The Ultimate Fall Out of the Subprime Crisis Essay

The Ultimate Fall Out of the Subprime Crisis - Essay Example This may include the loans that are advanced on some types of investment properties and to some self employee individuals. (Karen, 2007, p. 6) As such Subprime lending can be taken as one of risky activities not only for the borrowers but also for the lenders. This is due to high interest rates, frequent poor credit histories of the borrowers, potential adverse financial situation which may be encountered by the borrowers and others. This study will look at the Subprime problem that has rocked the US market and other markets in the world as well. There has been increased rate of home foreclosure and millions of the US homeowners have lost their homes. There is a general panic that has rocked the industry with so much uncertainty about its future. The paper looked at the Subprime crisis but leaned on the potential fall out of the crisis. This study is important since other studies which have been carried out on the subject have concentrated on the overall cause and trend of the crisis but few have looked at the potential fall out of the crisis and its consequences. The objective of the study was to understand the trend in t he crisis and therefore predict the potential fall out. The study was carried out by collective, reviewing and analyzing secondary data in order to put facts together to understand the potential fall out of the mortgage. ... From the study the authors has understood the trend in the current mortgage crisis, its causes and the potential interacting factor that have made it difficult to resolve it. The author has also understood the potential fall out of the crisis and from this it has been easily to come up with the possible strategies that could be used in the future in order to avoid the repeat of such a crisis. Therefore the study has helped the author to understand the effects that Subprime crisis is likely to have on the lenders and borrowers as well. Aims and objectives of the study The main aim of the study was to look into the Subprime crisis that has currently rocked the US home industry which has also been felt in other countries as well. In order to understand the topic well, the research was also aimed at looking into the developments in the Subprime crisis so as to come up with an understanding of the crisis and potential fall out and its effects on the homeowners. Therefore the main aim of the study was to study the ultimate fall out of the Subprime crisis. To achieve the aim of the study, there were specific objectives which had to be fulfilled first. This was important in order to understand the trend in the crisis and the potential consequences. The following were the objectives of the study; To assess the main factors which have contributed to the Subprime crisis To asses the trend in the Subprime crisis To evaluate the extent of damage that has been caused by the crisis To evaluate the potential effects of the crisis Through the achievement of the objectives the study was able to understand the subject of study well and to draw upon conclusion on the potential effects of the crisis. Therefore they were

Descriptive Essay Essay Example for Free

Descriptive Essay Essay My nose is overwhelmed with the smell of hairspray, baby powder, and a fruity perfume. There are too many girls in here, all struggling and fighting for a space near the mirror that covers the entire back wall. It’s dim in here, but it’s a good kind of dim, almost calming. The only light is coming from the round vanity bulbs that line the top of the mirrors, making it so that the fluorescents don’t impair what natural light reveals. I make my way to the red lockers on the right, squeezing past two of my fellow giggling cast-members as they try to make their way out the swinging door. After opening my locker, personalized with my name stickered on the front in purple sparkly letters, I get out my bulking make-up bag and curling iron. My eyes dart across the room in search of an available outlet, hoping one even still exists within the chaos. I look around the base of the walls near the white and blue tiled floor, trying not to get annoyed at all the hair straighteners that are just sitting there unused and warming. I roll my eyes and sigh, I could be finished curling my hair by the time the straightener’s owner even picks it up to begin taming their frizzy head. I shouldn’t be surprised though, this is always how the dressing room is an hour before the first show. Arms full of beauty products, and attempting to keep my curling iron’s cord from dragging across the floor or getting stepped on by the constant rush of people moving about the small room. I finally spot someone unplugging her phone charger from the wall and jump on the opportunity to steal an outlet before anyone else notices. I set my curling iron on the highest possible heat and click â€Å"turbo-mode. † I will apologize to my hair later for the abuse. The counter beneath the mirror is covered in bronzer powder, used eyeliner pencils, and countless lost bobby pins. I slide my arm across the objects askew making them into messy pile in the corner. This isn’t my ideal â€Å"getting ready† station, but it’ll do. I’m just grateful to have secured a spot near the mirror and outlet; you’d be surprised how stressed one can become when they don’t have a place to get ready thirty minutes before it’s time to take places on stage. I look in the mirror, face naked and hair in a messy bun, and realize I have a lot of work to do. I spot my best friend and fellow lead in the corner near the sink, already in full costume and stage make-up, peering down at her script in concentration. I smile to myself; it’s so typical of her to be trying to memorize her song lyrics at the last minute, but I know she’ll be great. The stage manager walks in to announce that we only have a few more minutes to get ready before show-circle, urging us to get a move-on. In light of the excitement, I see one of my friends pull out her iPod and speakers and I know exactly what is coming. Nothing pumps you up before show more than rocking out to show-tunes and dancing while you pat blush on your cheeks and fluff your hair. One our unanimous favorites being the Disney song from Mulan, â€Å"I’ll Make A Man Out Of You,† in which literally everyone sings at the top of their lungs without hesitation or missing a beat. Mouth open wide putting on mascara, the finishing touch to my stage make-up, I start bursting out laughing as one of my friends jumps on a chair wearing nothing but a sports bra and boy-shorts and begins to dramatically sing into a hairbrush. I absolutely love these crazy theatre people. I quickly remove the hair-tie from my bun and brush out my ginger curls, swaying to the music at the same time. I’m so lucky to be playing the part of a horrible, mean, dirty, inn-keepers wife – meaning that I pretty much just have to make my hair into a rat’s nest in order to look the part. Perfect, considering I only have about ten minutes to transform. I pack up all my brushes and different shades of eye shadow, currently wearing the darkest shade of grey I could find, shove them in my bag without the intent to be organized, and head for the costume closet. Everyone is throwing off their t-shirts and athletic shorts and getting into their eighteenth century French peasant costumes. I open the door to the closet and find, not to my surprise, even more people digging around looking for lost items of clothing. The floor is covered with clothes and costume jewelry, and I can’t imagine how anyone is supposed to find anything in here. I keep my costume in the corner, all confined and zipped up in a dress-bag. Sifting through my multiple costumes I find my first outfit change. It consists of an ugly green dress with floral patterned strings lacing the top together, a white puffy shirt to go underneath, black tights, a hideous striped apron, and scraped black character shoes. I leave cramped closet and begin to feel slightly claustrophobic. Either from the heat of so many bodies in one place or due to the fact that I have to shove myself against the wall in order to have any space to lay my clothes out, I begin to get anxious and feel the need to just get this over with and escape the crowd. Once dressed and ready to go, I check myself in the mirror for the last time and apply a dark shade of lipstick that says: â€Å"I hate my life, love scamming people, and absolutely despise my husband. † A perfect fit for the role of â€Å"Madame Thenardier† whom I will be portraying shortly. I leave the dressing room to meet up with the rest of the cast, everyone looking like they just stepped out of a French battle scene in order to set the opening scene. Outside the dressing room it is open, cool, and quiet – quite a drastic change compared to the loud and stuffy dressing room. Our director announces that the show will start in five minutes and in one giant herd everyone rushes out of the dressing room, closets, bathrooms, and black-box and makes it back-stage. I can almost physically feel the energy of the cast seeping into my own skin giving me a boost. I hang back for a bit, muttering a few lines of excitement and encouragement to my friends before approaching the water fountain in attempt to cure my rather out-of-no-where dry throat. I gulp down a few mouthfuls and wipe the remaining water on my sleeve and follow the rest of the cast back-stage. It’s dark and my eyes take a while to adjust, guiding myself with the light that is coming from beneath the giant dark red curtains. Everyone is quiet, shuffling around looking for props on the labeled tables and attempting to put the finishing touches on their costumes. The only sound to be heard is the mumble of hundreds of audience members just a few yards away. A feeling in the pit of my stomach settles in, and my heart begins to race. My senses enhance, and I can hear individual conversations from across the curtain. I try to pick out any familiar voices that may be waiting behind the red wall, but I know it is unlikely with such a large amount of people. My stage manager whispers to everyone to get into place, the show is about to start. I feel my way across the dark stage and stand in my assigned position. No one says a word. Adrenaline begins to pump through my veins and I have to resist the emptation to peek under the curtain to see how many people will be watching. Silence slowly falls over the unseen audience. All I hear is the breathing of my fellow cast-members beside me, and a few footsteps as the last few people find their spots. All lights from beneath the curtain go off, and I am now standing in complete darkness. I can hear my heart pounding in my ears and my stomach feels as if it is about to fall through the floor. I rub my sweaty palms against my apron, close my eyes, and take a deep breath. The curtain opens.

The Possibility Of Necessity :: essays research papers

<a href="http://www.geocities.com/vaksam/">Sam Vaknin's Psychology, Philosophy, Economics and Foreign Affairs Web Sites Some things are logically possible (LP). Others are physically possible (PP) and yet others are Physically Actual (PA). The things that are logically necessary (LN) are excluded from this discussion because they constitute a meta-level: they result from the true theorems in the logical systems within which LP, PP and PA reside. In other words: the LN are about relationships between the three other categories. The interactions between the three categories (LP, PP, PA) yield the LN through the application of the rules (and theorems) of the logical system within which all four reside. We are, therefore, faced with six questions. The answers to three of them we know – the answers to the other three are a great mystery. The questions are: Is every LP also PP? Is every LP also PA? Is every PP also PA? Is every PP also LP? Is every PA also LP? Is every PA also PP? Every PP must be also LP. The physical world is ruled by the laws of nature which are organized in logical systems. The rules of nature are all LP and whatever obeys them must also be LP. Whatever is PA must be PP (otherwise it will not have actualized). Since every PP is also LP – every PA must also be LP. And, of course, nothing impossible can actually exist – so, every PA must also be PP. That something exists implies that it must also be possible. But what is the relationship between necessity and existence? If something is necessary – does it mean that it must exist? It would seem so. And if something exists – does it mean that it was necessary? Not necessarily. It really depends on how one chooses to define necessity. A thought system can be constructed in which if something exists, it implies its necessity. An example: evolutionary adaptations. If an organism acquired some organ or trait – it exists because it was deemed necessary by evolution. And thought systems can be constructed in which if something is of necessity – it does not necessarily mean that it will exist. Consider human society. There are six modes of possibility: Logical (something is possible if its negation constitutes a contradiction, a logical impossibility). Metaphysical (something is possible if it is consistent with metaphysical necessities) Nomological (something is possible if it is consistent with scientific laws)

Life of Pi Analysis

Summary Piscine Molitor Patel – Protagonist in the story, also the narrator – also known as Pi Ravi Patel – Pi’s older brother by three years Santosh Patel – Pi’s father, owns a zoo in Pondicherry, India Gita Patel – Pi’s Mother Satish Kumar – Pi’s biology teacher in Pondicherry Father Martin – A catholic priest that introduces Pi to the catholic faith Satish Kumar – A Muslim mystic that shares the same name with Pi’s biology teacher Hindu Pandit – A man whom is never named, he becomes very angry at Pi for practicing religions other than his own Pi Patel, a Hindu boy from Pondicherry, India, narrates this novel.The novel begins with Pi going into great depth about the life of a sloth, which reminds him of a god. Pi explains how he got his name – from a swimming pool. This leads into Pi’s life story, which begins with his fond memories of his father’s zoo in India. Fo llowing this is a memory of a trip he took with his family, where he meets a catholic priest who introduces him to Catholicism. Later on this trip, Pi meets a Muslim mystic who introduces Pi to the Muslim faith.Pi is deeply intrigued with other religions and their practices, but his curiosity crushed when a Hindu Pandit informs Pi’s parents that he is practicing other religions than his own. Significant Quotes â€Å"I know zoos are no longer in people’s good graces. Religion faces the same problem. Certain illusions about freedom plague them both. † Page 21 This quote shows how closely related Pi sees animals and religion.People misunderstand the life of animals in the wild; they do not understand that life in captivity at a zoo might very well be a better life for an animal – just as people misunderstand what it means for someone to be free of a religion. Religion can take away the harshness of reality, just as the walls of a zoo enclosure can show one r eality, but not the one beyond the walls. Pi is trying to show how religion can make a life simpler and more enjoyable. â€Å"I can well imagine an atheist’s last words: â€Å"White, white! L-L-Love! My God! †Ã¢â‚¬â€and the deathbed leap of faith.Whereas the agnostic, if he stays true to his reasonable self, if he stays beholden to dry, yeastless factuality, might try to explain the warm light bathing him by saying, â€Å"Possibly a f-f-failing oxygenation of the b-b-brain,† and, to the very end, lack imagination n and miss the better story. † Page 70 This quote illustrates how closely religion is linked to creativity and imagination. How an atheist believes in the nonexistence of god, still believes in something and has the capacity to change their beliefs, where as an agnostics are uncertain, with no beliefs and therefore lacking imagination to devise a guide for their life.Without stories of beliefs in our lives -like in an agnostics life – lif e is ‘dry ‘ and ‘yeastless’ or flat and dull. â€Å"I couldn’t get Him out of my head. Still can’t. I spent three solid days thinking about Him. The more He bothered me, the less I could forget Him. And the more I learned about Him, the less I wanted to leave Him. † Page 63 This quote shows the depth of Pi’s faith at such a young age. He seeks God not only through his own religion, but also in religions that he adopts throughout his journeys. Pi’s goal is to love God – innocent but extremely powerful.

Hazards in Dhaka City Essay

During the last couple of decades Dhaka city is one of the fastest growing metropolises in the world. The urban development seems to lack in planning and the problem of urbanization are intensified by high population growth and rural urban migration. Again, Bangladesh suffers from natural calamities every now and then and the urbanization of metropolitan Dhaka is also affected by it. The existing utility services are not capable of coping with the increased demand of the urbanization process. Faulty planning, Lack of coordination among various agencies and overall disregard to environment issues affecting Dhaka include floods, which are associated with river water overflow and rain water stagnation, earthquakes and tornadoes. Flood Hazard: Flood is a type of hydro-meteorological phenomenon and it is very hazardous as it can cause devastating losses in property and human lives. Fast and unplanned development aggravates the consequences of flooding by increasing the monetary costs of losses. These kinds of losses are especially high in urban areas which would be possible to ease with proper planning and management of the urban structures. Geographical Information Systems (GIS) based modeling and Remote Sensing (RS) techniques can help by supplying maps and techniques as assistance to make early warning for risk areas. In this case study, different criteria have been analyzed that have potential impact on the amount of devastation, such as the elevation of the areas, flooding depth, building density, terrain slope, soil type, land use types etc. Based on different factors analysis, results are visualized with the help of GIS and RS presentation and dissemination techniques. In addition, the impacts of different factors on flooding itself are also discussed. Finally, a flood prediction map for Dhaka City Corporation (DCC) in Bangladesh was prepared using the Multi-Criteria Evaluation (MCE) method with particular focus on the different criteria that influence the flooding in Dhaka city. Water Logging: Water logging is a very common problem in Dhaka city during the monsoon period as well as all the year round. Even a little rain causes serious  problems in some parts of the city on every occasion and can create water logging situation for several days which in turn causes huge infrastructural damages by reducing the amount of accessible assets and supplies in the city. This situation normally occurs due to unplanned infrastructure development, insufficient or limited drainage systems, blockage of the drainages, lack of consciousness of these problems by the inhabitants, unplanned build-up of areas within the city, filling up the canals, lakes and water bodies in areas which are mainly acquired by housing companies and brick burning industries within the city. The Dhaka city is usually flooded as a result of rainfalls and the high water level of surrounding river systems. For instance, 1998 flooding was the most catastrophic in the flooding history of Bangladesh, where Dhaka city was affected by heavy rainfall and the high water levels of the river system. Unplanned urbanization is increasing water logging. Earthquakes: The city can be severely affected by earthquakes as it has already happened in the past. Intensities of VI, VII, and VIII have already been registered in the city. The national building code of Bangladesh (BNBC 1993) includes three seismic zones, and Dhaka is located on the second one with a zoning coefficient equivalent to the 15% of the gravity (z=0.15g). According to the results of the Earthquake Disaster Risk Index (EDRI) project, major earthquake risk is associated with the high vulnerability of the building stock due to both poor materials and poor construction processes. Tornados: The two transitional periods between southwest and northeast monsoons over the Indian sub-continent are characterized by local severe storms. The transitional periods are usually referred to as pre-monsoon (March-May), and post-monsoon (October- November). It is the pre-monsoon period when most of the abnormal rainfall or drought conditions frequently occur in different parts of Bangladesh. Also there are severe local seasonal storms, popularly known as nor?westers (kalbaishakhi). Severe nor?westers are generally  associated with tornadoes. Tornadoes are embedded within a mother thundercloud, and moves along the direction of the squall of the mother storm. The frequency of devastating nor?westers usually reaches the maximum in April, while a few occur in May, and the minimum in March. Nor?westers and tornadoes are more frequent in the afternoon. Table 3 shows some of the devastating nor?westers and tornadoes that hit Bangladesh. Nor?westers may occur in late February due to early withdrawal of winter from Bangladesh, Bihar, West Bengal, Assam, and adjoining areas. The occasional occurrence of nor?westers in early June is due to the delay in the onset of the southwest monsoon over the region (Karmakar, 1989). Table: Some of the devastating westers and tornadoes

English IV B.. Essay Example

English IV B.. Essay Example English IV B.. Paper English IV B.. Paper Essay Topic: Literature What does it mean to rebut something? to oppose using evidence or an argument Which of the following choices is a sound argument? All teachers wear vests. Mr. Gonzales does not wear a vest. Therefore, Mr. Gonzales is not a teacher. How do you know which counterargument to address? I select the strongest or the most popular counterargument Statistics that are used to draw conclusions about larger groups are called __________. inferential An examination of a school handbook from a local public high school shows that the expectations of students are more like laws by which a citizen must abide to live in a society. Respect the teachers position as leader in the classroom . . . sounds like a statement of a tyrant. These expectations seem forced upon the students with no freedom. If schools want students to be successful citizens, they should allow students to take the courses they want and let them breathe. Which change would make the evidence stronger? supporting the anecdotal evidence with empirical evidence by examining a range of school handbooks from various public schools What should you record on a note card if youre using the index-card organizational system? quotation, paraphrase, summary How is fraud related to plagiarism? Plagiarism is a kind of fraud. Who may be held responsible if found to have plagiarized? I. journalists and public figures II. professors and instructors III. students of any age I, II, and III How is media plagiarism different from academic plagiarism? I. Media plagiarism involves professionals in a public forum. II. Academic plagiarism involves students in a school setting. III. Media plagiarism involves only those who work on television. I and II Why should we all be concerned about plagiarism in the media? It affects societys trust in news outlets. Which of the following does not require attribution? I. information found in multiple sources II. information directly observed III. quotations from a public figures I and II Why is it wrong to plagiarize even if no one will find out? I. It violates societys ethical code. II. It denies the author of earned credit. III. It is dishonest and damages personal integrity. I, II, and III What is an in-text citation? giving attribution within the sentence containing the source material Which of the following activities are considered plagiarism? I. presenting someone elses work as your own II. paraphrasing information but crediting the source III. quoting someone without including quotation marks I and III When reading an article in a newspaper, readers __________. expect the information to be accurate and properly credited Which passage illustrates an in-text citation? In his inspiring inaugural address, John F. Kennedy said, [A]sk not what your country can do for you- ask what you can do for your country. World literature texts come from a variety of ___________. D. all of the above The theme of this world literature unit is ______________. B. self-discovery Why does Ravan wear a disguise when he comes to Sitas home? C. He is able to trick her into inviting him in. The study of effective writing and speaking while artfully using persuasion is known as __________. A. rhetoric Let us not discuss the economy of this country; let us also not discuss the spending habits of its citizens; and finally, let us not discuss the divide between the rich and poor; instead, lets talk about the best restaurants. Which type of rhetorical device is used in the above example? B. apophasis Which of the following scenarios would utilize traditional rhetoric as a means of persuasion? B. a speech by a classmate who is running for student body president During the 20th century, rhetoric came to mean more than just the art of persuasion. Which of following definitions correctly describes rhetorics broader meaning? B. any communication used to modify the perspectives of others https://media.education2020.com/evresources/2111975_i0030000.jpg Which component of a rhetorical argument is missing from the chart above? B. Ethics (ethos) All situations involving communication involve at least one of the following: an author with specific purposes, attitudes, and background ? a text in a particular medium, made with certain tools, and deciphered with certain tools a context in a particular time and place involving a certain community and conversation One of the characteristics from the list above is missing. Which of the following phrases correctly completes the list? B. an audience with equally specific purposes, attitudes, and background Which type of reasoning is used in the following statement? Kids like to play outside. Chase is a kid. Therefore, Chase likes to play outside. D. deductive reasoning Which of the following is NOT a main component of rhetoric? B. legos Which type of reasoning is used in the following statement? The wrestlers I have seen are flexible. Therefore, all wrestlers must be flexible. B. faulty reasoning Read the sentence below and answer the question that follows. If we do not act swiftly, we will be completely and utterly annihilated. Which type of rhetorical device is used in the above sentence? B. hyperbole Tony escapes awkward situations with great ease and without notice. He is a Houdini. What type of rhetorical device is used in the underlined sentence? A. eponym Band practice is at 7 a.m. before school. Max is a member of the school band. Max has band practice at 7 a.m. before school. Which of the following choices accurately labels the elements of the above argument? C. premise: Band practice is at 7 a.m. before school. Max is a member of the school band. conclusion: Max has band practice at 7 a.m. before school. All baseball players wear a uniform. Miguel is a baseball player. Which of the following choices is the BEST conclusion to this argument? A. Miguel wears a uniform. Counselors have advised Queen Elizabeth to - B. avoid crowds for fear of assassination ___________ help the group move towards a goal. D. Task roles How many stages of group development are discussed in the article Groups that Work. C. 4 There are _________ types of roles in group work. C. 3 Pooled resources and skills are ________________. C. one advantage of working as a group Expert power comes from __________. A. having expert knowledge on a subject The guidelines or expectations for team behavior are called ___________________. C. team ground rules _________________ help the group manage relationships A. Social roles Teams and groups tend to have very rigid rules and consequences. False. _____________ do not contribute to effective group work. B. Individual roles Maintain a 3.0 is an example of a ______________. B. team rule Group norms are _____________________. B. general, informal standards for appropriate group behavior Susan, lets not get upset about this. It doesnt matter if the paper is blue or yellow. Lets just have Michael decide; its part of his job assignment. Which group role does the statement above reflect? B. Social The consistent way you communicate with others in your group is your ___________. B. role Fran is doing a presentation on influential art from the Renaissance. Which type of presentation aid would be the best choice for Fran to use? D. the object itself Which of the following is an example of using a person as a presentation aid? B. demonstrating the latest haircut techniques using a friend as a model Which of the following is an example of a thesis statement? B. Joining the Red Cross is a simple way to become more active in your community. During the final development stage of a speech on a question of value you should ____________. B. identify common ground before moving to differences Demonstrating that your ideas are practical and reasonable is especially important when developing a speech on questions of _________. B. policy Regardless of the type of speech, it is important that your supporting materials are ________. B. credible How do you feel when you have to wait for something you really, really want? What if it was something you couldnt live without? Well, my cousin was five years old when he found out he needed a new kidney. He went on the organ waiting list right away. He was called twice during a six month span that they had a kidney available only to find out that the kidney wasnt a good match. He had to wait again. The third time was a charm. A small adult was in an accident and his kidney was a good match. This story had a happy ending but so many do not. The statement above, from the speech Organ Donation, is an example of ____________. B. attention getting material Which of the following is a question of policy? D. All of the above How many types of persuasive speeches are there? C. 3 Asking the question Why is this true? is a good way to generate _____________. C. main ideas To develop the main points for a speech on a question of value, you should ___________. B. ask Why is this good or bad Which of the following would be appropriate supporting materials to use in a persuasive speech addressing a question of fact? A. statistics Which of the following is a question of value? B. Is human cloning ethical? Violence on television does not lead to violent behavior is an example of a ___________. C. thesis statement Does violence on television lead to violent behavior? is an example of _____________. C. a question of fact When is the best time to make predictions about a text? A. before reading Which is a good strategy to use after you read to make sure you can remember the most important points? A. summarizing To make an inference about how Freddie felt about his visit to the hospital, which would you do? A. Think about how I would feel. When is the best time to ask the question, What do I still want to know? C. After you read because you can think about what you learned and what you still want to know. Metacognition is the awareness of ones own learning and thinking. True. Is the following sentence from paragraph 19 of the passage a fact or opinion? For now, the government allows it to be used only for minor surgeries in the chest and stomach areas. A. fact How does visualizing the section A Surgical Robot help you understand the passage better? A. Having a mental picture of the robot helps me to understand the questions that Freddie asks later in the passage. According to the passage, why wont the robotic surgical system replace surgeons? B. because the robotic arms need the guidance of a surgeon What kind of graphic organizer would best help you organize the information in paragraphs 22 and 24? D. an idea web Why is Freddie watching a surgical procedure? B. because he is writing an article about a new procedure that the hospital is using Previewing the format, content and purpose of a text ______________. D. all of the above With which of the following statements would John likely agree? D. All of the above. While I think learning a new language is one of the most exciting things about going abroad, I know many people would appreciate the comfort of easy communication while they are trying to adapt to a new culture in a place far from home. If this describes your personality, dont worry! Two of the most popular study abroad destinations are Great Britain and Australia. In the passage, the author is arguing __________________. B. that even students who do not speak a foreign language can study abroad Which of the following arguments would you expect to read in See the World! Study Abroad? D. There are many affordable study abroad options available to students. What is the definition of ardent? C. passionate Asking yourself the question, How can I best monitor and maintain my comprehension is _________. A. an important step in metacognition The definition of ___________ is, the money a student receives to help pay expenses while attending a university. D. financial aid Which of these correctly identifies an argument and counterargument. B. Argument: Experiencing a new culture will help you to understand the world. Counterargument: It will be difficult and unpleasant to experience a new culture. Which of the following counterarguments would you expect to find in the article See the World! Study Abroad? B. Study abroad programs are not worth the cost. Because shell be forced to jump in with both feet and learn, Sarah will find (with effort, of course!) she learns more of the language in her four month study abroad than she could have ever learned sitting in a classroom. It just makes sense that using a language everyday would help you to learn it quickly. And, Sarah was right on track to begin preparing for her trip by taking language classes before she left. Again, it is always better to plan ahead and prepare early! The author predicts ___________. C. Sarah will quickly learn the language as she uses it frequently on her study abroad. Identify the tone of the underlined word in the following sentence: Your problems are always so dramatic and trivial! ( trivial! is underlined) C. demeaning Preview the following photo and caption. Identify the best title for text: https://media.education2020.com/evresources/1096-07-03-03-00_files/i0060000.jpg Jury box a. Swearing in during Jury Selection c. Juries and Court Cases b. Juries around the United States d. none of the above A. Swearing in during Jury Selection Identify the tone of the following underlined word in the sentence below. My sister was fraught with emotion after she deleted her 20 page research paper. ( ..fraught.. is underlined) A. frustrated According to the author what is the foundation of the jury system. C. common sense and reasoned judgment of ordinary citizens Identify the tone of the underlined word in the sentence below: The ramifications of hitting your brother will be huge. ( ..ramifications.. is underlined) B. consequences What is the main idea of the article The Jurys Out? A. Jury selection system in the US is unacceptable and steps need to be taken to assure fairness. Identify the persuasive words in the following sentence: The flight from jury duty on the part of millions of Americans is a serious threat to the future of the system. D. A and B While some 80 million Americans have been called for jury service at some part of their lives, fewer than half ever sat on a jury. True. Preview the following photo and caption. Identify a goal setting you might use for the text: https://media.education2020.com/evresources/1096-07-03-03-00_files/i0050000.jpg Lawyer in front of a jury a. What is the role of the lawyer in the jury system? c. What does a jury do? b. What is a lawyer? d. none of the above A. What is the role of the lawyer in the jury system? Identify why American?s do not want to serve on a jury. D. all of the above Directions: READ the passage, and answer the question that follows. https://media.education2020.com/evresources/1096-06-01-02-00_files/i0160000.jpg What question is not answered in the passage? a. Who is Alexs teacher? b. What shapes can Alex identify? c. How many colors can Alex identify? d. Why might Alex have a bad attitude? B. What shapes can Alex identify? What is the best possible explanation for why the author does not explain what causes Hughes to become so strange? C. The information was not available. Which of the following an evaluation question? D. all of the above Directions: QUICKLY skim the passage, and answer the question below. https://media.education2020.com/evresources/1096-06-01-02-00_files/i0030000.jpg Based on your preview, what is the best goal-setting question for the passage? A. How did Snowball help to catch a killer? Directions: Read the passage, and answer the question that follows. https://media.education2020.com/evresources/1096-06-01-02-00_files/i0240000.jpg What is the best possible explanation for why the author waits so long to reveal that the babies had been switched? A. to create suspense Directions: READ the passage, and answer the question that follows. https://media.education2020.com/evresources/1096-06-01-02-00_files/i0160000.jpg Which question is not answered in the passage? a. What type of parrot is Alex? b. Where is Alex studied? c. How does Alex learn English? d. How high can Alex count? C. How does Alex learn English? Directions: READ the passage, and answer the question that follows. https://media.education2020.com/evresources//1096-06-01-02-00_files/i0080000.jpg Which is the best between-the-lines question to ask about the passage? C. Why dont female Asian elephants have tusks? Directions: READ the passage, and answer the question that follows. https://media.education2020.com/evresources/1096-06-01-02-00_files/i0080000.jpg What is a good beyond-the-text question for this passage? D. all of the above Directions: QUICKLY skim the passage, and answer the question that follows. https://media.education2020.com/evresources/1096-06-01-02-00_files/i0120000.jpg Based on your preview, what is an appropriate goal-setting question for the passage? D. all of the above Directions: READ the passage, and answer the question that follows. https://media.education2020.com/evresources/1096-06-01-02-00_files/i0140000.jpg What is a between-the-lines question to ask about the passage? D. all of the above. Directions: QUICKLY skim the passage, and answer the question that follows. https://media.education2020.com/evresources/1096-06-01-02-00_files/i0060000.jpg Based on your preview, what is the best goal-setting question for this passage? C. What are the similarities and differences between Asian and African elephants? Forensic Scientists It is the job of law enforcement officials to arrest criminals. Then they must convince judges and juries beyond a reasonable doubt that the right person was arrested. According to this principle, the judge and jurors must be fairly confident, based on the evidence, that the accused person is guilty. The work of forensic scientists begins with collecting the evidence at a crime scene. Along with police investigators, forensic scientists examine the crime scene. Investigators must be careful not to upset anything at a crime scene. They must make sure nothing new is added. Every possible piece of evidence is photographed or videotaped before it can be taken away. At a crime scene, investigators search for all the clues involved with the crime. They dust for fingerprints. They scrape up small bits of evidence using scalpels. Small, angled mirrors, like the ones dentists have, are used the see beneath heavy furniture. Tweezers are used to pick up fibers. Of course, investigators must be consistent when labeling where each piece of evidence was found before it is stored in a bag. The evidence is then sent to forensic labs. At these labs, scientists administer tests to determine whether the evidence is connected to the crime. Forensic scientists look for answers to questions about how a crime occurred. Finding answers is the job- and ultimate reward- of a forensic scientist. Which of these questions is answered in the reading? C. What do investigators do at a crime scene? Directions: QUICKLY skim the passage, and answer the question below. https://media.education2020.com/evresources/1096-06-01-02-00_files/i0030000.jpg Which is not a feature in the passage above which you can use to ask a goal-setting question? D. header A doctor must follow _______________ guidelines to protect his/her patients privacy. D. ethics A(n) ______________ evaluates those involved in trials. A. forensic psychiatrist When you create questions about a text, it is helpful to use _______________. B. question words The sentence, While it may seem like psychiatrists help people get away with murder or other violent crimes, in reality, they play an important role in the criminal trial process. is the __________ of the essay. A. conclusion Which word (or phrase) should be emphasized in this sentence, to communicate the persuasive tone? While it may seem like psychiatrists help people get away with murder or other violent crimes, in reality, they play an important role in the criminal trial process. C. in reality What is the overall tone of Forensic Psychology and Ethics? A. serious Opinion is another word for ____________. D. subjective The question, What is appropriate in the courtroom? is an example of a(n) ____________. C. open-ended question Occasionally, forensic psychiatrists have ____________ which makes many people wonder if they should be allowed to testify. D. made up a syndrome for the defendant Which of the following is a consequence if a forensic psychiatrist lies in court? A. He/She can be sent to jail. Forensic psychiatrists can help juries ________________. A. understand the defendants mental state The author argues that testifying in court does not violate confidentiality rules because ____________. B. the defendant knows that the results of the evaluation will be presented as evidence. The author of Forensic Psychology and Ethics would most likely agree with which of the following statements? B. There is sufficient evidence to demonstrate that psychiatric evaluations are scientifically valid. Reasoning is _______________. B. using logic to make a judgement based on evidence I dont think that Cheetahs are cheating. And I am uncomfortable with the talk of cyborgs and transhumans that surrounds this case. These stories will get harder, not easier, over the next years. But as a fan of Masazumi Soejima, I dont think that racing on a separate track is an insult. Its still the right place for the fastest man on no legs. Which statement correctly summarizes the authors views on Oscar Pistorius using the Cheetah prosthesis to compete in the Olympics? B. The author feels that Oscar Pistorius should not compete in the Olympics. Misfortune is another word for __________. B. adversity The definition of ____________ is a remarkable or outstanding person. D. phenom Inferences must be supported by ____________. B. evidence Michael Sandel, author of The Case Against Perfection, warns that part of what we admire about great athletes is that we are able to see ourselves in their human achievements. Who would applaud the bionic Olympiad? Based on the passage above, which statement correctly summarizes Michael Sandels feelings about technologically enhanced athletes? B. Michael Sandel feels that using technology to enhance athletes takes away from the very things we admire about those athletes What is the definition of prosthesis? D. an artificial device used to replace a missing body part I take nothing away from the athleticism and grit of Soejima. But it goes without saying that he didnt beat Cheruiyot. Those who compete on foot and those who compete with wheels are categorically different. And succeed in different categories. Based on the passage, what inference can you make about the authors feelings about athletes like Masazumi Soejima? B. She feels that athletes like Masazumi Soejima ought to compete in their own categories. Because the article, Bionic Athlete, is an editorial, the reader can infer that ____________. B. much of the article reflects the authors opinion Some years ago, I questioned a beauty pageant in which the contestants had been surgically altered and implanted. They didnt owe their beauty to their maker but, rather, to their re-maker. In this passage, the author compares _____________ to surgically altered beauty pageant contestants. A. athletes who compete with technological assistance

What i have lived for Essay Example

What i have lived for Essay Example What i have lived for Essay What i have lived for Essay Over the course of my life, three passions that have driven my life: the need for adrenaline, the commitment of family love, and the endless love for cars. Though simple and uninteresting to ones mind, these overwhelming passions have lead my life of dullness and bitterness to a life of sweetness and Joy. Whats so life changing of these passions? Whether its the urge to winning a race or parachuting off a plane miles up, that heart pumping, adrenaline, feeling I get is what I would describe fun as. That slow action time zone I receive in the midst of battling a position for a race is the feeling that cannot be explained, but for one to have experienced it to know. That time zone where everything is slowed, is where I have the chance to forget all the stress built up, and to Just enjoy the ecstasy feeling of the adrenaline. This ecstasy feeling is so great that one could sacrifice a stressful moment of their life Just to sit down and enjoy the beautiful scenery around them. Then all of a sudden, the feeling would Just seem to fade away and the life I once had comes back. Though knowing the fact that this adrenaline feeling could be experienced again, the depression I have decreases just a bit, while I look forward to the next time will experience it again. While the want for adrenaline, comes with the want to return a favor to my family. Thinking of the pain my parents have suffered to give me the life I never had, gives me pains as I watch them come home tired and hungry every day since I could remember. Family first is what I go by, so I would take every available chance there is to be able to return the favor. Parents are not Just the people who wash your loathes and cook you dinner, they are the people who have striver to see you be happy. Though I could tell them I love them every day, nothing more than physically showing them proves more. The day I read my first car book at the age of 5 was the day that marked the beginning of my love for cars. The rumbling roars of the cars circling the track is like music to my ears. Spending time admiring the beauty of each car would be my second definition of fun. But the real fun lies behind a leather gripped steering wheel of an Italian supercargo. The adrenaline that rushes through your brain makes o feel like you never want to get out of the car, forgetting the fact that you once had a life. Speeding through the hollow tunnels leaving a trail of roars and taking the turns with such speed is what each young car fanatic would have dreamed of before sleeping. Its a shame that Im still in the introduction years of my life, unable to experience that life at the moment, but its good to know that with effort I can achieve it. Blood -rushing adrenaline, commitment to the family, and endless love for cars are the passions that have driven my life of dullness and bitterness to a life of sweetness and Joy.

How nurses can advance in their careers if they dont want to be nurses forever

How nurses can advance in their careers if they dont want to be nurses forever Sometimes we get so focused on our current jobs that we forget to focus on â€Å"the big professional picture,† which includes our entire career arc- from start to finish. The truth is, we should always think about our professional lives as a journey rather than a single destination and have a plan for the next rungs on our career ladders while we give our best effort on our current step. This includes all of the nurses out there. While being a nurse is an important and satisfying job that demands a great deal of focus and attention, and also offers professional challenges and options, nurses should also devote some time towards thinking about their full career journeys- and whether or not they want to be nurses forever.It isn’t uncommon for someone who’s traveled deep (or not so deep) into a career path to start thinking about other paths- many people who are mid-stream in their careers start thinking about making changes, often in an effort to take on new chall enges, build new skills, and expand their horizons. We should never feel â€Å"locked into† a career path just because we’ve been at it for several years. Career satisfaction is an important concept to strive for, and if you’re experiencing professional fatigue, malaise, or burnout on the job, it may be a sign that you might want a change.The prospect of a major career change or overhaul can be a scary one, but here’s some good news for nurses who may be dealing with this- nurses often have a wealth of valuable, transferable skills that they could use effectively in a variety of professional settings and scenarios.Nurses build a wide array of key skills during their tenures that they can use to their advantage in other professional roles. They are typically adept at problem-solving, planning, and organization in a variety of high-pressure situations. They build and routinely demonstrate critical management and leadership skills, and are usually quite effe ctive at time management. In addition, the nature of their work helps them build key people skills- it’s no surprise to learn that nurses possess excellent communication and teamwork abilities, and also demonstrate empathy towards others. What’s more, the unpredictable nature of nursing helps nurses become adaptable and flexible in all sorts of situations. All of these skills are useful in careers across industries and fields- whether in nursing or beyond healthcare. Many nurses also choose to obtain an advanced nursing degree, which allows them to pursue other career opportunities beyond nursing but within healthcare. Areas of specialization include nurse anesthetists, nurse attorneys, nurse researchers, and nurse midwives.Here’s the bottom line- if you’re a nurse who’s considering a career change, there’s a lot to be optimistic about. You’re likely equipped with a wealth of valuable experience and transferable skills that will serve you well in whatever career path you choose to pursue. Good luck!

Immigration Choice Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Immigration Choice - Essay Example The choice of the Copper Island represents a more calculated risk for the family. Mr. Paneo, being the head of the family, primarily considers the welfare of his wife and his two children by showing preference to less risky alternatives. Instead of waiting for more than a year before the immigration permit to United Territories is processed and granted, the Paneo family is better off sending Mr. Paneo immediately to Copper Islands. It should be noted that aside from the long wait for the immigration permit, the Paneo family lacks the assurance that they will meet the immigration eligibility for United Territories. The members of the Paneo family have strong ties with each other considering their decision to stay together as one family. However, it is also assumed that they are also willing to endure some sacrifices for their utmost benefit. Thus, the Paneo family, with sad but hopeful hearts, will permit their father to immigrate first in the Copper Islands for a year. This will allow Mr. Paneo to find a good job and a house before his family move in. This will also enable him to prepare his family by providing them with essential information like the climate, the culture, the food and things that they need to be cope with.

Evolution of multinational companies (telecommunication companies) Personal Statement

Evolution of multinational companies (telecommunication companies) - Personal Statement Example However, the modern picture of telecommunication has changed. Now telecommunication signifies complex telephone networks, internet-linked computers, mobile phones, and web based systems which interlink the cities, and connect the world. Not many years have passed, when telecommunication industry was only under the power of developed nations and mere regional operators. In the past decade this industry has gone through rapid innovation and evolution. In many countries the government did not allow private telecom companies, but privatization has crept in every country in this sector (Kirkman, 2002). The traditional markets of telecommunication has gone and like the seamless telecom connections, the companies in this in industry are doing flawless business, which is not bound to border of the countries. The telecom segment is a profit-oriented business segment, so companies are attracted towards income investments, as this type of investments assist in providing steady growth and divide nds, and also generate cash flow even after the payment of dividends. However, all the telecom companies around the world do not function on similar strategies. It differs on the basis of geography, political environment of the country, business model, etc (Olawale IGE, n. d.). In this study the telecom MNCs would be considered as a core for discussion. In order to evaluate the condition and performance of this industry since its evolution till today, a critical analysis of the literature would be done. The literature review is based on the objectives stated for the study and the research questions chosen for the research, so that the literature review can support the research study with authentic theoretical background. 1.2 Research Problem The telecommunication industry around the world has shown tremendous growth and development in the past few years. However, the research problem that has been chosen for this study is related to evolution of the multinational telecom companies, the effect of these companies on the economy and society of different countries. Issues like business strategies of these companies, and effect of recession would be also included. Due to excessive penetration of telecommunication in developing and even under-developed countries, there might be certain negative effects too, which would be discussed through this study. 1.3 Rationale of the Study Communication has become a lot easier due to development and expansion of telecom companies around the world. These companies have created a seamless global environment, where connecting to people around the world has become easy and cheap. A study which presents a complete demonstration of the telecom multinational companies (MNCs) around the world would be appreciated. Apart from this, evolution of these companies, assessment of their negative effects, and analysis of their business strategies would assist in answering several questions. The researchers interested to conduct research on sim ilar industry can seek lots

Social work. Domestic violence Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Social work. Domestic violence - Essay Example It is quite concerning that incidences of domestic and intimate partner violence in the United States have in recent times experienced a surge that has now caused them to start occurring in rather epidemic proportions. The growth of the domestic violence epidemic is highlighted by the fact that it is estimated to annually be affecting an estimated about 6.2 million American women. Domestic violence has been shown to be causing these women more serious injuries as compared to muggings, car accidents and rape combined. During an average 12 month period, it has been shown that at least 4 million women experience an incident involving serious assault and is perpetrated by an intimate male partner(Schuler, 2010, p.164). As a result of the large number of domestic violence incidences perpetrated against women, Women have been shown to represent about 95 percent of the victims of domestic violence. While most of the research and focus of domestic violence is often targeted at women, of note is that there are a large number of cases whereby men have been noted to be the victims of domestic violence. Shuler (2010, p. 163)points out that in the 1970’s the issue of domestic violence was brought into the country’s general conversations by a number of feminist groups that organized and conducted numerous protests that were targeted at the criminal justice system and it is for this reason that the vast majority of individuals that happen to report incidences of domestic violence often tend to be women. The issue of male victims of domestic and intimate partner violence has now become an extremely serious issue in the United States. Shuler (2010, p. 164) points out that there are about 3.8 women and 1.3 men per 1000 that fall victim to domestic or intimate partner violence annually.Although it is a rather serious problem, the victimization of men by their women partners has largely been ignored by the general society. This is because of the

Written assignment museum visit Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Written museum visit - Assignment Example The artist has used acrylic on canvas. The painting depicts a deserted place that has survived the cruel winters, and the changing colors of skies and melting ice indicate the arrival of spring that shows reclamation. A vivid imagery has been used by Begay, with intense color scheme. Begay a graduate from the Institute of American Indian Art (IAIA) started his career as a professional painter in 1983. Unlike, most of the graduates from IAIA, his work denounces the Pop style, which is still dominant until today. Navajo history, socio-politics and autobiography are the major subjects that Begay emphasize on; however; his fondness for nature and people must not be underrated. Some critics refer his style to be similar to Social Realism. While comparing Begay’s work with pop artists, there are several dissimilarities within the two art forms. Pop culture began in the middle of twentieth century and flourished rapidly all over the globe. Begay’s contemporary Navajo artists follow pop art quiet strictly. While Begay is inclined towards historical and metaphysical themes, pop art embraces the modern culture. It does not put any questions on fate of material values rather it appreciates, what world has become. Pop artists use flat imagery like the ones in comic or newspapers. The color scheme usually comprises of bright colors. On the other hand looking at the portfolio of Shonto Begay, one can find clear reaction against the popular culture. Meanwhile, some of the art critics in the recent years have claimed that painting is dead, considering the expansion of information technology in relation with multimedia. Begay still holds to the traditional acrylic paints and brush to make his paintings. Instead of following the modern culture, Begay has his own way of demonstrating his thoughts. His work his high on emotional scale, and one can sense his belongingness to his American Indian origin. Therefore his love for nature is directly associated

Applied decision methods Speech or Presentation Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Applied decision methods - Speech or Presentation Example t, I can use Linear Programming to come up with an optimal production programme to determine the production level of the processes so that the customers’ orders are met and the total production costs are minimal. TQM calls for continuous improvement of the quality of the products and services through proper feedbacks and research (Management Guide, 2013). Consequently, in my current job as customer service of YMCA, I will pay attention to customers’ (current and potential customers) feedback of any kind by listening to them, analyzing their response to the advertisements, checking their comments on social media and directly interacting with them to get what they have to say about our products and services. Then I will do research on how realistic the feedback is before recommending appropriate changes to my colleagues. This will enable us to meet customers’ needs thus meeting their expectation as we expand the YMCA’s portfolio. Besides, TQM admonishes for planning and checking on the proceedings of a strategy (Management Guide, 2013). Thus I will plan how to achieve customers’ satisfaction of a certain level, collect relevant data on how to achieve the goal and th en strategize. Thereafter, I will keep on checking on the suitability of our methods. From the QM, the optimal solution is to ship 800 units from Houston to Dallas, 600 Units from Phoenix to Atlanta and 200 Units from Memphis to Denver. The total cost involved using the above combination is 13000

Written assignment museum visit Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Written museum visit - Assignment Example The artist has used acrylic on canvas. The painting depicts a deserted place that has survived the cruel winters, and the changing colors of skies and melting ice indicate the arrival of spring that shows reclamation. A vivid imagery has been used by Begay, with intense color scheme. Begay a graduate from the Institute of American Indian Art (IAIA) started his career as a professional painter in 1983. Unlike, most of the graduates from IAIA, his work denounces the Pop style, which is still dominant until today. Navajo history, socio-politics and autobiography are the major subjects that Begay emphasize on; however; his fondness for nature and people must not be underrated. Some critics refer his style to be similar to Social Realism. While comparing Begay’s work with pop artists, there are several dissimilarities within the two art forms. Pop culture began in the middle of twentieth century and flourished rapidly all over the globe. Begay’s contemporary Navajo artists follow pop art quiet strictly. While Begay is inclined towards historical and metaphysical themes, pop art embraces the modern culture. It does not put any questions on fate of material values rather it appreciates, what world has become. Pop artists use flat imagery like the ones in comic or newspapers. The color scheme usually comprises of bright colors. On the other hand looking at the portfolio of Shonto Begay, one can find clear reaction against the popular culture. Meanwhile, some of the art critics in the recent years have claimed that painting is dead, considering the expansion of information technology in relation with multimedia. Begay still holds to the traditional acrylic paints and brush to make his paintings. Instead of following the modern culture, Begay has his own way of demonstrating his thoughts. His work his high on emotional scale, and one can sense his belongingness to his American Indian origin. Therefore his love for nature is directly associated

The urinary system Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The urinary system - Assignment Example The change of color in the urine strip that occurs in the segment of the strip is then compared to a color chart in order to come up with conclusive outcome (Tortora & Derrickson 2010). To complete a conclusive urinalysis, it is imperative to have a clean catch sample which is collected after cleansing the urethral midstream. Such samples collected via these methods are extremely important in urine culture analysis. As a first examination method urinalysis is undertaken macroscopically in order to ascertain the visual properties of the urine sample. Usually, cotton gauze soaked in benzalkonium hydrochloride is used for collection purpose because it is a non-irritant. In normal conditions, fresh urine is pale to dark yellow or amber in color. Additionally, the urine sample is clear and normally the urine volume is between 750 to 2000mililitres per 24 hour (Mundt & Shanahan 2010). Urine analysis via dipstick is a chemical procedure that examines the potential gradient on the levels of acid and alkaline conditions. The renal tubules and collecting ducts of the kidney usually have an acidic impact on the glomerular filtrate. This potential gradient is usually between 6.0 and 7.4 in the final urine. Exceptionally, this potential difference in the level of acidity or alkalinity may vary depending on the status of the homeostatic environment. Dipstick method measures the specific gradient. Imperative to note is that specific gradient is directly proportional to osmolality which examines the concentration of solute. This measurement is carried out using a refractometer in a majority of clinical laboratories (Tortora & Derrickson 2010). Dipstick urine analysis also measures protein presence in urine samples. This can be achieved through whole urine sample or via semi-quantitative tests for the presence of urine proteins. This is normally performed after the centrifugation of supernatant of the urine sample. Dipsticks are able to identify proteins by production of color using an indicator mostly bromophenol blue, a most sensitive indicator to albumins. Additionally, precipitation of the urine sample by heat can be used in the detection of proteins. Normal total protein concentration in urine usually does not exceed 150 milligrams in 24 hours or 10ml/100ml of the urine sample. In cases where the concentration is higher than 150ml/24h, the condition is called protenuria and in severe cases it is referred to as nephritic syndrome. Dipsticks are also capable of examining the glucose concentration in urine. This is achievable because the technique employs the glucose oxidase reaction that is capable of screening glucose group of sugars including other reducing sugars. Conditions where glucose occur in quantities greater than 130mg/24hou indicating diabetes mellitus is generally termed as glycosuria (Funnell & Lawrence 2008). Dipsticks are also effective in the detection of ketones including beta-hydroxybutyric acid, acetone and acetoacetic acid. Such ke tones arise from diabetic conditions or in cases of starvation. Dipsticks through the nitrite test can be positive to indicate the presence of bacteria usually in large quantity. Gram negative bacteria such as a E.coli usually indicate a positive nitrite test in urine samples. The presence of white blood cells in urine is called pyuria and can be detected by the leukocyte esterase test. This condition results from

The Use Of Union Dues For Political Activities Essay Example for Free

The Use Of Union Dues For Political Activities Essay A union is an association that represents workers well being to running their salaries, work hours and working conditions. The workers are involved in ensuring the unions sustain their activities with its due fees to pay for their services. Workers are mandated to pay union an outstanding amount are required to know the how their money is being utilized. The organization controlling the unions must give the employees with enough data on how their money is being used. The work of these unions levy for opinionated goings on continues to be a contentious issue for both community and private sector unions. This thesis will give an impression of the lawful issues of the use of union’s dues in America for both community and private sectors. Law protects all workers a right to join and get involved in union actions. Workers can negotiate and discuss with unions over service issues that affect the join workers about their operational terms. The bargaining items include issues like salaries, supremacy and penalizing procedures are some examples. The workers join the unions for various reasons including, when they feel:- o Are unhappy about some aspects of their occupation. o Sense that they are not involved meeting the required changes. o See the joining together as an answer to their troubles. The union best friend is bad operational system. If the managers listen to workers and let them dictate in policies that influence their jobs and treat them literally, then the workers won’t need to join the union. The manager who pay no attention to their employees well being and are dictatorial in their operational style often have their companies organized. Most job providers prefer to hire workers who have not joined unions, as the unions may limit the potentiality of the managers. This relates to decisions that openly affect joint workers working conditions. In the private sector for example a company may contract out part of its operations, and this may be legal but the effect of that pronouncement has to be discussed with the union. And if the senior workers are made redundant because of the decision to contract out, the contract terms must be evaluated to see the level of harm caused to the involved workers. HISTORICAL OVERVIEW I n the beginning of the 20th century, as the American economy was building up most employers created bad working conditions for workers. Most workers were from other nations to the US and they were not trained, could not communicate properly in English and had no money to pillow their jobs. Some were from the rural areas of America and were most occupants of the towns. They were misused because people looking for jobs were many. Due to economical growth, it resulted to understanding between the employers and employees. This understanding made people to loose their jobs, thus created poverty. During this period a private sector union was allowed to operate called the Wagner act of 1935 also called (National Labor Relations Act). The Wagner Act was enacted to guard employee’s rights and enable them to form join unions. This allowed them to have a right to be involved in such activities as strikes, picketing and collective bargaining. The Act also enhanced multiple employments as illegal, as the workers can not be interfered with or persuaded in practicing their rights to engage or not to engage in combined activities, dictate or interrupt the union activities, categorize workers to prevent them joining together forming an association, expulsion or placing charges against workers who file charges against their employers and or testify against their employees according to the Act’s provision, decline to negotiate with the union . The NLRB also formed a self governing organization to enforce American labor law and its primary actions were as follows:- o To identify the actual unit for cooperative bargaining in a company. o To manage documentation elections secret ballot that decided whether the workers were to be represented by a joint group. o To avoid and deal with illegal labor Acts. ‘The Taft – Hartley Act’ was enacted and represented a delicate change in connection between the unions and employers. The legislation was formed to bind some of the authority that the unions had secured under the Wagner’s Act; also it was made to defend the rights of organization and the workers too. The Taft Hartley Act is positive towards the employees concerns against unjust labor practices. Joint organizations cannot or persuade workers in the duty of their rights as provided under the Act, insight employees to discriminate each other especially those are not members of labor union for whatever the reason. Including:- failing to pay the union levy and joining fees as required to attain membership in the union, decline to negotiate with the management after a good number of employees have decided to be represented by a certain union group, persuade the associates and members to refuse to use products by companies involved in a labor dispute, and charge workers for extreme levy as a condition of relationship in a joint group. The Landrum Griffin Act has sustained this change in lawful surroundings and creating More limits in joint groups activities. The Act was enacted to protect joint members and their involvement in the activities and presentation of their joint groups. The Act controls how unions are managed. The Act has three sections including; o Bill of rights for union members, it assures clandestine and seasonal elections to choose their joint group representatives. It also gives the group members the right to take legal action against the union if it abuses their lawful rights. o Requires complete reports to the secretary of labor concerning all economical issues of the joint group. o Controls the persons who may be used or employed as union officers. Persons who are found guilty of illegal activities or may have investment interests that may not agree with interests of the joint groups are stopped from holding office. Most of the factors affecting the employees in the private sector are same as those affecting the public sector. The legal association between public sector and private sector employees and their bosses are legally not the same at federal and state level. The government is the supreme ruler and may be compelled by law to perform certain actions and provide some services. The administration officials have the permission to take legal action and make supposed decisions to ensure performance of those activities. Negotiation involves the sharing of decision making power between the administration and the joint groups. For instance; communal workers at a national level in the most states are forbidden to strike. In America the lawful history of the communal sector organizations has gone through major reforms. The communal joint groups can be categorized as being at the national level, state employee level and local county and municipal level. The community workers have no rights under the Wagner Act, with the exception of workers of the American Postal Service. The Postal Reforms Act in America has a private agency and legalized National Labor Relations Board to decide appropriate negotiating units, oversee version elections, and put in force the unjust labor practice of the Wagner Act. THE USE OF UNION DUES FOR POLITICAL ACTIVITY F ederal employees have started negotiating over the terms of their employment. This is due to Lloyd La Follette Act. The Civil Service Act and it gives power to set wages, hours and other terms and conditions of employment. It is prohibited that national workers or their joint groups from dictating in salaries, either before congress, its committee or before heads of executive agencies. It appears that on the collective negotiating events of the community unions at both the national and state levels have more officially authorized than their private partners. The national workers have a right to organize and form unions. National workers also have a right to present their views on salaries and terms of employment to companies which h they worked for. It is an illegal practice to discriminate an employee on basis of color, race, nationality, sex, age, political status and marital status. It is also an offence to interfere with exercise of employee rights or to take disciplinary actions against a worker or categorize an employee because of union activity, or to persuade a regulation that differs with a collective negotiating agreement. An important variation in the legislation is the absence of the right to strike among the federal level employees. While the use of the unions levy for the political activity has always been frowned upon in both the community and private sectors, thus the issue of has remained a major topic of the debate. Thus, many people argue that unless closely monitored, the joint groups will continue to utilize their members levy for political activity in regardless of the lawful constraints; for example the American Supreme Court has illegalized the use of union for political activity. The Supreme Court defined the term â€Å"agency fee† and this ruling applies to both communal and private sector workers. The joint group may require all the workers covered by a union security agreement t pay an â€Å"agency fee† which is designed to cover the cost associated with collective bargaining, contract administration and grievance administration procedures. The recent presidential promotion has once again highlighted the issue of the union dues being utilized for supporting purposes. Congress and many states have enacted or tried to enhance new laws to more lawful constraints in this area. On the one hand, many argue that all that all that is needed is for the current laws as interpreted by the courts are implemented and imposed and no extra legislation is needed. If an employee does not want his or her money used for political purposes, then they have the authority to block this from occurring. Another survey focuses on the pubic sector. The results show that much has been done to make services accessible, but how typical they are across the other sectors. Websites in the US commercial sectors including airlines, newspaper, banks, supermarkets, sport, retail and telecommunications have at some percentage achieved their goals. This ending therefore suggests that the private sector not superior than the communal unit when it comes to web accessibility. ESTMATED VERSUS ACTUAL CONFORMANCE The strategy study requested the respondents to estimate the proportions of sites in each member state that already conform at various levels. Only a few people said that they had data, about the public sector versus community. The most parallel information returned related showed a conformance with the public sector, where there were six clear estimates. The most states cannot know the actual conformance of their member states and those can offers low estimates, which makes it clear that they are not coming up with good standards. If we estimate the site studies are representing the administration websites in the states, they shows that there is a recognizable gap in data and comment in between the strategy planning and actual results. Changing this data difference should improve effectiveness of all related strategy interventions. This could be realized more independently by the member states but there may be positive outcomes through union efforts. The internet accessibility observatory project may provide a mechanism for such collaboration and its main objective is to contribute to better accessibility for all citizens and to improve the standards for online services and resources. Recommendation for public policy makers is to develop response mechanisms for closing the data gap between the strategy planning and actual results may provide a mechanism for such collaboration. To produce a strategy for improving awareness throughout the nation by reviewing all the examples of engagement, shows that this study is for improving awareness of web accessibility. Most of the sites studies are those put in place to provide the administration services. They are basically the government sites which offer some degree of interaction or transaction rather than purely informational sites. Provided this situation and the general move towards greater degree of transaction in the government services and web accessibility are more complicated sites might be not easy to make and keep them accessible or create awareness. In the event there is no statistical association between the accessibility and either of the key measures used in that report for online complexity or the availability of the government data online. It is urged that the underlying administration system is in that respect for more significant number of checkpoints and help in meeting a range of others. Position of salary protection laws differ from state to state. Washington is the first state to pass the salary protection law which was supported by a majority of supporters. In other states like California and Oregon took a different position took a different position. The plan allows and requires joint groups to seek annual written permission from each member before utilizing their dues to support a political activity. Conclusion The discussion over the use of union levy for the supporting activity will continue. Even if the laws are clear that the employees can avoid their money from being used for political purposes, this issue remains contentious. It is wise to say this remains a major issue with closeness of the recent presidential election as an example we see the republicans are always in the favor of salary protection legislation while the democrats opposed. Experts suggested that the power of the joint unions as a political voice had gone down. The recent figures on the campaign contributions suggest this conclusion may not be true. Therefore it is safe to assume that this issue will continue to be debated in congress and in state legislatures to every corner of the country. References Official Title and Summary retrieved on 2nd April 2008 available at www.sos.ca.gov/elections/bp_nov05/voter_info_pdf/entire75.pdf Should we restrict political use of union dues? / Political choice retrieved on 2nd April 2008 available at www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2005/05/06/EDGKDCKGA01.DTL 55k Cached Similar pages Note this The Worker Paycheck Fairness Act: Ending the Involuntary Use of retrieved on 2nd April 2008 available at www.heritage.org/Research/Labor/BG1156.cfm 58k Labor Relations :: Education :: Glossary retrieved on 2nd April 2008 available at www.massnurses.org/labor/education/resources/glossary3.htm 72k

Strategic Analysis Of John Lewis Partnership Limited Marketing Essay

Strategic Analysis Of John Lewis Partnership Limited Marketing Essay The following report will provide a detailed analysis of John Lewis Partnership. The retailer has been very successful in the UK and has performed extremely well in spite of more negative financial issues and other dynamics impacting upon the retail sector at large, predominantly in light of declining consumer income, technological advances such as the internet and increased competition. The reason the company was able to achieve these was because of their commitment towards their clients in providing innovative solutions as well as improved awareness of customer needs and the significance of creating a reliable customer base which ensures positive word-of-mouth and the company has achieved this due to its commitment to providing innovative solutions to clients as well as a heightened awareness of customer needs and further recommendations to increase new revenue streams through an appropriate CRM system in place. Therefore, the reports provides an evaluation of the companys current marketing environment assessing how the external factors impact the retail sector largely and specifically on the strategies that John Lewis chooses to adopt. The report will also evaluate the strengths and weaknesses as well as the threats and opportunities that the company is presented with and how best it can achieve a match with its own internal capabilities to the dynamics at play. The report will also look at how the John Lewis brand and customer proposition is placed in the UK market in comparison to other competitors, with an attempt to provide understanding in to how the company gains advantage through differentiation from other competitors, essentially highlighting how the company implements a differentiated strategy which allows it to maintain advantage. At the same time, the analysis has drawn attention to how the uncertainty which prevails and the continuous rate of change in the external market highlights the implications of continuous observation and continuous re-evaluation of the strategic options applied. Ultimately, the aim is to provide recommendations as to how the company can increase the probability of its advantage over the longer term. The John Lewis Partnerships 81,000 Partners own the leading UK retail businesses John Lewis and Waitrose. Our founders vision of a successful business powered by its people and its principles defines our unique company today. The profits and benefits created by our success are shared by all our Partners (John Lewis, 2012). Write the report as if you were working for an external management consultancy firm, reporting to the Board of Directors of your chosen company. The report should contain sections that address ALL of the main aspects of the module syllabus: that is the report should cover both strategic analysis (internal and external) and strategy formulation. It is essential that in undertaking your research and writing your report you make appropriate use of the strategic management tools and models to conduct internal and external strategic analysis and strategy formulation that you have encountered in this module. Credit will be given for analysis, evaluation and synthesis, and the appropriate selection and use of strategic management tools and models. 2.0 Introduction This report will discuss the strategic management tools demonstrating skills of analysis evaluation and synthesis of John Lewis. The report includes strategic analysis and an External Environmental analysis. The report also covers the strategy formulation in which the SWOT analysis and BCG Matrix will be discussed. John Lewis Partnership plc is one of the UKs top ten retail businesses. They operate amongst 2 sectors known as John Lewis and Waitrose. The company offers food as well as household products i.e. baked foods, fresh fruit veg, wines, household items, furniture, electronic items etc. The company functions in a chain of 287 Waitrose supermarkets, 39 John Lewis shops that include 30 departmental stores and 8 of them at home John Lewis stores. The company operates throughout the UK and is headquartered in London, they sell their products through retail stores, catalogues, and websites. The companys strategic focus is to accomplish its non-core business strategies through partnership with other firms. There are around 81,000 employees working in John Lewis stores who are partners in the business, they have a share in the companys profits and are given the opportunity to participate in the companys progress and growth. This is their unique source of competitive advantage as it encourages staff loyalty through being business partners (John Lewis 2012) 3.0 Strategic analysis 3.1 Mission statement The mission of an organisation highlights the broad directions they need to follow and provides a brief summary of the values and reasons that lie behind it (Lynch 2012). Like other organisations John Lewis also have a mission statement, it highlights their reputation established through their ownership structure as it is unique and they are very successful in being a profitable business. John Lewis aim to keep their staff satisfied so that their business can be a success. Their strategy is based on three key elements partners, customers and profit. (Refer to appendix 1) to see their full mission statement. 4.0 External Environmental analysis 4.1 PESTEL Analysis The PESTEL analysis examines the macro-environment in which the business exists in. It is a helpful tool for understanding market growth or decline as well as the position, potential and the direction for business. It is also used for evaluating the Political, Economic, Social Technological, Environmental and Legal factors that a business operates in. The Political factors discuss government regulations such as employment laws, environmental regulations, tax policy and political stability. The Economic factors affect the cost of capital and purchasing power of an organisation. These factors also include economic growth, interest rates and inflation. The Social factors impact customers needs, potential market size such as John Lewiss goods and services, population growth and age demographics. Technological factors of John Lewis will discuss barriers to entry, making or buying decisions, investment and innovation and the technological change. Environmental factors include weather, clim ate and climate change. Climate change affects how John Lewis operates and the products they offer. Lastly Legal Factors include discrimination law, employment law and health and safety law. These factors can affect the way John Lewis operate their costs and the demand for their products. 4.2 Macro- environmental Factors It is commonly known, that those prevailing in the external environment of any firm shall have a significant influence in terms of decision making in the strategic options. Such analysis is known as PESTEL analysis and usually suggested as the first stage in the strategic planning process (Lynch, 2006). As Johnson et al (2008, pg.56) rightly declared, The key drivers for change are environmental factors that are likely to have a high impact on the success or failure of strategy. (Refer to appendix 2) to see the PESTEL analysis for John Lewis. It can be concluded that each factor of the PESTEL has had an effect on John Lewiss actions, some of them are now stated in their mission statement. Previous factors are used to analyse different factors, furthermore, these factors can give a prediction for the future, so can be quiet effective if they are applied correctly. There are also some restrictions in this model, e.g. when the procedure of the checklist is applied to John Lewis it may be tough. The emergent corporate strategies may well comment that the future is so uncertain that prediction is useless (Lynch 2012 page 84), however, some may still give words of caution but still predict the future. The PESTEL analysis isnt the only framework that John Lewis take into consideration, their organisation has many other internal and external factors that also have an effect on the strategy formulation, this is why Porters five Forces framework is applied. The PESTEL analysis has a lot of information but yet doesnt offer a detailed analysis of the business. Porters Five Forces (1985) observes factors that have an impact on competition in the organisation. 4.3 Strategic Options The external analysis undertaken has underlined how the focus and the landscape of the UK retail sector has changed dramatically over the last decade or so. Such developments clearly present both threats, primarily from new entrants and modes of distribution, as well as opportunities such as the increasing utilisation of technology within the current offering to customers. As Johnson et al (2008, pg.3) highlights, strategy is about exploiting the strategic capability of an organisation, in terms of its resources and competences, to provide competitive advantage and/or yield new opportunities. However, many competitors in the retail sector at large have managed to expand into other range of products as well as expanding internationally, John Lewis seems to have adopted a more thoughtful approach and stayed loyal to its customers as well as confident in terms of its offering to the market. At the same time it has also developed a wide range of products as a lower price range to attract more customers across a wider range of segments in society. In times of economic uncertainty this also appears to be a sensible strategy in terms of situations where its loyal customer base may be experiencing declines in disposable income, thus enabling John Lewis to maintain their business through customers trading down to less expensive ranges in store. The recent introduction for its Essential Waitrose Range in 2009 was both a reaction to external events including activities of competitors but was viewed as an effective strategy highlighting the companys attention to external research as well as its innovative approach to dealing with such negative events. Furthermore, Porter put forward the idea that there were three generic strategies; cost leadership strategy, differentiation strategy and the focus strategy, which companies follow. It is clear that John Lewis has embraced a combination of these, but essentially, differentiation has remained key to its business model which positions more favourably when compared to other competitors, particularly given the range and extent of the goods and services it provides as well as its highly effective branding and promotional events which appeal directly to customers and incite purchase. Its decision to introduce its Essentials range within its Waitrose stores may have been considered by some as an indication it was lowering its standards, but on the contrary, despite offering a cheaper alternative, quality remained key which ultimately implied that its position in the market would not be negotiated. 4.4 Porters Five Forces Porters Five Forces framework highlights that the environment John Lewis is competing in is constantly changing, (refer to appendix 5). In this model it is believed that customers dont have more importance than any other aspect, however Aker, Baker and Harvey Jones argue that customers are more important than any other aspect of strategy development (Lynch 2012). Porters Five Forces of competition (1985) is a common tool often applied within the strategic management process to firms across several sectors. It is similar to the PESTLE analysis as it takes a predominantly external perspective of the firm within its given industry looking at how it is positioned against other competitors in the same sector. Recently many have criticised the ensuring importance of the framework given the changes that have risen, particularly with regard to the diversification of business which has ultimately created blurring across many previously distinct sectors. This is emphasized by the supermarkets entering into the clothing and electronics sector for example, as well as retailers including John Lewis expanding into financial services through insurance and credit facilities to customers. Barney (1995) and Henry (2008) underlined how Porters model is more helpful when it is applied at a strategic business unit level rather than at higher levels of industry analysis such as the sector at large as it cannot be expected that all competitors will be competing against one another. This tool is also believed to be useful in terms of assessing a companys strengths and weaknesses in light of how it stacks up against competition. As Barney (1995, pg.49) highlights, A complete understanding of sources of competitive advantage requires the analysis of a firms internal strengths and weaknesses as well. The importance of integrating internal with environmental analyses can be seen when evaluating the sources of competitive advantage of many firms. Looking at Porters five forces of competition, it is clear that John Lewis has attempted to not to just react to the external dynamics and actions of competitors, but actively be a step ahead. It has constantly adapted its business model, such as the introduction of store cards, its online offering and the Waitrose Essentials range in order to provide its business with a more appropriate fit to the market in line with Mintzbergs (1994) theory. A major element of its strategy however, is its reputation, branding and subsequent positioning in the market and how consumers view the business in its entirety. It has remained rather committed to its original proposition and further enhanced its appeal through appropriate branding and its reputation for quality and enhanced service to customers. 5.0 Internal Resource analysis 5.1 Value analysis chain StratISTh3 Source: Porter, Competitive Advantage, 1985 The term Value Chain was used by Michael Porter (1985), the purpose of the value chain is to analyse the activities that are performed by the business, linking them to the competitive position. It also evaluates the particular activities to see which add value to the businesses products or services (quickmba 1999-2010) While many critics and leading authorities dispute the validity of Porters earlier theories, many of his ideas do still appear useful from the perspective of strategic analysis, particularly the notion of the value chain. Ultimately, it is within the value chain which John Lewis has created that it has succeeded in terms of sustaining advantage in its market sector. It has created efficiencies and synergies through the interrelationships within (Mintzberg and Ghoshal, 2003). Value Chain Analysis which is often compared to the RBV of the firm as it looks to both internal and external dynamics impacting an organisation. In recent years importance has also been given to joint ventures, collaborations and relationships which add value to the companys positioning. Elements of the chain such as HR which were previously considered as supporting elements are now viewed as core and this is demonstrated by John Lewis in terms of its commitment to and investment in staff. By enhancing the quality of its internal resources it can achieve distinctive competencies which are difficult to emulate by other competitors (Teece et al, 1997; Terwiesch and Ulrich, 2009). As Porter (1985, pg.36) emphasises, the way it performs individual activities are a reflection of its history, its strategy, its approach to implementing its strategy, and the underlying economics of the activities themselves. 6.0 Strategy formulation 6.1 SWOT Analysis: John Lewis Partnership A SWOT analysis is a useful tool for understanding and decision-making, businesses such as John Lewis use this tool in all sorts of situations, a SWOT summarizes the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats. This framework covers a crucial part of the strategic planning process a scan of the internal and external environment. Strength, Weaknesses are considered to be internal to the business whereas, Opportunities and Threats are part of the external environment. Looking at the SWOT analysis (refer to appendix 6) it can be concluded that John Lewis take this tool into consideration when making business decisions based on their customers. However, John Lewis need to expand their target audience because at the moment they are only targeting an older audience need to improve the diagnostic power of a SWOT analysis is to define the elements from a customer perspective rather than the organizational point of view. (Baker 2007, pg.267). By doing this they will generate a higher profit margin. If john Lewis wants to stay ahead of their competition they need focus on their weaknesses such as they need to ensure their prices are similar to their competitors. Also John Lewis need to focus on threats the business may have to face but they can avoid such matters by acting upon the threat before it occurs. Although the SWOT analysis tool is useful to businesses when making decisions, it has been criticized due to its simplicity and possible misleading approach to strategic analysis. This is because companies have failed to follow a few simple procedures. The SWOT analysis is a focused methodology (Baker 2007), therefore, when John Lewis the using this tool they need to ensure they are able to follow correct procedures of this tool to ensure they are able to achieve success. 6.2 BCG Growth-share Matrix The Boston Consulting Group (BCG) growth-share matrix was developed by Bruce Henderson, founder of BCG, in the late 1960s (Baker 2007, pg.125). The BCG Matrix is a simple tool used to assess a companys position in terms of its product range. It simplifies how a companys thinks about the products and services and makes decisions about which it should keep and let go and which products to invest in further. It provides a useful way of seeing the opportunities that are open to the company and also helps to consider how the company can maximise the profits in the future. Below is the BCG Matrix for John Lewis, highlighting where in the market the different departments of John Lewis are positioned. John Lewis was voted Britains best retailer in 2009 and have won awards House Beautiful Awards 2008: Online Home Retailer of the Year Gold Award (washerhelp 2012), making them leaders in departments such as House and Garden, Electrical Appliances, Fashion, Gifts and Toys. They now have a high growth and a high market share in this segment, thus putting them in the star category. Further, technology and baby departments are between the star and question mark category this could be due to high growth and market share or high growth and low market share as they are faced with high demands but have low returns. Moving on to the sport department as it is in the cash cow category, as a markets it isnt growing but yet the market share for the products is high. Looking at the final category it can be said that John Lewis are safe as there isnt any products in the dog category. The BCG Growth-Share Matrix 7.0 conclusion Overall, the company has responded admirably to the changing dynamics impacting upon its market and customers, it is also clear that going forward, more challenges and threats shall be presented to it, particularly given persistent uncertainty relating to the global economy as consumer confidence within the UK. It would appear that in addition to a thorough and consistent approach to its markets in relation to external analysis of those factors deemed to impact most significantly; the company also adopts an internal approach, evaluating its inherent resources and competencies within the business. In line with the resource based view of the firm (Barney, 1991) and subsequent research by other authors such as Grant (2005), this analysis is often viewed as a more appropriate approach to the task of strategic management as ultimately, organisations have much more control over their internal resources than external market variables. Such an approach enables companies to incite the innovat ion process and thus create change in the wider environment as well as improvements to its value chain. This appears to be exactly what John Lewis has done to date through its expansion into other areas, as well as extending its range to customers through on-line facilities as well as credit, insurance etc. References Arnold, G. (2012). Corporate financial management. 3d. ed.Essex: Prentice Hall. Baker M (2007). Marketing strategy and management. 4th ed. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. Barney, J. and Hesterly, W.S., 2008. Strategic Management and Competitive Advantage: Concepts and Cases: International Edition. London: Prentice Hall. Barney, J.B., 1991. Firm Resources and Sustained Competitive Advantage. Journal of Management; 17, (1) Chloe. (2012). ANALYSIS Waitrose and John Lewis move closer together, offline as well as online. Available: http://internetretailing.net/2012/11/analysis-waitrose-and-john-lewis-move-closer-together-offline-as-well-as-online/. Last accessed 20th Nov 2012. Davey, J and Laurance, B (2008). John Lewis under fire: how the City turned against Rose. The Sunday Times. 16 March 2008, p.12-13 The Economist (2012). A Rose by any other name. A retailing star ticks off investors at an awkward time. 13 March 2012, p58-60 The Economist (2012). The world in figures: industries. The world in 2012. p124, 126 Gartner. (2011). Gartner Identifies the Top 10 Strategic Technologies for 2011. Available: http://www.gartner.com/it/page.jsp?id=1454221. Last accessed 25th Nov 2012. Grant, R.M., 2005. Contemporary Strategy Analysis. London: Wiley-Blackwell Henry, A., 2008. Understanding Strategic Management. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Johnson, G, Scholes, K and Whittington, R, 2008. Exploring Corporate Strategy. London: Prentice Hall. Keynote, 2008. Clothing Manufacturing, Keynote. Keynote, 2009. Clothing Retailing. Keynote Levitt, T, 1983. The Globalization of Markets. Harvard Business Review, May-June. Lewis J. (2012). John Lewis Partnership. Available: http://www.johnlewispartnership.co.uk/about.html. Last accessed 18th Nov 2012. Lynch R (2006). Corporate strategy . 4th ed. Harlow: Prentice Hall. Lynch, R (2012). Strategic Management .6th ed. Harlow: Pearson Mintzberg, H., Quinn, J., and Ghoshal, S, 2003. The Strategy Process. London: Prentice Hall Mintzberg, Henry, 1994. The Rise and Fall of Strategic Planning: Reconceiving the Roles for Planning, Plans, Planners. New York: Free Press Nugent, H and Hawkes, S (2012). George follows Jeremy Paxman as John Lewis faces another brief challenge. 20 March 2012. www.timesonline.co.uk (Accessed 24/11/2012) Ohmae, Kenichi, 1989. Managing in a Borderless World. Harvard Business Review, May-June. Porter, M., 1979. How Competitive Forces Shape Strategy. Harvard Business Review, March/April. Porter, M.E., 1980. Competitive Strategy. New York: The Free Press. Porter, M.E., 1985. Competitive Advantage: Creating and Sustaining Superior Performance. New York: Free Press. QuickMBA. (1999-2010). The Value Chain. Available: http://www.quickmba.com/strategy/value-chain/. Last accessed 20th Nov 2012. Reynolds, A., 2012. John Lewis Partnership on Target to Cut Emissions. Supply Management, 17 October, available at http://www.supplymanagement.com/news/2012/john-lewis-partnership-on-target-to-cut-emissions/, accessed 12/11/12 Teece,D.J., Pisano, G. And Shuen, A., 1997. Dynamic Capabilities and Strategic Management. Strategic Management Journal, Vol.18, No.7, pp.509-533. Terwiesch, C. and Ulrich, K., 2009. Innovation Tournaments: Creating and Selecting Exceptional Opportunities. Boston: Harvard Business Press. Washerhelp. (2012). John Lewis. Available: http://www.washerhelp.co.uk/Retailers/John-Lewis.html. Last accessed 20th Nov 2012. Appendix 1 John Lewis mission statement The John Lewis Partnerships reputation is founded on the uniqueness of our ownership structure and our commercial success. Our purpose is the happiness of all our members, through their worthwhile, satisfying employment in a successful business, with success measured on our ability to sustain and enhance our position both as an outstanding retailer and as a thriving example of employee ownership. With this in mind, our strategy is based on three interdependent objectives Partners, customers and profit. Appendix 2 PESTEL Analysis for John Lewis Political Factors John Lewis operates within the UK market and therefore changes in the policy related to the governance of UK business, as well as advanced policies in the context of the UK, have an impact on the business. The laws and codes of conduct relating to ethical business practices and CSR initiatives particularly impact John Lewis. Subsequently, there has been conscious effort on the role of the retailers to combine relevant Codes of Conduct concerning the supply chain as well as giving a guarantee to customers that have been sourced in an ethical manner. It is likely that changes such as this will continue to impact going ahead but at the same time as this, pricing will be raised as a concern for the retailers as margins will certainly be eroded as prices are put higher, epically where the products may be obtained from developing markets. Economic factors It is obvious that economic factors have a major effect on the strategy implemented by John Lewis; such factors have had a negative impact on the UK. However, when the government took the decision to decrease the VAT rate temporarily in 2008 due to financial crisis, this had a direct positive impact on the retail sector. The company faced major setbacks in relation to its revenue and performance in 2001. The company was successful in reversing its fortunes through a complete re-evaluation of its supply chain practices; they improved the company model so that it met the needs of customers. The company is still conscious that the confidence levels of customers are slightly unstable, this is highlighted in its current financial results, (refer to appendix 3). Such uncertainty has an obvious impact on which strategies companies can follow and directly influences which marketing strategy John Lewis decide to apply in relation to pricing, advertising and other variables of the mix. Increas ed global uncertainty also influences their operations which are mainly UK based. This is especially true regarding the price of raw materials that has been changed considerably over the past few months, with products such as cotton, coffee and oil being a great concern. Such fluctuations put pressures on retailers as well as customers whereby margins shall be reduced and costs passed on to consumers who may in fact seek cheaper alternatives as their own incomes may decline. A full appraisal of all elements of the supply and distribution chain is needed to ensure that efficiencies are being formed and improvements are made to the overall value chain (Porter, 1980; 1985). This may also clarify the companys latest challenges in integrating its business with Waitrose, John Lewis are becoming much more aligned over the past months (refer to appendix 4) Events overseas such as Spain and Greece could also have more implications for the sourcing policies the company accepts as well as its foreign currency payment methods etc. to suppliers given the weakening Euro currency. Social Factors Social factors for John Lewis are very important across the business as they are considered to have a direct effect on how successful the customer behaviour is and the preference towards the items or brands. While many have pointed out that overtime as consumers we have slowly become more similar across country borders (Ohmae, 1989; Levitt, 1983), latest indications actually highlight much divergence in consumer buying habits. Much of this might also be attributed to progress in internet trading whereby consumers have further choice as well as getting updated and having more knowledge about the alternatives available in the market. This has increased the competition which has therefore, put pressure on prices, mostly in the case of stores as there are much higher fixed costs involved. Another major progress relating to the retail sector in the UK has been the success of the supermarket chains in growing into non-food items with shares of the clothing market increasing every year from competitors such as Asda, Tesco, and Sainsburys. a report from Keynote in 2009 outlined how supermarkets share of the clothing market increased from around 10% in 2000 10 23% in 2008, and this expansion is likely to continue as the major multiples devote increasing amounts of floor space to non-food items such as clothes such growth has completely changed the retail space in the UK and certainly, many have attributed the demise of many High Street incumbents directly to the strategies pursued by supermarkets. At the same time, it is also clear that John Lewis has followed somewhat of a different method and thus located itself apart from these competitors and is seen being more exclusive, of higher quality as well as providing higher levels of service to customers. Technological Factors It is impossible to ignore the progress that occurred in technology over the decade or so. Such advances have completely changed and improved all features of the supply and distribution chain particular with regard to online shopping. Over the past few months John Lewis have become more of this and adapted its business model appropriately so that they are capable of understanding customer expectations, with regards to convince and availability. Another major development has been the increasing use of media and subsequent positive word-of-mouth recommendations. Such tools are viewed by companies as an important ingredient to their overall strategy, not just in terms of communicating with customers but also in gaining further knowledge through customer feedback which can assist them in gaining further knowledge through customer feedback which can assist them in engaging more with their customer base and addressing any potential problems or other threats. Technology is considered as pro viding more choice to customers but increasingly is being embraced within the overall customer management strategy and is likely that this will intensify going forward and further facilitated by new developments such as improvements in text analytics and the capture of real-time data (Gartner, 2011) Environmental Factors Making the right long term decision is one of John Lewiss founding principle, environmental sustainability is key to this approach. There are programmes, processes and targets in place to ensure that environmental commitments are delivered (John Lewis 2009) John Lewis recently revealed new plans where their key aim is to cast their CO2 emissions to 15% by 2020 (Reynolds, 2012) Legal Factors John Lewis is also impacted by changes to employment regulations as well as procedures guarding trading standards. Over the recent years many retail competitors such as Primark and Gap have been negatively criticised due to concerns on the unethical sourcing and manufacturing of products. Primark, a leading High-street label attracted unpleasant headlines in the media in response to claims they were using child labour, consequently affecting their position in the market. Other changes in the economic framework of overseas markets on which John Lewis depends on depend on