In what ways does Kathryn Bigelow undermine the conventions of action Essay

In what ways does Kathryn Bigelow undermine the conventions of action cinema Use Point Break as your example and be sure to incorporate the discussions of critics that were assigned to read - Essay Example The scenes which include skydiving are greatly done to make one wonder how Bigelow managed to shoot these scenes at the time (Benson-Allott 3). Point Break is considered an unconventional film due to the pair of actors that Bigelow employed. During the 80’s and the early 90’s, action film were considered to employ more male masculine actors. The likes of Arnold Schwarzenegger, Steven Segul, Claude Van Damme, Sylvester Stallone, and Chuck Norris. The action film genre was characterized by huge and masculine figures during this period. The likes of Jet Li and Tom Cruise were lighter, smooth, faster action figures. In Keanu Reeves and Patrick Swazey, Bigelow managed to use Point Break in the transformation of Hollywood’s action film from masculine figures to smooth, intelligent crime busters (Benson-Allot 4). Sean Redmond, makes three claims about Katherine Bigelow and Point Black that shows her an unconventional approach to action film. While most critics look at Bigelow’s approach to film as Political, genetically transgressive and feminist, Point Break did not reflect the radical approaches of ideology that Bigelow employed in The Hurt Locker (2009) and the most recent Zero Dark Thirty (2012). In Point Break, Raymond sees Bigelow as founding a new subculture of FBI in action film. Raymond insists that Bigelow showed her political ideology in Point Break. Although the scripts of the movie already existed before Bigelow became the director, it was hard to imagine that the likes of Keanu Reeves and Swazey would make the set (Redmond 4). Redmond sees Bigelow as a radical because in Point Break, the film does not follow the political order which valued lifestyle and counter-culture values. The subculture of thieves who are surfers, led by Bodhi is exalted in the work. The FBI ethos are abandoned by the main character, John Utah, when he is undercover. He is drawn into the life style of this surfer criminal gang.

The United Kingdom awarding body Essay Example for Free

The United Kingdom awarding body Essay I have been asked to design a system for the United Kingdom Awarding Body (UKAB), an imaginary exam board. This system is going to be used for the monitoring of its post-examination re-marks. System Specification: The system specification needs to store the following data:   Candidate name Candidate number Centre number   Subject Reference Code   Original mark   Re-mark mark Whether the centre requested the return of the script It was also necessary to store the grade boundaries for each of the subjects. For the system I was asked to build the following table was provided for the grade boundaries of each subject: Subject Reference Grade Boundaries (%) Code A B C D E 01325 75 67 60 54 48 20094 70 60 50 40 30 28181 90 78 66 54 42 54821 85 79 74 64 55 64773 68 60 52 46 40 The system needed to be able to produce hard copies of the following:   A daily list of any re-marks completed where a mark change has affected the grade; A daily list of any re-marks still outstanding, i. e. that have not been completed within a three-week period;   A list of re-marks that have been requested for a particular subject;   A list of re-marks that have been requested from a particular centre. The system also needed to be able to produce documents which could be returned to the centre giving the results of the re-marking. The document needed to show the UKAB logo and also the following details: Centre number (integer)   Candidate name (string) Candidate number (integer)   Subject Reference Code (integer)   Original Mark (integer)   Original Grade (text)   Either the re-mark mark and grade, if changed, or a sentence to say that there has been no change (integer/text) Processes: The user of the system would need to be able to carry out the following processes:   Record information about candidates. Amend/delete information about candidates Record re-marks Query so as to obtain the information for the hard copies which I listed above. Firstly I needed to use the data requirements to start to design the entities and attributes that I would use in the system. Following is a brainstorm of the ideas I used to come to the first draft of the entities and attributes: Initial Entities: After this brainstorming I decided to start with the following 3 entities: Candidate(Candidate Name, Candidate Number, Centre Number, Subject Reference Code, Original Mark, Re-mark mark, Requested) Subject (Subject Reference Code, A, B, C, D, E). Centre (Centre Number, Centre Name, Centre Address) Where the underlined attributes represent the primary keys within each entity. In the candidate entity I decided to use both candidate number and also centre number as a joint primary key as candidate numbers were only unique to their centre. This would mean that there could be multiple candidates with the same candidate number; however the candidate number and centre number combined would always be unique. For the subject entity, subject reference code was the only sensible primary key as it was the only unique attribute in the entity. Centre Number is both a primary key in the centre entity and also a foreign key in the candidate entity. Another foreign key in this initial model is subject reference code in the candidate entity. Data Types: Candidate Name: text: 20 Candidate Number: integer Centre Number: long integer Subject Name: text: 15 Subject Reference Code: long integer Original Mark: integer Original Grade: text: 1 Re-mark Mark: integer Re-mark Grade: text: 1 A: integer B: integer C: integer D: integer E: integer Centre Name: text: 20 Centre Address: 200 For each of the field I altered the length of each field appropriately. I did this by either switching from long integer to integer, or changing the maximum number of characters in each field. In this way I was able to save on the space that the database used. Following is the reasons for choosing the data types for some of the fields I used in the database: Candidate Name: I limited the field length to 20 characters as this would be long enough to cater for any name but yet saves space as less space has to be set aside for each record. Candidate Number: as candidate number is only 4 digits long there would be no way in which it would exceed the maximum length an integer would provide. Therefore I chose to decrease the field length to integer so as to save space. Centre Number: I was not able to decrease the size of this field as Centre Number is a 5 digit number and therefore can exceed the maximum length of an integer of 32768. Subject Reference Code: this field again used long integer as its data type due to it being a 5 digit code. To ensure that the field could start with a 0 I altered the properties of the field as below: Original Grade: I decreased the length of this field to 1. The grade would always only be a 1 letter grade such as, A or B. Therefore I was able to decrease the length of this field to 1 at no consequence. Re-mark Mark: I changed this to integer as it was only a 2 digit number. Centre Address: I changed this to 200 characters as an address can be quite long. However I did not change the data type to memo which would have provided more space as it would make the system slower and the extra space would not have been needed First Normal Form: I realized that having the candidates and also the re-marks in the same table, that I would be unnecessarily duplicating data within the system. I therefore decided to split the entity up into two separate entities, candidate and re-mark. So my new entity list looked as below: Candidate (Candidate Name, Candidate Number, Centre Number) Re-mark (Subject Name, Subject Reference Code, Candidate Number, Centre Number, Original Mark, Original Grade, Re-mark mark, Re-mark Grade, Requested) Subject (Subject Reference Code, A, B, C, D, E) Centre (Centre Number, Centre Name, Centre Address) The new entity remark has a composite primary key consisting of, subject reference code, candidate number, and centre number. This was the only combination of attributes within this entity which would ensure that it was always unique. Also in this way I was able to ensure that all of my tables were in first normal form, satisfying the criteria of eliminating duplicative fields within the same table. By making the re-mark table a sub-form of candidate through the use of a one to many relationship between the two, I was able to have multiple re-marks for each candidate without having to break the first normal form which I need to adhere to. Second Normal Form: For a table to fulfill the requirements to be in second normal form, all of the non-key attributes within the entity must be functionally dependant upon the primary key of the table. All of my entities satisfied these criteria so therefore no changes needed to be made. Third Normal Form: For a table to fulfill the requirements to be in third normal form, it must first be in first and also second normal form. On top of the requirements for the first two forms, it must also be ensured that no non-key attributes are dependant upon other non-key attributes. My database already satisfies this requirement and can therefore be said to be in third normal form. As my database fulfills all of the requirements to be in first, second and third normal form my database has now been normalized. Relationships: After designing the entities my table will use while considering the normalization of my tables I have now come up with the following relationships: Above is a screenshot of my relationships that I have created in access. As can be noted there are no many to many relationships as I have eliminated them through the normalization process. Software: For this project I am going to be using Microsoft Access, as well as some coding within Visual Basic which I will implement into the database. I have chosen to use the following combination as it is an easy way to set up tables and the initial database, but also allows me to utilize the power of a programming language such as Visual Basic so I can fine tune and customize the user interface and other aspects of the database. I have chosen to use a package to create the initial database as opposed to programming the whole database as programming the whole database from the start is a larger task which I would not have been able to accomplish with my current understanding of programming. Also for this particular project the extra power that a programmed database could offer was not needed as the solution could be provided in a fairly simplistic form. My other main option for creating this database was to use Delphi, which is a form of Pascal. I have already covered most of the Pascal syntax and it would have been the best alternative choice, however I did not do this for the reasons above. On top of this I wanted to expand my knowledge of systems creation by experimenting with Visual Basic and also Access. Hardware: The hardware which I will be initially creating my solution on is my home PC. This PC was built by me and therefore I am very familiar with the hardware that I will be using. The hardware is of a medium to high specification:   AMD Athlon XP 1800+ (clocked at 1533 MHz) 512 MB DDR PC2100 RAM. 40 GB Hard drive However I wanted to ensure that the software that I was creating would work on a PC of lower specification so that anyone that was using it would not be forced to upgrade their systems to use my database. I therefore did some testing on the PCs at my College which were of a lower specification:   Intel Pentium III 800 MHz   128 MB SD RAM   10 GB Hard drive Design: Tables: Following are screen shots of the tables in my database: Candidate Design View: As can be seen in the properties of the candidate name attribute, I have changed the field size to 20. Also it can be seen that the primary key is a composite one made up of candidate number and centre number. Candidate Table View: Centre Design View: In the above view, the focus is on the centre number attribute, as can be seen the field size is set to long integer, also for the format I have altered it to 00000. This represents the number of digits that I was to be shown at any time, this is a work around of the problem that if a centre number begins with a zero then it will still be kept. The primary key for this entity is Centre Number. Centre Table View: The test data included 3 centres. So as to show the full address of each centre I have had to increase the height of each record within the table. Re-mark Design View: As can be seen for this table the primary key is a composite one comprising of subject reference code, candidate number and centre number. Re-mark Table View: Here is all of the test data for my database, it may be noted that there are more than 15 re-marks (the corresponding number of candidates). This is because I have given some candidates a number of re-marks so as to be able to test the effects of more than one re-mark per candidate. Subject Design View:In the subject table I have given the primary key to the only unique attribute within the entity which is subject reference code. Subject Table View: As can be seen for each grade boundary I have just given the singular value as opposed to the actual bounds for each grade. This is so as to make coding for the user interface easier later on in the solution. Validation Rules: In the specification there were a few rules by which some of the data needed to adhere to, these were: 1. Candidate Numbers are of 4 digits and will be unique within any centre, but not between centres. The solution should ensure that this is allowed for. 2. Centre numbers are allocated within the range 10000 to 80000 and are unique. 3. Subject Reference Codes are 5 numeric digits. The following are the validation rules that I used to ensure that my data was correct. 1. For the candidate numbers I used the following validation rule: (0) And (10000). This allowed for the numbers from 0001 up to 9999. 2. For the centre numbers I used the following validation rule: (9999) And (80001). This allowed for the numbers 10000 to 80000. 3. For the subject reference codes I used the following validation rule: (0) And (100000). This allowed for any 5 digit code. Other validation codes that I used include: 1. (=0) And (=100) : for the original mark and re-mark mark attributes. This ensured that every mark was expressed out of 100. 2. (=A) Or (=B) Or (=C) Or (=D) Or (=E) Or (=U) : for original grade and re-mark grade, this ensure that each was a valid grade. Queries: The first query that I needed to create needed to show any outstanding re-marks. Outstanding was defined as 3 weeks after it was received. This led to me needing to change the design of the re-mark table slightly. I needed to add an attribute (date received) so as to keep record of the date that it was received. After this the re-mark entity looked as follows: Re-mark (Subject Name, Subject Reference Code, Candidate Number, Centre Number, Original Mark, Original Grade, Re-mark mark, Re-mark Grade, Requested, Date Received) Forms: Main: To make the design as user friendly as possible, I have split it into 2 sections of input and output. This way it is easy for the user to distinguish between the two uses of the system. For all of my forms I have included an exit button in the bottom right of each form. I have kept this constant to stay in line with the element of least surprise design. New Centre: Similarly to the new centre button, the new subject button opens at a new record. The screenshot is of the subject form. New Re-marks: The new re-mark button unlike the first two buttons does not open at a new record. This is because it is more likely that the user will be inputting a user from an existing centre and therefore it would make more sense for the user to scroll through the centres. A small feature that I have included in this form is to improve the user interface of the system. It will input a code from a subject name or a subject name from a code automatically. I used the following code to achieve this effect. This code changes a subject name into code, it can be noted that this happens on exit of the subject_name field. For the opposite effect I used very similar code: Above is a small clip of how this code works, it follows on similarly for each code. Again this code takes place on exit of the subject_reference_code field. Re-mark Results: For this particular form I have locked many of the fields, this is because it will be used to input the re-mark results from previously submitted papers. The locked fields are coloured in grey. Another feature which is used in this table is an auto-grading system, where the system calculates the grade from the mark entered. This feature also takes into consideration the different subjects as each has different grade boundaries. The code is as follows: End Sub Where the grade boundaries are actually on the table but are hidden as shown: Each of these fields contains the grade boundaries from the subject table. They change in accordance to the subject reference code which is also on the table. This feature is put in place to increase the efficiency of the system for the end user. It may also be noted that when the re_mark_mark field is exited the re_mark_date field becomes equal to todays date. The field was like the grade boundary fields hidden on the form. Reports: The following are the reports which I included to provide hard copies for the end user. Beneath I have listed the names of each of these reports and have also printed out examples of each report. Each example is clipped onto the end of this report; the page number will be included next to the report name beneath:   Grade Changes (pg )   Outstanding Re-marks (pg )   Subject Report (pg )   Centre Report (pg )   Candidate Report (pg ). Each of these reports simply used the queries that I had already constructed. However the candidate report posed a small problem, the specification stated that it would like to show the grade change or if no grade change had been made, then it would like a sentence stating that there was no change. This meant that I would need to create two separate reports and then create some code which could go to the necessary report when I had inputted the details for the report. Test Purpose of test Data Used or Action Taken Expected Result Actual Result 1 Check that main form loads Click main form button Switchboard form displayed. Form opened 2 Check New Centre form Opens Click New Centre Button New Centre form at new record Form opened 3 Check New Subject form Opens Click New Subject Button New Subject form at new record Form opened 4 Check New Re-marks form opens Click New Re-marks Button New Re-mark form at first record Form opened 5 Check grade changes report opens Click Grade Changes Button Grade changes report preview Preview opened 6 Check outstanding re-marks report opens Click outstanding re-marks button Outstanding re-marks report preview Preview opened 7 Check subject report opens Click subject report button Pop up box then report preview. After entering criteria, opened 8 Check centre report opens Click centre report button Pop up box then report preview After entering criteria, opened 9 Check candidate report opens Click candidate report button 3 popup boxes then one of 2 reports After entering criteria, opened 10 Check exit button Click exit button Form closes Form closed 11 Check auto grade feature for original mark Insert mark Equivalent grade is generated Grade generated 12 Check auto grade feature for re-mark mark Insert mark Equivalent grade is generated Grade generated 13 Check validation rule for candidate number Insert 5 digit code. Rejection of the code Rejected 14 Check validation rule for centre number Insert number larger than 80000 Rejection of the code Rejected 15 Check Validation for subject reference code Insert 6 digit code Rejection of the code Rejected 16 Check validation for original mark Insert number larger than 100 Rejection of the number Rejected 17 Check validation code for re-mark mark Insert number larger than 100 Rejection of the number Rejected 18 Check validation code for original grade Insert the letter G Rejection of the letter Rejected 19 Check validation code for re-mark grade Insert the letter H Rejection of the letter. Rejected 20 Check auto subject reference code feature Insert word business Generation of the code 20094 Generated 21 Check auto subject name feature Insert code 01325 Generation of word Art Generated 22 Auto date feature Enter date field Generation of todays date Generated 23 Check that Auto grade feature works for alterations Change an existing mark Regeneration of grade to new grade Generated 24 Check validation of dates Insert abc into date received Rejection of date Rejected 25 Check that Duplicate Centre Numbers cannot be inputted Insert 66528 in new record Rejection of data Rejected.

Not Just for Kicks: Expressing Difficult Content Using Comics Essay

A common description of comic books comes from their appearance in cartoons and comic strips, where a teacher catches a child reading a comic book tucked between the pages of their schoolwork. Prevailing attitudes formed off of this kind of perception render the idea of the comic form as a diversion, lacking serious content, and perhaps immature. However, the comic form uses many techniques to explore subject matter that is difficult to deal with in traditional educational ways. This paper will look to examine how immersion and symbolism within the comic form can be an effective tool to reproduce otherwise difficult situations, concepts, and ideas by using examples of texts from our class that make excellent use of these techniques, in particular Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind, The Photographer, and Bound by Law. The graphic novel is grounded in stereotypes that belie their true expressive power, and the deconstruction of those stereotypes is the first step in accessing concepts that are misconstrued and difficult. As Scott McCloud states in Understanding Comics, "Sure, I realized that comic books were usually crude, poorly drawn...but they don't have to be" (McCloud 3), something we have witnessed through the sophistication of our texts this semester. By investigating how the comic form interacts with the reader, we can find many benefits that often position comics as an optimal vehicle for delivering informative and educational content where other mediums only barely suffice. However, separating the medium of comics from the content widely associated with them is a difficult task, and one that can only be changed by effective content delivered with effective comic technique. The main benefits of the graphic novel and comi... ...t is possible to express difficult material through methods other than comics, the examples presented in this essay prove that with proper use of techniques and an awareness of the content itself, graphic narrative can provide a much deeper and enriching experience than text or visual representation alone. Works Cited McCloud, Scott. Understanding Comics: The Invisible Art. New York: William Morrow Paperbacks/HarperCollins, 1994. Print. Miyazaki, Hayao. Nausicaa of the Valley of Wind. Volume 1. San Francisco, CA: Viz Communications, Inc., 1995.2nd Ed. 2004. First published by Nibariki/Tokuma Shoten, Japan, 1994. Print. Guibert, Emmanuel, et al. The Photographer: Into War-Torn Afghanistan with Doctors without Borders. New York and London: First Second, 2009. Print. Aoki, Keith, James Boyle, Jennifer Jenkins. Bound by Law. Duke Law School. 2006. Print.

The Individual and The System in Keseys One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest :: One Flew Over Cuckoos Nest

The Individual and The System   One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest Many social issues and problems are explored in Ken Kesey's novel One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest. Perhaps the most obvious complaint against society is the treatment of the individual. This problem of the individual versus the system is a very controversial topic that has provoked great questioning of the government and the methods used to treat people who are unable to conform to the government's standards. McMurphy is an individual who is challenging and rebelling against the system's rules and practices. He eventually teaches this practice of rebellion to the other patients who begin to realize that their lives are being controlled unfairly by the mental institution. When McMurphy first arrives at the institution, all of the other patients are afraid to express their thoughts to the Big Nurse. They are afraid to exercise their thoughts freely, and they believe that the Big Nurse will punish them if they question her authority. One patient, Harding, says, "All of us in here are rabbits of varying ages and degrees...We need a good strong wolf like the nurse to teach us our place" (Kesey 62). This novel has a very strong theme of government rejecting those who are considered nonconformists in modern society. The government then places these nonconformists in mental institutions so it will not have to deal with them. This is society's way of ditching those with nonconformist attitudes so they will disappear from the world and be forgotten. According to one critic, oppressive, conformist, regulatory, civilization is the suppressor of individual freedom (Barsness 433). "He (McMurphy) hadn't let what he looked like run his life one way or the other,anymore than he'd let the Combine (the characters' metaphor for the government) mill him into fitting where they wanted him to fit...He's not gonna let them twist him and manufacture him" (Kesey 153). McMurphy is symbolized as the typical individual, while Big Nurse Ratched is symbolized as a member of the system, or the Combine. Bromden narrates, "McMurphy doesn't know it, but he's onto what I realized a long time back, that it's not just the Big Nurse by herself, but it's the whole Combine, the nation-wide Combine that's the really big force, and the nurse is just a high-ranking official for them" (181).

Demand Elasticity of Luxury Automobiles Essay

In the luxury automobile market, there are many vehicles that boast high quality workmanship, luxurious appointments and powerful drivetrains. For this research paper, the midsize luxury sedan segment was chosen because most of the vehicles from the brands in this segment have similar features, power, and most importantly, price tags. The flagship models of the brands were not chosen since the features and amenities are very different from car to car to such a degree that it would be almost impossible to compare the models. The retail prices of the flagship vehicles also vary by a few thousand dollars, making a fair comparison between the models even more difficult. The midsize luxury sedan segment offers consumers a good mix of quality components and craftsmanship, luxurious amenities, and ample power for daily commuting. These vehicles are designed for consumers who want luxurious, high quality vehicles at a fair price. The vehicle chosen for this study is the all-new Lexus GS430 sedan. The Lexus’ two closest competitors are the BMW 545i and the Cadillac STS V8. The vehicles chosen are with all standard equipment but the navigation system option was added to each since the Lexus comes with it already loaded. The engine and transmission options were also chosen to equally match the vehicles in power and price. Since there is no central retail location where one can purchase any brand of vehicle they want, three dealerships were surveyed for price information for each brand of vehicle included in this study. Surveying three dealerships for pricing for the same car allows us to not only see the price differences from one dealership to another but also allows us to compare the price of that vehicle with another from a totally different make. See Appendix I for the results of the survey. The vehicles chosen in this study all boasted high quality craftsmanship coupled with fine materials. The materials used in the interior of the were applied tastefully, and generously. The body panel fit and finish of all three vehicles was good, but the BMW had the tightest tolerances of the group. The paint finish however left much to be desired from all three models. There was a lot of orange peel in the finish of the paint. The interior design of the three models was tasteful, with the Cadillac being the most conservative and the BMW the most radically designed interior. The Cadillac had a good mix of both radical design and conservative styling. The BMW had the iDrive system which has a short learning curve to it, but it is supposed to simplify how you use the systems in the car. There wasn’t enough time to learn how to fully utilize the features of the iDrive system, but, in my opinion, turning on the air conditioner shouldn’t require reading a manual or much less, attending a training session for how to use the device. The training session is provided by BMW to new owners of vehicles equipped with the system. The iDrive system will have an effect on a consumer’s decision to purchase the vehicle since some consumers may find it cumbersome to use. Cadillac’s functions and controls were very simple and straight-forward. The navigation system and radio controls were touch screen and were displayed on a rather large monitor. The controls were easy to use and logically placed. The Lexus had a good mix of conservative and radical styling. The controls were laid out logically and the interior looked very clean. The Lexus had a hideaway drawer that had a lot of controls and buttons in it that was easily tucked away out of view. All three models come standard with passenger and side air bags. They all come with a CD player and heated seats. A navigation system is available with each vehicle, but is standard on the GS430. To even out the playing field, the navigation option was added to the Cadillac and BMW. This change in options actually brought the prices of the vehicles very close together. The Lexus had the most front leg room; however the Cadillac had the most interior volume. All three models have about the same power output with the BMW being the most powerful with a 325HP engine. The Cadillac was a close second with a 320HP engine and the GS430 came last with a 300HP engine. They all achieve approximately the same miles per gallon in the city, but highway mileage varies between the three models with the BMW being the most efficient out of the group. The BMW gets 18 miles to the gallon in the city and 26 on the highway, the Lexus 18/23, and the Cadillac 16/22 miles to the gallon, respectively. The Lexus felt the most nimble because as was suspected, it had a lower curb weight than the other models. The transmissions on all models were super smooth and power delivery was consistent with throttle input. The Lexus had the smoothest ride out of all three, however it achieved this because of how disconnected it felt from the road. The lack of communication from the suspension to the driver in the Lexus leaves the driver uncertain of road conditions and forces the driver to rely on vehicle safety systems to keep the car stable. The BMW had a sport suspension which made the ride a little rougher than the others, but was the most responsive to inputs from the driver and was the best at communicating road conditions to the driver, and because of this offered the most interactive driving experience. The suspension was tight and allowed the sedan to maneuver like a sports car. The Cadillac also had a smooth ride, but road feel was more prominent which made the ride feel a little less smooth than the Lexus. The Cadillac maneuvered well, but a stiffer suspension would make this vehicle a real performer. In conclusion, the quality levels of all three vehicles were near the same level. The BMW had the tightest tolerances in fit and finish with the most responsive ride, though the iDrive system is sure to turn off some prospective buyers. The Lexus had a smooth ride with luxurious appointments throughout, whereas the Cadillac had a good mix of both performance and luxury. The Lexus and Cadillac also had a keyless entry and ignition system which allowed you to get into your car and turn it on without ever taking the key fob out of your pocket. The consumers who purchase these vehicles are mid-upper class citizens. They are price-conscious and would like to get the best bang for their buck when purchasing a luxury car. The difference in the prices of alternate vehicles may be the deciding factor when purchasing a vehicle in this class. I would suggest a slight price decrease for the Lexus so it would be priced below the Cadillac, making it the best bang for the buck all the while providing the same comforts and amenities as the BMW and the Cadillac. My estimation of the demand elasticity of luxury automobiles is that the demand is rather elastic. A slight change in price will cause a significant change in demand for that particular product. If the price of the Lexus, or for any model in this class for that matter, was to suddenly increase a few thousand dollars, that price increase would make consumers consider the Cadillac or BMW instead since they both have the same level of quality and features. â€Å"Consumption of goods and services that are considered a luxury can be easily reduced if the price rises. Hence demand tends to be more elastic for fur coats, luxury cars, extensive vacations, etc. Goods considered a necessity are so important that buyers tend to respond little to a price change. They do respond however, although demand tends to be price inelastic for such goods† (Walbert). Lower priced practical vehicles can be considered necessities since a price increase will not cause consumers to not purchase these products. A price change will not trigger them to wait until later when the price drops to purchase the car. They will purchase the vehicle at the price given since it is absolutely necessary to have the car. However this does not hold true for the luxury automobile market. Luxury automobiles are a much larger purchase than a practical commuter vehicle purchase. A consumer in the market for a luxury automobile can wait until there is a price decrease before purchasing the vehicle, hence making the demand elastic.

Free Essays on Lador Day

This Labor Day it seems like everyone is hitting the road for one last summer adventure. The number of travelers on the road this long weekend is expected to be record breaking, higher than they’ve been in nine years. Up to 33.4 million Americans are set to travel 50 miles or more away from home this holiday weekend, according to AAA. That number is up 1.8% from last year and tops a previous high, set in 1995 of 33.2 million. But vacationer has more than sunscreen and mosquitoes to keep in mind this weekend. They also need to keep in mind the ever-rising gas prices, the anything but perfect weather, and the safety of themselves and loved ones while on the road. These days gas is anything but cheap, with prices averaging $1.74 per gallon. A lot of this is said to be due to the workers strike in Venezuela and the conflict in Iraq. However that’s not stopping Americans from traveling. From July 19 to August 15 Americans used 9.4 million barrels per day the highest four-week period on record, said Doug Macintyre, an analysts for the Federal Energy Information Administration. Also, the biggest two-week jump in history. At least here in Tampa we can look to the bright side, our gas prices are nine to fifteen cents cheaper than many other Florida cities. Lately the weather here in Florida leaves much to be desired. Or maybe the beautiful postcard images we all love are just that, postcard images. With very little to do with the actual weather we encounter on an everyday basis. This August has been the 4th wettest ever in history. Our afternoon showers seem to be on a timer from hell, erupting every afternoon between four and five o’clock p.m. Then when it’s not raining it’s so warm and muggy that going outside hardly seems worth it. But that won’t put a damper on weekend plans; people will still be out and about, despite the fact that we’ll have a 45-75% chance of rain. And tropical storm Fabian lurking in the water. Surfs up... Free Essays on Lador Day Free Essays on Lador Day This Labor Day it seems like everyone is hitting the road for one last summer adventure. The number of travelers on the road this long weekend is expected to be record breaking, higher than they’ve been in nine years. Up to 33.4 million Americans are set to travel 50 miles or more away from home this holiday weekend, according to AAA. That number is up 1.8% from last year and tops a previous high, set in 1995 of 33.2 million. But vacationer has more than sunscreen and mosquitoes to keep in mind this weekend. They also need to keep in mind the ever-rising gas prices, the anything but perfect weather, and the safety of themselves and loved ones while on the road. These days gas is anything but cheap, with prices averaging $1.74 per gallon. A lot of this is said to be due to the workers strike in Venezuela and the conflict in Iraq. However that’s not stopping Americans from traveling. From July 19 to August 15 Americans used 9.4 million barrels per day the highest four-week period on record, said Doug Macintyre, an analysts for the Federal Energy Information Administration. Also, the biggest two-week jump in history. At least here in Tampa we can look to the bright side, our gas prices are nine to fifteen cents cheaper than many other Florida cities. Lately the weather here in Florida leaves much to be desired. Or maybe the beautiful postcard images we all love are just that, postcard images. With very little to do with the actual weather we encounter on an everyday basis. This August has been the 4th wettest ever in history. Our afternoon showers seem to be on a timer from hell, erupting every afternoon between four and five o’clock p.m. Then when it’s not raining it’s so warm and muggy that going outside hardly seems worth it. But that won’t put a damper on weekend plans; people will still be out and about, despite the fact that we’ll have a 45-75% chance of rain. And tropical storm Fabian lurking in the water. Surfs up...

How To Organize Your Ideas For Your Blog

How To Organize Your Ideas For Your Blog is all about organizing your ideas. We give you the tools to plan, communicate, and ultimately publish. If there is anything were a big fan of, its making sure your ideas see the light of day on your blog. The challenge is getting to that point where you do the writing.  If youve been blogging for even a short amount of time, youve probably run into what I call notes overload. This is the problem of having all kinds of possible ideas, partial blog post drafts, notes, saved links and images, research, interviews, lists–all the required guts of great content!–spread out in different apps and locations with absolutely no organization or way to actually make use of it. How does this happen? An uncontrollable desire to sign up for every new organizational app that comes along. Fun to try, but impossible to manage them all. A regular use of unconnected systems, one for your work computer, one at home, and one on mobile devices. The differences in the apps affect what you prefer to use on the different platforms. A struggle to use products that do and dont integrate with other apps and find that perfect mix. In other words, you have no shortage of ideas, just a problem trying to find them when you need them. Create A System To Organize Your Ideas Systems are tricky, and while I enjoy reading blog posts about the solutions others have come up with, I know that they wont work perfectly for me. We dont all work the same, and a perfect solution doesnt exist as a standard.  What works for me wont make a bit of sense to you, in all likelihood. It really is up to you to figure out what will work, often through trial and error and considering the pros and cons of options available. What makes a good system? How do you decide what tools to use? 1. It must be simple. Sometimes the simple tool is the better tool. The system you create cant be too complicated. If it is, you wont stick with it. I have a personal theory that seems to be true for me, at least, that if something takes more than three steps to use, Im not likely to stick with it. Ive seen many blog posts showing how you can use organizational apps such as Trello or Asana–both great organizational apps–as an editorial calendar, but by the time Im done reading, Im absolutely convinced Id never use it. There are too many steps to make things happen (which, of course, is why we created ). They are complicated and sometimes a bit hacked together. Hacking a tool is a fun challenge, but it isnt a solid foundation. Id rather have a tool that I can use the way it is intended to get the job done.  So, how do you keep things simple? Understand the tools.  Expecting an editorial calendar to control how your blog theme looks doesnt make much sense. Thats not what the tool is for. While we all dream of the perfect all-in-one tool that does everything  we  need it to do in one place, remember that not everyone works the same and that such a tool  cannot possibly exist. Understand Use tools as they were intended.  Things tend to get complicated when we decide to go ahead and use a tool in a way that it wasnt intended. Tools tend to get complicated when they implement features and changes that dont fit in with their original core focus (feature creep). Dont use a spreadsheet when a database is what you need. Dont use a task management system as an editorial calendar. Restrict the number of tools youll use. Refrain from signing up for every new, cool app that comes along. Its one thing to try it, but another to start moving all of your content into it only to decide that no, it doesnt really work. Choose well-made tools. Find a tool that does what you want it to do, not a tool loaded with unnecessary features that make things complicated. I used to use Springpad religiously, but they began updates that took it from being a handy notes app into something that seemed to resemble Pinterest. I didnt need those features, and I didnt like the bloat and complexity. I eventually just drifted away and found a different notes app. Control yourself. Your system for organizing blog post ideas is just for organizing blog post ideas. It is not an additional to-do list for things you have to do on your web site, and maybe a grocery list thrown in. A simple system that works for blog ideas might be something you can replicate for planning web site landing pages, but dont combine the two at the get go. Complex systems inevitably break down. Organize your blog ideas simply.2. It must work like you work. You have to know how you work which, surprisingly, some writers havent taken the time to really consider. Do you work by free-writing a full draft post? Do you collect links and phrases and drop them into a repository, knowing you can build a full post off of it later? Do you need to collect images as inspiration or to use? Do you get your ideas while driving and prefer to record yourself talking?   These kinds of questions will help you know which tool is going to be useful and which wont fit how you work. For example, I like Google Keep. Its a bare bones unfussy notes app and I use it. But I dont really use it for my blog or writing ideas. Why? Because sometimes I want to record ideas that come to me while driving and while Google Keep allows you to record, it stops when you stop talking, i.e. no pauses. Keep tries (not always so great) to transcribe the recording and create a note to go along the clip, but it makes playback on the web challenging. With Keep, it is better to play the note back using your phone. Now Evernote is a bit different. It starts recording and keeps going until you hit stop, and you can play it back from the web just fine which is handy for transcription. How do you work? Will the tool be fighting against you? Then dont use it. Are you using your planning tools, or fighting against them.3. It must work where you work. Your system has to be usable wherever youd likely use it. Where you write is about a physical space, sure, but also the publishing software you use. This means if you arent ever going to write a blog post on your phone, then dont reject a solution just because it doesnt have a blogging app for your phone. Or, if you often write where there is not internet access, youll need something that allows you to work (work, not just view) offline. Integrations are a big deal. If you are working in WordPress, does the tool you use integrate with WordPress, or are you having to rely on copy-and-paste techniques? Is the tool excellent enough that you are willing to use copy-and-paste techniques? Does the tool update your calendar if youre task-orientated? Where do you work? Will the tool function there? If it wont, it might not be the solution; it might just be a headache. The organization system that works for someone else likely wont be your perfect fit.4. The difference between planning and creating. The perfect system for organizing your ideas has to acknowledge that planning and creating are not the same. The need to plan is why you must organize your ideas in the first place. The creating happens fairly easily if that organized planning happened.  In your system, do you want your planning to happen where you write the actual content, or do you want to keep them separate? This is actually the most difficult and confusing question. Some people really want that all-in-one experience, and think that their method of idea organization is a failure because it doesnt morph easily into the final creation. As anyone with a headful (and a harddisk full) of ideas and research knows, creation is easy if you did your organization and planning right.

Free Essays on Hate Vs Speech Code

Hate Speech Code vs. Free Expression â€Å"Students should act with the respect for others’ rights required of good citizens† (Goldberg, 332). This is what is said in the Fundamental Standard for behavior, and must be followed by students at Stanford University. But there is substantial pressure on college students across the nation. They are torn between the right to free expression and the right to nondiscrimination. By applying a hate speech code to the Fundamental Standard would violate our constitutional right to free expression, while at the same time a code of this sort protects us from verbal hatred and discrimination. Limiting derogatory speech reduces the risk of a hostile environment on a college campus. That is why I believe that a hate speech code would be a good idea at SMU. So why should a hate speech code be enforced? The purpose of this code is to minimize and prevent the harassment of students by using hate speech on the basis of race, sex, color, handicap, religion, sexual preference, or ethnic origin. The policies formulated by Stanford University identify harassment as being â€Å"intended to insult or stigmatize on the basis of stereotypical group characteristics; it is addressed directly to those it intended to insult or stigmatize†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Goldberg, 333). Discrimination in the form of harassment is recognized as a violation of the Fundamental Standard. By preventing such harassment or insulting of students, we allow the student body to appreciate diversity rather than degrade it. This may also attract prospective minority students to the SMU campus, resulting in a more diverse student population. Using a hate speech code in a university setting may violate our constitutional right however, it defiles our moral values as Americans. This nation was founded on such principles as freedom and justice for everyone, and that all men are created equal. If we live in a country where equality for all mankind and womanki... Free Essays on Hate Vs Speech Code Free Essays on Hate Vs Speech Code Hate Speech Code vs. Free Expression â€Å"Students should act with the respect for others’ rights required of good citizens† (Goldberg, 332). This is what is said in the Fundamental Standard for behavior, and must be followed by students at Stanford University. But there is substantial pressure on college students across the nation. They are torn between the right to free expression and the right to nondiscrimination. By applying a hate speech code to the Fundamental Standard would violate our constitutional right to free expression, while at the same time a code of this sort protects us from verbal hatred and discrimination. Limiting derogatory speech reduces the risk of a hostile environment on a college campus. That is why I believe that a hate speech code would be a good idea at SMU. So why should a hate speech code be enforced? The purpose of this code is to minimize and prevent the harassment of students by using hate speech on the basis of race, sex, color, handicap, religion, sexual preference, or ethnic origin. The policies formulated by Stanford University identify harassment as being â€Å"intended to insult or stigmatize on the basis of stereotypical group characteristics; it is addressed directly to those it intended to insult or stigmatize†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Goldberg, 333). Discrimination in the form of harassment is recognized as a violation of the Fundamental Standard. By preventing such harassment or insulting of students, we allow the student body to appreciate diversity rather than degrade it. This may also attract prospective minority students to the SMU campus, resulting in a more diverse student population. Using a hate speech code in a university setting may violate our constitutional right however, it defiles our moral values as Americans. This nation was founded on such principles as freedom and justice for everyone, and that all men are created equal. If we live in a country where equality for all mankind and womanki...

Commercial Use of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles Term Paper

Commercial Use of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles - Term Paper Example Both ideas failed however, but the concept lived on. In the 1960s, the US started developing drones for spying and reconnaissance missions and extensively used them in the Vietnam War (UFL, 2011). With the development of artificial intelligence, today, UAV are a regular feature in military missions and are extensively used for various operations from reconnaissance to defensive and offensive missions. With increasing reliability of the UAVs, they have also now been identified for various commercial uses. This paper discusses these commercial applications where UAVs are increasing finding use. 2. Commercial uses of UAVs As the UAVs are free from human limits of fatigue and endurance, they can perform several functions very efficiently and in areas where it is not possible or too costly/risky to reach in a piloted aircraft. With improvements in technology, efforts to reduce the operating costs of UAVs, and by complimenting the UAVs with other advanced technology and devices, several ar eas of commercial applications have been identified for UAVs where they can prove to be not only more cost effective but also much more efficient than conventional methods used today to do those tasks. The following sub-sections describe each of these commercial applications. 1. 2. 2.1. ... ay, this work is done by men walking in the field, using manned small aircrafts, and using other farm equipments like tractors with a sprayer fitted at the back. These methods are often time consuming and using small aircrafts is costly. Also, in order to reduce drift on the sprayed materials, aircrafts must be flown very low. Since, fields are generally surrounded by obstacles like trees, buildings, telephone and electricity lines, pilots must be very careful. With a UAV, this task can be accomplished with much less hassles. Estimates suggest that UAVs take 1/15th the time to complete the task as compared to other conventional means (Wong, 2001) and it costs 1/10th the hourly rate of a manned helicopter (Hanlon, 2004). Figure 1: UAV helicopter being used for crop dusting Source: Gizmodo, 2006 Crop monitoring refers to monitoring the health of crops in the fields. With sensors and high resolution image processors on board the UAVs, farmers can remotely monitor the crops and take time ly actions to save the crops. Also, farmers and governments can use it for making crop yield forecasts and assessment of damage due to external factors like flooding, pests, and draught. Further, color images from UAVs can be useful for mapping invasive weed outbreaks and for revealing irrigation and fertilization irregularities in the vast farmlands. Another example of regular use of UAVs in crop monitoring is at Vineyards. Current frost detection techniques do not provide accurate and consistent data for temperature across the entire farmland. UAVs with real-time thermal imaging could provide an excellent solution to this problem. Another area of application in agriculture industry is monitoring soil and moisture. One of the most important aspects for maximizing the crop yield is to know

Education Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Education - Essay Example The uneducated individual often is unaware of the happenings and developments that are taking place in the society and in the world surrounding them. As a result they are more involved in the process of looking out for odd jobs, which they could perform to make their livelihood. For the educated individual the scenario is totally different, since a plethora of opportunities open before them to discover the world and apply what they have learned during the years of education. It is a medium that trains the mind of any individual, since it helps to expand and bring out the inner capabilities, which are very much hidden within the self. For this reason education has been considered to be very essential for any person, who wants to make a mark for themselves in the present world. Though many external factors affect the quality of education that is being imparted to each individual, today most of the nations are concentrating inputting up their concerted efforts to make sure that, their c itizens get proper quality education during the course of life. ... Taking the proper and right decisions is very vital for the survival of the human being in the present world. Education thus has got a very great significance as it forces the mind of the human being to think rationally, which very well distinguishes them from the rest of the illiterate crowd. Due to this much importance has been given by the modern day thinkers and the governments alike of the countries worldwide to impart quality education to their citizens, which will create plenty of job opportunities for them to take the right direction and progress in life. Thus the whole educated population present in the society will help the country to make rapid strides in the course of developing their respective economies, which will go a long way to bring prosperity to the entire nation and their fellowmen. (www.ditext.com ) The present day world is scientifically and technologically much advanced only because of the fact that, the majority of the current generation across the world is h ighly educated, which has revolutionized the modern society. It is only through the imparting of proper quality education that has trained the minds of the young generation, to critically think and take rational decisions which have been the cornerstone for all the success that has been achieved in the realms of science, arts and almost all other fields. This has been possible since in recent years, there has been a very wide spread of information as well as knowledge to almost all the corners of the earth, which has been enabled only by means of education. Though in most of the cases where the society and the country impart a form of general and basic education to its country men, it is seen that the vast majority of them do not pursue higher

Experimentation, Research and Consent for Ethics in Healthcare class Essay - 1

Experimentation, Research and Consent for Ethics in Healthcare class - Essay Example The next question which was raised to importance was when there was no such statement and there existed conflicting interest between the guardians of the patient then whose say would hold importance, that of the spouse or the parents? Along with these two questions, when the media got active a third conflict arose, regarding the rights of the disabled, whether their condition could be misconstrued to be an accent against pro life treatment? The hype was addressed by the then President of the US by passing a bipartisan Bill via which he had invalidated the ruling of the state judge by passing the matter to the federal courts. The reason why this was done was because it was felt by the Senate and the House of Representatives who had passed the Bill that the matter involved Terri’s Constitutional rights.1 The biggest conflict which came into being was also regarding the case being a right to die case or the disability rights case! But life cannot be charted into black and white words, and that’s what public opinion forced the courts to consider-ethical questions. Every person has the right to choose against medical treatment, against any sort of bodily intrusion. Then there is the right to life and personal liberty in contrast to the state’s right of preserving health and its duty to not allow people to commit suicide. This is called the duty of the state to maintain the sanctity of life. To add to this debate, many argued that the basic provision of food and water should not be removed as it is not covered within the ambit of medical treatment and as such law regarding the medical perspective could not guide removal of pipes which ensured regular basic nutrition. The third issue that was raised was whether a doctor is capable to decide on the issue about a miraculous breakthrough in a patient’s condition, especially when the same is steady if not improving. On removal of medicines which reduce

Violence In Philadelphia Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words - 1

Violence In Philadelphia - Research Paper Example The society is headed for ethical and societal deterioration due to such criminal activities and lawlessness. Several organizations and centers have come into action to improve the conditions of the city by improving the morale and anger-management in the youth. These intend to improve the upcoming generations and simultaneously control the violence in Philadelphia. Apart from this, numerous pointers have also been identified by the local residents of Philadelphia through a community forum. These include law enforcement and severe penalties for those in defiance of the law. It also encourages the parental involvement in children’s lives in order to exercise control over them. Some have recognized the publicity of horrors the families of the unfortunate victims go through in order to make them realize the extent of these activities. An opinion has also arrived about controlling unwanted pregnancies by teenagers. The unwanted children have also become a factor of breeding hatred in the generations. Philadelphia is a one of the largest and most populous cities of Northeastern United States, lying in the Common Wealth of Pennsylvania. It was once the capital of United States before the capital was shifted to Washington. Philadelphia is said to be enriched with cultural and traditional background, historical occurrences and symbolism. Philadelphia is known by other names as well like â€Å"Philly† and â€Å"City of Brotherly Love†. According to a source, â€Å"(Philadelphia) is the sixth most populous city in the US, fifth largest city area by population in the US, and the US’s fourth largest consumer media market† (Pennsylvania). It is believed that 1.5 million people reside in the city alone. Philadelphia has contributed immensely to the American history, serving as the grounds for American Revolution and American Independence efforts initiated by Benjamin Franklin back in the 18th century. It was

Answer question no more than two Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Answer question no more than two - Essay Example I would be pleasantly surprised the next day to revisit the project and find that I had solved the problem using my subconscious. I have learnt to allow my mind to work for me. The reason I find this interesting is that, during the process of rewriting the paper, I went over my word limit despite having trouble tackling the project the previous day. I found out that I did not have to overhaul the entire paper but only to revise it and build on earlier ideas. However, because there was only a short time, probably days, between the tasks and the deadline to hand them, I found that two thorough re-workings of the paper was the best I could do. Writing two drafts allowed me to expand on and improve my ideas from the first draft, as well as to rectify my mistakes and make a final copy that adheres to the project task’s word limit. While this approach is time consuming, using it on writing enhances my time management skills (Speck 22), while it also ensured that my work appeared well researched. Working together in a team has always been an exciting prospect for me until it is time to write my part of the paper. I have always been anxious of writing the first sentence in a collaborative project, especially because it has to flow with the rest of the project. The most challenging part, therefore, has been writing the introduction for a project. I have had to learn how to write the â€Å"final† introduction after finishing the initial draft and reading through the others’ drafts. In this case, the real introduction had to be written after completion of the initial draft (Speck 56), which was a challenge for me. In addition, even the initial draft required some form of introduction, meaning that I could not escape that uncertain moment. It took me more than five minutes to think about the introduction to the initial draft, especially because it would be the most durable part of the paper even after the rewriting. While my thinking when doing my part

Violence In Philadelphia Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words - 1

Violence In Philadelphia - Research Paper Example The society is headed for ethical and societal deterioration due to such criminal activities and lawlessness. Several organizations and centers have come into action to improve the conditions of the city by improving the morale and anger-management in the youth. These intend to improve the upcoming generations and simultaneously control the violence in Philadelphia. Apart from this, numerous pointers have also been identified by the local residents of Philadelphia through a community forum. These include law enforcement and severe penalties for those in defiance of the law. It also encourages the parental involvement in children’s lives in order to exercise control over them. Some have recognized the publicity of horrors the families of the unfortunate victims go through in order to make them realize the extent of these activities. An opinion has also arrived about controlling unwanted pregnancies by teenagers. The unwanted children have also become a factor of breeding hatred in the generations. Philadelphia is a one of the largest and most populous cities of Northeastern United States, lying in the Common Wealth of Pennsylvania. It was once the capital of United States before the capital was shifted to Washington. Philadelphia is said to be enriched with cultural and traditional background, historical occurrences and symbolism. Philadelphia is known by other names as well like â€Å"Philly† and â€Å"City of Brotherly Love†. According to a source, â€Å"(Philadelphia) is the sixth most populous city in the US, fifth largest city area by population in the US, and the US’s fourth largest consumer media market† (Pennsylvania). It is believed that 1.5 million people reside in the city alone. Philadelphia has contributed immensely to the American history, serving as the grounds for American Revolution and American Independence efforts initiated by Benjamin Franklin back in the 18th century. It was

Hacker Culture and Cyber Security Issues Assignment

Hacker Culture and Cyber Security Issues - Assignment Example Black hat hackers are the most daring because they use their knowledge to obtain information and data for their own personal gains or with the intention of disrupting network systems. These are the hackers that have given hacker culture a bad reputation in America because they have been involved in activities of getting military secrets and accessing banks secret information. On the other hand, white hat hackers use their knowledge and skills to develop computer securities while grey hat hackers are mainly motivated by money. In this new era of digital, cyber crime is the most imperative type of crime that worries many people around the world. Government agencies, financial institutions, businesses and other entities that store their data and information in digitals should be aware of possible breaches of security in their data. This is because very sensitive data such as financial accounts and social security can be accessed and manipulated by other people with wrong intentions. The se people commonly referred as hackers use their outstanding knowledge to find out weaknesses in computer networks. Multitude of reasons such as challenge, profit and protest is what motivates them to cracking into other people’s computer system to get information. ... In addition, the advancing technology has increased international treaty of crimes committed through computer networks and internets (Fideral Bereau of Investigation, 2010). Some of the crimes that take place in the internet are computer related fraud, violation of internet security, child pornography and information hacking. Although many people do not know much about hackers, they are aware of the cruel damage they can accomplish in computer networks. This is because they have the capability of circumventing security to get into the unauthorized systems. Today’s cyber world has been facilitated by different hacker cultures which are made of both good and bad hackers. Accessing information and data from network systems and selling in the black market has become a way of life for many hackers in the nation. They have reshaped their own place in the current technological societies by robotic lifestyle (Seltzer Law, 2012). Hacker culture, which was considered as part of undergro und activity, is now part of the modern societies that consist of very educated criminals. This is because nowadays due to growth of technology at an alarming rate, societies are getting accustomed to hackers’ threats. This has created security concerns for businesses, public institutions and individuals across the world. Although the government is making positive steps to deter cyber crimes, it is unable to keep the pace of groups and individual hackers (Federal Bureau of Investigation, 2011). The pledge of computer system hacking was first developed by students from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in 1800s. They created a blueprint that facilitated their skills to break through telephone companies. These skills were then developed and allowed the students to break into

Full case study analysis of a company (Apple) Essay Example for Free

Full case study analysis of a company (Apple) Essay Locating the company in its environment. This is where you set the scene and so you should Offer a brief overview of the company (from your own research or the case material provided). Put the company in its context, which will be international or global. At this point you will start to use the various analytical tools available to tell me about the environmental opportunities and constraints operating on the company and its industry. PESTEL is the usual device employed. You should also analyze the characteristics of the industry and business in which the company has to compete and here you should employ the 5 Forces of Competition analysis carried out in some analytical depth. Note: You could emerge from this first analysis with a PARTIAL SWOT, which is drawing out the opportunities and threats facing the firm. After having analyzed the company’s environment, the focus moves to the company itself by conducting an internal analysis where the objective is to identify the capabilities and resources developed by the company. This will be carried out through the application of some well tried analytical instruments, such as the value chain, the threshold and distinctive resources and competencies framework and the VRIO framework. Note: You should be able by now to complete the above SWOT analysis by identifying the strengths and weaknesses of the company. Finally, you should now be able to define the competitive position of the company in relation to the Generic Strategy chosen. Part two: The selection of strategic options You should emerge from this Phase with an inquiry based view of your company’s level of business success and what it must do to sustain that success and continuously improve. Which are the main options for growth? To answer this question you can refer to the Ansoff Matrix and – if the company is part of a larger diversified corporation to the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) Matrix. Somewhere in this phase you will need to appraise the company’s financial state of health using well-established measures of efficiency and profitability. But please take note that we do not cover finance in our twelve weeks together but my expectation is that your studies in corporate finance (Financial Accounting and Management) should equip you to include a commentary on Apple financial predicament. Part three: Your strategic solutions for the company’s ongoing health Now that you have derived a picture of your Company’s state of health, can it be improved—what medicine can you offer? So, phase/part three is about Strategic options for the future. There could be many but which strategic option/s would you recommend and why? Are you happy that your choices are derived from your systematic analysis of the company at Phases one and two? Are they feasible? Can they be resourced? Can they be implemented and sustained?

Advantage And Disadvantage Of Fixed Budget Accounting Essay

Advantage And Disadvantage Of Fixed Budget Accounting Essay However from a birds- eye view, budget can be defined as a management tools that put the managers in control of a finical health of the organisation. The objective of the budget is to measure of the financial structure of the organisation and budget is a tool that forces management to be accountable in a structured and objective way. How manager manage the budget is key to their value. Budget facilities the planning and resources allocation and help to estimate, itemised, analysis and examined the entire product and service that organisation offers to customer. (Seer, 2000, p.187). Budgeting is a simple process of consolidating budget and adhere them as closely as possible (Maitland,2000). It is a process turns manager attitudes forward looking to the future and planning; managers are able to anticipate and react accordingly to the potential problem before it arises. Budgeting process allows manager to focus on the opportunities instead of figuratively. The budget system provides sustainability to business process within an organisation. It is an utmost important process to the management. In other word by some researchers few business plan to fail but many of those that collapsed failed to plan (Horngren, C. et al., 2000) The aim of budgeting is to give management an idea how well the organisation is projecting the income goals and how well the organisation managing the working capital. The budgeting exercise should able to increase the profit, reduce inappropriate expenses and it also helps to expand the markets (Thomsett, 1988, p.5). To achieve the budgeting aim, the management needs to build a budgeting system (Viscione , J. 1984). A budget system varies from organisation to organisation and it is not unitary concept. The fundamental concept of budget system involves estimating future performance of the organisation, comparing the actual performance to the budget and analysis the deviation of actual result against the budget. The factors that determining the type or style of an organisation depend on the type of organisation, the leadership style, the method of preparation and desired result (Cherrington Cherrington, 1973, p.226) In general budgeting can be categories into two primary categories (Cohen, J. et al., 1994) which are operational budget and financial budget Operational budget covers revenues and expenses which involve day to day core business of the organisation which is normal operation activities. The main elements of the organisation operational budget include sales, production, inventory, materials, labours, overheads and R and D budgets. Financial budget controls the organisation financial aspect of the business. These budgets disclose the influences of the operational budget on the organisation, financial position and potential revenues. Financial budget include cash budget, capital expenditures budget, balance sheet and income statement. There are many available methods of budgeting are available and it is important for the management to decide the correct methods that suits the organisation. Generally, management choices on how to start preparing budget fall into one of three major approaches (Rasmussen, Eichorn, 2000, p.19) which are: Top-Down, Bottom- up and Top-down/bottom up. Please refer to figure 1 for Top-down and Bottom-up approaches. Figure 1: Top-down versus Bottom-up approaches Source: Rasmussen, Eichorn, 2000, p.20-25 Main Body Part A (i) Budget approaches adapted by United Consultancy United Consultancy had presently adapted the approach of static budget while preparing the budgeting. Static Budget is also known as fixed budget. Accordingly to Chartered Institute of Management Accountants of England, a fixed budget is a budget outline to remain unchanged irrespective of level of actual activities attained. A static budget will reflect the expected result or revenues of a budgeting year (Hansen and Mowen, 2011) of a responsibility centre for one level of activities. Normally fixed budget will be prepared in advance before the financial year as the cost classified as fixed and it will not very in direct proportion of the level of activities. Fixed budget approaches are widely adapted by service industry (Reeve and Warren, 2007) and partly by some administrative functions of manufacturing companies such as purchasing, engineering and accounting. Fixed budget is used as an effective tool of cost. If, the level of activities attained are varies from the budgeted activi ties then fixed budget become ineffective. Comparatively, fixed budget is only suitable for fixed expenses. A fixed budget is appropriate under static condition. Advantage and disadvantage of Fixed Budget Small business and service industries needs an overall budget to survive Fixed budget is most widely used by service and small industries as it help to track on control the spending. At the same time fixed budget can cause more problems rather than giving a solution. A fixed budget will capitalised the calculation fixed expenses and help to forecast the bills to be paid by the business. For the variable expenses, fixed budget provides maximise spending limits and it helps to control the finances. The advantage of fixed budget is to help the business to prioritise the expenses. Fixed budget clearly distinction between the businesses needs and wants by forcing the business to remain consistent, it will also ensure that the bills are paid on time. The disadvantage of fixed budget as its operates to one level of activity- the planned activity and it does not account for the business unpredictable activity. The actual always will be captured by a level of activity which is significantly difference from the planned activity. For example, to compare the actual production cost increased at production levels of 1000 units against a standard based on planned activity of 500 units could be misleading. Management will mislead thinking into that the production costs are out of control. An increase in production cost is avoidable as volume increases and it does not means that there is problem on increase cost occurred. Hiring Consultant for Future budgeting for United Consultancy A consultant is who has a position to have a certain level of influences over an individual, a group or an organisation but who has no absolute power to make or to adapt changes into the organisation. It is the employee of the organisation has the power to decide whether to accept and implement the changes into the organisation. The consultant brings specialised skills, knowledge, expertises or accessing certain information into the organisation. Scott Hascall (2002) had analysed the advantage and disadvantages of consultants and United Consultancy need to consider before hiring consultants for involving in preparation of future budgets. Advantage of consultants The consultants are import and hired to fill competency gap in the organisation. According to Drucker (1979) suggested management consultant is an extraordinary and indeed a unique phenomenon as consultancy has the management skills, techniques, knowledge are best learned through exposures to and experiences with many industries as the typical executives lack of this kind of exposure. As Drucker notes, The executive works with same organisation or most with very few. Executives lack exposure and cannot gain it nor can be stimulate it. Consultant will able to transform the organisation and gain the exposure at the same time will add significant value by reducing the problem resolution cycle time (Hagedorn, 1982). United Consultancy will be hiring consultant for preparation for future budget as it will bring new Idea, proficiency and impartiality objective (Gattiker and Larwood, 1985). Ifinedo (2011) had surveyed the impacting factor of consultants such as management, support, business, vision and external expertise. The result was found that all these factors influences the business system but the effect of external quality expertise was more important compared to the other factors Disadvantage of consultants An organisation hiring a consultant to bring as it will bring the required expertise, knowledge and experience to the organisation. Accordingly to Kelly (1979) hiring external consultant will be expensive as the payment will be based on their specialised skill in the respective field compare to internal consultant. An external consultant will not available at the right time and not easily accessible to the organisation as the internal executives. At the same time, and they are lack knowledge of organisation culture and working environment. Nonetheless consultants have the great level influences the senior management. A research by Norbck and kerblomMaster (2003) had highlighted that engagement of uncommitted management and inexperienced executives would lead to give an opportunity to consultants to take advantage of the situation and act to their benefit and attaining their own goals. There the experiences and capabilities of management consultants are critical for successful on management of consultants. One of most important factor to take into account when hiring consultants was mentioned by Luo and Liberatore (2009) which examined consultants objective and goals. The organisation main objective is to improve the performances while the consultants other goals such as knowledge acquisition and business growth. To overcome the situation, the organisation must well coordinate with consultants to achieve the desired goals. Part A (ii) United consultancy using Activity- based costing (ABC) for the allocation cost based fixed and varioable expenses. An effective planning of fixed and variable cost as follows: Planning to determine the variable overhead activates that add value for customers using the product and service Effectively planning to use the cost drivers in different level of activities. At the start of the fiscal year, a substantial percentage of fixed overhead are predetermined compare to variable. When the United Consultancy budget the fixed overhead cost, they should select the appropriate level of activity that will benefit the United Consultancy over long terms. This is a strategic decision. The key differences are how fixed costs are fixed to level activity and variable costs are allocated to level of activity. Actual Costing Standard Costing Fixed Cost Actual Prices Actual inputs are used Standard Prices Standard inputs allowed for actual output Variable Cost Actual indirect rate Actual inputs used Standard variable cost allocation rate. Standard quality of cost allocation base allowed for actual output. Activity- based costing has involves the following stage: Identify the level of activity that resources and cost to be associate. Identify the cost drivers linked level of activity. A cost driver is any factor that cause on drivers and activity cost. Calculate a cost rate per cost driver. Each activity should multiple cost drivers Assign cost to products by multiplying the cost driver rate by volume of cost driver units consumed by the products. Indentify level of activity that resource is most engaging and challenging which based on activity based costing. A cost advantage rules that companies identify most important activity. Non Value added activities will be identified and these can be eliminated to improve the efficiency and profitability. Majority of the cost drivers are related either to the level of activity or the complexity of the production or marketing process.

Transition from Static to Dynamic Images in Wallace Stevens’ poems :: Biography Biographies Essays

Transition from Static to Dynamic Images in Wallace Stevens’ poems â€Å"Description restores vitality to the plain visual object† (Altieri, 250). Take for example when Horatio, after having seen the ghost the first act of Hamlet, notices the beginning of the new day: â€Å"But, look, the morn in russet mantle clad, walks o’er the dew of yon high eastward hill.† (Shakespeare, 347). He doesn’t say â€Å"Sun’s coming up!† and we do not read Shakespeare in hopes that he would. Instead we are given a description of the sun and it’s movement. This two part description is vital to the beginning of the entire play, and closes the scene succinctly. It provides first a visual image for the reader or listener to imagine, and then gives motion, in this case to indicate that the play has been set into motion by something outside the control of the characters. Transition from a static image to that of a dynamic one gives vitality to several of Wallace Stevens’ poems, furthering their motion and direc ting their impression. Before addressing any of Stevens’ poems, it must be made clear that this argument is narrowly focusing itself on the visual images within several of Stevens’ poems. To fully examine the sidelines and tangents of a single poem would be impossible, as the poems themselves grow with discovered philosophies, and appeal to innumerable viewpoints and interpretations. Furthermore, because the word image can have a multiplicity of meanings and derivatives, depending on the school of thought the reader has absorbed, I will constrain the definition of image, within this paper, to the stoic â€Å"To describe; especially to describe as to call up a mental picture of† (Morris, 657). In â€Å"Study of Two Pears† (Stevens 180) we find 13 sentences within a 24 line poem, and each line composed of only 4 words, on average, per line. It would seems odd for such short sentences to be so descriptive. However, â€Å"A catalogue of vivid effects would pall pretty quickly, and Stevens’ sensuous particulars do not pall. He keeps them simple, often short, and sometimes achieves a remarkable sense of presence† (Cook 154). This presence builds throughout the poem. It begins with the scientific terms for the two pears in question, â€Å"Opusculum paedagogum† and states that they are pears and â€Å"resemble nothing. Transition from Static to Dynamic Images in Wallace Stevens’ poems :: Biography Biographies Essays Transition from Static to Dynamic Images in Wallace Stevens’ poems â€Å"Description restores vitality to the plain visual object† (Altieri, 250). Take for example when Horatio, after having seen the ghost the first act of Hamlet, notices the beginning of the new day: â€Å"But, look, the morn in russet mantle clad, walks o’er the dew of yon high eastward hill.† (Shakespeare, 347). He doesn’t say â€Å"Sun’s coming up!† and we do not read Shakespeare in hopes that he would. Instead we are given a description of the sun and it’s movement. This two part description is vital to the beginning of the entire play, and closes the scene succinctly. It provides first a visual image for the reader or listener to imagine, and then gives motion, in this case to indicate that the play has been set into motion by something outside the control of the characters. Transition from a static image to that of a dynamic one gives vitality to several of Wallace Stevens’ poems, furthering their motion and direc ting their impression. Before addressing any of Stevens’ poems, it must be made clear that this argument is narrowly focusing itself on the visual images within several of Stevens’ poems. To fully examine the sidelines and tangents of a single poem would be impossible, as the poems themselves grow with discovered philosophies, and appeal to innumerable viewpoints and interpretations. Furthermore, because the word image can have a multiplicity of meanings and derivatives, depending on the school of thought the reader has absorbed, I will constrain the definition of image, within this paper, to the stoic â€Å"To describe; especially to describe as to call up a mental picture of† (Morris, 657). In â€Å"Study of Two Pears† (Stevens 180) we find 13 sentences within a 24 line poem, and each line composed of only 4 words, on average, per line. It would seems odd for such short sentences to be so descriptive. However, â€Å"A catalogue of vivid effects would pall pretty quickly, and Stevens’ sensuous particulars do not pall. He keeps them simple, often short, and sometimes achieves a remarkable sense of presence† (Cook 154). This presence builds throughout the poem. It begins with the scientific terms for the two pears in question, â€Å"Opusculum paedagogum† and states that they are pears and â€Å"resemble nothing.

Food and Agriculture in Panama Essays -- Panama Farming Agricultural E

Food and Agriculture in Panama Agriculture is big business in Panama. Not only does it account for much of the country's exports (over 50%), but subsistence farming still employs many Panamanians who only grow enough food to feed their families (nationalencyclopedia.com). The main crop in Panama is bananas by a large margin, and is also one of the countries largest exports. Besides bananas, the other main exports are sugar and coffee beans, while the largest domestic crops are corn, rice, cocoanuts, tobacco and the exotic root vegetable yucca (Bennett 78). In spite of the fact that agriculture employs a large portion of the population and uses approximately half of the land, agriculture in Panama is in trouble. Panama’s tropical maritime climate poses some restrictions to the growth of crops, but the troubling issue at hand is the erosion of soils. As Panama’s population grows rapidly and the rainforest is cleared, overuse of soils and improper agricultural methods are threatening t he growth of crops and draining Panamanian soils. As much of Panama’s political history and current economy is tied to agriculture, this is an issue that will raise many questions for the future of Panama. Bananas have a long history in Panama. Bananas are grown best in humid lowland regions, and in Panama, this means on the Atlantic side of the country (Bennett 70). Production does, however, extend to the Pacific side of Panama with successful irrigation methods (Bennett 71). United Fruit, an American company, moved into Panama in 1899, and owned as much as 70% of the Panamanian banana industry up until the 1970’s (country-studies.com). As bananas can count for as much as 33% of Panama’s total exports, very li... ...e and thus crop yields are declining (Croat 465). To avoid an agricultural crisis, sustainable agricultural practices must be developed and implemented in Panama. Works Cited Bennet, H. (1926). Agriculture in Central America. Annals of the Association of American Geographers, Vol. 16, No.2. pp. 63-84. http://www.country-studies.com/. Agriculture. Retrieved 11/27/07 from www.country-studies.com/panama/agriculture.html. Croat, T. (1972). The Role of Overpopulation and Agricultural Methods in the Destruction of Tropical Ecosystems. Bioscience, Vol.22, No. 8. pp. 465-467. http://www.frommers.com/. Food and Drink. Retrieved 11/27/07 from www.frommers.com/destination/panama/3285020880.html. www.nationsencyclopedia.com . Panama Agriculture. Retrieved 11/27/07 from www.nationsencyclopedia.com/economies/Americas/Panama-AGRICULTURE.html.

Discuss the Major Issues Associated With Expatriate Failure and Assess Some Strategies HR Can Formulate and Implement In Order To Increase the Rate of Successful Assignments

Introduction The importance of the management of expatriate’s has grown as the number of multinational companies has increased significantly over the last few decades, therefore increasing the need to be aware of potential problems which could cause high failure rates in expatriate assignments (Anderson,2005). Porter and Tansky (1999) write that an unsuccessful expatriate assignment is very costly for both an organisation and the expatriate themselves. But despite this very few companies have adequate processes for both selecting and training these expatriates. As Harzing (1995: 457) notes, virtually every writer measures expatriate failure as â€Å"the percentage of expatriates returning home before their assignment contract expires†. Brewster (1988) also defines failure as assignments where expatriates were brought home earlier than planned. Brewster and Scullion (1997) say that the fact that corporations have heavy cost pressures has led to the policies for employee movement acro ss countries being looked at. They also observe that it is becoming more noticeable that both the social and economic cost of failure in business abroad is more damaging than business done in home countries, especially in terms of market share and damage of customer trust (Zeira and Banai,1984). It is therefore pertinent for academic research to both look at the major issues associated with expatriate failure and why expatriates often ‘fail’ in their assignments. From reading the literature these can be identified mainly as a lack of thorough selection procedures from employers to identify which managers would be successful on assignments in foreign countries. This can range from not identifying what attributes certain candidates have that would make them more likely to succeed, to not identifying the family situations of potential expatriates which would also be conducive to successful assignments abroad. Once these factors have been identified it is then logical to assess what procedures could be put in place for the company to stop failure of expatriate assignments and how they can identify successful candidates for the roles. This is the format this essay will follow. Reasons for expatriate failure This study will first look at the issues associated with expatriate failure and what reasons and factors there are which lead to this end result. Enderwick and Hodgson (1993) observe that expatriate failure is caused by rash recruitment policies combined with preparation and training which is not thorough enough for the manager. This draws attention to the limited role of HR in the management of expatriates, and Halcrow (1999) also writes that HR are confined to administrative support as opposed to playing any meaningful role in any strategic aspects. It is this lack of attention to detail and impulsive selection practice for expatriates which causes many of the problems. It fails to identify different characteristics and traits which are likely to be conducive to success in expatriate projects. Klaus (1995) notes that in the majority of companies expatriate selection happens quickly and irrationally. Something which is inherent in many international businesses is the fact that their selection procedures for expatriate managers are rather informal and they do not possess thorough enough assessments (Brewster.1991). Mendenhall and Oddou (1985: 39) argue that companies often think that domestic performance success would equal overseas performance success, regarding the manager’s technical skills as being the most important factor to consider when looking at candidates to select for managing projects abroad. This shows a disregard for identifying the differences which can affect performances in different countries and cultures. The underlying assumption that companies who use this formula is that â€Å"Managing [a] company is a scientific art. The executive accomplishing the task in New York can surely perform as adequately in Hong Kong† (Baker & Ivancevich,1971: 40). Therefore a lot of multinational companies tend to send the manager and their family to the foreign countries without any cultural training. And when training is administered it is often far too broad or is not followed up with any reflection on how effective it was (Tung, 1981). Brewster and Scullion (1997) discuss these difficulties that International companies who do actually undertake training and development programmes for expatriates come across. The first of these is that the manager not only has to adjust to a new job but also to an entirely different culture which they are not familiar with (Mendenhall and Oddou, 1985). As well as this, there is the family to consider. Training programmes for families also needs to be addressed as this is considered a major factor behind expatriate failure, and this is often not addressed correctly or at all. There is however, evidence that managers themselves value cultural training an awful lot and see the benefits from this (Brewster and Pickard, 1994). Cross-cultural training has long been proven to enable effective cross cultural assignments, yet still a lot of firms do not utilise this (Black, 1988). Different training and developmental models for these managers working abroad have been worked on over the last decade. These tend to take into account the job and the individual as well as the culture before deciding the amount and type of personal development that is required (Tung, 1981). Mendenhall and Oddou (1986) have developed a ’cross- cultural training approach’, consisting of three varying levels. Information-giving approaches are those which consist of factual briefings and cultural awareness development. Affective approaches would usually consist of cultural development combined with different scenarios and role plays. Finally, immersion approaches. These are different styles of assessment centres and in the field experience and scenarios. According to this model the style of management training given should take into account on a number of factors dependent on the project and the manager. These could include the length of stay and the amount of integration required to fit in with the host culture.(Mendenhall and Oddou, 1986) Mendenhall et al. acknowledge there are many personal obstacles which could lead to many expatriates not completing their assignments and being branded a failure. These include factors such as â€Å"culture shock, differences in work-related norms, isolation, homesickness, differences in health care, housing, schooling, cuisine, and the cost of living, to name but a few† (1987: 331). These are all personal characteristics and attributes which would affect expatriate manager’s morale and ability to do an effective job. Porter and Tansky (1999) write that a high learning orientation is critical for an expatriate manager, this is because they will have continual experiences which are not similar to those they usually experience, and will need to be able to be resilient in the face of different challenges. Anderson (2005: 567) notes that although in the private sector the selection of expatriates is usually down to their technical competence, with â€Å"minimal attention being paid to the interpersonal skills and domestic situations of these potential expatriates†, that non-government organisations do actually utilise methods such as psychological testing and a variety of methods to ensure that the expatriates family is taken into consideration as well . These methods therefore usually lead to more effective expatriate assignments and less failures, in the next section of this report we will delve deeper into ways in which the likelihood of expatriate success can be increased. What can be done to improve expatriate failure rates? Currently the selection processes for expatriate candidates are not effective enough in predicting which managers will be successful in these assignments. It is necessary to focus on how these can be improved to address the rate of failures among expatriates. Halcrow (1999) has reported that less than two thirds of a survey of HR professionals identified personality as an important consideration when picking expatriate candidates, and 11 percent said it has little or no importance at all to the process. Family issues were also given the lowest of priorities, and 25 percent did not regard them as important. Here then, are the issues that need to be addressed, as can be seen from the previous section whereby these were identified as major factors in the success of expatriate projects. Effective selection, training and placement of expatriate managers is critical to international success argue Nicholson et al. (1990), and therefore the procedures put in place for this need to be effecti ve. Mendenhall et al.(1987: 333) state they have attempted to find the criteria which can predict productivity and acclimatisation in overseas assignments, and that a set of personality factors have been identified by numerous authors. They profess that these are â€Å"self-orientation, others-orientation and perceptual orientation† . Self-orientation includes factors such as how to reduce stress and how managers deal with being alone whilst abroad. ‘Others’ orientation includes factors such as how good the manager is at forming relationships and their ability to communicate with others. ‘Perceptual’ orientation includes different factors such as how flexible a person is and how open minded they can be. However, they indicate that US firm’s still appear to use only technical competence as their criteria for expatriate selection, and this is what needs to change as that is not a great predictor of expatriate manager success. The model proposed by Ay can (1997) also says that factors should be identified which are expected to account for a substantial amount of variance in expatriate adjustment. This is the fit between the expatriate and their environment which leads to less stress and better work productivity. This encompassed psychological, socio cultural and work adjustment. It is also required that organisational support and preparation is necessary. Porter and Tansky write about the possibility of a learning orientation which could be important for both assessment and training for expatriates. They suggest that employee’s with weaker learning orientation could result in low levels of judgement in challenging foreign circumstances and vice versa. They state that this learning orientation approach could â€Å"benefit employees and their families and can increase the organisation’s chance for international success† (1999: 48). Porter and Tansky (1999: 50) observe that to eliminate the risk of expatriate failure that more emphasis should be placed on: â€Å"better identification of employee’s who are likely to function effectively in different cultures, development activities to enhance functioning in the expatriate role, and systematic analysis of problems during the expatriate assignment.† Mendenhall et al (1997) observe the impact upon spouses and families is also not taken into account when sel ecting managers for expatriation. As can be seen in the previous half of this report, how their family copes with the relocation can impact greatly upon the morale of expatriate managers. Some academics also suggest that the families of expatriates should be assessed on similar criteria to the managers themselves. Stone (1986) observes that failing to identify this problem is the greatest failure in the selection process for expatriates. Therefore one would have to agree that, as the family is seen as a major factor in whether a expatriate manager succeeds or not then they should definitely be taken into account during the selection process. Guptara (1986) has written that there are a number of psychological tests that can be used in the recruitment processes for expatriates to test such psychological traits which could be conducive to successful expatriates, however this does not appear to be commonplace in corporate recruitment processes. Ioannou (1995) discusses the results of a National Foreign Trade Council of New York survey. Here it was shown that a variety companies did not use any form of psychological testing for possible expatriate managers. Tung (1982) finds that it is extremely rare that a company carries out a thorough assessment of a manager who is being considered to work in another part of the company abroad. Porter and Tansky (1999) advocate the application of a learning orientation to help this. They suggest questionnaire responses to show details on a managers beliefs about different traits and if they possess them. As well as task simulations to show if a person has different learning orientation beh aviours. For example who which people will look for new strategies rather than rescind from these strategies when things do not go as planned immediately (1999:52).Here can be seen the discrepancy between academic musings on the topic and that of the practitioners. Writers emphasise soft skills while actual research into company practice indicates an obvious reliance on technical competence for the selection. If this were to change then expatriate projects may achieve a greater success rate. Two major propositions can also be derived from Mendenhall and Oddou (1985) findings. The first would be that expatriate cultural adaptation is a multi dimensional process rather than a one dimensional one. This means that selection procedures of international companies for expatriates should be changed from their present one dimensional focus on technical competence as the most important criteria towards a more multi dimensional one. This should focus therefore focus on personal attributes which may be conducive to success working as an expatriate manager. Mendenhall and Oddou (1985) also recommend that training which deals with these factors needs putting in place, and which needs to be multi dimensional as opposed to one dimensional. Gudykunst, Hammer, and Wiseman (1977) combined a number of differing development approaches and compared the cultural adaptation abilities of managers who received the integrated training with managers who were the recipients of just one dimensional training. Integrated training produced much greater levels of culture adaptation. Along with other academics they again mention that both the selection and training processes must include the family of the expatriate. As well as this the culture adaptation training should be given to the expatriate’s family. As observed in the first half of this essay, it was shown that it was vital that not only the expatriate manager themselves, but also their family was happy as both had an effect on morale and performance. Corporate HR teams should have a clear direction to also hire a work fore who are internationally comfortable and experience too. Thus these would prove to be effective expatriate managers as they are relatively used to the process and overcoming the challenges they would face (Mendenhall and Oddou.1985). Conclusion In conclusion as many academics have identified there are serious problems with the way many corporations select and manage expatriate managers and their assignments. Many problems stem from the initial selection stage which is seen to be very lax and informal from many different businesses. These initial mistakes in the selection process mainly centre around focusing purely on technical competencies within managers for expatriate selection, and this has been proven to not be the most successful of indicators for success in international assignments of this manner. This is because it fails to take into account other factors which make a person more likely to be successful. This can include personality traits such as adaptability and how resilient they are. It also neglects the domestic and family situation of different managers, and indeed many HR teams have said that they do not even take this into consideration or treat it as important at all. Academics have also suggested solutions to these problems in the way of recruitment processes and training processes which would be incredibly useful for business’s to implement with their selection and training for expatriates. These vary from personality tests to assess the traits that people have and if these would be conducive to being successful as an expatriate manager abroad, to a variety of assessment centre styles testing out people in different scenarios and if they were the type of person likely to succeed. As well as this it would be recommended that companies look at the family of potential expatriate managers to see if these were also likely to be happy once moving abroad as this has a visible and proven impact on the morale of expatriate managers. Training also needs to be more effective and focus on broader issues as opposed to just technical competency and understanding company systems fully, but to train expatriate managers culturally as well. Overall the key problems are predominantly to do with the selection processes of corporations. They need to improve by taking a wider range of issues into consideration and not just a one dimensional view of ‘if it works in our country it will work in another culturally different county’ approach. But they need to consider the softer side of managers, such as their characteristics and family lives, this is something business leaders could learn from academics. Bibliography Anderson, B.A.(2005). Expatriate selection: good management or good luckThe international journal of human resource management. 16:4 567-583. Aycan. Z. (1997) Expatriate adjustment as a multifaceted phenomenon: individual and organizational level predictors, The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 8:4, 434-456, Baker, J. C., & Ivancevich, J. M. (1971). The assignment of American executives abroad; Systematic, haphazard, or chaoticCalifornia Management Review, 13:3, 39-41. Birdseye M, Hill J. (1995). Individual, Organizational/Work and Environmental Influences on Expatriate Turnover Tendencies: An Empirical Study. Journal of International Business Studies, 26:4, 787-813 Black, J. S. (1988). ‘Work role transitions: a study of American expatriate managers in Japan’. Journal of international Business Studies, 30:2,119-34 Brewster, C. (1988) Managing Expatriates, International Journal of Manpower, 9:2. 17–20. Brewster, C. (1991). The Management of Expatriates, London: Kogan Page. Brewster, C. and Scullion, H. (1997), A review and agenda for expatriate HRM. Human Resource Management Journal. 7. 32–41 Enderwick, P. and Hodgson, D. (1993) ‘Expatriate Management Practices of New Zealand Business’, International Journal of Human Resource Management, 4:2. 407–23. Gudykunst, W. B., Hammer, M. R., & Wiseman, R. L. (1977). An analysis of an integrated approach to cross-cultural training. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 1, 99-110. Guptara, P. (1986) ‘Searching the Organisation for the Cross-cultural Operators’, International Management, 41(8): 40–2 Halcrow, A. (1999) ‘Expats: The Squandered Resource’, Workforce, 78(4): 42–8. Ioannou, L. (1995) ‘Unnatural Selection’, International Business, July: 54–7. Klaus, K.J. (1995) ‘How to Establish an Effective Expatriate Program – Best Practices in International Assignment Administration’, Employment Relations Today, 22:1. 59–70. Mendenhall, M. and Oddou, G. (1985) ‘The Dimensions of Expatriate Acculturation: A Review’, The Academy of Management Review, 10 (January): 39–47. Mendenhall, M.E., Dunbar, E. and Oddou, G.R. (1987) ‘Expatriate Selection, Training and Career Pathing: A Review and Critique’, Human Resource Management, 26:3). 331–45 Nicholson, J.D., Stepina, L.P., & Hochwarter, W. (1990). Psychological aspects of expatriate effectiveness. In B.B. Shaw, J.E. Beck, G.R. Ferris, & K.M. Rowlans (Eds.), Research in personnel and human resources management, supplement 2, 127–145. Porter G. and Tansky J. (1999) Expatriate success may depend on a learning orientation: Considerations for selection and training. Human Resource Management. Spring. 47-59 Tung, R. L. (1981) Selection and training of personnel for overseas assignments. Columbia Journal of World Business, 16:1, 68-78 Tung, R.L. (1982). Selection and training procedures of U.S., European, and Japanese multinationals. California Management Review, 25, 117–126 Zeira, Y. and Banai, M. (1984). ‘Present and desired methods of selecting expatriate managers for international assignments‘. Personnel Review, 13:3, 29-35.