IKEA Stores Layout and Sizes Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

IKEA Stores Layout and Sizes - Assignment Example It was impressed upon his young mind that the most should be made out of the limited resources and that the essentials of modern living may be acquired at reasonable cost. From the time he set up his first business in the 1930s and registered as IKEA in 1943, Kamprad’s overriding strtegy was to adopt every cost-cutting solution that did not compromise quality and innovative ideas (Ikea.com, 2012). The diagram that follows shows IKEA’s key strategic thrusts by which it seeks to flesh out Kamprad’s vision. Central to the strategy is the simple and creative design which is well-received by the market; it is distributed through large stores with a wide range of products, all priced inexpensively, designed in flat packs, and requiring customer assembly. IKEA’s Strategic Direction (http://sites.google.com/site/faizahmadali/IKEA.JPG) The manner by which the stores provide customer accessibility to a wide selection of useful products, and the manner by which the p roducts are inexpensively priced, easily stored and transported through flat packed boxes, and engage end-user participation in their assembly all contribute to customer engagement through low cost, durable quality, and aesthetic appeal. 2. Three organizational tensions, and how the strategic direction addresses them. The diagram on the next page shows a strategic map of the company, identifying in blue the central goal of providing furniture and accessories for the home, the four principal strategic objectives arranged in a square around the goal, and the elements that support the goal and objectives. http://www.monografias.com/trabajos89/strategy-michael-porter/image011.jpg The elements that contribute to the realization of the objectives or goals provide clues to various organizational tensions between the firm and its stakeholders, due to factors both internal and external to the organisation. By tension is meant the existence of clashing interests between stakeholders and the c ompany. For IKEA, some customers have taken issue with (and even ridiculed) the manner by which IKEA products presume the customers’ adequate capability in assembling the product. This creates tension in the need to design easy-to-assemble units vis-a-vis the need to engage customer participation in the assembly process. Internal IKEA store layout featuring products’ flatpack design (Facenda, 1999) A second source of tension is the need to create a variety of designs, which clashes with the need to reduce manufacturing costs. Ordinarily, cost reduction is best achieved through product standardization, rather than product diversification needed to produce a variety of products . By seeking to diversify but at the same time mass-produce, tensions are created between the production unit of the firm and the marketing unit which identifies the variety of product lines offered in IKEA stores. Finally, a third source of tension is in the size of IKEA stores and its repercussi ons upon the community. The size of IKEA stores are as a rule large enough to enable customers to access all possible

Stereotypes in the Media Essay Example for Free

Stereotypes in the Media Essay Abstract The aim of this research is aimed to compare the frequency of stereotypes between different genres of prime time television shows. 36 Year 11 students were enrolled to record the number of stereotypes they saw portrayed in televised media. The results were collated to compare how many stereotypes appeared in the genres. Results indicated that News portrayed the most stereotypes, followed by comedy, then by drama. Results interpreted showed news stereotypes are considered more socially acceptable, whereas comedy stereotypes can be viewed as offensive and not suitable for children. Drama was very similar to comedy. Stereotypes and their Pervasiveness in the Media The media these days is littered with stereotypes. These stereotypes portray a multitude of different categories, such as age, race, religion, sex and sexuality, mostly in a negative light. The aged, for example, have bad hearing; Muslims are all violent and suicidal; and the French have a snobbish attitude, love for frogs legs, and a hate for the English. While stereotypes tend to have a grain of truth within them (the French really do hate the English), they tend to overlook the differences between individuals, making them too generalised and unreliable. Despite this inaccuracy, the media still does this often. While stereotypes are used in comedy â€Å"for the lulz,† they are deliberately used in this manner, unlike in certain news and current affairs shows, where it is used out of ignorance and efficiency. Because of the way media has stereotyped minorities, society has absorbed this into everyday use and many find it socially acceptable to use offensive stereotypes in everyday conversations. While comedy shows are not trying to offend and proliferate stereotypes, they in fact cause more harm than news and current affairs programs. The Simpsons, a television show known well for its satirical voice and comedic social commentary, is scattered with stereotypes, many of immigrants. Apu, an Indian convenience store owner who appears often in the show, is stingy and has a recognisably Indian accent and prays to his Hindu god, Ganesh. This inaccurate portrayal of Indian immigrants is perceived to be humourous by the public, but they are likely to apply these stereotypes to real people if their misconceptions are not corrected. This research aimed to compare the frequency of stereotypes between different genres of prime time television shows. The genres compared were comedy, drama and news. The hypothesis is that comedy will have the most stereotypes, followed by news, then by drama. Method Participants The participants in this investigation were 36 fifteen to sixteen year olds in year 11 of high school. The students were all academically selective and were mostly Caucasian. The participants chosen were all psychology students, taught by the same teacher. Parents had given permission to participate in this research and signed a permission slip for students to watch at least 3 prime time television shows within two weeks, one to be news or current affairs, the other two being of their choice. Apparatus A log sheet was given (see appendix A) to record the amount of time watching television, and the number of stereotypes noticed. Televisions were to be provided by the participants. So were pens. Procedure The 36 participants were instructed to watch television between the hours of 5 and 10pm. While watching television, they were to record the number of times they saw a stereotype being portrayed and comment on what was being portrayed. This took place over two weeks, after which the results were collated and analysed. Results The results are shown in chart form in Appendix B and C. Once the results were graphed there was not much of a difference between the genres. The data in the graph is collected from a number of participants’ log sheets. 30 people watched news, 21 watched comedy, and 19 watched dramas. The graph didn’t show a single genre to contain significantly more stereotypes. [pic] The graph above shows that there seems to be less of a gap between different stereotypes in comedy, while news has more stereotypes of age and less of religion. Drama has less stereotypes than the others, even when the lack of viewers is factored in. Race and gender are the stereotypes most portrayed by television. Discussion The data partially supports the hypothesis. Despite drama being the genre of television with the least stereotypes, comedy came second to news. News portrayed a lot more stereotypes of age. This is probably a result of violent attacks on old people in their homes. The least portrayed were sexuality, most likely a result of complaints of sexually explicit material being aired. The results do show a large amount of stereotypes are present in television shows. The stereotyping has a tendency to make things quicker and less time-consuming. After all, how is it possible to list all the political, social, economic, ideological and theological differences of a population of about 6 billion? The accuracy of this investigation is to be questioned. While it is possible to rely on this data, it is not going to be completely accurate and it may not demonstrate the true amount of stereotyping done on television. If, for example, all the news shos watched were from the same network, this would affect the results. Other networks may be more biased or even more impartial. The lack of regulation of the programs and networks would have had some effect on the accuracy of the results. Also, the method of recording the stereotypes might also affect the results. With a very vague system, it is impossible to be exact on what stereotypes are displayed, and whether they are a simple comment on turbans, or a full-fledged attack on the habits of old people. Very little research has been done into the number of stereotypes portrayed on television, as opposed to countless studies into the harmfulness of these stereotypes on impressionable children and even adults. The research shows that there are a lot of stereotypes on television, at least 5 or 6 per program. This research is part of understanding how television networks design their shows, and how stereotypes are used as they are instrumental to making changes to unfair depiction of minorities in the media. If the stereotypes are deemed inappropriate then it would be unlikely to make things any better when it comes to international relations and even domestic relations. There has been a lot of rage aimed at the Australians who assaulted two Indian students in Sydney. The acts of violence against minorities have escalated recently. Further research may venture into stereotyping of specific minorities, to examine the details of stereotyping.

Impact of the Discovery of the Vaccination

Impact of the Discovery of the Vaccination An important Discovery in Microbiology Edward Jenner   Discovery of the vaccination Thesis: The discovery of the vaccine was extremely important to the lives of both humans and animals. There are many discoveries that are extremely important to the advancement of microbiology currently today. Micro-organisms cannot be seen with the naked eye their discovery was linked to the production of the microscope. The first person to see micro -organisms was a microscope maker Antoni van Leeuwenhoek in 1964. (Madigan et al 2003) Centuries after that discovery, a man called Edward Jenner discovered vaccination. He achieved this by eliminating small pox back in the eighteen century. In the eighteenth century, this disease was a fatal disease that accounted for 10% of deaths. That with the most part of the disease effecting young children and the killed 20-50% of those that was effected. And those that survived was led to blindness with the small poxs. (Smith 2011) I believe this is the most important discovery in microbiology to date, and this is what I am going to be writing about in my essay. Edward Jenner was a scientist who invented the small pox vaccination back in 1798. He discovered that by using a material from cow pox this would prevent many people from getting infected with small pox. This man started the science of immunology (Smith 2011). Pox viruses are the most complex and largest viruses and are not able to metabolize on their own. By the achievement of Edward Jenner, the application of this vaccine, has eradicated in the wild and is the first disease to be eliminate in this way. (Madigan et al 2003) Edward Jenner grew up in the countryside and this is where he achieved his early studies of smallpox and first inoculation. This is where he immunized the power of the cow pox. He collected any information form the milk maids about the disease, and then observed the milk maids for 10 years and then brought about his own experiment by inoculating a young boy. This young boy never had small pox and Jenner inoculated him with cow pox. The infected young man became ill, but after a few days made a full recovery with no side effects (Mc Nally 2001). This young boy became resistant to this disease because he was exposed to the disease, this is called passive immunity. Passive immunity occurred here because the young boy was exposed to the antigen which was the small pox. Edward Jenner achieved this when he injected the young boy with the material of the antigen. The young boy that Jenner injected acquired the infection and became immune to the disease. When the disease was introduced into the body the immune cells produced a large quantity of the antigen specific immune effector molecules that caused the immunity. The herd effect had an major impact on the termination of the small pox disease, the uptake of large amount of vaccines into different amounts of people caused the vaccine to become eradicated. Edward Jenner is said to be the father of immunity, and he achieved this by preventing deaths during the seventeen century. He was a pioneer to many other scientists and demonstrated that his inoculations saved many humans lives. Many years after this a second vaccine was discovered by a scientist called Louis Pasteur wanted to portray the same idea as Edward Jenner only Louis Pasteur did not want to save the lives of humans but the lives of animals. Louis Pasteur developed a vaccine against chicken cholera a disease that was terminating chickens caused by the bacteria Pasteurella multocida. This concept of using an attenuated organism for a vaccine happened by accident in the lab of Pasteur and his fellow scientists. When he inoculated the chickens with the bacteria they became ill and when he injected them accordingly days after this they didnt become ill. (WU X et al 2011). This showed that there was 75% of the infected diseases were zoonotic and this showed there was a vaccine ag ainst rabies a disease which was infecting both humans and animals. Initially Pasteur injected a series of increasingly viral solutions, that contained infected spinal cord from rabbit in suspect animal, mainly dogs that he used for his purpose. (Baer et al 2007). During Pasteur s experiment he increased the volume of rabies which meant that there was an increase in the death of his patients. Improvements of this experiment in 1911 by another scientist called Sir David Semple. He produced a vaccine that was produced by sheep brain tissue that was activated a substance that could inactivate all the virus in the vaccine. In 1955 an American scientist introduced another improvement in the vaccine. He took brain tissue from suckling mice. He completed this as he wanted to eliminate the neurological sides effects of the disease that was concerned with the myelin in the brain tissue of adult mice. (Schneider t al 1994). The amount of myelin was greatly reduced but there still was side eff ects that was occurring. This was the way in which the discovery of the vaccines became as essential need for the protection of both humans and animals. In the past centuries, we have seen a vast amount of vaccines that have been produced. Ranging from chicken poxes to hepatitis. In addition, there are vaccines being developed today which have a dramatic effect in developing countries such as malaria and meningococcal vaccines. (Wilby et al 2012) (Kristiansen et al 2013). In these developing countries there as a higher rate of disease which causes the population to experience a greater loss of human lives. These vaccines have been proven successful because of the changes in technology which has saved millions of lives. Vaccinations are the most important achievement in the 20th century according to the The Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) (Scudder 2013). The benefits of successful vaccinations are very clear, not only direct protection but also has indirect effects on the unvaccinated individuals in the case of animals in groups or herds. (Doherty et al 2016) Proven to be protection in the herd. The herd immunity is a way in which the vaccine benefits beyond the animal being injected. The indirect protection of the unvaccinated person is when the injected suspect immunity prevents the circulation of the infectious disease into the populations. (Kim et al 2011) The death rate of not just humans but animals would have been dramatically increased and this would have a huge effect on the environment that we live in today. This is an important discovery in microbiology because this cured many diseases that not only affected human health but affected animal health. There are multiple vaccines now produced today that prevent many diseases such as Chickenpox (Varicella),Diphtheria, Flu (Influenza), Hepatitis A, Hepatitis B, Hib, Human Papillomavirus (HPV) and Measles in humans and DHPP (vaccines for distemper, adenovirus [hepatitis], parainfluenza, and parvovirus), rabies, Eastern Equine Encephalitis (EEE), Tetanus, Venezuelan Equine Encephalitis, leptospirosis, BVD, Rhinotracheitis and Calicivirus in animals. These examples are only some of many vaccines discovered, to prevent death. This discovery according to me is defiantly a vial discovery to life today. The work of both Edward Jenner and Louis Pasteur is greatly known to be very valuable work to the health of humans and to help maintain the pathogenic bacteria. References:   Baer G.M,2007, The history of rabies A.C. Jackson, W.H. Wunner (Eds.),Rabies, Elsevier, Inc., Oxford pp. 1-22. Doherty M., Buchy P. , Standaert B., Giaquinto C. , Prado-Cohrs D. 2016, Vaccine impact: benefits for human health Vaccine, 34 pp. 6707-6714 Kim T.H., Johnstone J., Loeb M., 2011, Vaccine herd effect Scand J Infect Dis, 43 ,pp. 683-689 Kristiansen P.A., Diomandà © F., Ba A.K., Sanou I., Ouà ©draogo A.S., Ouà ©draogo R., Sangarà © L., Kandolo D., Akà © F., Saga I.M., Clark T.A, 2013, Impact of the serogroup A meningococcal conjugate vaccine, MenAfriVac, on carriage and herd immunity Clin. Infect. Dis. 56(3) pp 354-363. Madigan T. Micheal , Martinko M. John, Parker Jack, 2003, Pearson education Inc, International edition ,10th edition Brock Biology Of Microorganisms pp 540 -7779 Mc Nally Joseph,2001, The life of Dr Edward Jenner Seminars in Pediatric Infectious Diseases, Vol 12, No 1: pp 81-84 Schneider M.C. , Santos-Burgoa C.,1994, Treatment of human rabies: a summary of its history Rev Saude Publica, 28 , pp. 454-463 Scudder L, 2013, The importance of vaccinations The Journal Of Nurse Practitioners,9, pp A7-A8 Smith Kendall, 2011, Edward Jenner and the small pox vaccine Front. Immunol pp 1-4 Wilby K.J., Lau T.T., Gilchrist S.E., Ensom M.H. Mosquirix (RTS, S), 2012, a novel vaccine for the prevention of Plasmodium falciparum malaria 46(3) pp 384-393. Wu X , T.G. Smith, C.E. Rupprecht,2011, From brain passage to cell adaptation: The road of human rabies vaccine development Expert Rev Vaccines,vol 10 pp. 1597-1608

Women as Objects in A Woman on a Roof Essay -- Doris Lessing Woman on

Women as Objects in A Woman on a Roof  Ã‚        Ã‚  Ã‚   Doris Lessing’s "A Woman on a Roof" allows us to understand how some men view woman: as mere objects for display and possession. Lessing shows how each of the male characters reacts and deals with rejection from a woman sunbathing on a nearby rooftop. We discover how three men’s preoccupation with sex keeps them unaware of how their advances may be unwanted and ignorant of their action’s possible consequences. All three men share the desire to get this woman’s attention. Working on a rooftop of a block of flats in the hot, hot, sun, these men seek a diversion from the relentless heat. They whistle, yell, and wave at a near naked woman on a rooftop nearby, but the woman pays no mind to them. Their isolation on the rooftop and the woman’s relentless indignation fuels the men’s decent into a world of lewd behavior, thereby creating an atmosphere of harassment and rejection. They become "taunted" by this woman’s indifference towards them. All three men have distinctly different attitudes towards the situation they have created. Each has experienced rejection from women. In fact, each displays a level of hardness that affects his attitude. They each react differently to the woman’s indifference and each take his efforts to different levels. Tom, the youngest, represents a primary level, a man untouched by rejection. Stanley, the instigator, clearly at a secondary level to Tom, shows a man slightly touched by rejection. Stanley hates the blows of rejection to his manhood. Harry, on the other hand, represents a final level where he considers the woman’s presence trivial. He is long since married and possibly has suffered many indignities with regards to the scowls of women.... ...displayed "lessons learned" in their attitudes. They knew when to quit. Tom took his unbridled actions all the way because he knew no better. The men return to work the next day with a new distraction on their minds. The weather has changed suddenly and is no longer attractive to sun bathers. Without the presence of the woman on the roof there are no sexual thoughts to preoccupy them. For Tom and Stanley, the consequences of their actions are forgotten and only evident in their new levels of understanding. Works Cited Allen, Orphia J., Short Story Criticism. Vol 16. Ed. Thomas Vottler. Detroit, MI: Gale Research, Co., 1990. Atack, Margaret., Short Story Criticism. Vol 6. Ed. Thomas Vottler.Detroit, MI: Gale Research, Co., 1990. Leasing, Doris. "A Woman on a Roof." The Harper Anthology Fiction. Ed. Sylvan Barnet. New York: HarperCollins, 1981.   

A Christmas Story essay

A CHRISTMAS STORY A Christmas Story is an American comedy and family movie. The release date of the movie is 18 November 1983 in the United States of America. It’s about the child, Ralphie Parker who wanted to get a Red Ryder carbine-action 200-shot range model air rifle from Santa in the Christmas and got the respond of â€Å"You'll shoot your eye out,† from his parents. It was directed by Bob Clark. In addition, the movie is based on the novel â€Å"In God We Trust, All Others Pay Cash† which is written by Jean Shepherd.Jean Shepherd is narrator of the movie and he voiced Ralphie’s adult voice as well. In the movie there are three actors that were starring in the movie. The most prominent character is Ralphie (Peter Billingsley). I think Peter Billingsley played his role in the movie; because he seemed like the most wanted thing that he wanted was Red Ryder. Also, Peter Billingsley is a member of Hollywood so he played in many movies. Ralphie’s fa ther called The Old Man (Darren McGavin), and Ralphie’s mother (Melinda Dillon) were starring in it.In the movie, Ralphie, his brother and his friend was tortured by Scut Farkus (Zack Ward) and his friend Grover Dill (Yano Anaya). A day, Miss Shields who was the teacher of Ralphie wanted to write an essay about what they wanted to get in Christmas. Ralphie wrote an essay about Red Ryder bur he got C+ from his essay. In the one of the most important events in the movie, for unusual Ralphie’s mother wanted Ralphie to help his father to change a flat tire. While Ralphie was helping his father, he dropped screws of the tire and he said a bad word and he was punished.In the other event Scut Farkus threw a snowball to Ralphie and Ralphie beat him up instead of running away but he could not to be punished because of his mother. At the end of the movie, â€Å"I can’t say what happened at end of the movie, watch and see,† say the writer of this essay. If you want to know is that movie if worth for watching or not, this movie is shown 24-hour in the Christmas day by TBS which is a cable channel of the USA. Watch and have a good time with your family.

Tale of Two Cites: Drowning Motif

English 12u Essay Rough Draft Justina Van Maren Splashing, gasping for breath. Sinking, darkness, and then; death. Death by drowning is, in the beginning, a conscious, agonizing end. The realization of an imminent death is the first step that strikes fear into the heart of the victim. Shore is too far away, the person is too tired, and if rescue is not near, death is inescapable. Contrary to popular understanding, a drowning person is not easy to spot. People picture a drowning victim screaming or calling for help, but in actuality all his/her efforts are used to breathe, making calls for help impossible.Drowning is not the death most people envision it. It is a silent killer. Creeping up slowly, it takes its victims by surprise, and often before five minutes have passed, death has them in its cold, cruel clutches. This silent action is paralleled in Charles Dickens novel, A Tale of Two Cities. Dickens speaks of a woodman, personified as fate, and a farmer, who is used to picture dea th, working silently but purposefully towards the French Revolution, getting ready wood for scaffolds, guillotines and tumbrels. As well as portraying the silent nature of drowning, Dickens also uses this motif to bring out another aspect of the revolution.In A Tale of Two Cities, Dickens uses the motif of drowning to portray the stages of the revolutionaries’ attitudes towards their condition. â€Å"The first step towards getting helped is realizing that you have a problem. † (Anonymous) This well known quote clearly illustrates the first step of drowning. A man cannot save himself if he does not realize that he is in danger. When drowning becomes reality to its victims, their whole vision changes, and panic sets in. In A Tale of Two Cities, the peasant’s vision changed as they realized that if they did not act right away, they would die as victims of a tyrannical system.If this fact in itself did not move the peasants into action, it was the fact that not only them, but their children and their children’s children would perish, smothered under the iron fist of the aristocracy. Their vision became visions of desperate people, as drowning people. This outlook was in many ways created and helped along by Monsieur and Madame Defarge. They showed the shrunken, wasted Doctor Manette to the Jacques, in order to change the way they looked at things and strike fear of their condition into their hearts. Dickens also uses the motif of drowning very strongly in the personal lives of his characters.A quote found on page 255 reads, â€Å"All this was seen in a moment, as the vision of a drowning man. † This quote refers us back to the Manette’s, where Jarvis Lorry reveals the terrible grindstone scene to the horrified Doctor. Doctor Manette’s vision changed at that moment as well, realising that death, though not for himself, was sure for Lucie’s husband if immediate action was not taken. When a drowning person obtai ns the vision that he or she is dying, panic takes control over both mind and body. From panic stems desperation and a desperate man is someone who will do anything to change his situation.A drowning man no longer thinks about right and wrong, about what morals he practices, or what values he ought to follow. One thought consumes his mind, and that is to save himself. The means used to achieve deliverance does not matter, nor does the suffering person stop to consider if he is harming another in saving himself. In the novel, this is illustrated by the conflict between Miss Pross and Madame Defarge; â€Å". . . Miss Pross . . . held her round the waist, and clung to her with more than the hold of a drowning woman,† (Dickens 357).This situation clearly reminds the reader of the desperate circumstances in which the peasants found themselves. Just as Miss Pross’ hold on Madame Defarge was a matter of life or death, so the actions of revolutionaries were determining their e nd; a better future for all peasants, or a continuation of oppression from the ancien regime. In the above quote Dickens also speaks about the hold of a drowning person. A rescuer must always be careful when swimming up to such a person, because in panic, the victim may grab hold of him/her so tightly that both perish.In the same way, the revolutionaries harmed others while trying to save themselves. In the senseless slaughter of those guilty and innocent alike, the revolutionaries drowned themselves along with their victims in a pool of immorality and revenge. For, even though they bettered their physical condition and brightened the future for their children, their conscience was passed over and ignored. Like a drowning man who before the actual act of death becomes unconscious, so the consciences of the revolutionaries were pushed away until they were silenced, no longer able to warn against the upcoming spiritual death. Death is the final outcome.If a person has drowned, death h as come to claim this person and there is no longer any chance of being rescued. In A Tale of Two Cities, Dickens speaks of the gaoler of Charles Darnay, his description being, â€Å". . . this gaoler was so unwholesomely bloated, both in face and person, as to look like a man who had been drowned and filled with water,† (Dickens 249). This man seems to point to all the revolutionaries, not in the physical description, but in a spiritual sense. The consciences of the revolutionaries have been drowned, silenced forever, and the people themselves have been filled with thoughts only of bloodthirsty revenge.The picture of a drowned man is not a pleasant one. The death is most often an agonizingly conscious one, causing the expression to be one twisted in agony, the horrified expression of one without hope of survival. The lack of oxygen causes the skin to turn a sickly blue, and the water soaks into the pores and causes the persons face to be swollen and bloated. Ultimately, the person’s appearance is so altered that it is usually difficult, if not impossible to identify the person from the way they looked before.Similarly, the revolutionaries were not a pretty picture in the way that they cared nothing for their fellow man and executed any who seemed to oppose them callously, without proof or proper trial. Proof of this callousness can be found in the example of the little seamstress towards the end of the novel, a representation of thousands of innocent victims sent to the guillotine. We read of how the women knitting below the scaffold counted the severed heads calmly, not in the least disturbed at the horrific amount of bloodshed occurring right before their eyes.The wood-sawyer is another prime example of the uncaring attitude of the peasants when he talks flippantly to Lucie of the guillotine; â€Å". . . Loo, loo, loo! And off her head comes! Now a child. Tickle, tickle; Pickle, pickle! And off its head comes. All the family! † (Dickens , 341). We are horrified as we read of the Jacques gleefully talking about the way they enjoy seeing a woman with blonde hair and blue eyes being guillotined, and we are even more appalled when they speak with eager anticipation at the thought of seeing Lucie’s pretty child put to death.Throughout all these examples we can see that Dickens has brought the motif of drowning to a close and the final outcome, death of the revolutionary’s morality, has been achieved. At the end of the novel, A Tale of Two Cites, the motif of drowning has come full circle. We read of how the peasant’s desperate situation causes their vision to be that of drowning people as they realize that death is imminent. Dickens moves on to portray the panic that causes morality to be ignored in the frantic attempt to preserve one’s own life.Dickens shows that drowning people will do anything to save themselves, even drown their rescuer if they feel it will improve their own condition. In the same way the revolutionaries brutally disposed of any that seemingly hindered their desperate attempt to break their chains of oppression. The plot lines of the characters also vividly portray the way in which the consciences of certain characters are silenced, and the way in which no other thought than revenge is allowed into the minds of the revolutionaries. And then finally, death, the end of all morality.The guiding principles of mankind were destroyed as the revolutionaries thirst for bloodshed did not abate, but instead grew more intense, as each day they longed for more heads to be added to the ever growing number. The motif of drowning is used very powerfully by Charles Dickens, and is employed in a way that effectively portrays the desperate position of the revolutionaries. The way in which Dickens uses this motif clearly parallels the changing attitudes of the revolutionaries, giving us a better understanding of them.

The Teenage Years essays

The Teenage Years essays In the novel Catcher in the Rye, Holden Caulfield, as an individual entity is internally torn up by dividing forces. One supports adolescence, while the other supports adulthood. This battle is known as the transitional period, or the teenage years and is illustrated by three main themes. First, his outlook on all things sexual displays an important part of this struggle. Next is his perception of himself and others, which contains many of its own obstacles. Finally, Holdens desire to remain a child and dwell in the past conflicts with the reality that he needs to grow up and focus on the future and is the basis of his struggle. Throughout the novel, Holden can be caught boasting stories of his sexual conquests. His tales are filled with couldves and wouldves, all of his sexual encounters with women are very limited and incomplete. Proof of this is evident when he hires a prostitute to fulfill his sexual needs and in the end decides not to have sex with her. I was a little nervous. I was starting to feel pretty sexy and all, but I was a little nervous anyways. If you want to know the truth Im a virgin. I really am. Ive had quite a few opportunities to lose my virginity and all, but Ive never got around to yet. Something always happens. For instance, if youre at a girlfriend's house, her parents always come home at the wrong time- or at least youre afraid they will. (Page 92) His encounter with the hooker displays his inexperience and his nervousness when it comes down to sex. Holden, however, would rather blame fate than admit that he is still a virgin because of his own actions and feelings. Holdens sexual immaturity is again demonstrated when he begins to talk about homosexuality. He is preoccupied with identifying gay men because he feels that it may make him seem as if he has reached some sort of high ...

Childhood Depression Essays - Psychiatric Diagnosis, Depression

Childhood Depression Essays - Psychiatric Diagnosis, Depression Childhood Depression Childhood Depression In recent years, we have heard of depression and the affects of the disorder, and what medications and theories help to prevent depression in adults. Many people are not aware that not only is depression diagnosed in adults, recently studies show that depression is diagnosed in adolescents. Not only adults become depressed. Children and teenagers also may have depression. Depression is defined as an illness when it persists. Childhood depression is one of the most overlooked disorders. Depression probably exists in about 5 percent of children in the general population. Children under stress, who experience loss, or who have, learning or conduct disorders are at a higher risk of depression. Studies show that depression is more likely to show up in boys than in girls. Depression in men and meal adolescents most of the time is over looked are misdiagnosed. Men for instance, have higher rates of drug abuse and violent behavior that do women or young female adolescents do, and some researchers belie that this behavior masks depression or anxiety (Canetto, 1992; Kessler al., 1994). Some Psychologists believe that the reason that young males are more likely to suffer from depression because of the stigmatism of being a male and being taught by adults that expressing there feelings are wrong. According to Carol Wade, Travis, Depression (Major Depression) is a disorder that is sever enough to disrupt a persons ordinary functioning (Physiology filth edition, 586). The diagnoses of depression might be the same for adults and adolescents, but the behavior of depressed children and teenagers differs from the behavior of depressed adults. Child and adolescent psychiatrists advise parents to be aware of signs in there youngsters such as persistent sadness, A major change in sleeping and eating patterns and increased activity or irritability. Depression is accompanied by physical changes as well. Frequent complaints of physical illness such as headaches and stomachaches A child who used to play often with friends may now spend most of the time alone and without interest. Things that were once fun now bring little joy to the depressed child. Then symptoms could trigger antisocial personality, a disorder characterized by antisocial behavior such as sealing, lying and sometimes violence: a lack of social emotions and impulsively. Children and adolescents and adolescents who are depressed may say they want to be dead or may talk about suicide. Depressed adolescents may abuse alcohol or other drugs as a way to feel better. Children and adolescents who cause trouble at home or at school may actually be depressed but not know it. Because the youngster may not always seem sad, parents and teachers may not realize, that troublesome behavior is a sign of depression. When asked directly, these children can sometimes state they are unhappy or sad. Children with depression are also slow to develop cognitive skills that could also trigger frustration in a depressed child. Child Depression being linked To Mothers Recent studies show that Mothers that suffer from depression could pass the disorder on to their children. Reports show that women that experience depression before conception or after birth could pass on there symptoms to there newborn. Mothers, who experience depression could pass on their behaviors to the kids, usually come from single parent households. Symptoms like verbal abuse, separation anxiety and panic attacks and substance abuse, are some of disorders that could coexist with depression in adolescents. Recent studies also show that mental disorders like depression could possibly be genetic Studies show that adults that suffered from depression would usually have one child that suffer from the same depression. Social explanations could explain some conditions of mothers that are depressed. The reason that more women are more likely to suffer from depression because women are more likely to be less successful and lack good relations. Bipolar Depression in Children In 15 years psychologist have studied that children can also suffer from bipolar disorder. Bipolar (formally known as manic depressant) disorder is one of the most difficult disorders to detect in young children. Bipolar disorder is the opposite of depression. Adolescents that experience symptoms of Bipolar disorder experience mania (a state of euphoria). Mania is an abnormally high state of exhilaration For example; adolescents that experience depression has low

Albert Bandura the founder of reciprocal determinism

Albert Bandura the founder of reciprocal determinism Albert Bandura, the founder of reciprocal determinism was born in Canada in 1925. He obtained his Ph.D. from the University of Iowa, where he developed the social learning theory. Bandura had certain strong beliefs on how psychological research should be done. He believed research should be conducted in laboratories where psychologists could control factors that determined behavior. Bandura has conducted many famous clinical studies which are the basis of the several books he has written. Bandura was also the creator of the reciprocal determinism theory which showed he believed that a person’s behavior both influences and is influenced by personal factors and the social environment. Personal factors are those that are based on a person’s morals, ethics ideas, and personality. The social environment consists of everything external to the self, which are other people, their beliefs, ideas and external items. Two brief examples of reciprocal determinism would be a person who is afraid of flying on airplanes will act nervous, scared, and out of the ordinary which would be the personal factor. This will cause the other people on the plane to become agitated and worried, making the nervous flier even more afraid. This shows how personal determinants, environmental determinants and behavioral determinants interact and influence each other. Another example would be of a man who cannot hold a job and therefore feels like a failure. His inability to hold a job is due to poor work habits and therefore influences employers to treat him bad until his behavior becomes terrible and is ultimately fired. Reciprocal determinism is affected by self-efficiency, which is a person’s belief about their ability to achieve a goal or an outcome. There are several ways to influence self-efficiency; performance accomplishments, vicarious experiences, verbal persuasion and emotional arousal. Performance accomplishments are based on a person’s own experiences wh ich are past successes and failures. Vicarious experiences are based on the observations of others and their performance in executing a task. Verbal persuasion uses suggestions or self-instruction as a motivator. Lastly, emotional arousal is used by diminishing emotional arousals that are associated with decreased performance. http://www.learningsolutionsmag.com/assets/images/learningsolutions/061410/061410_f1.png A helpful way to think of reciprocal determinism is in the form of a triangle. At the top would be behavioral  determinants  and the two corners would be personal determinants and environmental determinants. Arrows go back and forth between each word showing that they are influenced by each other. The basic idea is that personal factors (cognitive and affective events), the environment and behavior all influence each other. This triangle aids to understand that humans are shaped by their environment and also shape the environment.    Self- Efficacy A person’s belief about their ability to organize and carry out courses of action needed to accomplish a goal is known as self- efficacy. Those persons, who are confident in their capability to execute a behavior, have very strong efficacy beliefs. These beliefs are influencing our personal emotional reactions and choices, motivation, and patters, therefore they are considered to have a very significant impact on our goals and accomplishments in life. (Bandura. A. Psychological Review. 1977).

Cisco Networking Assessment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Cisco Networking Assessment - Essay Example Error correction also includes the additional ability to reconstruct the original message, with error-free data. Two basic methods have been designed to handle the error correcting system. These are called the Automatic repeat-request (ARQ), and the Forward Error Correction (FEC). The ARQ sends that data with an error detection code, which the receiver user to check for errors. In the FEC method the transmitter includes an error-correcting code (ECC) and sends the coded message. The receiver never sends any data to the transmitter, it just decodes what it thinks is the most "likely" data. The Network Layer deals with errors via a variety of means (Wikipedea, 2008). These are to ensure the QOS is maintained. These can be items such as the Parity check, which means that if any bits are corrupted in the message, they are replaced to the expected format. A checksum, which involves an algorithm to check the validity of the data, Hash functions, which perform a similar function and repetition schemes. The full list of methods is stated here: The Transport Layer uses 2 two way error correction protocol, which involves a discussion between the sender and the receiver. This is where the receiver informs the transmitter to resend a message when an error occurs. ... Repetition schemes Parity schemes Checksum Cyclic redundancy checks Hamming distance based checks Hash function Cryptographic message digest Horizontal and vertical redundancy check Polarity schemes Transport Layer: The Transport Layer uses 2 two way error correction protocol, which involves a discussion between the sender and the receiver. This is where the receiver informs the transmitter to resend a message when an error occurs. The two basic types for each packet transferred are called a NACK (Not Acknowledged), when a failure occurs and an ACK (Acknowledged) when a packet has been successfully received. The way it does this is to check the header/footers of packets to see if it is in the format expected. This is usually achieved by CRC (Cyclic Redundancy Check) checksums which are calculated based on the data transmitted. Summary: Basically, the Network Layer function is to check the validity of the data at a lower level than the Transport Layer, and communicates the problem up the hierarchy. The Transport Layer in turn, informs the transmitter to resend the erroneous data. The Transport layer has other functions, such as allowing a mechanism where the receiver informs the transmitter what to send next and what is expected. Question 2 (5 marks) What are the different types of collisions that can occur on an Ethernet network Briefly explain each. There are the types of collision where two packets are sent over the network at the same time, and this is handled by the CSMA/CD (Carrier Sense Multiple Access / Collision Detect) protocol and a 'Collision Domain'. A Collision Domain happens when two devices on the network transmit at the same time (The TCP/IP Guide, 2005). An Ethernet network can be composed of a single or a multiple

Mark Twain used his writings to condemn hypocrisy because he feels Essay

Mark Twain used his writings to condemn hypocrisy because he feels that people should be able to tell the truth at all times.How - Essay Example In The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Huck’s last statement that, â€Å"But I reckon I got to light out for the territory ahead of the rest, because Aunt Sally she’s going to adopt me and sivilize me, and I can’t stand it. I been there before.† (Twain 569). Twain was trying to show the experience of Huck with Aunt Sally. Huck tries to explain that he has been enlightened before people of his age and this could be due to the fact that Huck started learning to be ‘sivilized’ at a tender age. ‘Territory’ in this context could be said to mean ‘the Indian territory’, hence, Huck’s first sentence could be said to mean that he had wanted to be independent before people of his age. Huck’s next statement that ‘because Aunt Sally she’s going to adopt me and sivilize me, and I can’t stand it. I been there before’ was used by Huck to kick against his adoption by Aunt Sally as he knows tha t Sally is someone that would try to instill some societal values and norms in him and he has had this experience before and this is something that he did not enjoy in any way. Huck’s experience with the Widow Douglas and Miss Watson were actually the ‘sivilizing’ experience he had as she tried to reform Huck and make sure that he conformed to the societal rules and order.

Dichotomy of Critical Enquiry Situated in a Creative Experience Essay

Dichotomy of Critical Enquiry Situated in a Creative Experience - Essay Example The first example refers to a feeling of success on completion that is similar to that of the enquiring philosopher when working out a problem through personal reflection and sensibility. The second example refers to a feeling on success on completion that is similar to that of the experimenting scientist on working out a problem through rigorous experiment. It is the main purpose of this paper to discuss this dichotomy. Along the way, the proponent includes the discussion on how the processes of Critical Enquiry differ and/or converge in the above stated examples. Furthermore, the discussion also includes how success is achieved and registered for the musician in both examples. The nature-nurture controversy Based on the above cases, there are two important ways in which the young musician could actually learn a piece of music. The first way involves firm understanding of the piece in which this effort could be tantamount to personal reflection and sensibility because it happens wit hin the bound of individual effort. Just like a philosopher, the achievement of thoughts happens after a thorough critical reflective process. On the other hand, the second way in learning could happen in the presence of an assessor having substantial knowledge on achieving accurate piece. In this way, there is an association of external factor through the presence of an assessor who could actually influence the actual learning process of the young musician. At this point, there would be actual basis of certain learning output. In the above illustration, this reflects the nature of scientists. From environmental perspective in psychology, the environment has the crucial role to influence the actual learning process of an individual (Feldman, 2010). Agreed by John Locke, his tabula rasa doctrine supports the idea that the environment has the capacity to mold humans, in every aspect in life (Lefrancois, 2011). However, the nature position which is a strong opposition of the tabula ras a doctrine strongly points out that genes could be responsible for human learning and special characteristics such as intelligence and strength (Lefrancois, 2011, Engler, 2008; Harris, 2012). This supplements the idea that learning is an existential process or vital to human survival (Jarvis, 2006). In other words, there is a direct argument against the idea that one could acquire intelligence from the environment because it is not innate. However, the nature position is clear in its point that intelligence is innate and every living thing has corresponding characteristics because of each individual genetic make up. It is important to focus on this philosophical concept prior to the discussion of the dichotomy of critical enquiry situated in a creative experience from the case of young musician learning their first piece. In the above case, the first situation could remarkably represent the nature position applied in the context of human learning. The very strong justification would be the actual reflective effort initiated by the young musician just to be able to learn. At this point, it is clear that the young musician actually possessed built in capability to learn on their own with the first piece of music, even in the absence of an assessor. Here, one could consider that the actual effort of the young musicia

Batesvile Casket Company Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Batesvile Casket Company - Essay Example They held the opinion that handling their customer’s needs was the path to success. They placed the utmost importance on customer satisfaction and consistently introduced improvement in their processes through technological innovation to provide speedy and better service to their customers. How New Technology Can Build Competitive Position The revolution in information technology is causing significant reduction in the cost of getting, processing and transmitting information. Information technology involves not just computers but encompasses the entire information that is used and created in a business, and the interlinked and convergent technologies that carry out processing of the information. The company faces a wide array of questions, namely how the technology can help them gain competitive advantage, what strategies can be used to obtain the maximum benefit of the technology and out of many options investment in which technology would yield the maximum benefit. The revol ution in information system has changed the structure of the industry and impacted competition. It has shown ways to companies to outperform their rivals; it creates the opportunity for businesses to realize the scope of new businesses from their existing ones (Porter & Miller, 1985). The implementation of new technology helps an organization to achieve competitive advantage over their competitors. James J. Kuisel, the MIS Director of Batesville Casket Company believed that the implementation of new technology would help them to gain leadership in the market. They were able to achieve remarkable cost reduction through the use of client/server network at the PC of the customer service center rather than the mainframe computer. The data was transferred from the client server to the mainframe. They were the pioneers in adopting a new PC development tool known as Knowledge-Man in the 1980s which helped them to reduce the cycle time. It was implemented by them faster than their competito rs. The MIS and the logistics department worked in conjunction and were able to reduce paperwork and thus serve customers faster. They did this at a time when competitors were still using paper based system. Initially, in 1990 the hardware that was used for customer service center was an early IBM PC. The system was obsolete and needed to be replaced. The software was required to be upgraded to the latest version of Knowledge –Man. The logistic department expected upgrade of the distribution and manufacturing system. Bar coding of the model number of each casket helped in automated tracking and identification of caskets. A bar code reader was placed at the loading dock of the customer service center that was connected via radio frequency link to the PC of the customer service center. A system for maintaining records of orders, maintaining inventory based on model number was established to serve customers better. Batesville continuously upgraded their technology to provide bet ter service to customers. They replaced their hardware, decided on operating systems and revised their software. They introduced IBM PS/2 Model A16 which had a memory of 4 megabytes, colored monitor, math coprocessor, mouse and hard disc of 160 megabyte. They installed Epson LQ1170 and Hayes 9600 Ultra external modem.

A Visit to the Lantern Festival Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

A Visit to the Lantern Festival - Essay Example Being a student of Asian American Studies, it was mostly out of academic interest that I visited the lantern festival hosted by Chinese American Museum, Los Angeles. The friend who had suggested this event for me had told me that the festival was lot of fun with Chinese New Year celebration, and magnificent cultural events. When I reached the festival place, it was crowded already. The first sight itself of the festival would transport the onlooker into another time and space, into a traditional Chinese village street fair- where lovely lanterns swing in the wind and the mouth-watering Chinese rural delicacies invitingly wait along the pavements. I could see the pavement vendors selling yuanxiao, the â€Å"glutinous† edible balls placed in sweet syrup, which is a special dish of the lantern festival (Fu, 75). The spectacular lion dance was being performed on the stage built at the festival site. I could see the richness of Chinese culture coming alive in many colors and hues. Also I was reminded of the cultural diversity of Asia and what the Americans could gain if we could combine our technological advancements with the magnificent global cultural inheritance. The sense of community that was a common inherent factor in Asian cultures was at its full display. Chinese people had come with their families, friends and children to the festival. In contrast to this, almost all the Americans who came to the festival venue were either alone or accompanied by their peers only. Of course a few American women came with their children. But this is a significant difference between these two cultures. And the community bonding and family bonding inside Chinese culture is something that Americans can try to learn to survive in the totally chaotic and individualistic world of ours. The bamboo flutes started melodiously singing with rhythm and the ambience immediately turned magical. The lantern festival, which is the culmination of Chinese New Year celebrations, is hel d annually on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month. The elegantly designed and ornamented lanterns are signs of peace of prosperity. These lanterns are also symbols signifying a myth, in Chinese folklore, which says that by lighting the lanterns and creating an impression that the town was ablaze, the Chinese ancestors had escaped the wrath of the Jade Emperor in heaven, who had plans to set fire to the town to avenge the killing of his goose by the town people. This is a legend, which dates back to around 2000 years and the Han Dynasty. The lantern festival conducted by Chinese American Museum has an added flavor in that it envisages educating the visitors on Chinese culture. The craftsmanship involved in the making of lanterns, the color combinations, the beauty of origami, the fineries of Chinese calligraphy, the varieties of Chinese dance and music- everything was brought under one umbrella in the CAM lantern festival. A large number of the visitors to the festival were Am ericans and this presented a picture of healthy cultural mixing and exchange. Especially the children who participated in the festival were getting an opportunity to train themselves to live in a cosmopolitan culture in which different races and nationalities mix. The American children who came to the festival could realize that there are other cultures in the world as rich and historic as American culture is. They could also get familiarized with a more ancient culture than theirs by getting acquainted with Chinese culture in such close quarters. Similarly, for the Chinese children living in America, the festival was a rare occasion to feel the ties of their roots, their culture and tradition. As the Chinese value their family ties very much, this kind of festivals are for them, occasions to strengthen such family bonding (Fu, 69). Also, these children are getting a unique chance to live their culture in an alien land. In this way, both the Chinese and American children are here, p articipating in the making of a new cosmopolitan cult

Dichotomy of Critical Enquiry Situated in a Creative Experience Essay

Dichotomy of Critical Enquiry Situated in a Creative Experience - Essay Example The first example refers to a feeling of success on completion that is similar to that of the enquiring philosopher when working out a problem through personal reflection and sensibility. The second example refers to a feeling on success on completion that is similar to that of the experimenting scientist on working out a problem through rigorous experiment. It is the main purpose of this paper to discuss this dichotomy. Along the way, the proponent includes the discussion on how the processes of Critical Enquiry differ and/or converge in the above stated examples. Furthermore, the discussion also includes how success is achieved and registered for the musician in both examples. The nature-nurture controversy Based on the above cases, there are two important ways in which the young musician could actually learn a piece of music. The first way involves firm understanding of the piece in which this effort could be tantamount to personal reflection and sensibility because it happens wit hin the bound of individual effort. Just like a philosopher, the achievement of thoughts happens after a thorough critical reflective process. On the other hand, the second way in learning could happen in the presence of an assessor having substantial knowledge on achieving accurate piece. In this way, there is an association of external factor through the presence of an assessor who could actually influence the actual learning process of the young musician. At this point, there would be actual basis of certain learning output. In the above illustration, this reflects the nature of scientists. From environmental perspective in psychology, the environment has the crucial role to influence the actual learning process of an individual (Feldman, 2010). Agreed by John Locke, his tabula rasa doctrine supports the idea that the environment has the capacity to mold humans, in every aspect in life (Lefrancois, 2011). However, the nature position which is a strong opposition of the tabula ras a doctrine strongly points out that genes could be responsible for human learning and special characteristics such as intelligence and strength (Lefrancois, 2011, Engler, 2008; Harris, 2012). This supplements the idea that learning is an existential process or vital to human survival (Jarvis, 2006). In other words, there is a direct argument against the idea that one could acquire intelligence from the environment because it is not innate. However, the nature position is clear in its point that intelligence is innate and every living thing has corresponding characteristics because of each individual genetic make up. It is important to focus on this philosophical concept prior to the discussion of the dichotomy of critical enquiry situated in a creative experience from the case of young musician learning their first piece. In the above case, the first situation could remarkably represent the nature position applied in the context of human learning. The very strong justification would be the actual reflective effort initiated by the young musician just to be able to learn. At this point, it is clear that the young musician actually possessed built in capability to learn on their own with the first piece of music, even in the absence of an assessor. Here, one could consider that the actual effort of the young musicia

A Visit to the Lantern Festival Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

A Visit to the Lantern Festival - Essay Example Being a student of Asian American Studies, it was mostly out of academic interest that I visited the lantern festival hosted by Chinese American Museum, Los Angeles. The friend who had suggested this event for me had told me that the festival was lot of fun with Chinese New Year celebration, and magnificent cultural events. When I reached the festival place, it was crowded already. The first sight itself of the festival would transport the onlooker into another time and space, into a traditional Chinese village street fair- where lovely lanterns swing in the wind and the mouth-watering Chinese rural delicacies invitingly wait along the pavements. I could see the pavement vendors selling yuanxiao, the â€Å"glutinous† edible balls placed in sweet syrup, which is a special dish of the lantern festival (Fu, 75). The spectacular lion dance was being performed on the stage built at the festival site. I could see the richness of Chinese culture coming alive in many colors and hues. Also I was reminded of the cultural diversity of Asia and what the Americans could gain if we could combine our technological advancements with the magnificent global cultural inheritance. The sense of community that was a common inherent factor in Asian cultures was at its full display. Chinese people had come with their families, friends and children to the festival. In contrast to this, almost all the Americans who came to the festival venue were either alone or accompanied by their peers only. Of course a few American women came with their children. But this is a significant difference between these two cultures. And the community bonding and family bonding inside Chinese culture is something that Americans can try to learn to survive in the totally chaotic and individualistic world of ours. The bamboo flutes started melodiously singing with rhythm and the ambience immediately turned magical. The lantern festival, which is the culmination of Chinese New Year celebrations, is hel d annually on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month. The elegantly designed and ornamented lanterns are signs of peace of prosperity. These lanterns are also symbols signifying a myth, in Chinese folklore, which says that by lighting the lanterns and creating an impression that the town was ablaze, the Chinese ancestors had escaped the wrath of the Jade Emperor in heaven, who had plans to set fire to the town to avenge the killing of his goose by the town people. This is a legend, which dates back to around 2000 years and the Han Dynasty. The lantern festival conducted by Chinese American Museum has an added flavor in that it envisages educating the visitors on Chinese culture. The craftsmanship involved in the making of lanterns, the color combinations, the beauty of origami, the fineries of Chinese calligraphy, the varieties of Chinese dance and music- everything was brought under one umbrella in the CAM lantern festival. A large number of the visitors to the festival were Am ericans and this presented a picture of healthy cultural mixing and exchange. Especially the children who participated in the festival were getting an opportunity to train themselves to live in a cosmopolitan culture in which different races and nationalities mix. The American children who came to the festival could realize that there are other cultures in the world as rich and historic as American culture is. They could also get familiarized with a more ancient culture than theirs by getting acquainted with Chinese culture in such close quarters. Similarly, for the Chinese children living in America, the festival was a rare occasion to feel the ties of their roots, their culture and tradition. As the Chinese value their family ties very much, this kind of festivals are for them, occasions to strengthen such family bonding (Fu, 69). Also, these children are getting a unique chance to live their culture in an alien land. In this way, both the Chinese and American children are here, p articipating in the making of a new cosmopolitan cult

Hrm Pqhrm Essay Example for Free

Hrm Pqhrm Essay Link is a leading pharmaceutical company which has the head office in Colombo and also there are 7 branches all over the island. Over 200 workers are employed and Mr. Ravi Fernando is the training manager who has over 10 years experience in this field. He handles all the product training and also for training ,the company is known to spend heavily. These training included overseas training amp; other out sourced training programs. However , when new CEO Mr. Dylan Perera Joined the company Ravi Fernando had to justify this big amount of training cost and he was asked to provide a detailed report. He tried his best but he was failed in the same. CEO Dylan Perera wasnt satisfies as Mr. Ravi was not able to prove worthiness of his training programs at all. He has no any written records or at least the members couldnt explain what therere gained from the training. It was totally failure. Anyway Dylan is prompted to the forthcoming training schedule for 2009. My role as a consultant would be to identify * The key issues in the case that could have caused this situation * What has Ravi missed in his role as training manager and how that has led to the current problem * Suggestions and strategies which could be implemented In my report from here on it can be found recommendations and suggestions which can be implemented. 1) The key issues in the case that could have caused this situation Care-Link is a leading pharmaceutical company and Mr. Ravi Fernando is the training Manager of Care-Link. Ravi has done a great job in training and development of the company but it failed. The training outcome was not up to expectations. That is the biggest question. Issues in the case that could have caused this situation is as follows, * Spend a lot of money In this case Mr. Ravi spend a lot of money on training programs without onsidering whether those trainings are useful for the employees and effective for the success of the organization or not. Even though some aspects might not be measurable, there are measurable ways to determine if the money was spent wisely. Organizations have traditionally treated training as a cost and expense. When training has a sufficient payback, it can be viewed as an investment, not an expense. We have to identify the training need well and then to design the training program because it’s a huge waste if we spend a lot on unnecessary training programs. Before spending time and money, its better to follow a systematic process to first determine if training is a potential solution – and if it is, then we should develop a training program. Company should spend money on training wisely and that means making sure that there is a real need, that there are training objectives in place and that the learners will actually use what they have learned, immediately, back on the job. Then, your investment in training can actually pay huge dividends. That’s why in this case CEO Dylan Perera prompted to request a total plan for training initiatives before he approves any money for training during the year. * Objectives (training goals) set by the trainer, rather than the trainees Training objectives should set by both trainers and trainees up to their expectations. Here in this case Mr. Ravi decides on his own who are to send outsourced training and who are handling by himself. Effective trainers should be good communicators. He should have discuss with the employees before he sets the training objectives. Care Link’s practice was just to be nominated by the training division for training program actual need of the training should come up in the employees end due to gain a new knowledge or to fill a gap of required competence. Here the employees don’t have any opportunity to rise up with their own requirement of trainings. If the employees too have that opportunity it would be much easy to training division to build up training calendar and the budget on that to fulfill the real requirement of the raining. * A failure to identify the specific needs of employees and for employees to own their own development needs. Training is not the panacea to what ails every worker or every company. It is incorrect to assume that the problems facing every organization can be cured by â€Å"providing training. † In fact, only continuous learning, not training alone, can have an impact upon workforce productivity, but for a company to be successful in its learning interventions, it must know what it wishes to accomplish, give the proposed intervention time, energy and resources it needs to succeed, and ensure that there is a strategy into which the intervention will fit. Finally, there must be reinforcement, performance monitoring and evaluation. An identified training need pinpoints an area where change is required. Learning objectives specify what a person will be able to do differently as a result of training. The clearer the picture of what you want to achieve in a training session, the easier it becomes to plan the means and the greater the prospect of achieving success. Ineffective training adopts a scattergun approach, rather than pinpointing the target. Effective training designs are characterized by objectives which state clearly what the trained person will be able to do when back in the workplace. No accurate method to evaluate the training program In this case there was no specific method to evaluate the training program. When CEO asked the training manager Ravi, to justify the high training expenditure during the year and show more accurate proof other than a verbal explanation, he was failed to prove it because he never know an accurate method to evaluate the training program. Because companies have made large d ollar investments in training and education and view training as a strategy to be successful, they expect the outcomes or benefits related to training to be measurable. Therefore * To identify the program’s strengths and weaknesses. * To assess whether content, organization, and administration of the program contribute to learning and the use of training content on the job. * To identify which trainees benefited most or least from the program To gather data to assist in marketing training programs. * To determine the financial benefits and costs of the programs. * To compare the costs and benefits of training versus non-training investments. * To compare the costs and benefits of different training programs to choose the best program. Training programs should be evaluated. (see Attachment 01 for Evaluation Process) * Little or no support is given from upper management. The essence of a training need, then, is a gap between what exists and what is needed in order to meet or exceed the customer’s demands. One of the best payoffs from needs analysis is management involvement in training. Managers must play an active role in the diagnostic process and have a sense of ownership of the training event which results. When training is conducted at arm’s length from management, little can change. * No record on expenditure. There should be a record on overall expenditure of the training programmes. It should refer to the overall administration of the program. Cost could be classified in two areas, fixed cost like Trainer’s salary and accommodation cost and the variable costs like Training Material, venue and the necessary arrangements at the venue, food or snacks, transport and installation of training r equipments even though the variable cost is hard to measure it’s a must to measure the cost for the training to maintain the balance of the expenditure. Here the training Manager has failed to justify the high expenditure during the year 2008. That is due to the poor cost managing and not budget the training needs for the year ahead. Training budged which is setting in the beginning of the year should be accurate and well defined. 2) What has Ravi missed in his role as training manager and how that has led to the current problem Training managers have the primary responsibility of working with line managers to identify and meet personnel training needs. The training manager should establish training and entry-level requirements for key training positions and implement programs to select and develop training personnel. The training organization should exhibit a strong desire to meet the training needs of the line organization in both its approach to day-to-day activities and its long-term strategic planning. The training organization should help line managers, supervisors, and personnel recognize that training strengthens personnel and facility performance. A training managers supporting responsibilities may include the following, * Maintain training programs current. * Monitor instructor performance to verify training is conducted as outlined in approved training materials and in a manner that motivates personnel to learn. Verify that the training staff has obtained and is maintaining their technical and instructional knowledge and skills. * Develop training programs according to approved methodology. * Track training commitments to outside organizations such as the state and federal regulators, and assist line management in meeting these commitments. * Develop training program and trainee status reports for line managers, and assist line managers in identifying and resolving human performance issues. * Track current industry training issues. * Solicit line managers involvement when training commitments or needs are not being fulfilled. Work to establish mutual trust and cooperation between the training organization and all facility personnel. * Develop improved methods to meet training and facility objectives and goals as required. * Develop training policies that establish guidelines for all training functions. * Assist line management in identifying potential training needs based on facility and industry operating experiences. * Initiate and help prepare long-range objectives for the training organization that are consistent with corporate, facility, and training policies, and develop a system for verifying implementation of the actions needed to meet the objectives. Training managers should verify that employees participate in training and that training meets the employees needs. Here in this case there was no proper policy of training and development it’s the training managers duty to suggest a training policy for the organization. Mr. Ravi should have discuss with the top management about to make a good policy of training on behalf of the employees who needed the training. Training policies and procedures should support the accomplishment of the training mission, goals, and objectives by providing general guidance and detailed directions. Policies typically describe the conditions that guide the decision making process (i. e. , thoroughness, prudence, openness, and responsiveness). Procedures describe how specific tasks will be accomplished. And also The training manager of Care-Link Had no confidence with his training programs. When the CEO Dylan Perera was not satisfied with just verbal remarks and pushed Ravi to show more accurate proof on what he says, this was pressurizing Ravi to an extent that he was even thinking of leaving the company. This is because of his lack of confidence. Effective Training Manager should have good Confidence on what they train. Managing a training department offers a variety of roles that uncovers natural abilities and potential, while offering specific areas for development. Mr. Ravi Fernando as a experienced person in the pharmaceutical field , might be assuming him as a excellent facilitator of Training programs ,that why he himself handled all the products trainings but he should have understand as per the changing marketing requirement everything has to be changed by and by to meet up the market requirement. Should have seek opportunities to advance somewhere, and develop the strategic plan in accordance to that and then it should be linked the Training plan. Training Manger should be open minded to improve his skills or knowledge in areas which is related to the business and to the training requirement. Training Manger should be Responsible, reliable and accountable, ethical and able to instil a clear sense of purpose in others, Here in the Care Link people doesn’t get a chance to request trainings to fill their competency gaps, and the accountability wasn’t there as the case study views that Mr. Ravi himself failed to explain on what he has done in last year. If Mr. Ravi’s Character has heighted as a Problem solver, dealing with practical, people and problems, they would meet up best results than this. And of cause excellent consultancy skills should be there in his character as a training manager but case study not view any of the situation he has conducted due to understanding the internal customer requirements.. 3) Suggestions and strategies which could be implemented Care-Link company faced a lot of problems due to Ravis misconduct in his training programs. To make training and development more effective within your organization. Following suggestions and approaches will make companys employee training more effective and transferable; their application will result in measurable differences to organizations bottom line performance. * Make sure the need is a training and development opportunity. Do thorough needs and skills analysis to determine the real need for employee training and development. Make sure the opportunity you are pursuing or the problem you are solving is a training issue. Create a context for the employee training and development. Provide information for the employee about why the new skills, skill enhancement, or information is necessary. Make certain the employee understands the link between the training and his job. You can enhance the impact of the training even further if the employee sees the link between the training and his ability to contribute to the accomplishment of the organizations business plan and goals. Its also important to provide rewards and recognition as a result of successful completion and application of the training. Provide training and development that is really relevant to the skill you want the employee to attain or the information he needs to expand his work horizons. You may need to design an employee training session internally if nothing from training providers exactly meets your needs. Or, seek out providers who are willing to customize their offerings to match your specific needs. It is ineffective to ask an employee to attend a training session on general communication when his immediate need is to learn how to provide feedback in a way that minimizes defensive behavior. The employee will regard the training session as mostly a waste of time or too basic; his complaints will invalidate potential learning. * Favor employee training and development that has measurable objectives and specified outcomes that will transfer back to the job. Design or obtain employee training that has clearly stated objectives with measurable outcomes. Ascertain that the content leads the employee to attaining the skill or information promised in the objectives. With this information in hand, the employee knows exactly what he can expect from the training session and is less likely to be disappointed. He will also have ways to apply the training to the accomplishment of real workplace objectives. * Provide information for the employee about exactly what the training session will involve, prior to the training. Explain what is expected of the employee at the training session. This will help reduce the persons normal anxiety about trying something new. If she knows what to expect, she can focus on the learning and training transfer rather than her potential discomfort with the unknown. * Make clear to the employee that the  training is his/her responsibility and he/she needs to take the employee training seriously. She/he is expected to apply herself/himself to the employee training and development process before, during, and after the session. This includes completing pre-training assignments, actively participating in the session, and applying new ideas and skills upon returning to work. * Make sure that internal or external training providers supply pre-training assignments. Reading or thought-provoking exercises in advance of the session promote thoughtful consideration of the training content. Exercises or self-assessments, provided and scored in advance of the session, save precious training time for interaction and new information. These ideas will engage the employee in thinking about the subject of the session prior to the training day. This supplies important paybacks in terms of his interest, commitment, and involvement. As the Care link in a serious situation in having a proper Training and development policy, better to have climate survey among the employees of the company, which will provide all the information on the expectations and thoughts of the employees, then as per the requirement of internal and external customers the training division can buildup training policy. Policy statements and procedures should be developed on topics such as the following, * Analyzing tasks, designing and developing training materials, implementing and evaluating the effectiveness of training activities. * Identifying personnel qualification and training needs according to position descriptions, job assignments, previous education, training, and experience * Assessing the level of expertise of subcontract personnel and temporary employees performing work at the facility. * Pursuing job-related education activities. * Handling of individuals whose performance is marginal or unsatisfactory during training (i. . , remedial training) * Describing training department and line organization responsibilities for the training and qualification of facility employees. * Incorporating into training lessons learned from facility and industry operating experiences. * Conducting consistent training and evaluation in the classroom, laboratory, simulator, and on-the-job training. * Co mmunicating between training and line managers (e. g. , curriculum committees, peer review groups) * Maintaining training records of personnel training and performance. * Controlling and administering tests to maintain evaluation integrity. Training and qualifying instructors. * Scheduling of training activities and determining makeup requirements. * Maintaining control of training equipment. * Exceptions. * Facility evaluation criteria. * Vendor short courses or use of vendors for training. Training procedures should describe the types of training and training programs to be conducted, training program prerequisites, and the training audience. The procedures should clearly indicate the training needed for each job position and the sequence in which it is to be completed. The procedures also may reflect the facilitys division of labor policies, position descriptions, and work assignment practices. CONCLUTION It is incorrect to assume that the problems facing every organization can be cured by â€Å"providing training. † In fact, only continuous learning, not training alone, can have an impact upon workforce productivity, but for a company to be successful in its learning interventions, it must know what it wishes to accomplish, give the proposed intervention time, energy and resources it needs to succeed, and ensure that there is a strategy into which the intervention will fit. Finally, there must be reinforcement, performance monitoring and evaluation. Company should spend money on training wisely and that means making sure that there is a real need, that there are training objectives in place and that the learners will actually use what they have learned, immediately, back on the job. Then, your investment in training can actually pay huge dividends. Effective training and development helps employees to reach their full potential whilst providing the organization with the skills and capabilities it needs for the long term.

Promotional Program Situation Analysis

Promotional Program Situation Analysis Sony Entertainment has a large brand name and has a large target market for all of their electronic product line. Because of the high demand for new technology and consumers buying Sony quality products, it has an annual advertising budget of approximately five billion US dollars globally  [1]  . And last year in 2009, Sony spent 3.4 billion dollars in advertising alone, which is around what other competitors spend on advertising. Sony has an effective approach with spending money on advertising their new products and promoting new games for Sony game consoles. The corporation uses a variety of promotional media strategies to advertise new products that are coming out. The way Sony does this is through magazines, newspapers, video game trade shows (like E3), internet advertisement, Playstation internet forums, TV advertising, sponsorship, and word of mouth. The largest reach to consumers is through television commercials. Sony has been found in many different kinds magazines to reach their large target market. Sony airs their commercials on a large scale of channels and networks. For example, Sony PS3 game commercial appears on comedy central, Fox, cartoon network, and many more. Their current commercial is an actor as the Vice President of Sony entertainment that illustrates people asking the VP questions about the PS3 and he answers with something that promotes the PS3 game and console. The commercials have a slight humor to them to keep the viewer interested and to remember the advertisement. Sony Playstation has made appearances in TV shows such as two and half men, and movies, like the 40 year old virgin. The message strategies are to illustrate the entertainment a person gets out of a video game and the detailed computer generated images, CGI, that are used in the games. Overall, Sony Playstation is a strong competitor for the entertainment industry. The competition is moderately intense, but it is fragmented because there is not one major company that dominates the market. The technological trend is leaning towards television advertising and internet advertising. 90% of the target market have internet and 70% use the internet to shop online. Sony is already capitalizing on this trend and spends most of the advertising budget on advertisement spots. The company meets customer satisfaction with its products and customer service. The company is always seeking to make things better and expand its products. Positioning and Campaign Theme Game consoles are trying to reach the demand for the consumers wanting video games that have the latest, like-real life graphics, and an enjoyable experience. When consumers compare the three major video game consoles, Nintendo Wii, Xbox 360, and PS3, there is no comparison. The PS3 has everything all in one console. With the new Playstation Interactive, it will bring Sony to another level of gaming and setting it farther apart from the competition. The major difference with the PSI is that it makes the person in control feel like they are really inside the game. PSI is the only product that enables the character to simulate the same movement the gamer is doing by using all of their full body motion. Playstation focuses on having the best technology and implementing having the latest of technology in one console. Sonys mission statement is to experience the joy of advancing and applying technology for the benefit of the public. Sony has positioned all of their product lines around this philosophy. Playstation Interactive will define their position in the market by using product differentiation, and uses of the product. Our logo Be in controlà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Be interactive positions the product as of being in control of the game and being involved in more than a controller. It also sends the message of being an innovator of having the best and latest technology on the market. Playstation Interactive does more than play games. It has all the capabilities of the PS3. The PS3 slogan now is it only does everything. To keep the mission statement and message of the product to the market intact of its features, another slogan is Having everything at your movement. This slogan shows that it does more than video games, and has the best technology in one console. The message is consistent with the positioning statement. It does this by having slogans that relay the message from an advertisement as it positions the product in the market. As stated above the two slogans that would be used are Be in controlà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Be interactive and Having everything at your movement. Communication Objectives and Strategies The advertising strategy for the PlayStation Interactive is attempting to communicate the major benefits of the product. The value of the PSI is that it will create an unbelievably real virtual gaming experience. The gamer will feel their game is a reality, which is the ultimate benefit. The goal is to differentiate PSI from any other gaming system that can be made similar, and to appeal to potential customers in a psychologically manner. The objectives of the campaign are to make the PSI a desirable gaming system. Its new technology will be perceived as the leader and pioneer of the next gaming generation. Our objectives are to: Increase knowledge and awareness of this new technology to 90% of gamers in the selected target market in a 12 months period. Close gap in Market share between PS3 and XBOX by introducing new technology. By doing this, we expect to increase our market share by 10% in a 12 months period, and reinforce the brand image of Playstation among existing customers. To achieve our goals we will reach to the early adapters of the gaming industry to have them talking and blogging about our product, creating a Buzz that will provide the company with word of mouth advertising. We will incent product trial and drive purchase among the target market by offering game demos with over 80 games to choose from. We will also set demonstration available to main retailers (BestBuy, Target and Wal-Mart) to stimulate trials for potential customers. A Web site will be launched dedicated to the PSI besides the existing Sony Playstation official Web site. Each game will contain a link to the Web site where users can find out about more games and subscribe to our email list and follow us on Twitter and Facebook.This Web site will also provide visitors with information about the new technology of the PSI. Visitors will be able to order the system and games through the website as well. We plan to offer games with custom made features only for our online customers. We will place advertising ads in the large gaming magazine such as GamePro and Game Informer. We will place commercials on stations such as G4 and Spike which target the same gaming market as PSI. We intend to improve relations with game retailers by providing them with cooperative advertising support. Other examples of advertising would be direct response advertising, co-operative advertising, and sales promotion (like when Sony dropped the price for the PS3 to $299.00). Advertising Appeals The advertising appeals which will be used for the PSI is a fun, sometime humorous and emotional appeal. The advertising will create a desire. Video game/console advertising is sort of like movie trailers, the reason being the trailers get the viewer involved in the situation or, in a gaming case, the action. One commercial, for example, advertises a new game and shows a brief glimpse of what the game is like, the detailed graphics and at the end of the commercial will show the logo for the Sony PSI. An advertisement for the product can show a person playing the Nintendo Wii on the couch and not moving their body just moving the controller. Then the screen will shift to a person playing Playstation Interactive actually moving their whole body as the person in game does exactly the same thing as the person in control. This advertisement will show product differentiation and product usage. Other advertisements can show the advanced graphics of a game with a character running around in the game then the camera will zoom out of the television showing the game footage and show a person running around doing all the things the character is doing, then it will move to a slogan, Be in controlà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Be interactive. We think these types of appeals will work best for our campaign since one of our goals is to establish a reputation for games that poke fun at what many would consider humorous or ridiculous actions by well-known people. Additionally, to help promote games via word of mouth, each game has the option to notify a friend. So, a user can send a text message to a friend instantly to share their excitement or recommendation about the games. Rationale for Creative Recommendations The reason for choosing the advertising strategy selected, is due to the fact that the act of gaming requires more a mental state than a physical state. Therefore by advertising to customers psychological side it may create more of an intense desire to have the newest technology in gaming. Advertising Media Recommendations Strategy We first must create awareness of our virtual gaming system to the novice and serious video gamer so they can be aware that our virtual gaming system actually exists. Secondly we have to show how our gaming system is different and superior to any other gaming system in the market today. This wont be easy task but can yield major dividends if done correctly. In our media strategy we wont neglect the power and the influence of word of mouth advertising which will be a huge factor in promoting our virtual gaming system. The target market we are going to reach has to be overwhelming satisfied with our virtual gaming system otherwise they wont recommend their friends to go out and purchase the system. The target market were reaching would only recommend the system if they all can play against each other. In other words we have to completely satisfy all of their friends so they can all go out and buy a virtual gaming system for their own home. Either we satisfy all of them or none of them to buy the virtual gaming system. We believe word of mouth advertising will eventually supersede all traditional forms of media advertising once people learn more about our virtual gaming system. In the meantime we will coordinate different media strategies to maximize our virtual gaming system by bringing out brand awareness of our gaming system. Advertising and Communication Objectives First our communication to the public will be about how our virtual gaming system is unique to anything on the market. Secondly, any video game enthusiast will have an opportunity to not just a play a video game but to actually feel and be a part of the experience within the game! This is a far different experience then just playing a game and your body movements are mimicked on the screen with the other competitors in our target market. When you think of a video game slogan, such as the one in John Madden Football; Its in the game! This virtual system will entirely change your perspective because the player of the virtual gaming system is going to literally be, in the game. The last message that we want to convey to our target market is that our virtual gaming system comes complete with everything included. No need to go out and buy any accessories to use and play our virtual gaming system since it comes complete in our base package. Target market Video Game Players Teenagers to young adults 15-35 You enjoy playing video games in your spare time and you already own a Playstation 3, Xbox or a WII. This is a video gaming system that you must have immediately! It takes video games the way we know it today and intensives the experience you receive from playing video games and multiplies it 100 over. Getting the system is cool but its even cooler if you get it before all your friends get the system. Since youre the coolest kid out there you open up the virtual gaming system and it blows you away on how realistic and fun the system is. So you decide to brag to all your friends how cool the virtual gaming system is. Since we live in a stay connected era your friends are jealous that not only they dont have a virtual gaming system to play against you, they dont have a system period, to play with. This is an unfair competitive advantage that most teenagers and young adults wont put up with at all. So you know what happens next, youre not cool if you dont own a virtual gaming system. You nag your parents, begin working part-time or you sell your old gaming system to gather the money to get your own virtual gaming system. This is how the popularity of the virtual gaming system will take off and a large part will be attributed to word of mouth advertising. Word of mouth advertising is huge trend in the target market were trying to reach to promote our virtual gaming system. Major Selling Idea or Key Benefits The major selling idea would be that the system includes a 3-Dimensional Virtual gaming experience. This key benefit will be the strength of our selling promotion. Since it gives the video game player an experience they can only enjoy if the use the virtual gaming system. This will be introducing a new state of the art dimension that will be the strength to our sales promotion. The Media Plan To create curiosity among the public, we will first advertise our slogan, follow by the PSI logo and the coming soon words. To effectively market the virtual gaming system we will first have the system setup in a display kiosk at retail stores for people to test and play the virtual gaming system. This will be our Internet/Interactive Recommendation of out media plan. The retail stores we will first launch the system at will retail stores like Wal-Mart, Best Buy, Target, GameStop, Toys R Us and HH Gregg. This will start the process of creating an advertising buzz about the system. This will be done one month before the release date of the actual system to allow people to prepare for the arrival date of the virtual gaming system. In the meantime while they wait for the release date this waiting period will create an enormous amount of hype about or gaming system. Once the systems are all installed and set up and running in all the retail stores listed above we will move to step two of our media plan and thats using the Internet as our recommendation for marketing the virtual gaming system. The Internet advertising will be done on banners on Google, AOL, Bing, You Tube and MSN home pages. This will have our company logo and invite people to see and try out our virtual gaming system kiosk wherever electronics are sold. The advertisement will also list the release date of December 3rd. This will create motion by consumers to get involved and try out the system for a free trail. For an incentive they can obtain a $15 off coupon redeemable off their first game purchase. The timing of this step will be a week after step one has been complete. The timing of the system will be to bring brand awareness in early November and have a release date to be set December 3rd. The rationale behind this marketing strategy is the target market where trying to reach is Internet savvy and love interaction. They will get the best of both worlds with a free trial period and an incentive to buy the virtual gaming system just by coming into the store. This will start the buzz and word of mouth advertising which is exactly the type of response where looking for. Friends discussing their first virtual gaming experience with other friends and bouncing off ideas and opinions about the new virtual gaming system. This will cause our target market to literally salivate from the mouth and cross off each day on their calendar until our December 3rd release date. The third step in our media plan after exactly one week after the Internet/ Interactive phase will be to use mass advertising and more specifically TV advertising. The television advertising will be short commercials showing someone using the virtual gaming system and then it will flash on the screen showing you what they see inside their glasses. The commercial will end with the systems slogan and logo and will simply say, coming December 3rd. Under the release date it will have the companys website address and say visit us online for more details. The television ad will just be used to give people just little bit of information about the virtual gaming system and give them an invitation to the website. When they visit the website it will have the system specifications and FAQs. The website will also show clips of the users at the retail store and interviews from the virtual gaming system designers. It will also have a 10 minute video will a virtual system executive selling to the viewers why the virtual gaming system is so unique. The website will also have a discussion board for others to discuss with others. The rationale behind this form of advertising is to penetrate the market near Christmas time so consumers and families have time to prepare for the added expense during the holiday season. Since our product is a virtual gaming system this will create the broadest amount of brand awareness and since the commercials will be short and to the point will save millions in advertising dollars. The goal for the television advertising is to accomplish a few things. The first is to create brand awareness to the virtual gaming system. The second is giving a brief insight into what the virtual gaming system actually does. The third goal it will do is educate consumers of the release date. Fourth goal is to invite people to visit the website to get more information. Once consumers visit our website were confident they will continue to find out more information by visiting the retail store next for the free trail. The last goal will be for video gamers to purchase our virtual gaming system. Budget Summary The Total Estimated budget is at $1 billion Rationale behind this budget The virtual gaming system kiosk will be approximately $350 million dollars of our advertising budget. This portion of the budget is the Interactive recommendation of our marketing strategy. The second expense will be approximately $150 million dollars in Internet advertising dollars. The remaining $500 million dollars will be dedicated in television advertising since this is the most expensive form of adverting dollars. The expenses will be the order of the steps as listed above. This is the most effective way of reaching the target market and creating awareness of the virtual gaming system. Regardless of whether youre a novice or serious video gamer, this media plan will reach the intended recipient.