Friday, November 29, 2019

Goodner Brothers, Inc. free essay sample

Goodner Brothers set ambitious sales goals. In order to achieve these goals, they were known to undercut their competitor’s prices. In the text, it is pointed out that â€Å"To compensate for low gross profit margin, Goner scrimped on operating expenses, including expenditures on internal control measures. † Goodner Brothers should have not saved on internal control measures so they could have caught Woody stealing their inventory. Goodner Brother’s should have had more employees to have an appropriate check and balances strategy. The bookkeeper should have been the one entering invoices into the computer while having someone check her work to make sure no fraudulent activity took place. Having Woody enter inaccurate amounts of orders into the computer allowed him to steal the vast amounts of inventory. Also, Goodner Brothers should have had two executives approve the purchase of inventory from wholesalers. When Woody brought inventory from a fictitious outside wholesaler, Al should have had another executive sign off on the approval of the transaction. We will write a custom essay sample on Goodner Brothers, Inc. or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Then Al would not have had a conflict of interest with dealing with his friend Woody’s fraudulent activity. Finally, Goodner Brothers should have kept a closer eye on their inventory. They needed someone to watch over the inventory at all times. Perhaps Goodner should have had a guard who would only let deliverymen and sale reps enter the ware house if they had the proper invoices to do so. There were a lot of internal control weaknesses at Goodner Brothers. They should have had implemented proper internal control measures in order to prevent the fraud committed by Woody. Goodner Brothers lack of internal controls is an example of what auditors look for when they begin an audit of a company. In the article Revisiting Materiality, Gist and Shastri point out that an audit staff can reduce audit failures if they act with due care. In order to act in due care, the staff needs to maintain an attitude of professional skepticism at a heightened level. Professional skepticism requires auditors â€Å"need to be alert to patterns and situations of material misstatement due to error or fraud, remain alert to internal control weaknesses that increase the risk of fraudulent activities, and management bias that increases the risk of fraudulent financial reporting. Al’s lack of action caused Woody to steal a large amount of inventory. An audit staff would have been able to catch Woody in the act of theft if they acted with due care and used professional skepticism during the audit. 2. Goodner’s had no true internal controls set up at the regional offices * The owners trusted employees because of background checks. * Insufficient control consciousness within the organizat ion, for example, the tone at the top and the control environment. * Absent or inadequate segregation of duties within a significant account or process. Absent or inadequate controls over the safeguarding of assets (this applies to controls that the auditor determines would be necessary for effective internal control over financial reporting). * The absence of an internal process to report deficiencies in internal control to management on a timely basis. * Sales people were allowed to collect payments. * Sales people were allowed to deliver tires. 3. The best thing the Goodner’s could have done would be to set up controls separate duties. If Woody wouldn’t have been allowed to deliver products or collect the payments this never could have happened. Woody should have been able to issue the sale, but a delivery team should drop off the tires and the customer should have to send the payment in to the sales department or accounts receivable department. The second control policy would be to keep inventories more secure. Goodner’s should set up a position in the inventory department that all they do is allow for inventory to be put in the warehouse or released. Keeping track of all transactions that deal with inventory. If Goodner would have had better controls on their inventory, Woody never would have been able to go through the warehouse and pick and choose items that he could easily hide off the books. A third policy that Goodner should have set up is never allowing employees who deal with sales to do the year-end inventory check. Only auditors should be allowed to do the year-end inventory check. This weeks article â€Å"When the Boss Trumps Internal Controls†, perfectly goes along with what could be prevented if proper internal controls were inline and properly practiced. In the article the president clearly saw weaknesses in the accounting system and took advantage of everything she could. The exact same thing Woody did to the Goodner brothers. All of this could have been prevented if the internal controls were properly inforced. 4. A lot of people were partially responsible for Goodner Brothers, Inc. losses. First was the company’s management. The company provided very minimum security for its inventory. With just padlocks and no one to protect its inventory, everyone could access the warehouse and leave with tires without any records of that person being ever there. Also, it seems like the company did not practice job rotation. With just 10 to 12 employees for every sales outlet, the employees were founding themselves having multiples responsibilities in the same company. For example the sale manager was also the sale district. The people in charge of the sales were also the ones teaming up to hand-count the inventory. In addition, they were no internal control because the company relied on the honesty and integrity of their employees. The sales representatives were allowed to enter transactions directly into the system and access customers’ account and do all the modifications they wanted to do without any limit. Another person partially responsible for the situation was Al Hunt. As Woody’s friend, he should have asked him more seriously about how and where he was getting the tires, and when he realized that his friend was maybe involved in a fraudulent activity, he should have stopped buying tires from him and tried to talk him out of this situation. But instead, he pretended that there was nothing strange happening and just kept buying from him. Finally, Felix Garcia the sales manager for the Huntington Sales Office is also responsible for the losses of the company. As the sale manager, he never contacted any customers about their complaints and just let subordinates deal with those issues. When in 1996, the inventory shrinkage represented 2. 1 percent of the inventory, he did not think it was excessive and did nothing to understand this shrinkage. He believed that his only job was to sell tires and that was it so he never investigated any strange situation happening in the company.

Monday, November 25, 2019

Cultural Assimilation, Acceptance and Identity in Julia Alvarezs Poetry

Cultural Assimilation, Acceptance and Identity in Julia Alvarezs Poetry Cultural assimilation, acceptance and the search for identity are dominant themes in many of Julia Alvarez’s poems. Being an immigrant from the Dominican Republic, Julia faced several assimilation problems when her family moved to the United States.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Cultural Assimilation, Acceptance and Identity in Julia Alvarez’s Poetry specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More As a result of this, Alvarez had trouble adapting to a new culture, climate and people, and faced difficulty in coping with issues such as cultural differences and lack of acceptance. However, she gave vent to her feelings using poetry as a medium. Her poems reflect her experience and sensitivity for new immigrant families which face similar difficulties. Alvarez’s poems ‘Queens 1963’, ‘Dusting’, and ‘First Muse’ express her knowledge of cultural assimilation, acceptance and th e search for identity by immigrant families. In the poem ‘Queens, 1963’ Julia Alvarez recalls her experience of moving to the United States from another land. She recollects the time when she and her family had moved in and â€Å"everyone seemed more American† than them (Alvarez, Queens, 1). Alvarez uses specific words to vividly describe her multiculturally diverse neighborhood where people from different communities coexisted including the ‘Castelluccis’, the ‘Balakians’ ‘Mr. Scott’ and his â€Å"plump Midwestern wife†, the ‘Jewish counselor’, and the ‘German’ family. However, the arrival of â€Å"a black family† (Alvarez, Queens, 8) had suddenly caused the place to become inhospitable and unfriendly towards these new immigrants. This prejudiced attitude shocked Alvarez who recollects how each of these families had once ought a hard battle for acceptance and assimilation into the Ame rican soil. These families were now practicing the same intolerance which they had faced when they had arrived. Alvarez states that the seclusion of the African American family by her neighborhood was another desperate attempt to be like the American society, which does not welcome new immigrants. Alvarez points to the hypocritical attitude of the neighborhood woman Mrs. Bernstein, who conceded that â€Å"it was time the neighborhood opened up† as â€Å"she remembered the snubbing she got a few years back from Mrs. Scott† (Alvarez, Queens, 36-40), but worried that the real estate prices would plummet with the arrival of the African American family. Another couple, the Scotts, considered â€Å"moving back home where white and black got along by staying where they belonged† (Alvarez, Queens, 23-24). Racial intolerance is seen at its peak when â€Å"Mrs. Scott swept her walk as if it had just been dirtied† after the family had walked by.Advertising L ooking for essay on american literature? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Here the word ‘dirtied’ is used figuratively. Here the word ‘dirty’ is used as a connotation implying that the presence of the immigrant family is unhealthy and unclean. Alvarez is hurt and dismayed not only by the attitude of the neighborhood community who treat the new family like a stigma, but the American society at large which is hostile to the African American family, after whose arrival she notices cop cars patrolling their block due to â€Å"rumors of bomb threats† (Alvarez, Queens, 12). Alvarez sympathizes deeply for the new African American family which reminds her of her own struggles to be assimilated and accepted by the American society. She wishes to be kind to the girl from the family but sadly is unable to do so. Before she could make â€Å"a welcoming gesture† her â€Å"hand lifted but fell† (Alvarez, Queens, 54-55). This gesture of the hand provides vivid imagery, literally creating an image in the reader’s mind. The girl from the new family reminded Alvarez of her own plight when she had moved to the United States and had not yet been accepted completely by the community. Alvarez immediately identified with this â€Å"look† which was â€Å"hardness mixed with hurt† due to the knowledge that â€Å"she could never be the right kind of an American† (Alvarez, Queens, 59-61). The poem ends with a tone of melancholy bringing out the sad plight of discrimination and prejudices prevalent in American society by those who were once new immigrants of this â€Å"free country† (Alvarez, Queens, 74). Julia Alvarez’s poem ‘Dusting’ is a short, symbolic and meaningful poem which also revolves around the theme of cultural assimilation, a longing strongly held by immigrants to a new place. The image ‘dusting’ has bee n symbolically used as an act of cleansing ones previous cultural traits in order to be accepted into the larger society. The poem talks about Alvarez’s strong persistent desire for forming her own identity, which she expressed â€Å"each morning† by writing her name â€Å"on the dusty cabinet† (Alvarez, Dusting, 1-2). She would imprint her name in capital letters on the house furniture including the dining table and the backs of chairs, while her mother wiped it all away, removing any traces of dust and marks left behind by her. Alvarez’s mother’s ‘dusting’ activity has been used as a metaphor to depict the desire to assimilate into and be accepted by the American society at large. Alvarez’s continual act of writing her initials in capital letters on the dusty furniture is symbolic of the struggles of the younger generation trying to create their own identities in a foreign land.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Cultural Assimilation, Acceptance and Identity in Julia Alvarez’s Poetry specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More While Alvarez’s mother dusts the house to maintain cleanliness in her home, Alvarez struggles hard to imprint her initials. Both Alvarez and her mother are persistent in their efforts; the mother tirelessly engages in the activity to ensure that her home is clean while Alvarez ceaselessly puts her signature on every piece of furniture, knowing fully well that her mother is going to wipe it all away without a trace. Alvarez leaves her signature â€Å"in capitals† on every piece of furniture in the house. She states that â€Å"the bookshelf and rocker, polished mirrors on the desk† are all â€Å"scribbled with my alphabets† (Alvarez, Dusting, 11-12). These objects create vivid imagery in the reader’s mind. The desire for creating a mark and search for self is so strong in Alvarez that she refuses to give up. Her strong grit and determination are visible in her undying refusal to quit as she continues to leave her signature wherever possible in the house. Alvarez is undeterred with her mother’s ‘dusting’ efforts due to which her â€Å"name is swallowed in the towel† that is used to clean and shine all the house furniture. Alvarez refuses â€Å"be like her, anonymous† mother who lives a silent life of non-identity. She defiantly tries her best and does not give up her efforts. While her mother accepts a life of conformity within the home, Alvarez is not willing to do so. She does not wish to settle for a life where women are confined to the household and engage in domestic tasks. She is unwilling to conform to the â€Å"anonymous† domesticated life in which women have no identity. Her act of scribbling her initials all through the house furniture mark her struggle for creating her identity and finding her place in a culture whi ch restricts women to the confines of a home. In her poem ‘First Muse’ Julia Alvarez once again defies the cultural and literary norms of society by failing to abide by its fixed rules. Alvarez recalls a childhood incident when she had heard a â€Å"famous poet pronounce† that â€Å"one can only write poems in the tongue in which one first said mother† (Alvarez, First Muse, 1-3), which had caused her to completely give up writing. She was devastated and hoped that perhaps she had been exposed to the English language in childhood when her mother may have â€Å"left the radio on† beside her crib â€Å"tuned to the BBC or Voice of America† (Alvarez, First Muse, 11-12). Alvarez was shattered by the thought of not being a native English speaker since she was deeply involved with writing English texts, something she loved. The idea of non-acceptance and non-recognition was so devastating to to her that she â€Å"suffered from a bad writer’s -block† (Alvarez, First Muse, 17), â€Å"gave up writing† and â€Å"watched lots of TV† (Alvarez, First Muse, 21). She lost her confidence and thought that since Spanish was her native language, she was not eligible to use English anymore.Advertising Looking for essay on american literature? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More However, once again her strong indomitable will surfaced when she saw Chiquita Banana on television. Chiquita had a â€Å"sassy, olive-skinned† and â€Å"lilting accent so full of feeling it seemed the way the heart would speak English if it could speak† (Alvarez, First Muse, 24-28). This brought back Alvarez’s lost confidence and she decided that she will continue to write in English. Alvarez proudly claimed â€Å"I am Chiquita Banana and I’m here to say† accepting her differences yet asserting her will and determination to create her identity in a culture which she was not born in (Alvarez, First Muse, 29-30). It seems that Chiquita Banana indeed became Alvarez’s â€Å"new muse† since it gave her the confidence and will to create her own individual space in a foreign culture. Once again, Alvarez had broken the shackles of conformist society creating her own identity in a world where she was not born. She defied the norms of culture and decided to reject the restrictions imposed by society. The themes of acceptance, identity and assimilation resonate in all the three poems ‘Queen, 1963’, ‘Dusting’ and ‘First Muse’ by Julia Alvarez. In ‘Queens, 1963’ Alvarez points how immigrants go through immense suffering and challenges in a new culture and society. She expresses her shock at the attitude of her neighbors in their failure to accept a new immigrant family. In the poem ‘Dusting’, Alvarez distinguishes the struggles between the old and new generation as they struggle for acceptance in a new culture. She does not wish to be like her mother and spend her life in anonymity simply for the sake of being accepted in society; rather she ceaselessly demonstrated her iron will to break free from the shackles of societal norms and desires to create her own identity. Finally, in ‘First Muse’ Alvarez’s struggle and search for her individual ity end. Rather than losing her identity, she accepts it and creates a unique place for herself by deciding to continue writing English texts even though her mother tongue was Spanish. All the three poems reflect Alvarez’s struggle and strong character to create her own personality without denying her cultural roots. Alvarez, Julia. Queens, 1963. The Compact Bedford Introduction to Literature. Ed. Michael Meyer. 9th ed. Boston: Bedford/St. Martins, 2012. Print. Alvarez, Julia. Dusting. The Compact Bedford Introduction to Literature. Ed. Michael Meyer. 9th ed. Boston: Bedford/St. Martins, 2012. Print. Alvarez, Julia. First Muse. The Compact Bedford Introduction to Literature. Ed. Michael Meyer. 9th ed. Boston: Bedford/St. Martins, 2012. Print.

Thursday, November 21, 2019

Personal statement Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 2

Personal Statement Example Additionally, I had undertaken courses on ‘Introduction to International Relations and Academic Writing’ from Harvard University. My journey as a professor started from Moscow State Institute of International Relations where the classes conducted by me were on ‘Political Analysis and Statistics’ for the second year students. Shortly after that I connected myself with Lomonosov Moscow State University where I had my classes with third year students regarding the subject ‘World Politics and International Relations’. Presently I am assigned with Paper Planes a Kontakt Expert Consulting Company with the designation of New Media & Digital Consultant handling responsibilities on managing social media projects of Paul Hartmann and CRM from the month of May, 2010. During the year of 2006, I had a handful of publications among which some are, â€Å"To a Problem of an Ethnic Group Role in International Conflicts† in Networking Scientific Magazine â€Å"Analyst†, Moscow, 2006; â€Å"To the Problem of Subjectivity in International Conflicts† with International Scientific Conference for undergraduate and postgraduate students, and â€Å"Lomonosov-2007†. â€Å"The Transformation of the Concept about the State Sovereignty Nature in the 20th and 21st Centuries† from Lomonosov Moscow State University along with the â€Å"State Sovereignty Transformation and Some Transition Problems of Statehood in Terms of Information-oriented Society† is some of the other publications. During my entire career, I had been engaged with various extracurricular activities as a head of Research Group on Political Analysis in the framework of Youth Branch of Russian Association of Political Science, a head of Working Group on External Communications in Student Council of the Department of Political Science at Lomonosov MSU. Apart from these, I became a part of

Wednesday, November 20, 2019

Planning and Time Management Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Planning and Time Management - Case Study Example The main idea of this research paper is to discuss the points of effective management. Management is the process of planning, organising, leading and controlling all phases of business operation in order to achieve the objectives of that organisation. Effective management invariably results in business success, while ineffective management often results in business failure. Using the POLC Model of Management, the key components namely planning, organizing, leading and controlling involves the use of different skills. (Burns, 1978) Carl Robbins was assigned to arrange and prepare the orientation for the new hires. In the context of the case, Robbins is the manager for the task. Planning is an intellectually demanding process, because it requires deliberate courses of action where decisions are based on purpose, knowledge and considerable degree of estimates. Planning minimizes costs. Its emphasis is on efficient and effective operations and consistency of procedures and methods. (Burns, 1978) Organizing includes the skills of self- managing and team work thus time is considered as an essential factor. The word organization refers to the structure or a network of relationships among individuals interacting with one another. Organizing as a tool is an end in itself but a means of achieving the objectives of the organization. Organizing is basically grouping of activities and defining the roles of the participants with appropriate authority and proper coordination in the organizational structure. (Morgenstern, 1998). Organizing, in its essence, relates to the identification and classification of required activities, the grouping of activities necessary to attain objectives, the assignment of each grouping to a manager without the authority necessary to direct and supervise it, and the provision for coordination horizontally and vertically in the organizational structure. Leading needs the use of people skills, complex problem solving, and ethical and high personal standards. Leadership is the art or process of influencing people so that they will strive willingly and enthusiastically toward the achievement of group goals. It does not mean only willingness to work but also willingness to work with zeal and confidence. Leadership is the influential increment over and above mechanical compliance with the routing directives of the organization. This means that an organizational role may encompass different objectives, but become non-personal so that in order to become effective, a personal touch must be in it. (Burns, 1978) Managerial leadership is the process of directing and influencing task-related activities of group members. Leadership involves the most vital resources of the organization- the people. Power distribution between leaders and group members is

Monday, November 18, 2019

Applying the knowledge and understandings demonstrated in Feminisim Essay

Applying the knowledge and understandings demonstrated in Feminisim and postmoderinisim in a specidic research area - Essay Example If truth were told, more people in the United States now days work for companies owned and led by women than for the five hundred prime public companies. However, there still lies so much tension between men and women at work. Controversy rises on the difference issue that if men and women in actual fact lead in like chalk and cheese ways or on the difference in their view and making use of authority or on the difference in amount and type of sacrifices made by high-achieving men and women for the growth and prosperity of the company and themselves too. It is quite true that there exist dissimilarities between men and women in management style, though not in skills but only in approach. Million years of history at the office or in the living room cannot be ignored at all. The sidesplitting Broadway show by the Caveman has summed up the dissimilarity quite well that Men hunt while women gather. That is the reason why in the present day, discrimination are rising between men and women not only on place of work but also in every aspect of life. (Manning, 279) Womens short of advancement in moving up the corporate ladder is over and over again associated with a various types of job related separation in which lady managers of a company are downgraded to the entry level and some middle management positions, although are effectively barred from getting hold of higher paying positions within the company. The observable fact has been popularly written off as the "glass ceiling", which implies the lady managers despite the fact that remaining adequately close to see the next level, but are not permitted to reach it. Other popular subjects, such as the "mommy track" may as well be taken for consideration as another form of occupational or "job" prejudice. In both the cases, the company treats male and female workers in a

Saturday, November 16, 2019

Applying Cue Utilization Theory

Applying Cue Utilization Theory Evaluating Website Quality: Applying Cue Utilization Theory to WebQual Abstract   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Cue Utilization Theory is applied to examine the relative importance of each of the WebQual dimensions (Informational Fit-to-Task, Tailored Information, Trust, Response Time, Ease of Understanding, Intuitive Operations, Visual Appeal, Innovativeness, Emotional Appeal, Consistent Image, On-line Completeness, and Relative Advantage) in determining consumers evaluation of website quality. Two studies have been designed for this task. Study 1 qualifies how subjects rate the predictive value (PV) and confidence value (CV) of each dimension. An analysis of these results provides an ability to fit the WebQual dimensions to a 22 model showing the relative magnitude that each dimension has on consumers evaluation of website quality. Study 2 is designed to test the viability of the model via a set of proposed hypotheses. The results from this research will contribute to the field by providing a model that developers can utilize to focus on those characteristics most determi nistic of overall website quality. 1. Introduction   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In the last ten years, online shopping has become a prevalent part of the average consumers shopping experience. The consumer now has the ability to purchase virtually anything online; ranging from small-ticket items such as a rubber-band ball to bigticket items like vacation homes. With this increase in the online consumers purchasing power and propensity to purchase online, retailers have become increasingly willing to develop their e-commerce presence. Moreover, this explosion of Internet activity has prompted businesses to demand that website developers understand the qualities of a website that serve to facilitate the shopping experience for e-commerce consumers. At the same time, this growth of e-commerce has provided a virtual plethora of new options for crimes of opportunity such as identity theft. The online shopper has to worry not only about finding the perfect product, but they also have to evaluate the website to determine if they are willing to make a purchase from this site.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Valacich, Parboteeah and Wells [1] developed the Online Consumers Hierarchy of Needs to delineate the needs of the online consumer. Their model showed that certain fundamental needs exist that the online consumer must have met before they are willing to utilize a website. These fundamental needs are then further broken down into the specific website characteristic categories of Functional Convenience, Representational Delight and Structural Firmness. Functional Convenience is the category allowing the consumer to accomplish the task-athand easily and includes attributes, such as ease of ordering and tracking. Representational Delight is characterized by those dimensions that make the site visually appealing, such as graphics and sizing. Structural Firmness consists of fundamental qualities such as response time and security. Using this Hierarchy of Needs, a consumer interested in online banking would need to have their basic need for each of these characteristics met before they would be willing to use the website.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  This Hierarchy of Needs model shows those characteristics that are necessary for a consumer to utilize a website, and further elaborates by showing which characteristics are most important depending on if the consumer is visiting the website for business, pleasure or a combination of the two [1]. Knowing these characteristics is important for development of the website, but also implies that the consumers level of confidence in evaluating these characteristics of a website is of particular importance to their overall assessment of a given websites quality. Traditional marketing literature suggests that when people make assessments of quality, they tend to use informational cues that are not only predictive, but also easy to assess. This is known as the Cue Utilization Theory [2], and has been paramount in evaluating consumers perceptions of product quality.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  This research project elaborates on consumers inability to evaluate all relevant cues during the online shopping experience. A model is developed using Cue Utilization Theory [2] and WebQual [3] to show the attributes of a website that are the most determinant of how a consumer will react to the website. This model will provide a deeper understanding of the evaluation of existing and proposed websites with respect to consumers confidence in evaluating the cues communicated by the website. 2. Cue Utilization Theory   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Richardson, Dick and Jain [2] employed Cue Utilization Theory in their research to determine how consumers viewed store brand quality vs. nationally branded merchandise. According to this theory, â€Å" products consist of an array of cues that serve as surrogate indicators of quality to shoppers† [2]. This theory purports that cues are evoked by the two separate dimensions of predictive and confidence values. The predictive value (PV) is â€Å" the degree to which consumers associate a given cue with product quality† [2]. Confidence value (CV) is â€Å" the degree to which consumers have confidence in their ability to use and judge that cue accurately† [2].   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Further, based on relative differences in PV and CV, cues can be broken down into the distinct areas of extrinsic and intrinsic. The American Heritage dictionary describes intrinsic as, â€Å"Of or relating to the essential nature of a thing; inherent† [4] and extrinsic as, â€Å"not forming an essential or inherent part of a thing; extraneous.† [5] From this definition, an intrinsic attribute would be one that would fundamentally alter the focal object (e.g., product) if it was changed or absent and, per Cue Utilization Theory, would possess an inherently high degree of PV. Alternatively, an extrinsic attribute would be one that would not alter the fundamental nature of the focal object in its absence but might alter a consumers reaction or perceptions of the object. Per Cue Utilization theory, an extrinsic cue would typically have higher degrees of CV compared to PV.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  For example, when looking at a video card on an e-commerce website it could be said that the product price is an example of an extrinsic attribute of the video card. While the video cards dimensions and material composition of the video card serve as intrinsic indicators. Further, you could postulate that the average consumer has a higher CV in their ability to judge the quality of the card based on the price rather than the material composition. Though the consumer knows that the dimensions and material composition of the card are important, they will tend to rely on price as an informational cue, as that is the cue that they feel the most comfortable evaluating.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  When considering the quality of a website there are a myriad of dimensions that the consumer mustevaluate to determine if they intend to perform a transaction on this website. From the Valacich et al [1] article the consumers basic needs in terms of Structural Firmness, Functional Convenience and Representational Delight must all be met before the consumer will consider doing business. To determine if these needs are being met the consumer will evaluate the cues they perceive as being exhibited from the website. These cues can be further broken down into components by utilizing the WebQual model [3]. 3. WebQual   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  WebQual consists of 12 dimensions: Informational Fit-to-Task, Tailored Information, Trust, Response Time, Ease of Understanding, Intuitive Operations, Visual Appeal, Innovativeness, Emotional Appeal, Consistent Image, On-line Completeness, and Relative Advantage. Each of these dimensions is shown to have strong measurement validity in regards to the consumers evaluation of overall website quality [3].   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Information fit-to-task is an amalgamation of information quality and functional fit-to-task [3]. In component form, information quality refers to the datas appropriateness for use or ability to meet the users needs [6]. Functional Fit-to-Task can be represented as the degree the technology assists the user at a given task [7]. Drawing these two components back together as a whole and relating them to cyberspace lends credence to the definition that information fit-to-task is assisting the user in their desired task by presenting relevant/appropriate information. Loiacono, Chen, and Goodhue [8] define this as â€Å"The information provided meets task needs and improves performance†.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The ability for consumers to tailor the information displayed on a website to meet their needs is the basic form of Tailored Information. Tailored Information is further characterized by Ghose and Dou [9] as the interactivity of the website, and represents the consumers ability to modify information presented on the website. Recent research suggests that website interactivity will lead consumers to be more positive in their evaluation of websites [9]. This concept has also been operationalized as the ability to personalize information between the consumer and the website [8,10]   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Trust, in relation to websites, is defined in an extremely simple form as consumers confidence that any information entered into the website will remain confidential and that said information will be transmitted and stored in a secure fashion [8]. Furthermore, trust is having faith that the information presented on the website is true and accurate [11,12]. Lack of Trust has been cited as one of the main hindrances to completion of e-commerce transactions [14,11,15]   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Response Time (aka. download time or download delay) is defined by Rose and Straub [16] as â€Å" the time it takes for a web client to fully receive, process, and display files† (p. 56), and is ranked as one of the largest impediments to electronic commerce in their research. Additional research has reinforced that Response Time can be an impediment to e-Commerce, and that is it also strongly associated with web site success [17,18]   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The consumers ease in comprehending the website is the Ease of Understanding. Loiacono et al. [8] describe this in terms of a websites ease of reading and the understandability of said website. This would include things like presenting the information in a manner which is easy for the consumer to assimilate, and in a fashion such that the consumer can quickly navigate to the desired information.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Intuitive Operations deals with the usability of a website, and includes items such as navigability, link placement, operation, and changing the color of visited links [19]. Intuitive Operations could be thought of as making the webpage easy to navigate, and providing intuitive options for available tasks [8]   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Visual Appeal is how aesthetically pleasing the website is to the consumer. Determining what is aesthetically pleasing is complicated though; it ranges from the overall complexity of the website [20] and the layout of the interface [21] to how many ads and graphics are appropriate on a given page[22]   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Innovativeness is â€Å"The creativity and uniqueness of a site design† [8]. This could include concepts such as a website having a new way of presenting its merchandise (e.g. Woot.com) or a website attempting to tailor the information to consumer preferences (e.g. Amazon.com)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Emotional Appeal can be elicited in many forms and can be thought of as the consumers intensity of involvement given the emotions that the website elicits [8]. This is often seen in the form of testimonials presented on the website, but can also be observed by simple things such as a consumers reaction to a Valentines Day card.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Loiacono et al. [8] articulate Consistent Image as the websites ability to project a company image that is compatible with the company image shown in other forms of media channels. For instance, a traditional brick-and-mortal store would want to ensure that their website was displaying a compatible image so that they could capitalize on synergies created by marketing in multiple channels such as cost savings, market extension and improved Trus [23].   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Presenting all the information required for the tasks that the website is designed for would be considered On-line Completeness. This would include tasks such as the ability to complete an online transaction on e-commerce sites. A bank for instance would want ubiquitous account access using all available channels, and the information presented in each of these channels has to be on the same update cycle as to present the customer the same information regardless of channel [6].   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Relative Advantage is gaining a competitive advantage by being able to do something better than the competition. This could come in the form of providing better interaction with the customer through the website [8], being able to provide more accurate and timely data through your website than the competition [6] or being able to price products lower than the competition because of reduced prices in your supply chain. Each of these dimensions is then tied back into the consumers intention to use/reuse the site. Trust and Response Time, being key indicators, are directly linked to the consumers intention to use the site. Common sense would tell us that consumers are not going to shop on a site that does not respond rapidly to requests. Likewise, if users dont trust the site to keep their information secure, they are not likely to supply the information in the first place. The remaining dimensions are all fully mediated by Usefulness, Ease of Use and Entertainment. Usefulness mediates Informational Fit-to-Task, Tailored Information, Online Completeness and Relative Advantage. Additionally, Ease of Use is partially mediated by Usefulness. Ease of Use mediates Ease of Understanding and Intuitive Operations. Finally, Entertainment mediates Visual Appeal, Innovativeness, Emotional Appeal and Consistent Image (See WebQual model in Figure 1).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Consumers do not just browse a site and evaluate each of these individual traits though. Consumers instead tend to examine a website using those cues that they feel confident in their ability to evaluate successfully. To understand this issue further, WebQual needs to be combined with Cue Utilization Theory to explain the extrinsic/intrinsic nature of each of these dimensions. 4. Cue Utilization/WebQual Conceptual Model   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  As Valacich et al [1] point out; consumers must have their basic level of needs met before any of the other elements of the website can become relevant to the consumers experience. To validate that these basic needs have been met, the consumer will evaluate those features that they believe to be highly predictive of the quality of the website. This evaluation will then be indicative of their willingness to continue to use the website.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Both extrinsic and intrinsic cues serve a function in the consumers overall evaluation of the quality of a website, which means that such cues possess varying degrees of PV and CV. Literature has shown that consumers tend to use a combination of both extrinsic and intrinsic cues when evaluating the quality of a product [2]. An argument can be made about the extrinsic versus intrinsic nature of each of the dimensions in the WebQual model.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Intrinsic cues are those cues that are inherent to a website. Conceptually they are the cues that when changed fundamentally alter a characteristic of the website (e.g. Visual Appeal). Consumers tend to see these cues as being highly predictive of quality [2]. At the same time, consumers may or may not have a high degree of confidence in their ability to evaluate these intrinsic cues because these cues are often difficult to differentiate. Thus, assuming a Cue Utilization Theory perspective, a website characteristic that is perceived to be an intrinsic cue would have an inherently high degree of PV. Yet, the power of an intrinsic cue for assessments of quality will depend on the CV of the cue, with higher levels of CV being optimal.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Extrinsic cues are those cues that are used to evaluate a website but are not an inherent part of the website (e.g. Response Time). Consumers tend to have a lot of confidence in their ability to evaluate these cues in regards to assessment of quality [2]. On [the other hand, consumers typically do not rate these cues as being highly predictive (as compared to intrinsic cues) of the overall quality of the website. Considering extrinsic cues from a Cue Utilization Theory perspective, a website characteristic that is perceived to be an extrinsic cue would have an inherently high degree of CV.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Shown in Table 1 is a 22 matrix representing how each of the combinations of CV and PV will influence consumers willingness to perform tasks on a given website. As shown, characteristics with high CV and high PV are believed to have the largest effect on consumers perceptions of website quality. Those with low CV and PV would have a small to none existent effect, and those high on one dimension but low on the other would have a moderate effect. Next, we will posit about how varying degrees of cue PVs and CVs, respectively, will affect consumer perceptions of overall website quality.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Relative Advantage is often considered an important aspect of websites as discussed previously. However, from a Cue Utilization Theory perspective the consumer may experience, at most, only a vague feeling about the Relative Advantage of the website. As such they would not place much value in their confidence in assessing this characteristic, which would result in a low CV. Along the same lines the average consumer would also not really take Relative Advantage into consideration when they were performing tasks, implying a relatively low level of PV. Thus, website characteristics that fall into the quadrant in the model with low levels of both PV and CV would have a small impact on consumers willingness to perform tasks on a website. H1: A website characteristic with low CV low PV will produce a small to none existent effect on the consumers perception of website quality.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A characteristic such as Trust is highly predictive of consumers willingness to use a website, but the average consumer may not have much confidence in their ability to evaluate this characteristic. Trust in an online medium has been shown to be an attribute that is hard for the consumer to evaluate and in some cases to even define. Cue Utilization Theory suggests that though this characteristic is highly predictive of website quality, consumers lack of confidence in evaluating the characteristic may inhibit their ability to use the characteristic to assess the quality of the website. Moreover, dimensions in this quadrant, high PV/Low CV, have been shown to be relatively intrinsic to the website [2], and will have a moderate effect on the consumers evaluation of the websites quality. H2a: A website characteristic with low CV high PV will produce a moderate effect on consumers perception of website quality.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  One could reason that Response Time is a good example of an extrinsic attribute because it is not part of the inherent composition of the website. Rather, Response Time could be considered extrinsic because it can vary without changing anything about the content of the website. Rose and Straub [16] have shown in their research that consumers tend to attribute lack of responsiveness to extrinsic factors such as the overall speed of the internet, their own internet connection being slow, or other factors. In general, consumers seem to be willing to give the website the benefit of the doubt when slow response times are encountered, and as such, Response Time could be considered extrinsic to the website because it doesnt fundamental change the consumers perception of the website when it is altered. Based on Cue Utilization theory attributes with a low PV and high CV (such as Response Time) will only have a moderate influence on the consumers evaluations of website qua lity, and those dimensions belonging to this quadrant would be extrinsic to the website [2]. H2b: A website characteristic with high CV low PV will produce a moderate effect on consumers perception of website quality.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Cue Utilization Theory suggests that those characteristics with High CV and PV are the most highly predictive of consumers perception of website quality. Visual Appeal could be considered an intrinsic attribute because it is a characteristic inherent to the website that consumers are confident in using to evaluate website quality. One could further speculate that Visual Appeal is intrinsic to the website because if the Visual Appeal of the website was changed it would alter the inherent nature of the website. Lindgaard, Fernandes, Dudek, and Browà ± [24] have shown in their research that consumers form opinions about websites within the first 50 milliseconds (ms) of exposure. Furthermore, this initial perception of websites is almost entirely based on Visual Appeal; this was shown by correlating the ratings between 50 ms and 500 ms. However, though this attribute is intrinsic it shows an optimally high level of CV and PV thus placing it firmly into the high impac t quadrant. Dimensions in this quadrant would exhibit the optimal balance between PV and CV (i.e., an optimal intrinsic cue), and as such this quadrant of the table is hypothesized to have the largest impact on the consumers evaluation of the websites quality. H3: A website characteristic with high CV high PV will produce the largest effect on consumers perception of website quality. 5. Research Method   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  To test these hypotheses two empirical studies will be administered. Study 1 is designed to determine where each of the WebQual dimensions fit into the 22 model shown in Table 1. Furthermore, this study is designed to determine if a significant difference can be perceived to exist between each of the dimensions when rank ordered by PV and CV. Study 2 will test the hypotheses by collecting data on each of these dimensions using a sample website, and comparing actual results to those found in the first study. 5.1 Study 1   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  This study will focus on determining the CV and PV for each of the 12 dimensions of website quality, and determining if there is a significant difference between adjacent dimensions when rank ordered. 5.1.1 Subjects. Approximately 500 subjects will be recruited from an introductory Information Systems class held on campus at a large Northwestern University. Additionally, approximately 125 subjects will also be recruited from a distance education class offered by the same university. Subjects physically present on campus will complete the survey during their regular lecture times, and the distance education participants will have one week to complete the survey on their own personal computer. All data for Study 1 will be collected during the fall of 2009. Subjects will be given course credit for completing the survey, and no other incentives will be provided. 5.1.2 Survey Procedure. The survey is broken into two sections, one for CV and one for PV. In the CV section subjects are presented with a scenario about shopping on the Internet and asked about their confidence in assessing each of the 12 WebQual dimensions when shopping on the Internet for a product (e.g. Amazon.com) or Service (e.g. Bank of America). For this series of questions, the subjects will be required to rate each of the 12 WebQual dimensions on a 10-point likert-type scale with Confident/Not Confident being the top and bottom end of the scale. Finally, the subjects are asked to rank order the dimensions from the ones they have the highest confidence in assessing to the ones they have the least confidence in assessing.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The second section is designed to measure the PV of each of the 12 dimensions. Subjects are put in a hypothetical situation where they are in charge of designing a website for their employer. The first step towards designing the website is to decide the relative importance of each of the twelve dimensions in regards to consumers evaluation of the overall website quality. For this series of questions, the subjects will be required to rate each of the 12 dimensions on a 10-point likert-type scale with Important/Not Important being the top and bottom end of the scale. The subjects are then asked to rank order each of the 12 dimensions with respect to how predictive of website quality the subject believes each dimension to be. 5.1.3 Data Analysis. Aggregating the results of this data collection will allow each of the dimensions to be mapped to a CV and PV scale. Based on the relative PV and CV scores, each of the dimensions will be integrated into the 22 matrix shown in Table 1. Furthermore, the relative magnitude of each dimension will indicate the relative effect each dimension will have on the overall rating of website quality. 5.2 Study 2   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  This study will utilize subjects from an introductory Information Systems class taught in the fall of 2009. Approximately 500 students will participate. This study will focus on first determining the overall quality attributed to a website by the subjects, and secondly how the subjects rate each of the twelve WebQual dimensions for each website. Using regression analysis, we should then be able to show that the model accurately predicts the website quality based on the rating of each of the 12 dimensions.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Furthermore, the pattern of results from this study will examine how well the WebQual dimensions fit to the quadrant they were assigned in Study 1, and that the model developed in Study 1 is predictive of the responses received in Study 2. Those dimensions that serve as the highest-level indicators of website quality should be rated the highest by the subjects, and those that are the lowest should be rated likewise. Ideally, this study should provide significant support for each of the proposed hypotheses, and indicate which of the dimensions should be of highest consideration when constructing a high quality website. Initial data for both of these studies should be ready to share at the conference, should the paper be accepted. 6. Discussion and Potential Contribution   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  As shown in the model, the most important considerations when developing a website are those attributes that reside in the high CV and high PV quadrant. Online businesses should pay particular attention to the characteristics in this quadrant, as the consumer will tend to utilize these dimensions the most when determining the overall quality of the website. All businesses seeking to perform transactions within the e-commerce channel should pay heed to these recommendations, but online retailers need to pay particular attention, as this is the primary channel through which they produce revenue.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Of secondary importance to consumers are the Low CV/High PV and High CV/Low PV quadrants. If an online business seeks to capitalize on one of the dimensions within these quadrants, they need to pay particular attention to how they will nudge the consumer into using these dimensions for evaluation of website quality. This could potentially be accomplished through educational campaigns or marketing literature. Finally, the low CV/Low PV quadrant is of limited value to the online retailer, and should be removed from consideration when developing a website. This article seeks to contribute to the field by providing a model that can be used to enable web developers to effectively predict the overall quality of a website based on its design. In following this model, the developer will need to pay particular attention to those attributes that are highly predictive, from the consumers viewpoint, of overall website quality, and as such, the website should be designed in a fashion that encourages the consumer to conduct transactions. Additionally, the consumer will be motivated to perform future transactions from this website because they are familiar with the layout and possess a high confidence in the overall quality of the website. 7. Limitations and Future Research   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The primary limitation of this model is that it is an untested conceptual model. The assumptions contained herein are as of yet ungrounded in solid empirical evidence; furthermore, this model was designed around e-commerce websites designed to sell products to end consumers.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Future research could delve into decomposing those elements that are the most highly predictive of website quality. This research could take each dimension and decompose them to their base elements to discover what it is about the dimension that makes it highly predictive of website quality. Additionally, the extrinsic/intrinsic nature of each of the dimensions could be explored to determine how a company can best capitalize on these dimensions when trying to sell the consumer on the quality of their website. Either of these approaches could prove invaluable to the field, as they will begin to give the developer a specific set of principles to follow when developing a high quality website. 8. Conclusion   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Cue Utilization Theory is a concept that has been used in marketing for years to determine why consumers react differently to a given product. The author of this article has overlaid Cue Utilization theory upon WebQual to design a model that is predictive of the dimensions serving to form the consumers overall feel for the quality of a website. Using this model, website designers will be able to build a website that consumers will be more confident in assessing the quality of, and as such, the consumer will gain confidence in performing transactions on this website. 9. References J.S. Valacich, D.V. Parboteeah, and J.D. Wells, â€Å"The online consumers hierarchy of needs,† Commun. ACM, Vol. 50, No. 9, pp. 84-90, 2007. P.S. Richardson, A.S. Dick, and A.K. Jain, â€Å"Extrinsic and intrinsic cue effects on perceptions of store brand quality.,† Journal of Marketing, Vol. 58, No. 4, p. 28, Oct. 1994. E.T. Loiacono, R.T. Watson, and D.L. Goodhue, â€Å"WebQual: An Instrument for Consumer Evaluation of Web Sites.,† International Journal of Electronic Commerce, Vol. 11, No. 3, pp. 51-87, Spring. 2007. â€Å"intrinsic,† The American Heritage ® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. â€Å"extrinsic,† The American Heritage ® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. C. Cappiello, C. Francalanci, and B. Pernici, â€Å"Time-Related Factors of Data Quality in Multichannel Information Systems.,† Journal of Management Information Systems, Vol. 20, No. 3, pp. 71-91, Winter. 2003. D.L. Goodhue and R.L. Thompson, â€Å"Task-Technology Fit and Individual Performance.,† MIS Quarterly, Vol. 19, No. 2, pp. 213-236, Jun. 1995. E.T. Loiacono, D. Chen, and D.L. Goodhue, â€Å"WebQual TM Revisited: Predicting the Intent to Reuse a Web Site,† AMCIS 2002 Proceedings, p. Paper 46, 2002. S. Ghose and W. Dou, â€Å"Interactive Functions and Their Impacts on the Appeal of Internet Presence Sites.,† Journal of Advertising Research, Vol. 38, No. 2, pp. 29-43, Mar. 1998. R.T. Rust and K.N. Lemon, â€Å"E-Service and the Consumer.,† International Journal of Electronic Commerce, Vol. 5, No. 3, pp. 85-101, Spring. 2001. D.H. McKnight, V. Choudhury, and C. Kacmar, â€Å"Developing and Validating Trust Measures for e-Commerce: An Integrative Typology.,† Information Systems Research, Vol. 13, No. 3, pp. 334-359, 2002. R. Pennington, H.D. Wilcox, and V. Grover, â€Å"The Role of System Trust in Business-to-Consumer Transactions.,† Journal of Management Information Systems, Vol. 20, No. 3, pp. 197-226, Winter. 2003. J. Kim, J

Wednesday, November 13, 2019

The Janissaries Of The Ottoman/Turkish Empire Essay -- essays research

The Janissaries of the Ottoman/Turkish Empire   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Janissaries was an elite corp. in the standing army of the Ottoman Empire from the late 14th century to 1826. Highly respected for their military prowess in the 15th and 16th centuries, the Janissaries became a powerful force to be reckoned with on the battlefield, and in government administrations. The janissaries were organized into three unequal divisions: the cemaat, bà ¶là ¼khalki, and segban. The Janissary corps was originally staffed by Christian youths from the Balkan provinces who were converted to Islam on being drafted into the Ottoman service. Another way the Janissaries found new soldiers was by enslaving their enemies and forcing them into service. The sultans gained a great deal by using slave soldiers because they had no ties to family or land and they were remarkably resilient in accepting the ways of Islam. All soldiers must be converted into Islam and taught the proper code of the elite before service. Religious conversion was mandatory an d all soldiers were subject to strict rules, including celibacy. In the late 16th century the celibacy rule and other restrictions were relaxed, and by the early 18th century the original method of recruitment was abandoned.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Whenever the Turks invade foreign lands and capture their people an imperial scribe follows immediately behind them, and whatever boys there are, he takes them all into the janissaries and sends ... The Janissaries Of The Ottoman/Turkish Empire Essay -- essays research The Janissaries of the Ottoman/Turkish Empire   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Janissaries was an elite corp. in the standing army of the Ottoman Empire from the late 14th century to 1826. Highly respected for their military prowess in the 15th and 16th centuries, the Janissaries became a powerful force to be reckoned with on the battlefield, and in government administrations. The janissaries were organized into three unequal divisions: the cemaat, bà ¶là ¼khalki, and segban. The Janissary corps was originally staffed by Christian youths from the Balkan provinces who were converted to Islam on being drafted into the Ottoman service. Another way the Janissaries found new soldiers was by enslaving their enemies and forcing them into service. The sultans gained a great deal by using slave soldiers because they had no ties to family or land and they were remarkably resilient in accepting the ways of Islam. All soldiers must be converted into Islam and taught the proper code of the elite before service. Religious conversion was mandatory an d all soldiers were subject to strict rules, including celibacy. In the late 16th century the celibacy rule and other restrictions were relaxed, and by the early 18th century the original method of recruitment was abandoned.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Whenever the Turks invade foreign lands and capture their people an imperial scribe follows immediately behind them, and whatever boys there are, he takes them all into the janissaries and sends ...

Monday, November 11, 2019

The Curse of the Sacred Fruit

In the beginning of time a serpent slithered through a garden as he notices a soft nude woman walking alone. The serpent comes up behind her and tells the beautiful woman of the apple from a sacred tree that will make her as all knowing and powerful as god. Although god had told this woman to never eat from this sacred tree, she was convinced by the evil snake. After convincing her male companion they both eat the sacred apple and immediately are awaken as their eyes open wide. That very instant they, for the first time in human history, become aware of their physical self; the birth of self hatred of the human form had emerged. Soon after God exiled Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden and dammed their ancestors. Today a young girl stands in front of a mirror disgusted by what is been reflected upon her. This girls struggle against the disease her primordial ancestor had given her is depicted in Eavan Boland’s poem â€Å"Anorexia. † As Boland begins her own demise she is envisioned with the beginning of time where man had not yet fallen and self awareness had not been created; a vision that will consume her to do whatever it takes to go back to Eden. As the speaker stares at the mirror she is consumed with negative thoughts in her mind. She begins to believe her â€Å"flesh is heretic†(line 1) as her body is rejecting her ideal thought of what she wants it to be. Her flesh begins to play tricks on her as it â€Å"Meshed [her] head / in the half-truths†(7-8). Her flesh becomes â€Å"a witch†(2) using tricks to control the girl from not eating. To cure this manipulative disease she is to destroy her exterior. In the following lines the speaker becomes much more explicit in how she is to cure herself: I am burning it Yes I am torching Her curves and peps and wiles They scratch in my self denial Here it shows how she is starving herself by burning away whatever fat remains from her fragile bones that are protruding from her skin as she now becomes â€Å"starved and curveless†(16). Boland begins a slow and painful suicide to bring an end to her disease. Boland falls sleep and enters a vivid dark dream which reveals to her the beginning of her disease. In this vibrant dream she in trapped inside a place she describes as â€Å"a claustrophobia†(22). In this â€Å"sensuous enclosure†(23) she hears the â€Å"warm drum†(25) beat of a man’s heart and the â€Å"song of his breath†(26). â€Å"Sleeping in his side†(27) she is â€Å"a rib†(19). Boland has regressed back to the beginning of time before the sins of Eve when she was only one rib of Adam. In this dream she discovers what she needs to do to get ride of her disease. She wants to return back inside the womb of Adam. To return to Eden were life was blessed with no self-awareness, and no anorexia. She hopes to erase Eve’s mistake of the past and not eat the scared fruit. She will finally be able to live a life without self awareness and end the struggle that has consumed herself against her own flesh. Boland will finally â€Å"grow / angular and holy†(35-36) again. After she is awakened she is obsessed with returning back to Adam and the Garden of Eden to finally be filled with bliss. Returning to Eden â€Å"will make me forget†(40), forget â€Å"the fall†(42) she proclaimed. She will forget the fall of mankind and the creation of the disease that has destroyed her from within. She wants to also forget the hell of what is anorexia as she goes â€Å"into forked dark / into [the] python needs†(43-44). Sadly the only way she can possibly reach the gates of Eden would be through suicide which she has already begun. â€Å"Only a little more†(28) she says, â€Å"only a few more days†(29) until she is dead and can be â€Å"back into him again†(32). It is unknown what happens to the girl next, all we are certain off is that the disease of anorexia had beaten her to nearing or even committing suicide. The â€Å"witch† was able to trick her to figuratively burn herself alive in agony and pain. In the mist of all this, her lack of nutrition caused her to hallucinate of the beginning of time when Humanity was only one being, a time when there was no self awareness and no anorexia, a time when man had not yet fallen. This vision that continues to consume her was merely an illusion from the witch and the serpent. All it was was a mere trick to convince her to committee suicide and break god’s major law. Killing herself to return back to Eden will come to no prevail as suicide will only lead her to an eternity in the depths of hell with the serpent, an eternity of living with anorexia.

Friday, November 8, 2019

Essay on Progressives

Essay on Progressives Essay on Progressives Essay on ProgressivesThe Progressive Movement of the first two decades of the twentieth century had some specific characteristics. The core principles of the Progressive Movement include the growth of American civic nationalism, democracy, patriotism, support for the colonial rule, transformation of society (Bowles, 2011). American In my opinion, the most significant successes of Progressivism were social changes, economic and educational opportunities, public policies and progressive reforms, democratic changes, increased role of government, while the most significant failures were poverty, expansion of racial segregation, and improper measures to address economic depression. In other words, there were some specific economic, social, and political problems that the Progressives sought to address through political liberalism and direct-democracy policies and reforms (The progressive era, 2002). They approached these issues at the local and national levels in different ways, placing e mphasis on federalism and state’s rights. Progressives were not successful in implementing their reforms, e.g. school reform and rapid industrialization reforms, which had some weak points (corruption, poverty). Some variations within Progressivism include the differing agendas of white and black Progressives. The success of specific Progressive policies and approaches were concluded in various social and economic reforms, such as worker’s compensation reform, adoption of laws, which restrict child labor, and minimum wage legislation reform, political reforms (e.g. referendum, reduction of the power of political parties, etc.). The First World War had a strong impact on Progressivism. At the same time, Progressivism affected the First World War by the democratic approach to social and economic reforms, the foreign policy approach. America’s participation in the First World War was based on the idea to make the world open to democracy and stop war actions across the world. Riis (1914) suggests in his book of photography that working class people’s lives in New York were influenced by the war.

Wednesday, November 6, 2019

Catholic Mariology Essays - Marian Devotions, Free Essays

Catholic Mariology Essays - Marian Devotions, Free Essays Catholic Mariology an, who would give all of his followers something they had never had before; faith, and the ability to see others, love others, and talk to others. The basic lines of Catholic Mariology (theology of Mary) are now to talked about and to debated beyond dispute, written as they are in the Scriptures, in the liturgy, in prayer, poetry, song and art, in the writings of saints and theologians and in the teaching of popes and councils. Mary holds a secure place as the mother of Jesus, the greatest of all saints. Mary gives hope and faith to everyone on earth. She is full of love for others and full of love from God. Having conceived the Son of God in her womb by the story of immaculate conception, she remained a virgin throughout life. At the end of her life on earth she was taken to heaven and started a new life in the Lords house. What she did on earth when she was alive she continues to do in heaven. She is being a mother to all the children of earth This teaching, of Mary was made to be the belief of the church over many centuries of debate and dispute. Some popular devotions to Mary today would be celebrating the prayers and feasts that are made to give praise to Mary. Mary is the woman who brought Jesus into this world. She brought in a man who would change the world forever. It is only proper that we praise and worship her. Through prayers, feasts, church services, and the rosary, we can devote times of prayer to her, thanking her for the things she has accomplished throughout her life. A sincere devotion to the Sacred Hearts of Jesus And Mary, lived out in each day's prayer and activity; The promotion of the values of love, fidelity and responsibility in all families; The intentions of fellow Family Members, in union with the prayer life and apostolic work of the Missionaries of the Sacred Hearts; The particular needs and prayer intentions for the family of each Member.

Monday, November 4, 2019

Flexible Labor in Organizations Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Flexible Labor in Organizations - Essay Example The increase in workload forces the employees to search for alternate options like flexible jobs. ‘48% of UK organizations offer flexitime to their employees compared to 90% in Germany, 94% in Sweden and 92% in Finland, and just 20% offer to telework compared to 44% in Germany and Sweden, 40% in Norway and 39% in Denmark.† (The UK’s flexible labor market may no longer be a source of competitive advantage) Flexible work is the option mostly the people are looking for because of the tight working schedules of regular work. Flexible labor has its own merits and demerits both for the organizations and the employees. Most people believe that flexible labor is going to be the future trend in organizations because of the immense benefits attached to it. â€Å"In the early 1970s, one in five American workers was employed by a Fortune 500 company; by the early 1990s, the ratio had dropped to one in ten† (Laubacher & Malone) Big organizations are no longer attractive to many employees because of the tight work schedule and lack of flexibility in work. Nowadays people are more conscious about the working environment rather than the salary alone. People are already living in a stressful world. Problems from family and society along with that from the workplace have made the life of an average person miserable. They wanted to reduce the stress level at any cost and flexible work is one option for reducing the job stress considerably. â€Å"Many observers believe that highly flexible organizational forms--often called networked organizations or virtual corporations--will become increasingly common in the future. Temporary networks of very small companies and independent contractors could undertake much of the work that is performed by large organizations today†Ã‚  

Saturday, November 2, 2019

Globalization at general electrics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Globalization at general electrics - Essay Example First, GE chose to invest aggressively in foreign expansion for the obvious reason of desire to grow the company. Foreign investment results in more branches of the company, and this is directly linked to increased revenues for the company due to the additional branches, which will generate additional profits for the company (Rugman & Collinson 2008). Therefore, GE bought other companies in various countries, which were in a financial jeopardy, and were on the verge of collapsing. GE bought the financially unstable companies at a faster rate, mainly because, this was the only opportunity it had to acquire those companies and expand, since these would be seized by other companies, if GE would not act fast. This is a strategy, which GE used to ensure that its expansion was rapid. Aggressive expansion of GE might have been aimed at ensuring that the company moves closer to most of its customers, since this would be easier and cheaper for the company to address the various concerns and n eeds of its customers, while increasing its total sales revenue. In addition, international expansion by GE was intended for the company to increase its customer base, since this would acquire more and new customers in the new geographical locations that it established itself. In addition, GE chose to expand because of the company’s wish to deal with their foreign markets on a higher level. By adopting globalization, GE wanted to prove that the relationship between the company and its foreign markets was strong enough to allow the country to directly invest in the foreign countries, while being assured of profits. Rugman & Collinson (2008) argued that it not enough for a company to be shipping its products to foreign countries. Instead, a company should consider getting closer to its customers in the foreign markets, and establish a close relationship with them, to boost revenue and address consumer needs appropriately. Finally, GE might have chose to expand internationally i n order to save on the costs it incurred in the form of wages for its employees. Employees in other countries outside the United States are paid lower salaries and wages, mainly because of the economic status of their country, which is usually lower, compared to the United States. Therefore, most American multinationals choose to expand outside the United States in order to explore these lower wages (Rugman & Collinson 2008). Question 2 According to Birkinshaw, Braunerhjelm, Holm & Terjesen (2006), the corporate headquarters of a company plays a valuable role in influencing the relationships between the company and the financial markets, as well as its stakeholders. Stakeholders of a company include customers, as well as the competitors of the company, which are the most important stakeholders of a company. Therefore, by moving its headquarters to foreign markets, GE wanted to influence the relationship with its customers in the foreign countries. This would result in a stronger rel ationship than the one that existed previously. Most companies claim that the decision to move their headquarters to foreign countries is influenced by their desire to be in close proximity with their international customers (Rugman & Collinson 2008). In the case of GE, like most companies, this company has moved most of its headquarters of its other businesses from the U.S.A. to other foreign countries.