alternative for individuals and firms to afford quality healthcare. (Hoovers) The overall competitive landscape suggests that the rising cost of healthcare has made it almost mandatory for Americans to go for medical and health

Wal Marts Global Procurement Division Management Essay

Wal Marts Global Procurement Division Management Essay Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE: WMT) was founded in 1962 by Sam Walton and incorporated in 1969. Walmart has been maintaining its status as the largest grocery retailer in the U.S. The company operates at more than 8,500 retail units under 60 different banners in 15 countries, and reported sales revenue of $405 billion in 2010. The company strives to strongly commit to its promise to the customers; Every Day Low Prices. In order to deliver low-priced goods and make the customers lives better, the company particularly leverages operating expense and improve its global expertise. From another perspective, Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. is one of the biggest buyers for many suppliers whether they are domestic or international producers, and whether they are of a small scale or a big scale. To reduce the bottom-line costs, the company has been vigorously attempting to reduce product costs and transport costs. International Purchasing As the companys business dramatically grew, it created Global Procurement division in 2002 to better manage the international purchasing activities. The division makes decision on and oversees direct business import and factory purchasing from their international suppliers in many different locations around the globe. To name a few, Wal-mart obtains global procurement offices in Bangladesh, Dubai, India, Indonesia, Korea, Pakistan, Shanghai and Shenzen in China. These offices allow international suppliers to apply for direct import program through which they could establish the supplier relationship with Wal-mart, after the thorough examination. Wal-Marts Global Procurement Division Headquartered in Shenzen, China, the division is responsible for identifying new attractive international suppliers, sourcing new products as necessary, and maintaining good supplier relationships with the existing suppliers. In addition, it manages the global supply chain of Wal-marts direct imports. The majority of the staffs are located in Shenzen, China as the company has the greatest supplier base in China. By setting up the Global Procurement division, the company gained better insights into their international suppliers. Through this program, the company could understand the issues of global sourcing and suppliers and work towards solving them in order to assure quality. As a supplier maintenance process, the global procurement offices are also responsible for conducting factory inspections, and provide the workplace standards training that align with the companys own standards. International Supplier Selection Similar to the companys very thorough domestic supplier selection, the global procurement undergoes the selective process. The greatest advantage that the international direct import brings is reduced costs. Due to high labor costs, many of the U.S. factories cannot offer Wal-mart competitive pricing. As a result, Wal-mart explored its options in Pacific-Asia/Asia. In many Asian countries, manufacturers benefit from relatively low labor costs. Among those international supplier, Chinese suppliers are definitely the companys biggest supplier base. To ensure the quality of products in addition to lower costs, the global procurement division strives to help them adhere to the standards and make factory inspections/audits. Also, the company has its own ethical standards set for its potential and existing suppliers as an essential requirement. Reliability and trustworthiness are also important criteria to decrease the delivery failure and delay rates. Through the companys own global suppl y chain, it manages the transportation of goods from international suppliers to the U.S. warehouses. Supplier management system There is no need to tell how far has reached Walmart on the supply chain management. To ensure its customers satisfaction is the highest, the biggest worldwide retailing company provides a Supplier Training program. Once a supplier has been accepted and has read the Proposal Packet which introduces the business philosophy and practices, a training program managed by Accenture must be followed. In 2005, Walmart and the Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA) created an online retail supply chain certification for suppliers. A web-based training program for Chinese factories to audit ratings and productivity is also included. A lot of side businesses like 8th Walton offer services and solutions to support organisations who want to do business with Walmart. Intertek Group factories inspection, factory audits In August 2009, Walmart announced its partnerships with Intertek to ensure the quality of the suppliers product. The partner provides the RoHS (Restriction of Hazardous Substance) certification by a cost-effective program to assure the product compliance. The process includes documentation review, process audit and lab testing. Local Suppliers The Local Supplier program was put in place to satisfy local demand for specific products. A complete process has to be completed from the store manager to the Divisional Merchandise Director. Also, a special program for Women owned business and minority businesses. Benefits are present for the chain: Wal-Marts local sourcing strategy has been seen as a move to win the favour of its customers. Walmart recognized that local suppliers are more aware of national trends, customers tastes and local needs. That helps create links with the population as well. Requirements A lot of requirements must be fulfilled by suppliers to be part of the big empire retail system. First, all businesses must adhere to the RetailLink system which is a website to plan execute and analyze the production. Moreover, suppliers must include EDI (Electronic Data Interchange) to their system for real-time delivery of business documents. EDI is part of the Vendor Management Inventory (VMI) which, through the use of sale information, recommends orders to Walmart. Over the years, EDI has actually proven to be one of the most efficient and effective ways for Wal-Mart to conduct business with its suppliers. That contributes to oversight the inventory programs of both the supplier and Walmart. Despite these technical requirements, tests labs might be asked to ensure the highest quality and safety: we use different independent third party testing labs to provide a safety net test. Also, there is a total prohibition of any kind of gifts or present to Walmart managers. The company asked for industry knowledge and integrity from its suppliers. Finally, suppliers must meet regulation differentiations among countries with the help of the Office for Regulatory Compliance (ORC). Some standard have to be reach as well: the compliance with the law, the no-child labor application, hiring and employment practices, compensations (wage), freedom of association and barging, health and safety, environment, conflict-free of interest, anti-corruption and financial integrity. Violations of these standards can be reported in any country confidentially. Insurance requirements A product Commercial General Liability insurance must be purchased by the supplier for a minimum of $Â  2 million. An employees insurance has to be bought for a minimum of $1 million. An employers liability must also be included. Benefits of Global Sourcing Cheap Labor Resrouce Costs One of the reasons for Walmart pursue international purchasing is there are cheaper labor power available abroad. Looking at hourly compensation cost of the world by United States Department of Labor, one can clearly see that there are numerous nations that provide cheaper labor force than that of the US. Suppliers in nations with cheaper labor are likely to provide cheaper products which would benefit Walmart in cost saving. Walmart is trying to decrease labor costs further by launching programs such as job optimization and regrouping program Some resources are actually cheaper in certain countries and Walmart could benefit from such difference by purchasing resources from cheaper regions. Moreover, in some cases, due to such differences in cost, there really is no competitive domestic supplier available making it inevitable to purchase internationally. Diversification of Supplier Base Also, by purchasing internationally, Walmart can diversify its supply base. By doing this, Walmart not only can purchase various products with cheap price but also ensure sustainable and less volatile supply base. For instance, in recent disaster in Japan, even though Walmarts business in Japan has taken some damage, it is unlikely to damage overall company as their supply base is diversified. Regarding the issue, Moodys Investors Services Senior Analyst Charles OShea said, While Japan may be an important market for Wal-Mart, the company has other international opportunities that have more growth potential over the long term. As you can see in the example, Walmart benefits greatly by diversifying its supply base globally. Not only that, Walmartcan improve its bargaining position towards domestic suppliers by diversifying its supply base. As Walmartcanpurchase from suppliers outside the US, it does not depend on domestic suppliers providing it bargaining power to push domestic supplie rs to provide contracts better conditions. Risks of Global Sourcing Transportation Cost Despite benefits mentioned above, international purchasing comes with some risks and costs. To start with, there are transportation costs. As international suppliers have to ship products, it is important to minimize transportation cost. Walmart tries to avoid unnecessary transportation cost by having standards and requirements when selecting supplier. By selecting supplier that fits the standards, Walmart can avoid potential additional cost. Also, Walmart offers supplier information manual which its suppliers are required to follow as stated in contract with Walmart. The contract also states clearly that it is suppliersresponsibility to deliver products timely and in case of delays, compensations are in order. Walmart also tries to prevent such failures by educating its suppliers through supplier training programs. Reputation and Quality Control Walmart also has to ensure its reputations are protected when dealing with international suppliers. If products from international suppliers are of incompetent quality or if their suppliers have ethical issues, Walmarts reputation would be could damaged. To prevent any potential problems, Walmart practices audits to its suppliers. For instance, Walmart carried out unannounced audits to factories of its supplier in China. To Walmarts surprise, it found out that the factories had unsafe work practices which caused staff injuries. If it were not for these audits, Walmarts reputation could have been damaged for dealing with unethical supplier. Corporate social responsibility As one of the largest world companies, Walmart has no choice to look on the impacts of its actions. But, because Wal-Mart only directly manufactures 8 percent of everything is sells, the solution lies for the most part with the suppliers. Walmart asked to its 100,000 suppliers 15 questions for sustainability regarding energy and climate, material efficiency, natural resources and people and community in the goal to transform into a sustainable products rating for customers. Walmart also pursues 3 major environmental goals: to be supplied 100% by renewable energy, to create zero waste and to sell products that sustain people and environment. Established in 1992, the Ethical Standard Program, a division of the Global Procurement, is responsible to verify if suppliers are in conformance with Walmart standards and local law. The company experienced some troubles in China relatively to management style (well-run prisons) and to the labor exploitation. Child labor and Labor/factory conditions In 1993, Walmart was accused of its first violation of international labor rights in Bangladesh: Children in Bangladesh were forced to work for five cents an hour while Wal-Mart falsely indicated that their garments had been Made in USA consistent with their 1985 image campaign. Despite many efforts, in 2006, around 250 children were found working in a factory. Bad treatments, physical, moral and financial were also reported. The fault can be rejected to suppliers, the core problem, and Walmart could stop the abuses by halting its cutting and running. Various violations have been reported on the minimum wage, forced labor, overtime paid, bathroom breaks or rights to independent unions. Against green initiatives/sustainability Walmart put in place a Sustainable Value Network to seek solutions for an eco-friendly environment. The company began to see environmental sustainability as a way to achieve two goals: improve Wal-Marts bottom line and its reputation. Efforts are driven in this direction, but there is still a lot to do. Some say Walmart got engaged in these actions, looking to its bottom line. Recommendation Better Supplier Relationship Walmart has been criticized by general public that it forces its suppliers to cut down costs and processes. While this procedures have helped Walmart to achieve its business motto, Every Day Low Price (EDLP), it also resulted in somewhat harming its relationships with its suppliers. For instance, survey by RetailingToday.com showed that Walmarts current suppliers believe Walmart does not help its suppliers to understand the business and operations nor does it make information and resources open. This kind of data shows that Walmarts over-compulsive requirements has led to distrusts between it and its suppliers. For Walmart to successfully survive in future market, it is essential to create sustainable relationships with its suppliers. Green Walmart For similar reasons mentioned above, Walmart has been criticized for not environment friendly. As Walmart pursues cost minimization, it somewhat neglected environmental issues which is damaging its brand image. There are demonstrations and movements that argue to not purchase from Walmart because of it is harming environment. For Walmart to better its brand image, it is important to go green. Ethical business Other issues include ethical problems. It is again related to Walmarts goal of minimizing cost. To meet with Walmarts demand of cost minimization, some suppliers from developing countries using child labor. Not only is itself unethical, it is also morally being criticized because Walmart does not actively prevent this. As mentioned above, this is also harming Walmarts brand image. Overdependence on Chinese suppliers Currently, Walmart is depending hugely on supplier from nations with cheap labor and cheap resources like China. However, China is not a nation of infinite resources or will its labor always stay cheap. Ultimately, Chinese labor cost and resource prices will rise. If Walmart stay over-depending on China, potential danger will always remain. To prevent such danger, it needs to more diversify its supplier base.

Marcus Mosiah Garvey :: rastafarianism, reggae music

Marcus Mosiah Garvey was a powerful black revolutionary and race leader who influenced a great many people in his time and continues to do so through reggae music. Many of Marcus Garvey's lessons and ideals have found a voice in the lyrics of conscious reggae musicians past and present. From internationally famous musicians such as Bob Marley and Burning Spear, to the music and words of The Rastafari Elders, reggae musicians have found inspiration in Marcus Garvey. For many reggae musicians, their work is about more than music, it is a tool for teaching the masses. Peter Tosh at a concert in California told the audience the reason why he was there."Don't think I come here for entertainment. I and I come to flash lightening, earthquake, and thunder in these places of destruction and unrighteousness."2 Tosh and many musicians like him are taking reggae to a higher level, one where the musicians are prophets of Garvey and Rasta. Much of the teachings of reggae are based on a Rastafarian view, as this is the religion of many of the conscious reggae musicians that preach the Garvey message. Rastafarianism owes a lot to Marcus Garvey, as he is credited as the founder. The religion was born on the words"Look to Africa for the crowning of a Black king."3 They waited and in 1930, the prophecy was fulfilled when, Ras Tafari Mekonnen was crowned emperor of Ethiopia and took the name Haile Selassie. Working from the bible and their own interpretations of it, the Rastafarians found evidence to support their claim and a religion was born. Marcus Garvey is considered part of the Rastafari Trinity, and"is second only to Haile Selassie,"4 the Rastafari God. Whether singing directly about Marcus Mosiah Garvey, or about Rastafarianism, reggae musicians are helping to spread the teachings of this black prophet and revolutionary to millions of music listeners all over the world. Marcus Garvey was born in 1887 in the St. Ann's Parish in Jamaica. He came from a large, poor family and due to lack of money, when he was fourteen Garvey left school and became a printer's apprentice. By the age of eighteen he had become a master printer. Garvey had always been a quick learner and when he became the foreman of a printing company in Kingston, the capital of Jamaica,"he continued his education by reading extensively, taking advantage of the company library."5 However, Marcus Garvey's political feelings soon got in the way when the workers went on strike in 1909.

Case Study Research Essay

Case One: Barsz v. Max Shapiro, Inc. Ind. Ct. App. 600 N.E.2d 151 (1992) Fact: Marjorie Barsz brought negligence action against Shapiro’s Delicatessen Cafeteria to recover for personal injuries sustained when she slipped and fell, breaking her right ankle and left knee cap. Her husband, Carl Barsz brought action against the restaurant for loss of consortium with his wife due to Mrs. Barsz’s injuries. The Circuit Court of Shelby County granted summary judgment for the restaurant, and the plaintiffs appealed. The Court of Appeals of Indiana, First District held that genuine issues of material facts existed and reversed the summary judgment. Issue: Was Shapiro’s Delicatessen Cafeteria negligent in identifying and remedying the condition of the floor in the restaurant, causing Marjorie Barsz’s accident? Rule: GOLBA v. KOHL’S DEPT. STORE, INC. Ind. Ct. App. 585 N.E.2d 14 (1992) Analysis: To avoid summary judgment, Marjorie Barsz had to show that there was a defective condition in the floor of the restaurant which caused her slip and fall, and that the restaurant unreasonably failed to discover and remedy the hazardous condition. Genuine material facts existed which precluded summary judgment for the restaurant. Summary judgment is generally inappropriate in negligence cases. Trial Procedure Rule 56(C) Conclusion: A restaurant cannot be held strictly liable for a fall that occurred before having a reasonable chance to remove a foreign substance from its floor; restaurant as not the absolute guarantor of customer safety. However, summary judgment cannot be granted when a genuine material fact exists. Case Two: Golba v. Kohl’s Dept. Store, Inc. Ind. Ct. App. 585 N.E.2d 14 (1992) Facts: Plaintiff Stella Golba brought negligence action against defendant Kohl’s Department Store stemming from a slip and fall accident. Ms. Golba stepped on a small object on a glossy floor, causing her to trip and fall. The floor had only been swept once on the morning of the accident. The Circuit Court of Starke County granted the store’s motion for summary judgment, and the plaintiff appealed. The Court of Appeals of Indiana, Third District held that material issues of fact existed and reversed the summary judgment. Issue: Was Kohl’s Department Store negligent in maintaining their floors in a safe condition for patrons? Rule: BURRELL v. MEADS Ind. 569 N.E.2d 637 (1991) Analysis: A land owner is subject to liability for physical harm caused to his invitees by a condition on the land if, but only if, he knows or exercising reasonable care would discover the condition, and should realize that it is an unreasonable risk of harm to invitees, and should expect that they will not realize the danger, or will not protect themselves against it, and fails to exercise reasonable care to protect them against the danger. Normally, determining whether the host has exercised reasonable care to make their premises safe for an invitee is a question of fact for a jury. Conclusion: Sweeping of a floor only once in the morning does not constitute exercise of reasonable care to prevent injury to customers from objects left in the floor. The issue of fact as to whether the store had notice of the object in the floor precluded a summary judgment.

DBQ 1988 essays

DBQ 1988 essays The United States government did not detonate the two nuclear devices on Hiroshima and Nagasaki with the intention of bringing an end to the war with Japan, but instead to intimidate the Soviet Union. The defeat of Japan proved that the United States bombed the country to show how strong the Americans are regarding nuclear energy versus the Soviets. Also, the undeniable truth that relations with the Soviet Union started to deter, showed that the United States wanted to frighten the U.S.S.R. by bombing Japan. Finally, competition for the post-World War II division of Europe proved that the U.S. wanted to scare the Soviet Union. Dropping the atomic bomb constituted a major factor in decision of Japan to accept the terms laid out at the Potsdam agreement. Their casualties in defending the hopeless island of Okinawa equaled to one-hundred-ten-thousand and the naval blockade that the allies had enforced brought trade down to almost nothing (Document A). Destruction quickly emerged in Japan. The allies ignored this for the reason that dropping the atomic bomb on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki would intimidate U.S.S.R. If the Americans truly considered saving more lives and bringing a quick end to the war in Japan, they would have simply waited them out without the major loss of life seen at both of the devastated Japanese cities. At the Yalta conference, Franklin D. Roosevelt asked Josef Stalin for Soviet support in the war with Japan (Document D). In return for the support against Japan, Roosevelt agreed to terms that helped create more tension between the two countries because it gave U.S.S.R. too much power in world affairs. At the time, Roosevelt did not have confidence that the United States could win the war easily without help from Stalin. He assumed that he had to invade Japan (Document C). After Roosevelt died, Truman took office. As situations developed and progress on the atomic bomb continued to in...

Shakespeares Sonnet 18 Essays - Sonnet 18, Shakespeares Sonnets

Shakespeare's Sonnet 18 Essays - Sonnet 18, Shakespeares Sonnets Shakespeare's Sonnet 18 William Shakespeares Sonnet 18 is part of a group of 126 sonnets Shakespeare wrote that are addressed to a young man of great beauty and promise. In this group of sonnets, the speaker urges the young man to marry and perpetuate his virtues through children, and warns him about the destructive power of time, age, and moral weakness. Sonnet 18 focuses on the beauty of the young man, and how beauty fades, but his beauty will not because it will be remembered by everyone who reads this poem. Shakespeare starts the poem with a metaphoric question in line one asking if he should compare the man to a summers day. This asks if he should compare the beauty of a summers day to the beauty of the young man about whom Shakespeare is writing. Line two of this poem states Thou art more lovely and more temperate. Temperate is used as a synonym for moderate by the author. In line two the speaker is describing the man as more lovely and more moderate than a summers day. This emphasizes the mans beauty and how the man is viewed by the speaker. Line three, Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May, tells why the mans beauty is greater than that of a summers day. Shakespeare uses rough winds to symbolize imperfections. The speaker is implying that there are no imperfections in the young man, but there are in the summer, so the man cannot be compared to a summers day. In line four the speaker adds to this thought by saying that the summer also does not last as long as the mans beauty therefore it cannot be compared to it. Line five states another imperfection of the summer. Shakespeare uses the eye of heaven as a metaphor in this line to describe the sun. In line six Shakespeare uses the phrase gold complexion dimmed to describe the sun again which means that sometimes the sun is not hot enough, and that, as said in line five, sometimes the sun is too hot. In lines seven and eight the speaker ends the complication by describing how nature is never perfect. Line nine starts the resolution of the poem by using the conjunction but. Eternal summer in line nine is referring back to the mans eternal beauty, using summer to symbolize beauty, and saying that the mans beauty will never fail like the summers beauty. In lines ten, eleven, and twelve the speaker says that the man, When in eternal lines to time thou growst (line 12) or when he grows old, will not lose possession of what is fair to him, and Nor shall Death brag thou wanderst in his shade (line 11) or he will not be poor in health and close to dying. Lines thirteen and fourteen say that as long as this poem is read, the mans beauty will never go away, because every time someone reads the poem they will be reminded of his beauty. This poem that Shakespeare wrote, in the octave, describes how all beauty fades except for the man about whom Shakespeare is writing. The octave also tells of how great the mans beauty is compared to everything else that is beautiful. In the sestet, the poem tells about how the mans beauty stays alive and out lives all other beauty. The poem is written in iambic pentameter. Shakespeare makes use of much symbolism and many other figurative devices in this poem that contribute and emphasize to the overall theme of the poem.

Acting on a Strategic Mission Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Acting on a Strategic Mission - Case Study Example EA should have utilized this human resource advantage to grow its market share by providing the developers with attractive incentives that would help to retain them and prevent them from switching to competitors such as Activision Blizzard (Griffin, 37). One of the weaknesses that a SWOT analysis would have revealed is the disparity between objectives of the management and those of developers. Management focused on maximizing productivity and profit whereas developers were motivated by imagination and creativity. EA could have easily eliminated this weakness by allowing developers more autonomy and, therefore, harmonized objectives of management and developers. The major opportunity and threat include a growing market and strong competitors respectively. EA should have realized early on that the video game industry market was on a steady growth pattern and sought new ways of tapping into this market. For example, EA should have developed games tailored for new market segments such as adults. EA could minimize the threat of strong competition by producing high quality games that would improve its brand name (Griffin, 36 – 41). ... Although this strategy resulted in high asset turnover and lower costs than its rivals, it killed developer autonomy and motivation (Eldring, 56). Activision Blizzard identified this niche and set on gaining competitive advantage over EA by focusing on promoting developer autonomy and providing them with financial and distribution muscle that enabled them to benefit more than previously from their innovations. This approach basically meant that Activision Blizzard now focused on the product differentiation strategy. Developer autonomy promoted product differentiation by facilitating the creation of very popular games with a high level of uniqueness that drastically increased Activision’s market share. Furthermore, it helped Activision to attract the industry’s best developers, including those working for EA. Consequently, EA lost the most important resource in the gaming industry to EA, creative talent (Eldring, 62). Q3 The Miles-Snow typology is a classification of bus iness strategies into four main categories: prospector, defender, analyzer, and reactor strategies. The strategy that Activision Blizzard ought to adopt should have a strong basis on market dynamics and strength of the competition. The video-game industry is characterized by a very dynamic and unpredictable market environment, with new market opportunities constantly arising. Developers keep on coming up with new ideas based on prevailing events and situations. Games that have a connection with current or recent events that customers are familiar with tend to be very popular and they take advantage of new market opportunities. In order for Activision Blizzard to maintain its market leadership, it should operate with an

KINGSLEY AMIS'S lUCKY JIM Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

KINGSLEY AMIS'S lUCKY JIM - Essay Example Indeed, the book was dedicated to Larkin; who had helped to inspire and to edit it. The genesis and reception of Lucky Jim can be found in The Letters of Kingsley Amis. His correspondence with Larkin traces the book through its earliest incarnations, when it was known Dixon & Christine and then The Man of Feeling. Here he is on March 3, 1953 writing, to Larkin: "I've called it Lucky Jim now, to empahsise the luck theme - epigraph Oh lucky Jim, How I envy him bis. ... I'm afraid you are very much the ideal reader of the thing and chaps like you don't grow on trees." Jim Dixon's experience dramatizes the conflict between the lower-middle-class drive to invade a higher social stratum and the resultant guilt and self-contempt for abandoning one's own class. A lower-middle-class youth who yearns for the economic security academic tenure affords, Jim earns a degree in an area he neither likes nor understands. By luck, he gets a job as a junior lecturer in history at a provincial university. But it is bad luck, for not only does he detest the medieval history he teaches but he despises the cultural pretensions of his colleagues with whom he must curry favor, such as the Welches: the pompous senior professor, his wife, and their "artistic" sons. The irony in all of this is that Jim Dixon doesn't feel at all lucky. He's a junior lecturer at a no-account college in provincial England. His daily life is a litany of hilariously (from our perspective, anyway) petty humiliations at the hands of his superiors-notably the odious, conceited Professor Welch-his students and his co-dependent sort-of-girlfriend Margaret. "One theme of Lucky Jim was getting good things wrong," Amis explained in an interview. "Culture's good, but not the way the Welches did it. Education is good ... but it is self-defeating if it isn't done properly." (Firchow 27) He fails as an academic, but, with another dollop of luck (better this time), he gets a superior job outside the academy and, as a kind of added bonus (or revenge), wins from Bertrand Welch a young woman of superior social class. (Clive 20) Throughout Lucky Jim, Amis is concerned with the restructuring of British society which took place after World War II. Some of the effects were intensively felt in the English education system through efforts to open educational opportunities to more members of the working and middle classes. The growth of the provincial universities and the decline of the influence of the culturally elite led to friction between the old and the new orders. In Lucky Jim, such cultural change leads to conflict between Jim Dixon, a young history instructor, and Professor Welch, his department chair. Jim sees history as a means of planning and preparing for a better future; Welch sees it as a means of romanticizing and sentimentalizing the past. Amis expands this conflict through Jim's interactions with his colleagues and acquaintances. Welch asks Jim to give a lecture titled "Merrie Olde England," a title which symbolizes the nature of the conflict. Welch tests Jim to see if he is willing to perpetuat e a myth, while Jim and his fellow veterans are trying to cope with life, love and a new social order. The conflict between Jim as representative of a new England and Welch as defender of the old one expands to include Welch's family and some of Jim's colleagues. As a weekend house

Texting in the Workplace Paper Research Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Texting in the Workplace - Research Paper Example Its impact to the society is vast but is still in an on-going debate whether it is advantageous or not. For some, the use of text messaging is useful at work because of the fact that a person can still be reached even when he or she is not around the office, in terms of communication with client, and others. However, text messaging is also seen as a hindrance for a productive work because of the time people spend on it, the distraction it gives, and others. This paper has examined and evaluated a few among the literatures that can help the author assess the impact of text messaging in the workplace to give some indications that can help in the future career. II. Report Mobile phone has been a device that is widely distributed in the world. For some, it has been a necessity just like parts of their everyday lives. However, its impact to the society is still being explored through various researches. Some claim the advantages that mobile phone has contributed to them while the others s tates its disadvantages to the society. However, one certain impact of mobile phone has been noted. Through mobile phone, text messaging has turned out to be a form of mass communication in the society (Rheingold, 2002). ... This review aims at providing a cursory outlook on texting in the workplace and may not be a representative of the complete array of information concerning text messaging. Indeed, text messaging is proven to be advantageous in some points but text messaging that is situated in the workplace is still an on-going discussion. According to Langer (2008), researches concerning text messaging in the workplace are only limited. For Daft and Lengel, text messaging is much more suitable for task-based communication (as cited in Hu, Wood, Smith & Westbrook, 2004). On the one hand, on an account on text messaging, Galushkin’s (2003) claims that text messaging has the ability to be a rich medium in distributed organizations. In such a way, text messaging is asserted to be a more important means of communication and also that it has the more advantage of its ability to facilitate a communication which is fast even if the users are distant to each other. However, the disadvantage of text me ssaging is the less rich quality of communication because it lacks the audio and visual aspect, facial expression, body language, tone of voice as well as the other non-verbal forms of communication. In terms of work related communication, Galushkin (2003) expresses that the advantage of text messaging is when the employee does not feel inferior when addressing his or her superior. Because of this feeling of inferiority, productivity at work is at stake for the uneasiness and apprehension to talk or ask his or her boss. Productivity can be ensured as well given that the time spent on communication is usually shorter than face to face interaction. Text messaging is really much more efficient because of the advantage of having

International terrorism Essay Example for Free

International terrorism Essay Terrorism is the intended use or threat of use of extra normal violence or brutality by sub-national groups to obtain a political, religious, or ideological objective through intimidation of a huge audience, usually not directly involved with the policy making that the terrorists seek to influence. (Enders and Sandler, 2002a, 2002b) Several historical and contemporary terrorist groups support a strong religious party, typically by dint of their membership. Anti-colonial, nationalist movements such as the Jewish terrorist organizations active in pre-independence Israel and the Muslim dominated FLN in Algeria come eagerly to mind, as do more topical examples such as the devastatingly Catholic IRA; their Protestant counterparts, arrayed in various loyalist paramilitary groups like the Ulster Freedom Fighters, the Ulster Volunteer Force and the Red Hand Commandos; and the predominantly Muslim PLO. Though, in all these groups it is the political, not the sacred aspect of their motivation that is prevailing; the primacy of their ethno-nationalist and/or irredentist aims is obviously true. For others, however, the religious motivation is overriding. Certainly, the religious crucial for terrorism are the most significant defining characteristic of terrorist activity today. The consequences of the rebellion that transformed Iran into an Islamic republic in 1979 have included its critical role in the renaissance of this strand of terrorism; but, the contemporary advent of religious terrorism has not been restricted exclusively to Iran, much less to the Middle East or to Islam: since eighties it has involved elements of all the worlds’ key religions and, in several instances, smaller sects or cults as well. I have no regrets, said Yigal Amir, the young Jewish extremist who assassinated Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin, to the police. I acted alone and on orders from God. (Amir Yigal, 1987, pp. 7-8). Like Al-Qaeda, Hezbollah is another international terrorist group that was the product of numerous splits within the Lebanese Shia movement. Its origins can be traced back to 1974, when a Lebanese Shia cleric, Imam Musa al-Sadr, who had studied in the Iranian holy city of Qom, organized the Movement of the Underprivileged to advance Shia interests and progress the communitys lowly socioeconomic conditions. This movement was consequently reorganized as the principal Shia political party in Lebanon, Amal, which formed its own militia during the civil war that racked Lebanon a year later. Hezbollahs ideology is as simple as the organization is â€Å"wraithlike. † The members are taught that humans form two groups: the followers of Allah (Muslims) and the followers of Satan (infidels) who must be censored so that Allahs rule will expand to the whole planet. Satan, they have been told, evident himself in all sorts of disguises: a womans lock showing from under her veil (chador); the bare leg of a teenager boy; women and men mixing in public places (cinemas, cafes, restaurants); the Israeli profession of Palestine; and so on. The struggle against Satan is a full-time job for party members; the partys proposal clearly states: â€Å"Our religion is not a meager part-time hobby like cross-worshipers who go to church on Sunday to bribe their God. † (Robert Fisk, 1996) The party recruit â€Å"volunteers for martyrdom,† trains them, and flings them on missions. In October 1983, such volunteers carried out the suicide bombing of the American marines and French commandos in Beirut. Other members linger the streets, throwing acid on womens unveiled faces, pasting opponents, setting fire to newspaper offices, and so on. The party also broadcasts courses on radio and TV on how to use a diverse firearm, techniques of guerrilla warfare, kidnapping, assassinations of â€Å"enemies of God,† and other deeds. The size of the membership is composed of teenagers and even children. Throughout the eight-year war with Iraq, â€Å"children’s martyrs† were commonly sent to the mine fields to clear the way for tanks. A senior member of the party explained that children can be replaced at less cost than the tanks. Khomeinis justification was perceptibly less cynical: Those less than twenty have not yet been infected by satanic Western culture. In its first months, the Islamic Republic used Syrian and Palestinian terrorists to perform assassinations of opponents in foreign countries. In 1980, Khomeini ordered the formation of an Iranian force capable of striking anywhere in the world. Hojatol-Islam Fazlollah Mahalati, with the assistance of Hadi Ghaffary and Chamran, a pro-Khomeini radical who lived in Lebanon (who had both been trained in PLO camps in the early 1970s), was dispersed to the task. By 1981 the hit squads started their worldwide operations. In 1979, however, al-Sadr vanished throughout a visit to Libya. The desertion of the Imam created a vacuum within Amal that made the party productive ground for Iranian influence, and given the movement prone to the fundamentalist call of the revolt which had brought Khomeini to power earlier that year. Nabih Berri, a lawyer, was appointed head of Amal the following year. Hussein Mussawi, and the assumed mastermind behind the terrorist campaign against Libya to recover the Imam, was named as Berris deputy and commander of the militia. A fanatical supporter of Khomeini, Mussawi sought to place Amal in the front line of a regional revolution based on the new Iranian Islamic Republic. Berri, on the other hand, clung to a modest line and advocated a new deal for the Shia community within the limits of the existing Lebanese state structure. By this time, though, the radicalization of the Shia in Lebanon had gone far away the narrow nationalist and social aims of Amal. In 1981, Mussawi broke with Berri and founded his own organization, Islamic Amal. Shortly after, another faction split from Amal and under the leadership of Abbas Mussawi and the spiritual guidance of Sheikh Mohamed Hussein Fadlallah, it soon came to be recognized as the Hezbollah. Like Islamic Amal, Hezbollah embraced Khomeinis directive for a pan-Islamic revolt designed to turn Lebanon into an Iranian-style Islamic republic. It is really unfortunate that people around the world are irritable about three human deaths throughout this war yet hardly uttered a word with the massacres lately in Africa where hundreds of thousands of people were murdered. The United Nations is calling for a cease-fire and saying this could lead to a humanitarian crisis. Though, this effort didn’t work well so far. According to Gal Luft, In Hizballahland, the movements fighters have much more than a safe haven. Its training camps have become a hub of international terrorism, a convention center for some of the worlds most dangerous men. Here they can experiment with new weapons, practice their tactics, and collaborate with fellow terrorists from groups like al Qaeda, Hamas, Ansar al-Islam, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and the Kurdish Workers Party. From Lebanon, similarly, Hizballahs agents and associates can easily export their skills to destinations around the world. (Gal Luft, Hizballahland, Commentary Magazine, July-August 2003). The second advantage Hizballah enjoys is sophisticated weaponry. Al Qaedas arsenal is now limited to small, easily smuggle arms. When it comes to anti-aircraft capabilities, it possesses (as far as we know) only antiquated Soviet SA-7 Strella missiles, part of roughly 50,000 that were sold to third-world countries during the cold war; such missilesthey may have figured in last Novembers attack on an Israeli passenger plane in Kenyaare largely ineffective against the countermeasure routinely employed by modern planes. By contrast, Hizballah has accumulated an impressive stockpile of weapons, including, as I mentioned at the outset, thousands of rockets, artillery pieces, and antitank and anti-aircraft missiles. In the latter category, it has reportedly equipped itself with SA-18 missiles, whose substantially improved range and speed enable them to shoot down almost any aircraft. Gal Luft, Hizballahland, Commentary Magazine, July-August 2003. Owning more weapons than it knows what to do with, Hizballah has also helped procure arms for other groups. It played a key role in the January 2002 attempt to smuggle 50 tons of weapons to the Palestinian Authority aboard the Karine-A. Its external-operations commander, Imad Mughniyeh, one of the worlds most wanted terrorists, arranged to purchase the ship, and Mughniyehs deputy Haj Bassem personally supervised the loading operation at the Iranian island of Kish. Gal Luft, Hizballahland, Commentary Magazine, July-August 2003.

Structural Biology in Pharmaceutical Research

Structural Biology in Pharmaceutical Research INTRODUCTION Molecular biology plays a key role and contributes a lot in determining the 3D structure of a molecule be it proteins, nucleotides or any other biological macromolecule. It also helps in finding the target sites when it comes to drug designing. Many structural biology techniques are used in the field of pharmaceutical research. These mainly include X-ray crystallography and NMR Spectroscopy. However, structural biology also includes the help of bioinformatics. Structure based drug design plays a major role when it comes to pharmaceutical research and also it has advanced a lot over the years. The remarkable discovery of peptidomimetics and nonpeptides proves this. This was done using techniques like X ray crystallography and NMR spectroscopy as well as other computer based methods. One of the widely used tools in structural biology is X-ray crystallography. This is used to determine the atomic as well as the molecular structure of a crystal where the crystalline atoms cause diffraction of X-rays in many specific directions. It is a form of high resolution microscopy. Using this technique, visualizing protein structures at the atomic level becomes easier and helps in understanding its functions. It also gives information about how proteins react with other molecules and undergo changes in their conformation. As well as the process of catalysis with respect to enzymes. All this knowledge is necessary for designing drugs which are meant to ta rget specific sites or are used for industrial processes. Crystallography, being the most widely used technique may not be successful at all times. With this, NMR comes to the rescue. It helps in elucidating 3D structures of target ligand complexes. With advances in genome sequencing, protein expressions, crystallography and NMR; these have helped in using protein 3D structure for fast discovery of drugs. The role of structural biology and bioinformatics in this is that they help in the manufacturing of drugs that are target specific and well optimized. Also, due to the determination of structure, fragment binding becomes possible. For a drug to work efficiently, it needs to bind to the specific site or the target proteins. Using computer for this is a very good technique which finds and optimizes target proteins that are required. For a substance to bind a target it has be extremely specific like a lock and a key. Structural biology methods and molecular modeling are tools that are used in the developments of such molecules. In the process of drug discovery, computational chemistry proves to be a tool of great help. After the molecule has binded to the desired molecule and the binding properties are known, the suitability of the compound can be improved using the computer. The drug’s binding affinity can be calculated digitally using the computer. Also, using these methods it is also possible to calculate if the changes in the structure would lead to any undesirable or toxic properties. These methods save a lot of time as compared to lab work especially in the early stages of drug designing. Due to this, an increase in the success rates can be observed. Fig 1: Drug Discovery Process Courtesy: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1609333/figure/fig1/ X-RAY CRYSTALLOGRAPHY In order to determine the precise molecular structure of the target protein, X-ray structure analysis is used. In this, the crystal lattice structure of the protein diffracts the X-ray beam in a typical way. The diffraction pattern can be analyzed and due to this, the density of electrons can be read which are present in the parts of the target protein. This in turn, helps in determination of the position of the atoms. Several repetition of this process and refining the image is done till the researchers obtain a 3D structure of the target molecule. Usage on X-ray crystallography in drug discovery has been present since a long time where 30 years ago the 1st three dimensional structure of proteins were determined. However, not all the pharmaceutical companies resort to this technique as it is considered time consuming and too expensive. A total change in drug design has occurred in the past years, thus using 3D structures in the designing processes. For structure that were not available with X-ray crystallography, other methods were used which included comparative models based on homologues. Crystal structures of key drug targets are now available like AIDS drugs such as Agenerase and Viracept were developed using the crystal structure of HIV protease and the influenza drug Relenza was designed using the crystal structure of neuraminidase.Drugs originating from structure based design have entered clinic trials and some of them have even been marketed as drugs now. Knowing the protein structure is a key component in the process of drug design. It is used in lead optimization which is a process that revolves around the usage of structure for guiding chemical modification of the molecule of lead for giving the perfect fit with respect to shape, bonds and other interactions. Protein structure is also used in target selection; this involves homology recognition but with the recent advances in structural genomics this has become easier. X-ray crystallography is also used in the direct screening of chemical fragments. Astex Technology has developed â€Å"Pyramid†, where fragment libraries are screened in cocktails using X-ray crystallography. Fragment hits that are derived from Pyramid are optimized in order to maintain good ligand efficiency. NMR NMR spectroscopy was the first structural technique to be made full use in fragment screening. Target Immobilized NMR Screening (TINS) Usage of NMR spectroscopy on targets that are immobilized helps in binding of small molecules. A process called as Target Immobilized NMR Screening (TINS) has ennumerable advantages; one of them being that a minimum quantity of the non isotopically labeled protein is needed. This method helps in binding in the range of KD values of 100nM to 20mM. If the reference protein is selected carefully, the number of false positive hits that one may get can be avoided. Due to this, maximum valid hits are ensured. These hits can be treated with biological assays. A variety of soluble proteins as well as membrane proteins have been screened. The combination of target immobilization and small screening of fragments using NMR proves to be of immense help in Early Drug discovery. STEPS IN DRUG DISCOVERY PROCESS TARGET IDENTIFICATION FROM SEQUENCE STRUCTURE HOMOLOGY RECOGNITON Structural bioinformatics is a backbone for the identification of new members of supefamilies. Protein structures impart a major information about the families and super families. The proteins that have evolved would be having some common structures or features that they would be exhibiting thus leading to the importance of â€Å"homology recognition†. An example of this was the recognition of HIV proteinase which belonged to be a member of the pepsin/renin superfamily. Recognition of distant homologues can be done using methods like sequence-structure matching that are classified as profile methods or threading. Profile methods involve the sequence comparison algorithms using traditional methods. Computer programs like FUGUE aid in this and helps in the recognition of homologues. Another method used is Threading which fits a probe sequence and evaluates compatibility between the sequenced and the structure that is proposed. This method is powerful for fold recognition. Example of a computer based program is GenTHREADER. After the homologue of the structure is known and identifies, it can be modeled using a variety of procedures. Although structural bioinformatics is helpful, it is necessary to have an accurate experimental structure. Target validation and the identification of ligand binding regions Structures defined by structural genomics programs are mainly of proteins that do not have a known function but they have been identified as proteins only on the basis of their gene sequences. Hence, the need for the development of computerized based methods arises which would identify sites which are involved in the interactions. PROSITE, a sequence motif database identifies the specific residues that have functions. Several attempts have been made to predict the interaction sites using computerized based methods either by identifying high-energy conformations or identifying clefts that can accommodate ligands. LEAD DISCOVERY The trait of a target is based on the number of drug like ligands for a target class. Classification of the targets into families has helped in designing compound libraries for particular families. Screening of a small fragments or molecule is needed and this can be done using biophysical assays. Ligand docking is a method that helps to find the best binding position and orientation. The best docking programmes are successful in dockin 70-80% of ligands in the ligand-protein complexes. A major drawback of this method is that there are difficulties in predicting affinities of different compounds. CONCLUSION Knowledge of the three-dimensional structures of protein targets plays a major role in all stages of drug discovery. Its place in lead optimization is well established with large teams of structural biologists recruited into all major pharmaceutical companies. The success of the method is evident from drugs in use and new ones reaching the market. But structural biology and bioinformatics show that many key targets for drug discovery are multidomain and multiprotein complexes. Such systems pose significant challenges not only for characterization using structural techniques but also because the inter-protein surfaces are usually poor in distinguishing features. BIBLIOGRAPHY RESEARCH PAPERS: Blundell, T., Sibanda, B., Montalvao, R.W., Brewerton, S., Chelliah, V., Worth, C., Harmer, N., Davies, O.,1 and Burke D(2006) Structural biology and bioinformatics in drug design: opportunities and challenges for target identification and lead discovery. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci. 361(1467): 413–423. Congreve, M., Murray CW., and Blundell T(2005) Structural biology and drug discovery. Drug Discov Today. 2005 Jul 1;10(13):895-907. BOOK: Structural Genomics and High Throughput Structural Biology(2006)edited by Michael Sundstrom, Martin Norin, Aled Edwards. WEBSITE: http://www.pharmaceutical-business-review.com/suppliers/zobio/products/nmr-based-structural-biology http://www.bayerpharma.com/en/research-and-development/technologies/research-technologies/computational-chemistry-structural-biology/index.php