Blended Learning Implementation in Universities Essay

Blended Learning Implementation in Universities - Essay Example Unfortunately, not all universities have a clear view on how blended learning can be implemented. The goal of this paper is to highlight the most important points and offer a strategic framework for the development and implementation of blended learning strategies in higher education. The paper includes the definition and discussion of blended learning, the main criteria of effectiveness in blended learning environments, possible ways to implement blended learning in the classroom, and a common framework for higher education institutions seeking to implement the blended learning approach. Blended learning: models and implementation Regardless of the goals and objectives of blended learning in universities, the process of implementing blended learning models in higher education mandates the development of strong and complex program implementation frameworks. The overall process of developing and implementing blended learning programs includes the following elements: institutional, ped agogical, technological, design, evaluation and management, support and ethics (Singh 2003). This is actually a unique and extremely useful implementation framework that was proposed by Singh (2003). ... ecide whether it possesses technical and personnel capabilities required, to guarantee that all learners have equal access to blended learning instruments. At this stage of implementation, universities need to perform a detailed needs analysis, to understand what learners need and how blended learning can satisfy their needs. This is the planning stage of the implementation process in blended learning, which must include both strategic and operational aspects (Garrison & Kanuka 2004). In strategic terms, universities must necessarily evaluate the needs, objectives and goals of blended learning, its potential benefits, costs and the availability of resources (Garrison & Kanuka 2004). Operational planning has to be considered, in order to operationalize the goals and objective of blended learning and turn them into an action plan (Garrison & Kanuka 2004). For example, universities may develop advertising strategies to engage learners in blended contexts or attend to the needs of managi ng technologies effectively. Then follow the pedagogical and technological considerations. Universities that seek to implement blended learning approaches must decide upon the content to be included in the blend, the learning objectives to be met, and the learner needs (Singh 2003). In other words, here education professionals link the needs of learners to the learning objectives and the instruments to be used, to help learners meet these learning objectives. For example, if learners are expected to develop a new product or marketing model, then product simulation can become an essential component of the blend (Singh 2003). Once these delivery methods are identified, universities can proceed to decide upon the types of technologies to be used in blended learning. Here, technical

Alternatives for the decision regarding the high lead found in the whistles Essay Example for Free

Alternatives for the decision regarding the high lead found in the whistles Essay The situation of determining how to handle the recently discovered high lead content in the large whistles order is a difficult one that will in some way affect the company. Three alternatives have been made to allow options for this decision. Alternative 1: Say nothing; allow the whistles shipment to go without notifying the customer. Alternative 2: Replace the customer’s order by providing whistles that meet the appropriate company standards. Alternative 3: Contact the customer and explain the situation, offer them a discount for on the whistles that are lower than the company standard. Decision Process The process for choosing the three alternatives began by identifying the decision to be made. The decision at hand is what to do with the information discovered about the order of whistles going to a school in South America. This is a big decision that will affect the company in each alternative. The next step of the process is listing options possible for the situation, and then studying those options by listing advantages and disadvantages of each. Then the decision was made by choosing the best overall solution for the decision. And lastly the decision was evaluated to determine if the results were what was expected. The three options for this decision are listed above; say nothing to the customer, replace the order, or try to make a deal for the customer. Each option is motivated by a result that will benefit the company financially, ethically, or a mixture of both. The idea behind the alternative 1 decision was to save money upfront and not bother with order changes and other inconveniences for the company. In studying this option the advantage of this would be to save money and time for the company. The disadvantage would be a possibly unhappy customer, an unethical move which could make employees see the company as being unfair; giving a poor product that could be hazardous to children. The legal ramifications of this alternative would be risky if the a child became ill from the use of the whistles and the company was blamed, sued, etc. The idea behind the alternative 2 decision was to replace the customers order with whistles that are not potentially hazardous and meets the company standards. The advantage of this option is not putting the company in an unethical situation of trying to pass products that are under par for high quality. This will help set a standard of ethics in the company that could motivate employees to do good work. The disadvantage of this option is that it will cost the company $100,000. The financial loss could take a long time to recover from, the positive influence on employees won’t immediately compensate for the loss. There would not be a legal issue with this option. The idea behind the alternative 3 decision was to try and contact the customer and explain the situation and let them decide if they would like the whistles replaced or to take the hazardous whistles at a discount. The advantage of this alternative is that the customer could decide to keep the original whistles which would still save the company a considerable amount of money cutting the losses to a much smaller amount. Also it would show that the company had the customer’s best interest in mind. The disadvantage of this option is that it could reflect negatively on the company still because we can’t really determine how the customer will feel about the whistles that are potentially hazardous. They customer might think that the company is trying to cut corners and save themselves money. This would be bad for future business. Legally the customer would probably not try and sue the company, but there is still the potential issue of the company being reported as manufactur ing products with too high of a lead content. This would kill the company’s reputation and the customer relationships of other clients. Recommendation Alternative 2 is the recommended decision; replacing the customer’s order by providing whistles that meet the appropriate company standards. This decision was made by both ethical and financial decisions. Ethically this alternative is the most appropriate. The customer contacted the company to provide a product to be used in the South American schools. It would be unethical to provide the customer with a product that is below the company and country standards even though they are not violating the South American standard. The customer chose this company over a foreign company to give a quality and safe product. This recommendation will positively affect the company because they will possibly become more favorable in the eyes of the customer, with the possibility of more business in the future from them and their business relations. This option was chosen not only for company recognition, but also to save children from a potentially hazardous experience. This option will be a great cost to the company, but the positive experience from both the customer and employees. By creating a culture of â€Å"wanting to do what is right† will help future sales and the company will gradually earn the loss in funds back over time. Customer relationships Considering the outcome on the customer relationship is an important part of the decision making process. We have to ask ourselves how will the customer feel about our decision, how will it influence them and how will it influence the company? By choosing alternative 2, to replace the whistles, the company will look favorably to the customer, being the school buying the whistles. Though the company will merely be providing the product that was originally agreed upon for the initial sale, the customer will realize that the company is sacrificing to replace the whistles and they will go away with a positive relationship with the company. This experience is sure to foster future business from the customer because of the positive experience they experienced. They will also be more likely to recommend the company to their peers and the company could gain substantial business from the experience. The children who would be ultimately affected by the quality of the whistles will feel good about receiving a quality, non-hazardous product, and the parents of the children will be grateful knowing that the company behaved ethically. This could also create future business for the company by providing the children and parents with a positive experience from the company. The company employees will see the standard of ethics portrayed by the company and it will reflect in their work. By giving an example of a high ethical standard it is likely that employees will take greater pride in their work which will affect the company in a positive way. The company’s decision will affect multiple stages of people, their feelings, thoughts, and behaviors will help the company in the long run to regain the loss taken from replacing the whistles. The financial gains will be gradual yet immeasurable in the long run of creating a company with a superior ethical standard. Social Responsibility In a corporation, social responsibility is behaving ethically as individual workers and together as a company to be sensitive toward social, cultural, economic and environmental issues. This means that the company doesn’t always do what’s best for its self but rather do what is best for their environment, customers, employees, culture, etc. Social responsibility is a big part of the decision making process because decisions made by the company not only affect the company alone, it affects employees, the economy, the customers, and the environment. These decisions and methods are important when considering long-term business operations. The decision making process for the situation had many factors involved. The most noticeable factor was the cost of replacing the lower quality whistles with a product that is up to the company’s standard and isn’t potentially hazardous. There was multiple ways of looking the problem; ignoring it, saving the company money and hoping there was not issues with the product, or there was the option to replace the product with something the company could be proud of, a product that had no hazards for use by children, and doing what was appropriate ethically for the situation. Social responsibility played a major part in the decision to use alternative 2 and replace the order with whistles that didn’t have high amounts of lead. The choice to do what is best for the customer, environment, and the kids of the schools outweighed the option to save the company time and money.

Salman Rushdie :: essays research papers

There have been very few writers who have been dogged by controversy throughout their careers. Some have been persecuted in less enlightened times such as Mark Twain, and some have been ridiculed by the press like Edgar Allan Poe. Yet, Salman Rushdie was the first author in the free world to have been pursued from across continents and forced into hiding because of a death sentence by a foreign government. To say Salman Rushdie is a very controversial writer in today’s society would be a gross understatement. Rushdie in fact could be considered the ideal poster boy for absolute freedom of the press. It is not that Rushdie prides himself on being rebellious, he simply presents his ideas bluntly and it just so happens that his ideas address extremely volatile topics such as the Islam religion. Rushdie’s philosophy was eloquently put when he wrote, â€Å"What is freedom of expression? Without the freedom to offend, it ceases to exist.†Contrary to many great authors, Rushdie did not endure a traumatic childhood, suffer from alcohol addiction, or live with chronic depression. Instead, Rushdie actually had what many would view as a close to perfect upbringing. Rushdie was born in 1947 to a middle-class Moslem family in the great city of Bombay, India. His paternal grandfather was an Urdu poet, and his father a Cambridge educated businessman. At the age of fourteen, Rushdie was sent to Rugby School in England where he excelled in his studies. Rushdie went on to continue his studies at King's College, Cambridge, where he studied history. After graduating in 1968 he worked for a time with television in Pakistan as an actor with the theatre group at Oval House in Kennington. Then, from 1971 to 1981 Rushdie earned his living by working intermittently as a freelance advertising copywriter for Ogilvy and Mather and Charles Barker. Rushdie eventually began his literary career in 1975 when he made his debut with Grimus, a sort of fantastical science fiction novel based on the twelfth century Sufi poem â€Å"The Conference of Birds†. Grimus however received little fame and Rushdie truly broke into the literary world with his second novel Midnight’s Children, in 1981, which won him the Booker prize and international fame. This novel began his controversial persona as well. The novel is a comic allegory of Indian history that revolves around the life of its narrator, Saleem Sinai, and the one thousand children born after India’s Declaration of Independence.

Watsons Theory of Caring Essay -- Nursing

Watson’s Theory of Nursing We live in a fast moving environment with longer tiring days. When we are ill we go to the doctor’s office or emergency room and expect fast and reliable service. Data is collected that is measuring satisfaction from the service and, of course that data helps to improve the service. Companies keep track of statistics, like income, housing, children, and cars. I also like numbers and statistics, and like the idea that everything can be measured and have a number associated with it. However, I am wondering if everything can be quantified. Can we reliably measure happiness, love, and care of one person for another? Attempts are made to quantify happiness in some countries, Bhutan and Great Britain, to name a few. Consider health care, we are counting admissions, discharges, hospital-days, and patient satisfaction scores, but this statistic does not reflect how a patient feels. How often was the patient scared, depressed and lonely in his statistical hospital room somewhere betwe en his admission and discharge? Did anyone care about this person? Watson's theory of caring concentrates on human aspect of nursing and gives nurses opportunity to connect and to care for patients. Background of Watson’s Theory of Caring Watson admits that her original intent was not to create a theory; she was only trying to solve some conceptual and empirical problems with nursing education, practice, and research. Her 1979 book, Nursing: The Philosophy and Science of Caring, was, in fact, an essay on nursing (Watson, 1999). Over 30 years, from 1979 to 2008, Watson develops and finalizes her Theory of Caring. She starts with her textbook for an integrated nursing curriculum at the University of Colorado. The theory starts wi... ...e. Easier, of course, to perform assigned task, but we know that in human interaction and especially in health care many more factors affect the outcome but not just well performed task. Watson’s theory gives a special attention and concentrates on the humanistic aspect of nursing. Works Cited Alligood, M. R., & Tomey, A. M. (2006). Nursing theory: Utilization & application (3rd ed.). St. Louis, MO: Mosby Elsevier. Cross, P. (1981). Adults as learners . Washington, DC : Jossey-Bass, a subsidiary of John Wiley & Sons . Watson, J. (1988). Nursing: Human science and human care. New York: National League for Nursing. Watson, J. (1999). Nursing: Human science and human care: A theory of nursing. Sudbury, MA: NLN Press, Jones and Bartlett Publishers. Watson, J. (2008). Nursing: The philosophy and science of caring. Boulder, CO: University Press of Colorado.

Lenovo’s Product Life Cycle Essay

As a global leader in the PC market, Lenovo’s success rests on its ability to deliver consumer centric innovations in products that deliver a blend of mobility, performance and price. Design is an infrastructural element that helps define every aspect of a company, including Web site, stores, customer support, packaging, and messaging as well as its products. Lenovo has a well-earned industry reputation for delivering superior quality products. Quality is a fundamental component and commitment to customer satisfaction by delivering products that are of superior quality to comparable offerings from their competitors is the key to Lenovo’s success. In recent years, Lenovo relies heavily on local manufacturing strategies to shorten ship requirements and had achieved an award-winning use of thermoplastics and other recycled packaging materials. Lenovo-a consumer product Lenovo is a business that is built on product innovation, a highly efficient global supply chain and strong strategic execution. Its products range from exceptionally engineered laptops, ultrabooks, tablets, desktops and servers. It’s ThinkPad and IdeaPad that are the most popular among all of them. Lenovo’s systems are designed with extended battery life with up to 10 hours on some systems and with extended battery options that can last as long as 30 hours with the lithium ion technology. Smart air flow system allows the laptops to run cool which takes battery little power. Enhanced Windows 7 with Intel multi-core processors, One-key data recovery, ambient light sensor which automatically dims the system when not in use and VeriFace face recognition software for password login are among the few novel functional features that are available in Lenovo products. Lenovo has powerful security protection tools that prevent malicious malware, and viruses from swarming into the computers and can even locate and control PCs that have been stolen. Lenovo’s security begins with their core technology and award-winning ThinkVantage technologies that are exclusive to Lenovo. Their secure and private cloud files access allows sharing or streaming files without the need to store them locally. The premier X1 Carbon is the latest in ThinkPad’s and its island style X1 keyboard, light design which weigh less than 3 pounds and is only 18mm thin is truly considered the best. Its quality and simple design immediately reveals trendy and fascinating ThinkPad perception. Branding and design are to a large extent inseparable as a brand is not just a logo but it’s a gut feeling people have about a particular product and I believe that Lenovo is providing that to its customers with their latest innovative products. Packaging and Support Services Customers benefit from many of the advances that have been made in packaging. Lenovo is committed to offering environment friendly packaging for its products. Over the past several years, Lenovo has had a strong focus on increasing the use of recyclable materials in packaging; reducing the size and expanding the use of bulk and reusable packaging. Recent research estimates that Lenovo has totally eliminated over 1000 tons of packaging consumption by weight through design optimization and refinement across all Lenovo product shipments. The new packaging material, made from 100 percent recycled thermoformed cushions, enables PCs to be stacked together and requires less packaging material. This new material also helps minimize shipping costs. In addition, on many Lenovo notebook product lines Lenovo has implemented the use of 100% post-consumer molded fiber (paper pulp) packaging, which can typically be readily recycled in municipal waste streams. Lenovo is currently in the process of assessing the global availability of FSC certified packaging to support manufacturing facilities in all geographic regions. Lenovo’s Asset Tagging Service that is executed in production ensures that a user PC is easily identifiable and traceable right out of the box. Lenovo provides flexible options to meet personal or variable business needs. Lenovo’s reliability and its ability to provide speedy maintenance and repair deserve further emphasis. Lenovo’s Priority Technical Support service provides anytime direct access to the right level of tech support on the first call. Its accidental damage service offers protection from operational or structural damage due to common accidents like drops, spills, electrical surges or failure of the integrated screen which saves its customer the cost of repairs or a new PC purchase. Parts, labor repair and coverage of expenses while shipping to the repair center are all paid for by Lenovo as well. Warranty extensions are available for periods of up to five years. Accidental damage insurance, online tech support, on-site or in-home service of parts and labor coverage is also provided. User guides and manuals are readily available on Lenovo’s website for the customer’s convenience. Product Life Cycle Lenovo has a Transition service that saves its customers valuable time and resources, its hardware refreshes, and purchase through deployment to aged asset recovery. According to research, Lenovo’s PC management tools help users reduce costs that capture 80% of a PCs full lifecycle beyond the hardware price. Its ThinkVantage technologies reduce machine downtime and provide data security and their PC lifecycle analysis helps reduce the running and ownership costs. Lenovo helps customers manage the complete PC lifecycle and maximize the productivity and usefulness of devices; they do this by covering each phase of the typical PC lifecycle including planning, procurement, deployment support, asset management and disposal. Given the extent of technological advances both in hardware and software, nowadays a typical life cycle of the PC is estimated to be 3-4 years. According to Lenovo’s internal research, their customers have recorded consistent savings of up to $691 per PC over its lifecycle. Product issues and Warranty, Branding, Packaging considerations Packaging is an area where managers face issues of social responsibility, including concerns about the role of packaging in pollution, global warming, and resource use. The ink to print the package graphics often has toxins that later creep into the soil and water. Although Federal Fair Packaging and Labeling Act provide guidance on many packaging issues, many areas still require marketing managers to make ethical choices as even small changes can add up to big improvements. Lenovo is committed to ensuring that their products are safe throughout their life cycle as its products comply with the laws and regulations in each country that they ship to. Lenovo products are designed, tested and approved to meet the correct worldwide standards for product safety, electromagnetic compatibility, ergonomics and other regulatory compulsory requirements when used for their intended purpose. In addition, Lenovo maintains a series of specifications and standards that capture product environmental design requirements, including restricted and reportable materials, energy requirements, labeling and recycling. Lenovo has implemented a comprehensive product recycling programs worldwide to meet their customers’and legal requirements. Branding means the use of a name, term, symbol, or design or a combination of these to identify a product. A brand is the real asset to the company and Lenovo has a well-earned industry reputation for delivering superior quality products. Recognized brands make shopping easier and the more popular a brand name is the more control of target market there can be for that product. Successful branding should include easy identified label, dependable and widespread availability, and favorable shelf locations or displaying space in stores. In general, consumers are willing to pay a premium for well known branded products and Lenovo has used this to its advantage and has established a well deserved niche with its customers. A warranty explains what the seller promises about its product and a marketing manager should decide whether to offer a specific warranty, and if so what the warranty will cover and how it should be communicated to the target market. This is an area where legal, environment as well as customer needs and competitive offerings must be considered. Lenovo’s uses warranties to improve the appeal of their products as a marketing strategy and all the products carry written warranty agreements.. Most of the Lenovo’s laptops carry standard one-year warranty to fix your laptop for optimal speed and overall performance in the comfort of your own home. Marketing research needs Promotion and distribution of the product to its target market is very essential to the marketing mix. A target market of price conscious customers can be influenced by advertising campaigns that positions the company in consumers mind as value oriented product. Lenovo is already excelling in it marketing needs and will continue to adapt its marketing mix in response to evolving competition and customer needs. Even seemingly trivial differences in buying behavior are important because success often hinges on fine-tuning the marketing mix. Lenovo streamlines their distribution with the goal of providing consumers better service. Its fast global expansion is due to committed innovativeness, entrepreneurial spirit and teamwork across various cultures. Lenovo is committed to the goals of achieving customer satisfaction by delivering superior products, solutions, and services and ensuring they meet customer requirements. Lenovo frequently acquires inputs on design and product features fro m its customers and partners. Consumers are very observant and cautious of their products and consumer trust is one thing that is very difficult to establish nowadays. Lenovo’s global Quality Management System, which has received ISO 9001 certification, ensures the continual delivery of design improvements into Lenovo’s current and future products. Focusing on quality and sustainability in everything is how Lenovo gives back to the communities. References http://www.lenovo.com/social_responsibility/us/en/GreenPaper_Packaging.pdf http://www.lenovo.com/social_responsibility/us/en/Lenovo_ISO9001 Corporate_Certificate.pdf http://www.lenovo.com/social_responsibility/us/en/FY2011_Lenovo_Sustainability_Report.pdf# page=16&view=fit http://www.fastcompany.com/1830073/9-principles-great-branding-design http://www.doyoumatter.com/ http://www.lenovo.com/services_warranty/US/en/pdf/lenovo-warranty-services.pdf Lenovo Reveals ThinkPad X1 Carbon, Shakes Up Ultrabook Market Lenovo Reveals ThinkPad X1 Carbon, Shakes Up Ultrabook Market

Strickness Essay Example

Strickness Essay Example Strickness Essay Strickness Essay Strickness Strictness Can?t be out past eleven, can?t wear what you want to wear, can?t do your hair how you want, and can?t spend your money how you want. Welcome too only some of the rules that my overly strict parents have placed on me. What have I done to deserve this Nothing. This is a problem that most teens and children face: overly strict parents. Even though my parents are overly strict, I know they are doing this for my own good. My parents have always been strict on my other siblings and me. As we got older it only got worse. When I was about 8-14 the war between my parents and me was not as bad. My brother and I had no problem being in by nine-o-clock (that was our curfew until we were in high school), mainly because our transportation was our parents, and they would pick us up from wherever we were. Our curfew wasn?t really ever a big deal with my brother and me. What caused the biggest fights was that we wanted to go to different places with our friends that our parents did not approve of. Our mom and dad would not let us go parents, home, mom, go, wanted, out, until, strict, raised, house, friends, brother, started, much, friend, didn?t, day, very, school, said, rules, party, one, older, new, everyone, ever, else, dad, bus, because, back, wear, way, walked, trouble

Saddam Hussein Essay Example

Saddam Hussein Essay Example Saddam Hussein Essay Saddam Hussein Essay Saddam Hussein ruled Iraq as vice-president from 1968 to 1979 and as president from 1979 until he was overthrown by the American invasion in 2003.   Hussein was a Sunni Muslim, which composed about one fifth of Iraq’s population but who dominated the majority Shi’a and minority Kurdish communities through the dictatorship of the Ba’ath Party.The Ba’ath party was a secular group who saw radical Islam as a threat to their power.   After the Islamic Revolution in neighboring Iran in 1979, Saddam Hussein ordered the Iraqi army to invade Iran in 1980.   Hussein feared that Iran’s Shi’a Muslims might try to turn Iraq’s Shi’a Muslims against him and the Sunni-dominated Ba’ath party.Saddam’s war against Iran last from 1980 through 1988; it was the longest conventional war of the 20th century.   During the war, Saddam Hussein ordered the use of chemical weapons against both Iranian troops and Iraq’s minority Kurds, who were in a state of constant rebellion against the Ba’ath party.   Despite his well-known crimes, the United States supported Saddam Hussein during the 1980’s because the American government felt that Iran was a greater threat than Iraq.In 1990, Saddam ordered the Iraqi army to invade another neighbor, the tiny oil-rich country of Kuwait to Iraq’s south.   Saddam declared that Kuwait was a part of Iraq, and that the border between the two countries was illegitimate, since it had been drawn by the British Empire and not by the people who actually lived there.After Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait, he went from being America’s ally to America’s enemy.   The United States led a coalition of many nations to force Hussein to withdraw from Kuwait.   During the six week war of 1991, known in the West as Desert Storm or the Gulf War, the infrastructure of Iraq was pulverized.Despite the American victory in the 1991 war, Saddam Hussein remain ed in power in Iraq.   Iraq had become wealthy under Saddam due to its great oil reserves, but Hussein’s two wars had now made Iraq a third world country.   International sanctions throughout the 1990’s resulted in Iraqis’ standard of living plummeting.The United States invaded Iraq in 2003 and overthrew Saddam’s government.   The dictator was captured late in 2003 and was executed at the end of 2006 by the new Iraqi government.   After Saddam’s overthrow, Iraq descended into civil war between Sunni and Shi’a Muslims.   Although the dictator is gone, the conflicts between Iraq’s different communities is far from over.Source:Saddam Hussein: The Politics of Revenge,   by Said K. AburishBloomsbury Publishing, London, 2000

How To Fix Your Marketing Strategy With Marcus Sheridan

How To Fix Your Marketing Strategy With Marcus Sheridan When you were younger, who did you go to when you had a tough question? Your single source of truth your dad. These days, when people have questions, they ask a search engine. They go to Alexa! There are big questions that companies are afraid to answer. As marketers, are you listening to questions your customers are asking? Are you answering the right questions? Today, my guest is Marcus Sheridan, author of They Ask You Answer. Premise of Book: Business philosophy of how buyers think, questions they ask, and how they want to learn and buy Elements of Success: Seen as a teacher and trusted voice in your space Many of us think and speak like marketers; be honest when creating content Big 5 subjects that determine what people buy and companies don’t want to address; cost-based, negative/problems, comparison, best of, and reviews Let customers learn from you, not someone else; consumer ignorance is no longer a viable sales and marketing strategy Stop the mindset of digital marketing as an expense and sales team as revenue Get leadership to understand concepts/results of sales and marketing initiative Marketer Psychology: Prophet to the world, but no one listens to you in hometown Why are you producing content? For marketing or sales? The falsehood of too much Emails should include education; refuse to be average Links: They Ask You Answer Marcus Sheridan Marcus Sheridan on LinkedIn Marcus Sheridan’s Email Marcus Sheridan on Twitter The Sales Lion Blog Amazon Alexa Angie’s List Seth Godin Who and what would you like to hear about and from? Send me your feedback! If you liked today’s show, please subscribe on iTunes to The Actionable Content Marketing Podcast! The podcast is also available on SoundCloud, Stitcher, and Google Play. Quotes by Marcus Sheridan: â€Å"It’s a business philosophy and it’s an obsession with the way buyers think, the questions they ask, and how they want to learn and how they want to buy.† â€Å"We make a big mistake within the marketing space because, fundamentally, too many of us think and speak like marketers.† â€Å"Big 5: Buyers are obsessed with them. Businesses don’t like to talk about them.† â€Å"Consumer ignorance is no longer a viable sales and marketing strategy.†

Campaign Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Campaign Analysis - Essay Example In September 2004, the campaign for real beauty was officially launched for the rise of some consciousness of all issue associate with beauties. The campaign was purposely meant to challenge the stereotypes that had been set by the beauty industry. It had numerous intentions in making as many women as possible feel beautiful every day. The campaign led to the release of the global research that explored the relationship between women and beauty and what beauty links to their happiness all across the world. It was such an effective campaign and was accompanied with much advertising that inspires the society and more especially women to think differently about the definition of beauty. The campaign was also attached with some fundraising initiatives that were aimed at helping young girls who had low self-esteem related to their beauty. The DOVE SELF ESTEEM FUND supported the fund raising initiatives. According to the campaign, every woman was to possess something beautiful and unique. Sixty eight percent of all people believe that unrealistic standards of beauty exist within the advertising world and the media. Forty-seven percent has believed that only attractive women are portrayed in the well-known cultures while eighty-five percent agree that beauty can be achieved through spirit and personal attitude. This was critically analyzed throughout the campaign period that left many individuals convinced about the associated beauty with the dove products. The associated strengths with the company include its broad market equipped with quality products. Their advertising is very much inspiring with much emotional appeal. This has created perfect public relations that give it enormous strengths compared to its competitors. The company has also a positive self-image. This act as a driving factor in motivates every undertaking within the company creates a motivating factor to all the stakeholders. They make broad

Creating Marketing Plan for Online Service Essay

Creating Marketing Plan for Online Service - Essay Example The growing popularity and expected growth with online e-commerce and services offers even more opportunities for creating the right marketing plan for the online service. Tools for Marketing The first approach taken for the online marketing plan is based on growing in search engines. On average, 48% of individuals find the online services by looking at search engines. The approach taken is to build a strong online presence through Google, Yahoo and MSN, the three leading areas that are able to provide opportunities for searching online. The approach to creating a presence on the Internet begins with keywords and tags that come from a website. This is furthered with building links that move back to the website and which are able to provide different alternatives for the website. The approach taken will be associated with the algorithm used by search engines, specifically which read the online website. The algorithm combines the amount of traffic with the given links and keywords to c ategorize and create an area of where the website should be categorized. By using this as a part of the marketing plan, it will become easier to develop a relevant approach to the online presence through the use of the search engines (Aakar, Kumar, 2008). While there are relevant aspects that are associated with the search engines, it is also necessary to reach indirect and direct traffic through a variety of tactics. An approach which has grown in the past years is based on the use of Web 2.0 and social media. The Web 2.0 and social media aspects are able to work toward finding indirect traffic and creating an image that allows individuals to go to the website for the services. Using options such as Twitter, Facebook and other social media allow for more interactions and opportunities for the services. The Web 2.0 alternatives are combined with interactions, reviews and dynamic content that is able to provide even more options for search engines. The communication and interaction t hat is a part of the Web 2.0 applications then create a different level of communication which can be used for the online services (Shankar, 2009). The approach with Web 2.0 and social media is one which is followed by direct interactions with potential and loyal customers. Direct marketing is able to provide even more alternatives to the online marketing while creating even more options for the online marketing. Email, newsletters, promotional offers and continuous contact with those that are interested in the business offers even more information and insight to the customers which are interested in the business. The approach taken is one which is based on customer led options. This allows customers to determine what the nature of the services or products should be. Combining this with insight into developments and new opportunities will assist in creating more customer interactions. By doing this, there is the ability to have interactions, loyalty and the ability to meet the consu mer demands that are available through the online portals (Gay, Charlesworth, 2007). Developing a Marketing Mix The various tools which are used with the online marketing are combined with the specific approaches to ensuring that the

What makes Margaret Mead so important in Anthropology circles Essay

What makes Margaret Mead so important in Anthropology circles - Essay Example In the documentary videos about her life and work perused for this essay, one could witness the key developments in anthropological study that she initiated. One could see in the videos, that Mead contributed immensely to not just the study of cultural anthropology retrospectively, but she played a role in creating new trends and fashions in her own era. In this view, Mead was a key figure who ushered the cultural upheavals in the American society of the 1960s. The ‘Hippies’ culture of this period was inspired by thoughts of such intellectuals as Mead, who were able to present anthropology from a feminist perspective. In her early field work in remote islands in the South Pacific and Southeast Asia, Mead had documented the significance of face-to-face interactions, especially the crucial role that adults play in the lives of children, simply by virtue of their presence. Mead’s work on gender roles and behaviour in a society has withstood the scrutiny of time. For example, in the case of development of boys, by having regular contact with various kinds of men (some abrasive, some gentle, some caring, some others playful, some serious, some sporty, some cerebral, etc) boys get a well-rounded and empowering notion of what is possible in their own lives when they grow up. This is in contrast with the Boy Scouts of America's rather narrow definition of proper masculinity, which causes more harm than help boys realize their full potential. For example, â€Å"misogyny and homophobia are characteristic of mid-century definitions of masculinity in part because those definitions are oppositional: a man is manly because he is not womanly, or feminine, or subject to the male gaze. Opening masculinity up to different modes of behavior, including traditionally "feminine" ones, helps to define men in the context of what they are, not what they are not. Moving away from abstractions, and allowing boys the flexibility that we currently as a society claim to want for our girls, can only be for the good.† (Lanclos, 2010, p.341) Mead’s studies showed the impact of culture upon nature, at a time when the pre-eminence of nature was still holding forte. She followed the precedence set by Franz Boas (who had earlier conducted fieldwork in South Pacific) and pointed to the fact that attitudes and behavior related to sexual conduct differed greatly between the studied group and that of middle class Americans. This was a radical new idea at that time, as adolescence was seen as universally turbulent and conflicted. Mead’s insights into the role of ‘nurture’ in sexual conduct revolutionized Western notions of culture and interpersonal relations. For example, the culture of these people from distant lands created a â€Å"more permissive, guilt-free attitude towards sexual intercourse in teenage years, without any commitment to permanent relationships†. (Cravens, 2010, p.299) In general, sex was seen as a re creation and indulged in for fun. American readers of these studies were taken aback at first. But they soon warmed up to the allure of â€Å"exotic young maidens were having delightful sexual romps on exotic isles with a changing cast of young male companions was virtually irresistible to many literate Americans. Mead thus reached great fame and popularity in the United States.† (Cravens, 2010, p.299) Margaret Mead’s path-breaking book Coming of Age in Samoa offered such a fresh perspective that in the foreword to the book, her mentor Franz Boas summarizes the core thesis thus: â€Å"Courtesy, modesty, good manners, conformity to definite ethical standards are universal, but what constitutes these is not universal. It is instructive to know that standards differ in the

Numerical Precision Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Numerical Precision - Assignment Example 32 bits. Floating point numbers is composed of two components that is, the mantissa and the exponent. The exponent consists of eight bits value which ranges from zero to 255. On the other hand, the mantissa is twenty four bit long with 1 being its most significant bit which is usually never stored. Also, there is a sign bit (+ and -) which is used to indicate whether the number is negative or positive Floating point numbers in arithmetic calculations Floating point numbers calculations vary from machine to machine depending on the precision of the machine. Precision is the degree of correctness a given quantity can be expressed; this includes 32-bit single precision and 64-bit double precision that are stored as 8 and 10 bytes respectively. This representation makes it very easy for hardware manipulation. Assignment of these values doesn’t require the knowledge of how the various numbers are stored in memory. For calculation purposes, this requires the pulling of individual pa rts of the numbers involved and manipulating them accordingly. Floating point used in arithmetic computations are easy to work with since they are expressed to base 2 and the exponent is a decimal value that can be expressed as binary within the computer. The fixed number notation of representing floating point numbers may lead to loss of precision such as expressing results in form of 32 bits and they may be greater than 32 bits. Floating point arithmetic is slow and hence less efficient compared to integer arithmetic. Also, floating point arithmetic is less accurate due to round off errors. Floating point format is not memory efficient at all. This is because the results of computation will require additional storage in memory which may be limited. This is usually the case with majority of computers especially personal computers and it’s therefore advisable to let dedicated devices to perform floating point computations. Binary Coded Decimal format This format is a format f or representing decimal numbers such that each number is represented by a number of bits (four or eight bits).There is the packed and unpacked varied binary coded decimal formats. In the packed format, each decimal number is represented using 4 bits (nibble) while in the unpacked format each decimal is represented using a byte (8 bits). For example to represent a number like 41 in binary coded decimal format will be Packed format: 0100 0001 and the unpacked format will be 0000 0100 0001 The packed BCD format is more memory efficient since it reduces on the number of unused bits added to a number. Comparison of the BCD format to the floating point format Precision BCD values are very accurate as compared to floating point numbers. This is because BCD numbers are simply decimal numbers expressed in terms of bits and floating point number format is a scientific notation of large and small values. Performance in calculations BCD numbers are easy to convert and use in arithmetic hence th e overall arithmetic computation is always very fast and efficient. Floating point format numbers must undergo various steps of conversion before they can be used in any computation. These results in some overhead in terms of memory and time hence the computations will be slow. Memory Usage BCD format is efficient in memory usage if the packed version is used. The unpacked version results

Torture Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Torture - Essay Example Jacobo Timerman, editor and publisher of the Argentinean newspaper  La Opinion  until his arrest by the military, emphasized the agonizing unpredictability of his years in prison in his book  Prisoner Without a Name, Cell Without a Number: "[W]henever someone was being prepared for transfer, his eyes blindfolded, his hands tied behind him, thrown on the ground in the back of a car and covered with a blanket, he would have preferred to remain in the clandestine prison. You never knew whether you were being led to an interrogation, torture, death, or another prison . . . " (p. 159). Some of the cruelest techniques of psychological torture are those that appear to make the person an active participant. The person may be told to choose which of two family members, friends, or other fellow prisoners should be tortured or put to death. The person may be directed to undress and use the torture devices on him- or herself.

Numerical Precision Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Numerical Precision - Assignment Example 32 bits. Floating point numbers is composed of two components that is, the mantissa and the exponent. The exponent consists of eight bits value which ranges from zero to 255. On the other hand, the mantissa is twenty four bit long with 1 being its most significant bit which is usually never stored. Also, there is a sign bit (+ and -) which is used to indicate whether the number is negative or positive Floating point numbers in arithmetic calculations Floating point numbers calculations vary from machine to machine depending on the precision of the machine. Precision is the degree of correctness a given quantity can be expressed; this includes 32-bit single precision and 64-bit double precision that are stored as 8 and 10 bytes respectively. This representation makes it very easy for hardware manipulation. Assignment of these values doesn’t require the knowledge of how the various numbers are stored in memory. For calculation purposes, this requires the pulling of individual pa rts of the numbers involved and manipulating them accordingly. Floating point used in arithmetic computations are easy to work with since they are expressed to base 2 and the exponent is a decimal value that can be expressed as binary within the computer. The fixed number notation of representing floating point numbers may lead to loss of precision such as expressing results in form of 32 bits and they may be greater than 32 bits. Floating point arithmetic is slow and hence less efficient compared to integer arithmetic. Also, floating point arithmetic is less accurate due to round off errors. Floating point format is not memory efficient at all. This is because the results of computation will require additional storage in memory which may be limited. This is usually the case with majority of computers especially personal computers and it’s therefore advisable to let dedicated devices to perform floating point computations. Binary Coded Decimal format This format is a format f or representing decimal numbers such that each number is represented by a number of bits (four or eight bits).There is the packed and unpacked varied binary coded decimal formats. In the packed format, each decimal number is represented using 4 bits (nibble) while in the unpacked format each decimal is represented using a byte (8 bits). For example to represent a number like 41 in binary coded decimal format will be Packed format: 0100 0001 and the unpacked format will be 0000 0100 0001 The packed BCD format is more memory efficient since it reduces on the number of unused bits added to a number. Comparison of the BCD format to the floating point format Precision BCD values are very accurate as compared to floating point numbers. This is because BCD numbers are simply decimal numbers expressed in terms of bits and floating point number format is a scientific notation of large and small values. Performance in calculations BCD numbers are easy to convert and use in arithmetic hence th e overall arithmetic computation is always very fast and efficient. Floating point format numbers must undergo various steps of conversion before they can be used in any computation. These results in some overhead in terms of memory and time hence the computations will be slow. Memory Usage BCD format is efficient in memory usage if the packed version is used. The unpacked version results

Automatic Speech Recognition Systems Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Automatic Speech Recognition Systems - Coursework Example The first software is the Dragon Naturally Speaking Premium. This software costs two hundred dollars and can be found in online markets. It is speaker independent software and supports continuous speech recognition. It is meant for Windows XP, Windows 7, and windows vista operating systems. The second software is the Dragon Naturally Speaking Home. It is available in the market for a value of one hundred dollars. It is speaker independent software and supports continuous voice recognition services. Dragon Software Company develops it. It is also developed for the Windows XP, Windows 7, and windows vista operating system. The third software is called Talking Desktop Software, which is also speaker dependent software and supports continuous voice recognition services. Its value on the modern market is ninety dollars and can be got from online markets. This software also functions on the Windows 7, Windows XP, and windows vista operating system. The fourth software available in the market is the Be Vocal Software. This software mostly supports mobile phone users. It is mostly used in the development of maps in a feature known as mapquest in the mobile phone industry. It is speaker independent software and supports continuous voice recognition services. It costs two hundred dollars in the market and works on the personal computers. The fifth software available is the Dragon Dictate Two Software. This software is meant for Mac operating systems. It costs two hundred dollars on the market. It is speaker independent software and supports continuous voice recognition service. The sixth speech-recognition service software is the 888-Telsurf (beta). This software is free in the market and supports operations on the computer. It is speaker independent software and supports continuous voice recognition service.  Ã‚   The seventh software available in the market for speech recognition service is the Word Q v3. T

My Industrial Training Essay Example for Free

My Industrial Training Essay I started my training on 7th July 2008 at JW Marriott Hotel in Kuala Lumpur, where I was first assigned to start as a CRO (customer recognition) in Front Office. I got to learn about the procedures of welcoming certain guests, such as VIP’s, by preparing welcome letters, flowers, chocolate and fruit baskets. I was only there for one week, and then I changed my training to Royale Bintang Damansara Hotel instead because of transportation and financial problems. My first department at Royale Bintang Damansara was Housekeeping, I tarted there on 21st July. What I came to notice first was that all the staff had problems communicating with me in English, but everyone was very nice, helpful and supportive. Even though we had problems communicating and understanding each other they still tried their best to teach me everything they knew. During my first two weeks in Housekeeping Department, my department head conducted a short training every day for both trainees and staff on how to clean floors, carpets, the pool area and things like that. They showed us the equipment that was used and we all had to try to use it ourselves. I think it was very good of them to have these trainings as it also widened their staff’s knowledge so that if, for example, a staff from public area cleaning would be away, a housekeeper could just jump in and help out. A room attendant wouldn’t just know how to clean guestrooms but also how to do public area cleaning as well. While training in Housekeeping, I got to learn about linen and laundry for awhile, I also got to refill the mini-bar in all the guestrooms. I was taught how to inspect the rooms, to make sure the room was ready for a new guest. I also had to try public area cleaning, where they taught me how to clean the pool side and the swimming pool, cleaning windows and swiping floors. What I enjoyed the most was to clean the guestrooms, which I did most of my time in Housekeeping. At first I was only making the bed in all the rooms as most housekeepers didn’t want me to clean the toilet, but after awhile I had tried everything and my last two weeks in Housekeeping I was even assigned to clean some guest rooms all by myself. I was a bit slow cleaning rooms alone as I wanted the room to look perfect, but I know I did I good job and I feel very happy and proud over my performance there. One thing that shocked me in Housekeeping Department was that sometimes the Housekeepers didn’t have enough linen for all guestrooms, so instead of changing the bed sheets and pillow covers they just dusted away hairs and stuff and sprayed a lot of freshener on it so the new guest would think it’s clean. When I saw these things I asked them how they could do in such a way as it’s not hygienic at all, but they all answered me that it was the otel’s fault as they didn’t want to buy in more linen. Another thing that shocked me was that I noticed the Front Office staff always talked bad about the housekeeping staff and looked down at them just because they were cleaners. For me, I think that the Housekeeping Department is one of the most important departments in the hotel and the Front Office staff must work closely with them to get the guest satisfaction. This is the picture of a bed inside one of the guest rooms I cleaned by myself After six weeks I changed my department to Front Office. I was very excited to start there because I would really want to work with that in the future so I had very high expectations about it, however I felt very disappointed with how they handled things there. First it was the staff; I think most of them had the wrong attitude for being receptionists, they barely smiled at the guests coming to the reception; sometimes they could be very rude and blame things on the guests and not being helpful at all. They were also very bad in handling guest complaints. Everything seemed so different from what I had learned in Front Office classes, and I felt very disappointed over the service they were practicing. All Front Office staff were also using different uniforms, so I think that looked a bit odd. It would look better if everyone was wearing the same color and blazer at least. Later on they got more uniforms to the hotel for front office staff so even the trainees could borrow it while standing at the reception. All other trainees got to borrow uniforms but every time I asked they told me they didn’t have for me so I had to buy one myself. My first two weeks in Front Office I was sitting as the telephone operator. I was transferring calls to different departments, ordering taxis for guests etc, if I worked in the evening I also had to take reservations. When I started in the reception I started to get problems; I felt that nobody there could take the time to tell me what to do or teach me anything. If I asked them they would tell me they were busy or that they couldn’t teach me in English, so instead I had to stand and try to understand when they were teaching the other trainees in Malay or Chinese, which I really didn’t think was fair. Although I told my department head about this so many times nothing happened. I finally learned about the program they were using and I observed how the staffs were talking to the guests during check-in and check-out, so finally I tried to do it myself. I could do all of the procedures for check in and check out, and each day I was doing it I felt it went easier. Sometimes if a guest wanted a late checkout we would charge the guest either a half day charge or full day charge, depending on the time they would check out. At these times we had to calculate how much extra the guest would have to pay. One of my supervisors had showed me how to do it so one day when I had to calculate the half day charge for one guest, one of the staff was looking how I was doing it. When I showed the guest her bill the staff who had been seeing everything started screaming at me in front of the guest that I was doing it wrong, but I told her I was sure of what I was doing. This girl working at the reception said that she was right and called another receptionist right away. However by the time that receptionist came there, the guest I had charged had already left. Both receptionists was telling me I charged the guest too little and that I had to pay with my own money right away to cover up the amount of money I never charged. I called one of my supervisors at that time and explained to him that I thought maybe I had done a mistake, but when he checked it he said that everything was correct and instead he noticed that the other receptionist had charged some guests wrong instead. For some strange reason this incident caused that many of the staff there was talking bad about me, saying that I thought I was better than them as I always corrected their work. I thought instead that it was good that I noticed if they had done any mistake such as charging the guest wrong so they could learn from it instead, The staff really wanted to blame a lot of things on the trainees instead of accepting their own mistakes. I was working very independently as I didn’t get much help from most staff, but I think I did a good job and the staff that actually taught me things even complimented me for being so clever for learning everything by myself so fast. I also had to work overnight while I was in Front Office, so that I ould get to learn and understand about the night audit. I was first assigned to prepare all registration cards; which is all the reservations for guests arriving the next day. I had to look over special requests such as room types, smoking- and nonsmoking rooms, connecting rooms and views so that I could assign the different rooms to each arriving guest. I also had to write breakfast coupons and set up wake up calls for guests. I felt that I didn’t learn as much as I had hoped during the night shift. The staff I was working with said that the supervisor would do most of the auditing, so for the staff there wasn’t much things at all to do. I wanted to ask my supervisor to tech me some of the auditing but he was missing most of the time so I never got to learn about the night audit. During my first nightshift, my boyfriend wanted to sit in the lobby and wait for me to finish so I asked the staff in the reception including my supervisor if it was ok, and they told me he could sit there the whole night if he wanted to, as long as he didn’t cause any problem or disturbed me. At 4am, my supervisor told the security to tell my boyfriend to leave the hotel. When I heard about this I asked my supervisor why he at first told me it was ok for him to sit there, but then he just told me it wasn’t allowed. A few days later Ms Zurin from Human Resource Department told me that because of that incident I wasn’t allowed in Front Office anymore and had to change department immediately. She told me I was lucky to get a second chance as my supervisor wanted me to be terminated. I felt very sad and confused because I didn’t understand what that incident had to do with my work there. I was transferred to Food and Beverage Department on 18th October. Over there I was taking care of their lobby bar; I was making welcome drinks and all kinds of other beverages and served it to guests. I was also taking down all orders for room service. Every weekend and during public holidays they were having a hi-tea buffet for lunch and a BBQ buffet for dinner, at these times I helped the staff to clear and set tables. While working in the morning I helped with their breakfast buffet by greeting and welcoming the guests and collecting breakfast vouchers. After every breakfast, we had to set up the restaurant for lunch or if there was any special function going on there, so I learned how to do so many different table settings. There was one thing that shocked me in Food and Beverage Department as well; most staff doesn’t know how to wash a simple glass, they just wash it with their hand and water and later they will take the dirty glass and put some beverage in it and serve it to the guest. Every day when I started my shift I had to rewash all of the glasses because they were so dirty. Sometimes I also saw that the napkins they put on the tables looked dirty or were full of holes or that the plates were having dried food stuff on it or be full of grease. For being a restaurant in a four star hotel they should have a better service than that and not act like it is just a mamak shop. That is also the reason why I liked standing at the lobby bar, because then I knew the glasses for example would be washed properly. However in December, their restaurant got two new supervisors and especially one of them were very strict about hygiene so I hope that this things will improve or change now. Although I didn’t want to do Food and Beverage at first, it was above my expectations and I really learned a lot of new things. I got along well with all the staff also even though many of them weren’t good in English. Now when I look back at my training at Royale Bintang Damansara, I’m happy with what I achieved from there. I know that many trainees only get to observe most things; instead of trying it themselves so for that I’m happy that I got to do everything practically, because for me that is how I learn the most. I don’t think the hotel is that good though and many staff working there seems to be there only to have something to do, instead of being passionate about the service industry. Another thing that really shocked me also was that there is a lot of drug use going on inside the hotel, people working there that I didn’t even know asked me if I wanted to buy drugs. This really came as a shock to me and I can’t believe how something like that can exist in a working place like a four star hotel. I don’t think Royale Bintang Damansara should have a four star rating because their service is not good. For example that they don’t change the bed sheets after a guest checked out, how they are behaving at the reception or that they are serving dirty glasses to guests. I’m still happy that I got to see this kind of things, because I would never have thought it could be like this in a hotel. I know I will be more careful now in the future while staying in a hotel, I will always be aware of these things. These bad experiences I saw have given me a new career option; I would like to be a hotel inspector. Because I don’t think a guest should be paying a lot of money for a service like that in a four star hotel. In a way I could recommend Royale Bintang Damansara to other trainees, because you will see a lot of useful things and you will get the chance to try everything practically, unlike some other hotels. I would in that case only recommend it to local students. As a foreigner I had a lot of problems in the hotel, especially to communicate in English with the staff. It didn’t matter if it was in Housekeeping Department or Front Office. However, I succeeded to gain a lot of knowledge from all the departments I went to and I know that the things I have learned will be useful for me in the future.

A study of Athol Fugard

A study of Athol Fugard Athol Fugard, who was born in Middleburg, South Africa in 1932, is a well known realist playwright. He has written many plays which reflect his extreme opposition to the Apartheid system. Two such plays are Boesman and Lena (1969) and My Children! My Africa! (1989). Both plays are set in apartheid South Africa and demonstrate the cruelty of those years in South Africa as well as the current issues surrounding them. Athol Fugards work in both of these plays is therefore a reflection of the times and society in which he was writing. The plays socio-political contexts and his intentions in them can be individually discussed as well as compared to each other. Boesman and Lena is set in Apartheid South Africa and is a play about a young, non-white couple who are truly facing difficulties and struggling during this time. The play opens with the couple on a journey, walking from place to place, after being forcefully removed from their home. As they are travelling, Lena tries to recount where they have been. They can only bring the belongings with them that they can afford to carry on their backs and so they are exposed to the elements around them. Because the couple are homeless, Boesman decided that in order to survive he needs to build a shelter out of scrap iron and other materials that he has found. Once the shelter is built, he is the only one to enter it. Lena not only tends the fire but also tends to sit outside of the shelter for the entire play. The desperate circumstances that they are in emphasize their lonely, isolated and impoverished place in the world. Boesman and Lena was written in 1965 which is a mere 17 years after the start of apartheid. The play clearly shows the harshness of this time period relating to the Forced Removals and Group Areas Acts, which were passed by the government in order to draw a line by fully separating racial groups. Boesman and Lena perfectly represent the millions of non-whites who suffered during Apartheid. The forced removals from homes and dispersal of communities led to social breakdown and widespread poverty in South Africa. Non-whites were not given the opportunity to really settle down in any environment whatsoever, and this caused them to be depressed and feel as if they had no meaning whatsoever in their lives. This alienation can be noted when Lena is distraught after she has just been forcefully removed from her own home. At the beginning of the play, an old man called Outa appears at their campsite. The way Boesman acts around Outa and shows his feelings towards him show the incredibly racial tensions between the many different non-white groups. Boesman believes he is superior to Outa. He is frustrated by the situation in South Africa and he vents this frustration on other non-whites. Outa, being very frail and unresponsive, is an easy target for Boesman, and this is evident in the way he treats Outa. [Mtvass] Boesman and Lena, as well as their actions, can be interpreted as symbols. Boesmans violence towards Lena represents the violence white South Africans inflict on citizens of colour. Lena represents hope and life. She is optimistic and believes things will change in the future. She is also very compassionate (as with the old man, Outa). Boesman is mostly bitter and jealous, trying to destroy any hope and life that she has. Fugard has recorded many of his ideas in his notebooks. In one entry, Fugard describes that he had many encounters with the poorer South Africans. He notes that these encounters all contributed to the creation of Boesman and Lena. He also reports back on the day he came into contact with a particular woman which influenced him to begin writing the play. He says in Athol Fugard: Notebooks 1960-1977: On a hot August day in 1965, Fugard and two friends were driving along a rural road when they saw an old woman trudging along with all of her worldly possessions tied up in a bundle on her head. They stopped and offered her a ride. She cried at their unexpected kindness, and during the fifteen-mile trip to a farm up the road, she told them about the death of her husband three days earlier and her nine missing children. If Fugard and his companions hadnt stopped to offer her a ride, she would have followed her plan to sleep in a stormwater drain that night and continue her long journey the next day. [E-notes 2010] He also gives his impression of the woman. He writes , In that cruel walk under the blazing sun, walking from all of her life that she didnt have on her head, facing the prospect of a bitter Karoo night in a drain-pipe, in this walk there was no defeat-there was pain, and great suffering, but no defeat. Athol Fugard: Notebooks 1960-1977. The walk that this woman went on was the walk that Boesman and Lena are on throughout the play as it inspired him to come up with this idea in the first place. Because Fugard passionately abhorred apartheid, his intentions in writing this play were to show what was going on in South Africa at the time and to expose the effects of apartheid. He used symbolism-for example representing the violence white South Africans inflict on citizens of colour through Boesmans violence towards Lena as well as themes. The main theme of Boesman and Lena is violence and cruelty which reflects the state of apartheid at the time. In the 1960s, when the play was written, people of colour had absolutely no power and could not do anything about how they were treated. Basically, in this play, Fugard portrayed severe real situations and displayed the struggling and suffering of the characters and thereby projected a true representation of what was going on at this cruel time in South Africa. Fugard wrote My Children My Africa about 20 years after Boesman and Lena was published. At this time, there was an immense amount of racial tension and ongoing violence, both within various black communities and violence perpetrated by the white security police and military apparatus. Life was not the same in South Africa as it had previously been in the 60s and things were coming to a head. There were many anti-apartheid movements and international censure because of this. Although the confrontational violence between the government and forces of liberation had escalated in Apartheid South Africa, the underlying themes of exploitation and human suffering were still the same. As historian Alistair Boddy-Evans summarized: During the 1970s and 80s Apartheid was reinvented a result of increasing internal and international pressures, and worsening economic difficulties. Black youth was exposed to increasing politicisation, and found expression against Bantu education through the 1976 Soweto Uprising. Despite the creation of a trilateral parliament in 1983 and the abolition of the Pass Laws in 1986, the 1980s saw the worst political violence by both sides.[Boddy-Evans] My Children! My Africa! is a play which depicts a time when friendship and cooperation across the colour line were extremely rare. Such relationships were strictly frowned upon and actively discouraged by apartheid officialdom. This was because they represented a potential threat to the elaborately constructed and legislated racial barriers. In My Children! My Africa! (an emphatic title indeed) Fugard constructed a very powerful dramatic work which explores the possibility of such interracial connections despite the human and professional risks involved. His thrust is that mere skin colour should in no way be a significant barrier to friendship and cooperation. The play involves a white schoolgirl and black schoolboy whose teacher must take risks in sending the black boy to a mixed-race team in a literary competition. They have different viewpoints in how to challenge the system. The schoolboy, Thami, has adopted an attitude of violent confrontation, whereas the teacher is more in favour of a conciliatory and gradual approach to change, hoping optimistically that violence can be avoided. The schoolgirl, Isabel is besieged with white liberal guilt. The play reflects varying attitudes to the best approach to achieving inevitable change. As it turned out it was the destabilising threat of violent confrontation that ultimately counted in effecting change in South Africa. The play was in fact written in 1985 foreshadowing the unbanning of the ANC and the subsequent release of Nelson Mandela some 5 years later. Fugard was an active supporter of the Anti apartheid movements and endorsed international boycotts of segregated audience theatre in South Africa. In fact he was vilified, harassed and put under security police surveillance. To avoid further trouble with the authorities Fugard had his plays produced and published outside of the country [Alan McIver :2010] Fugard was accorded wide international recognition. His compelling and impressive body of work surely contributed in a significant way to international awareness of the dire developing situation in South Africa. To me he is an inspiring figure, whose realistic depictions of the devastating human consequences of an evil system opened audiences eyes to cruel and unsustainable realities. Fugard once said: [My] real territory as a dramatist is the world of secrets with their powerful effect on human behaviour and the trauma of their revelation. Whether it is the radiant secret in Miss Helens heart or the withering one in Boesmans or the dark and destructive one in Gladys, they are the dynamos that generate all the significant action in my plays[Fugard]. We can gather from this, that his plays are always individually and contextually significant and he intends to display and uncover and bring to light deeper issues within them. Using the two plays discussed above as evidence , one can not only tell that Fugard really cares about his work and his country but also that his work is an accurate reflection of the times and society in which he was writing. [Words: 1655]

EarthQuakes Essay example -- essays research papers fc

Earthquakes Earthquakes, one of the most destructive natural phenomena, consist of rapid vibrations of rock near the earth's surface. Because of their unpredictable occurrence and enormous capacity of destruction, they have brought fear to mankind since ancient times. A single shock usually lasts no more than a few seconds, but a series of smaller quakes may last for as long as five minutes. The quake felt on the surface is always the result, not the cause of some underground geologic process, and in many cases the damage done is immense. The Greek word for shaking, and (when applied to the earth) earthquake, is seismos. Therefore, the science of earthquakes is called seismology (World Book Dictionary 1985). Earthquakes have been recorded as early as 526 A.C., but seismology is comparatively new. Until the 18th century, few accurate descriptions of earthquakes were recorded, and little was known about what caused them. When seismology was introduced it was learned that many earthquakes are the result of sea floor spreading, but most are caused by volcanic eruptions and plate tectonics. The plate tectonic theory explains that the earth is made up of 20 different plates that are always moving slowly past each other. This action pulls and compacts the plates, creating intense forces that cause the plates to break. This, in turn, causes earthquakes. The energy released then travels along fault lines in seismic waves (World Book Encyclopedia). Seismic waves are either P-waves (primary), or S-waves (secondary). P-waves create a relatively low wave train and arrive at the surface first. On the surface they create a push-pull effect, thus moving the surface up and down. Their low amplitude and vertical movement create an effect much like a dangling slinky. S-waves arrive second and are much more damaging. The high amplitude of S-waves, combined with their horizontal movement cause crippling effects on the earth’s surface and man made structures (Watkins, Bottino, and Morisawa 30-32). Earthquakes occur around us all the time. Most are too small to notice and cause little to no damage. However, every so often large earthquakes do occur. Large earthquakes leave catastrophic damage a... ...On shifting ground p.17-19) Earthquakes that occur in the area surrounding the Pacific Ocean, at the edges of the Pacific plate, are responsible for an average of 80 percent of the energy released in earthquakes worldwide. Japan is shaken by more than 1000 tremors greater than 3.5 in magnitude each year. The western coasts of North and South America are very also active earthquake zones, with several thousand small to moderate earthquakes each year. (U.S.G.S.) Intraplate earthquakes are less frequent than plate boundary earthquakes, but they are still caused by the internal fracturing of rock masses. The New Madrid, Missouri, earthquakes of 1811 and 1812 were extreme examples of intraplate seismic events. Scientists estimate that the three main earthquakes of this series were about magnitude 8.0 and that there were at least 1500 aftershocks. (The ocean of truth p.67-69) Bibliography "Earthquake† World Book Encyclopedia. Vol. 6. 1987. "Seismos." World Book Dictionary. Vol. L-Z. Ed. Barnhart, Clarence L., and Robert K. Barnhart. 1987 Watkins, Joel s., Michael L. Bottino, and Marie Morisawa. Our Geological Environment. Philadelphia: W.B. Saunders Company, 1975.

Illustrative Essay

In society today we look at magazines and movies and strive to be just like the people we see. The guys in these magazines have six packs and arms with muscles the size of Mt. Everest. And the girls are all size double zeros with no meat anywhere on their bodies. A lot of Americans work out and diet to accomplish the goal of having these body types, but some go to drastic measures to get it. Many eating disorders and their side effects are taking over the lives of Americans every day. Anorexia Nervosa is the number one eating disorder in America. One in every one hundred woman suffers from this disorder.Anorexia is where you deprive your body from any food. This can create many problems with the body. In the beginning, minor problems can occur like fatigue, dizzy spells, and weakness. But later on, you can do so much as to give yourself certain heart diseases and some women even lose their menstrual cycles. Anorexia has controlled the lives of many celebrities like Karen Carpenter (w ho actually died from it), Mary Kate Olsen, and Tara Reid. Another eating disorder wide spread through the United States in Bulimia. Three in every one hundred woman suffer or have suffered from Bulimia.This disorder is where you still eat, but you cause yourself to vomit. Statistics show that many women will turn to this disease because it is â€Å"less threatening† than anorexia. Bulimia can cause slight abdominal pain and bloating. Long term side effects of this disorder can be broken blood vessels in your eyes, rotting of your teeth, and even some types of colon and throat cancers. The last eating disorder that is an issue in the USA is obesity. Many people don’t think obesity is an eating disorder, but in fact it is. Everyone’s standard of obesity is obviously ifferent, but on a national scale PBS says that seventy three percent of Americans are overweight or obese. Obesity can cause diabetes, strokes, heart attacks, and high blood pressure which are all li fe threatening problems. In conclusion, many eating problems are taking over America. There are healthier ways to get the body image you want. Don’t put your body at risk just to be what society wants you to be. You should be healthy, but you should become healthy, in a healthy manner. If you or anyone you know is struggling from an eating disorder, you should seek help as soon as possible.

Laboratory Techniques and Measurements

Name: Kensley Shelley|Date: 9-17-12| Exp 2: Laboratory Techniques & Measurements|Lab Section: 0000| Data Tables: Step 1: Length and Measurements Object Measured|Length in cm|Length in mm| Key|5. 15 cm|51. 5 mm| CD|12. 0 cm|120. 0 mm| Fork Spoon|18. 05 cm 16. 30 cm|180. 5 mm 163. 0 mm| Step 2: Warm Temperature Measurements Hot tap water temperature49. 50_? C Boiling water temperature __immediately:104. 5; after 5 minutes: 103. 0__? C Step 3: Cold Temperature Measurements Cold tap water temperature_24. 5_? C Ice water temperature after 1 min:4. 5, after 5 min:1. 0 ? C Step 4: Volume MeasurementsVolume of half filled graduated cylinder__12. 5__mL Volume of completely filled small test tube __n/a__mL Number of drops in 1 mL___14_drops Volume of the micro pipet __28__ drops_2___mL Step 6: Density Measurements Part A Mass of empty graduated cylinder_16. 9_g Mass of graduated cylinder and water 21. 1_g Net mass of the water __4. 2_g Density of the water_0. 84_ g/mL Part B Mass of graduated cylinder and alcohol _20. 4_g Net mass of the alcohol __3. 5_g Density of the alcohol__0. 7__ g/mL Part C Mass of graduated cylinder and salt solution ____g Net mass of the salt solution____gDensity of the salt solution____ g/mL Part D Volume of half filled graduated cylinder__8. 0__mL Volume of half filled graduated cylinder and metal bolt_9. 1__mL Volume of the metal bolt_1. 1_mL Mass of the metal bolt __7. 2__g Density of the metal bolt__6. 55__g/mL Part E Mass of half filled beaker__89. 0__g Mass of water displaced by metal bolt__90. 1__g Volume of the metal bolt__1. 1__cc Density of the metal bolt__6. 55__g/cc Mass of half filled beaker__89. 0__g Mass of water displaced by magnet__89. 8__g Volume of the magnet _0. _cc Mass of the magnet __4. 0_g Mass when dropping the magnet in the beaker__92. 9__g Density of the magnet__5. 00__g/cc Calculated volume of the magnet using dimensions of length x width x height__0. 78__cc Density of magnet using the calculated volume_5. 13___g/cc C onclusion: Questions and Problems: A. Which method of determining density is more accurate, the water displacement method in Part D or Archimedes’ principle method in Part E? Why? For the metal bolt, I received the same answer for both experiments, so I would say both were equally accurate in my experiment.B. What is the relationship between mL and cm3? They equal each other; mL = cc C. Everyone knows that water is supposed to boil at 100 ° C. Why did your water sample boil at a different temperature? Water boils at different temperatures depending on the altitude. The higher pressure in the air keeps the molecules from escaping as easily. D. To help you get a feel for metric measurements, you need to know the relative magnitude of a few basic measurements. For example: 1 mm = thickness of a dime, a penny weighs 2 ? grams, and 20 °C = normal room temperature. Determine the following: . What is the mass in kilograms (kg) of a person who weighs 143 lb? 64. 86 kg 2. What wei ghs approximately 1 g? dollar bill, paper clip 3. What is approximately 1 cm long, wide or thick? fingernail is 1 cm wide 4. What weighs about 100 g? 20 nickels, 40 pennies 5. What weighs about 1000 g? 1 liter of water Conclusion: The experiment was designed to help acquaint the student with proper laboratory measurements and techniques. This was done by allowing the student to use the different lab tools in a variety of ways, such as: heating, measurements, volume, and density.In completing this lab, I am better aware of the different tools which will be used and how to properly use them, because a slight mistake in measuring can skew your data. I witnessed this in the density calculations in that the wrong mass or volume could greatly skew the results of the density. I first recorded 7. 6 g as the mass for the metal bolt, but on second glance I realized it was only 7. 2 g. While this may not seem significant at first, having a difference of 0. 4 g is very significant in determinin g the correct density. I also observed how important it is to account for one uncertain digit.When measuring items using the cm side of the ruler, I had to account for an uncertain digit when it measured in between two lines. Accounting for this uncertain digit helps to gain a more accurate reading. Also, reading at the bottom of the meniscus is also very important when measuring. When I first used the beaker, I did not get down to eye level and therefore I could not properly see the meniscus, but after putting it to eye level, I could see that I was slightly off on my measurement. I also learned how to determine the mass of certain objects that are not easily measured.I did so by first measuring the cylinder's mass and then measuring the mass of the cylinder with the liquid in it. I was then able to subtract the two and get a good measurement of the mass of the liquid. Another technique practiced was using displaced water to determine the volume and subsequently the density of an o bject. By putting the object on a string and placing it in the water, I was able to record the mass of the displaced water (90. 1 g), which i was then able to convert to the volume of the object (1. 1 mL). This number along with the mass of the object (7. g), could then be converted to the density of the object (6. 55 g/cc). There were a few potential errors that could have occurred while preforming the experiments. First, when calibrating my at home scale, I had to place an object that was 500 g on the scale. While I believe the object I placed on it was close to that mass, it could have been off slightly which could have skewed my results. Also, there is always the possibility of miscalculations when I was determining the volume of the magnet using the ruler. There is always the chance of miss counting something which can led to inaccurate results. Laboratory Techniques and Measurements Measurement:Length, Mass, Volume, Density, and Time Peter Jeschofnig, Ph. D. Version 42-0267-00-01 Lab RepoRt assistant This document is not meant to be a substitute for a formal laboratory report. The Lab Report Assistant is simply a summary of the experiment’s questions, diagrams if needed, and data tables that should be addressed in a formal lab report. The intent is to facilitate students’ writing of lab reports by providing this information in an editable file which can be sent to an instructor. Data Table 1: Estimation of various measurements| Measurement| Estimated| Actual| % Error| Length (m)| | | | Time (s)| | | |Mass (g)| | | | Data Table 2: Measurement of an object using various instruments| | Length(cm)| Width(cm)| Height(cm)| Volume(cm3)| Object Being Measured:| | | | | Hand (hand units)| | | | | Hand (cm)| | | | | Ruler| | | | | Meter tape| | | | | Data Table 3: Measurement of an object using various instruments| | Length(cm)| Width(cm)| Height(cm)| Volume (cm3)| Object Being Measured:| | | | | Hand (hand units)| | | | | Hand (cm)| | | | | Ruler| | | | | Meter tape| | | | | Data Table 4: Measurement of an object using various instruments| | Length(cm)| Width(cm)| Height(cm)| Volume(cm3)| Object Being Measured:| | | | |Hand (hand units)| | | | | Hand (cm)| | | | | Ruler| | | | | Meter tape| | | | | Data Table 5: Determination of ? | Object| DiameterD(cm)| CircumferenceC(cm)| Slope| % Error| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Data Table 6: Density measurements| Method| Volume of water in graduated cylinder (mL)| Volume of water+ bolt(mL)| Volume of bolt (mL)| Mass of bolt in air (g)| Mass of bolt in water (g)| Mass of bolt â€Å"lost† in water (g)| Density orS. G. ofbolt(g/mL)S. G. =unitless| Water- displacement method| | | | | | | | Archimedes’ principle method| | | | | | | | Data Table 7: Time measurements using visual cues| Drop time (s)| Trial 1| | Trial 2| | Trial 3| | Average| | Data Table 8: Time meas urements using auditory cues| | Drop time (s)| Trial 1| | Trial 2| | Trial 3| | Average| | Questions Exercise 1: Estimation of Various Measurements A. Why is it important to correctly estimate length, time, and mass? Exercise 2: Measuring Using Instruments of Varying Degrees of Precision A. Can you think of an occasion when it would be adequate to use your â€Å"hand† measurement? B. What would happen to your volume calculations if the length, width and height measurements were off a little? Exercise 3: Graphing data and the determination of ?Object Description| Diameter (cm)| Circumference (cm)| Measuring Device| Penny| 1. 90  ± 0. 01| 5. 93  ± 0. 03| Vernier caliper, paper| â€Å"D† cell battery| 3. 30  ± 0. 02| 10. 45  ± 0. 05| Vernier caliper, paper| PVC cylinder A| 4. 23  ± 0. 02| 13. 30  ± 0. 03| Vernier caliper, paper| PVC cylinder B| 6. 04  ± 0. 02| 18. 45  ± 0. 05| Plastic ruler, paper| Tomato soup can| 6. 6  ± 0. 1| 21. 2  ± 0. 1| Plastic ruler, paper| 5. Graph C vs. d using a computer spreadsheet program. 7. What is the slope of the line? What does it represent? 8. Calculate the percent error of your value from the true value of pi.Exercise 4: Density Measurements A. Which of the two volume determinations will be more accurate? Why? B. Research the Archimedes’ principle method. Write one paragraph explaining why it is called Archimedes’ principle Exercise 5: Time Measurements A. Which is more accurate, the individual times or the average? Explain. B. Sometimes many trials are run and recorded. Then the highest and lowest data points are disregarded when taking the average. Could this technique help in this experiment? How? C. Explain any differences that occurred between recording the data visually and aurally.

Addressing Inequality in the “Land of Opportunity”

The meaning or definition of what America is, was, or could become is the main subject that the two opposing voices relate in Langston Hughes’ poem Let America be America Again. Both voices acknowledge America is not the America that was envisioned by its founders/architects – i.e. a state built on the principles of freedom and equality, a land of opportunity for all. However, while the first voice simply calls for a recovery of the ideal America, the second voice, through articulations of the reality of social inequalities in America, argues for a reexamination of the said ideal, with the desired effect of making America  Ã‚   â€Å"The land that never has been yet–/And yet must be–the land where every man is free.† (lines 19-20) â€Å"Let America be America again† (line 1) , the first speaker begins. To him, America was a dream of dreamers, a â€Å"great strong land of love† (line 7), where â€Å"opportunity is real, and life is free/equality is in the air we breathe†. (line 13) He assertively states his notions of what America ought to be. However, he fails to identify what America has become instead. He also does not specify who the dreamers that dreamed America are, nor does he clarify who the â€Å"we† for whom equality. The choice of word â€Å"again† and the first speaker’s c onstant use of it suggest that to put America to its right direction, one needs to reacquaint the state to the glories it once had. However the assertion of the second speaker of America as the â€Å"never was† contrasts the difference of position of the two speakers. The second speaker contests the possibility that America had been the place where equality once reigned as he mumbles back to the first speaker that   Ã¢â‚¬Å"(There's never been equality for me/Nor freedom in this ‘homeland of the free.’) (lines 15-16) The disillusionment or discontentment in the tone of the second speaker who claims he is one of â€Å"the people† who built America challenges the first speaker’s idealization of America’s past. Also read: Was the American West a Land of Opportunity? The first speaker talks of freedom, equality for all but he/she could not even realize that there could be an opposition or challenge to his/her claims so he/she asks â€Å"Say, who are you that mumbles in the dark? /And who are you that draws your veil across the stars?† (lines 17-18) when he/she hears mumbles as he/she spoke. The first speaker addresses the person as if their existence were hardly thought of as he/she talked about America’s past and future. The second voice introduces himself: â€Å"I am† as the first voice is unable to recognize the second voice, who represents disenfranchised classes in America, the very reason America is not his ideal America, shows the first speaker's position in the society he seeks altered: he is an observer, not immersed in the reality of inequality and selective granting of rights, which the second voice knows first-hand.     Further on, he states that he (they) originated the dream of America. He briefly details America's founders – immigrants all, seeking escape from serfdom in the Old World, desiring a â€Å"home of the free’. According to the second voice, as America was founded by immigrants, and its industries and agriculture were built and maintained by laborers, these members of American society have a historically-supported claim to the freedom and equality deprived of them. The second speaker calls for a collective action of the people to rebuild America to be a place for the people, the dreamers who could call it â€Å"the land of the free† and not just for the few privileged people. The contesting ideas of the two voices/speakers in the poem about America stress that America as a country, as a word and even as a symbol for freedom and equality is a space of struggle between those who have the luxury to contemplate an abstract America and those who are immersed with the reality of how oppressive America is to the working classes and the ones with racial distinctions. To one, America is the dream of vague dreamers meant for an unspecified mass. To the other, America is a state built by people wishing to escape oppression in their nations of origin. America could not just be painted in the perspective of one person and that discussion of freedom and equality could not be easily hoped for a country until one recognizes the problems faced by all sectors of the society.

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

Chlamydia - Essay Example In order to do so it is essential to recognize the symptoms of Chlamydia, diagnose the victim, and provide treatment immediately. Chlamydia is spread by having unprotected oral, vaginal, or anal sex with an infected person. A person remains infected until they have finished their treatment regardless of whether they have or not have symptoms. It can spread from a woman to her fetus during pregnancy. When the baby is born it might have an eye infection or pneumonia due to Chlamydia. Chlamydia is diagnosed for men by a urine sample. (Cates, 1771-1781) This can take up to more than ten samples because it is harder to find a test that has the germ in it. This can mean they have Chlamydia ,but the test says they do not. A diagnosis for women is by taking a swab of MPC out of the cervix. The most likely ways of getting Chlamydia is people who have a number of different sex partners, people who have sex partners who have a number of different sex partners, people who don't use condoms, and people who have a history of other STDs. Chlamydia can only be prevented by protected sex or total abstinence. Chlamydia isn't a typical pathogen. It is very small in size like a virus and has some characteristics like a bacteria. The only problem with this microorganism is that it cannot make energy for itself like the way a virus and bacteria can.

Legal Aspects of Human Resource Management Essay

Legal Aspects of Human Resource Management - Essay Example t is of indefinite duration, the employer can terminate the employee for good cause, bad cause, or no cause at all.† However, even the ‘at will’ employees are entitled to a number of legal protections against unlawful discrimination with regard to the termination of an employee. These are known as exceptions of the at-will employment. While discussing the exceptions of at-will employment recognized by the United States, there are three major types of exceptions commonly found in the states. First of all, there are public policy exceptions to employment at will through which the termination of an employee is considered wrongful if it violates the well-established public policies of the state. For instance, an employer cannot terminate an employee if the latter refuses to break the law at the request of the employer. Public policy exceptions are the most widely exceptions that are recognized in most of the states in the US. Then there are implied contract exceptions where the employer cannot terminate the employee if an implied contract is formed between the two even without a written instrument. In case the employer terminates an employee in violation of an implied employment contract, then possibilities are that the employer will be found liable for breach of contract. It is important to note that implied employment contracts can be created by the employer’s oral or written assurances regarding job tenure or disciplinary procedures. However, it is often found that the fired employee has to bear the burden of proof. The third type of exceptions are the covenant of good faith and fair dealing exceptions. Under this exception, an employer cannot terminate the employee in bad faith or motivated by any personal hatred. Courts that recognize such exceptions are found to have recognized two types of contracts - a) covenants implied in fact and b) covenants implied in law. For example, covenants implied in fact include repeated promotions and pay increases