For A Lot Of Us Growing Up, Our Mothers Have Been An Integral Part Of

For a lot of us growing up, our mothers have been an integral part of what made us who we are. They have been the one to forgive us when no one else could. They have been the one to comfort us when the world seemed to turn to evil. They have been the one to shelter us when the rain came pouring down. And most importantly, they have been the one to love us when we needed it the most. In "Two Kinds," by Amy Tan, Jing-mei is a young daughter of a Chinese immigrant. Growing up she had to endure being raised by an overbearing mother as well as deal with psychological struggles within herself. She had to learn how to become a woman on her own terms. Throughout the story, her mother repeatedly pressures Jing-mei to be something that she is not. She wants Jing-mei to somehow become a prodigy child. She has such high hopes for her daughter that she doesn't realize the amount of distress she causes Jing-mei. Like all good mothers, she only wants the best for her child. Since immigrating to America, she believes that anything can be accomplished and she uses her daughter as her outlet to prove it. She continuously gives Jing-mei numerous tests to memorize bible passages and world capitals, and eventually coerces her into taking piano lessons, which becomes the prime focus of her ?perfect daughter' determination. Jing-mei reacts extremely negatively to this pressure. This is only exemplified when she states, "'I won't let her change me, I promised myself. I won't be what I am not." She is forced to take a stance against her mother primarily because she doesn't want to be forced into becoming something that she is not. Jing-mei feels s he must become her true self, a person whom she feels her mother is not to determine for her. Jing-mei feels uncomfortable with her mother putting so much pressure on her. She is on a continuous struggle within herself to find who she really is. She is constantly distraught over torn feelings of wanted to become her true self and making her mother proud. Still, as time goes on it proves to be better to go against the tide, go against her mother's wishes. "And after seeing my mother's disappointed face once again, something inside of me began to die. I hated the tests, they raised hopes and failed expectations." This quote only exemplifies her troubled feelings of inadequacy that her mother's expectations created. She sobbed and said during an argument, I'll never be the kind of daughter you want me to be! She asked, Why don't you like me the way I am? The only way she could handle her mother's expectations was to always succumb to defeat. By the end of the story the outlook on these pressures take a different turn. Jing-mei has matured from a girl into a woman and, as a peace offering, her mother offers to give her the piano?the main object of adversity between the two of them. This offers her the realization that she has become herself on her own terms, even with all of this hardship In this story, the piano symbolizes different things for the two of them. For Jing-mei, it symbolized the unwanted stress her mother inflicts upon her, the pressure to become someone she is not. And, for her mother it symbolizes the hope in the child, the hope that she will become a prodigy child, the hope that coming to America gave her. "America was where all my mother's hopes lay.'' This statement only reiterates this free hope America and the piano gave her. The piano piece she had once struggled to play as a child was entitled Pleading Child and was very slow and difficult. She saw that on the next page was a song called Perfectly Contented which was quick and happy. These were two halves of the same song, which is symbolization to her life. During her childhood she had felt dissatisfied with her life and with the choices she was forced to make. As an adult she was offered the piano she had found her inner peace. She had reconciled the issues of her

PODCAST Build a Marketing Strategy For 9,360% Bigger Results

PODCAST Build a Marketing Strategy For 9,360% Bigger Results Are you getting more out of your marketing than you’re putting into it? Nathan Ellering is the head of demand generation at , and he wants you to be able to say that you’re getting the results you want from your marketing, your content, and your social media. Nathan is also the author of The Ultimate Guide to Marketing Strategy, so he’s a bit of an expert on the topic! We’re going to be talking to him today about how you can generate quality leads, get the traffic and traction that you want, and make your marketing strategy a success. What Nathan does at as the head of demand generation. The story behind the launch of the Ultimate Guide to Marketing Strategy: what it includes, why it was necessary to write it, how it’s different, and why you should check it out. Nathan also shares why he created it as a microsite as opposed to a blog. The importance of following the acronym SMART when you’re setting your goals. An explanation of what 10x content is and how Nathan makes it work for him. How Nathan recommends tracking marketing ROI to be sure that your content is doing what it’s supposed to do. How to prioritize within your marketing strategy. The concept of goals-driven budgeting. Nathan’s best advice for someone just starting a marketing strategy. Links: The Ultimate Guide to Marketing Strategy Google Analytics 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 Nathan: â€Å"Marketers who document their strategy are 538 percent more likely to report success than those who don’t.† â€Å"The goals-driven budgeting methodology requires you to set your goals first, then plan your budget to make the goals a reality.† â€Å"As a marketer, your first blog post won’t be good and your first ad is probably going to suck, but you need to do it. You need to ship something and you need to continuously improve.†

The Madoff Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

The Madoff - Essay Example the Madoff In some cases the companies around the world, collaborate and act in regards to each other so as to form a collusive or cartel kind of a behaviour and activity. This creates the scenario where the companies purposely cheat the common people or players in the market in regards to their money or other basic rights. In this case, the focus is on the securities fraud created by Bernard Madoff. Discussing about the origin of the fraud, it needs to be stated that the securities firm was started by Bernard Madoff in the year 1960 under the name of Bernard L Madoff Investment Securities LLC. The company was based in New York and was under the sole ownership of Bernard Madoff. Bernard Madoff also headed an investment advisory business which focused on taking billions of dollars from multiple wealthy individuals, institutional investors and middle class people. The middle class people were made to invest through feeder funds which belonged to that of Tremont Capital Management and Fairfield Gr eenwich Advisors. The performance record of Madoff was pretty impressive as well. Over a long period of around 15 years, he incurred a loss of around 13 months only. To keep a growth record which is clear of any suspicions from the investors, the owner of the investing firm Bernard Madoff kept showing annual gains of around 10 percent on an annual basis. It is important to note that under the facade of sterling performance of the companies owned by Madoff, the greatest Ponzi scheme that might have existed in the financial sector of the world till date was pulled off. The reality behind the sterling performance of the companies owned by Madoff is that a Ponzi scheme was being executed where Madoff focused on using the money provided by new investors to repay the obligations of the previous ones. All the highly profitable facts, figures and reports that were displayed by the companies held by Madoff were completely fake in nature. Reports from various reliable sources highlight that on the December of 2008, Bernard Madoff had a meeting with his sons, where he disclosed that the entire business is complete fake and the fact that he owes around 7 billion USD to multiple clients. In that meeting he also wanted to distribute the Christmas bonus of the employees earlier than usual. After the meeting, the Madoff Juniors consulted with their individual and private attorney who placed the call to officials of the federal government on the evening of December 10. On 11 December, 2008 Bernard Madoff was finally arrested for the execution of a 65 billion USD Ponzi scheme. As of March 2009, Bernard Madoff was pleaded guilty in connection to around 11 acts of felony, which included the fraud of securities. After the weeks, following the arrest of Madoff, investors who lost out on large sums of money filed a number of class action lawsuits under the Southern District of New York (Benson, 3). 2. Explanation of the Madoff Fraud While explaining the Madoff Fraud for this particular assignment, it needs to be stated the entire explanation can be done in regards to the five tragic truisms that are very essential to be discussed and properly related in the assignment. First Tragic Truism The first tragic truism belongs to the category of people. The truism that has been discussed here states that a majority of

The Faster Flow of New Information in Order to Ensure Proper Learning Essay - 9

The Faster Flow of New Information in Order to Ensure Proper Learning - Essay Example Learning ought to be an active process whereby students come up with constructive ideas depending on their current or past events. Research proves that interactions and motivation influences construction. Teacher’s focus is to create a connection between facts and to ensure better understanding among learners. This approach gives learners the opportunity to analyze, predict and interpret information. It means that students are involved fully in finding solutions to the problem. Consequently, interactive learning proves effective in education. Information is easily absorbed by the memory for the purpose of filtration. The teacher wanted the information that he was passing to be store on the short-term memory by letting the learners draw the ball. Primarily, short term memory is where the controlling takes place in terms of rehearsal, coding, decision and retrieval strategies of the information. It allows learners to relate past events with the present; hence improves their abil ities to accommodate fresh ideas. Most importantly, the information is easily transferred to the long-time memory store for encoding and retrieval. Admittedly, the use of techniques that link short-term memory with long-term memory is effective in education (Cole, 2008). Learners are required to be able to use the approach of processing information. In addition, learners must be able to absorb and accommodate new facts. At first, when Lucy encountered the word platypus, she enquired from her father what it meant. Her father told her that platypus was an animal. By relating the word platypus to her prior knowledge of what animals are, she can then classify the information.

Sources of Errors as a Student, Employee, Business Owner Essay Example for Free

Sources of Errors as a Student, Employee, Business Owner Essay Error Proofing/Poka-Yokes: The most useful mean for the lean incessant improvement is that of poka-yokes. The idea actually is to develop countermeasures that give protection against errors and mistakes that occur in a process. If we follow these countermeasures, we would be considered secure from many errors which can be disastrous for us. The idea to make every aspect of life error proof permeates our education sector, our attitude as employees, and as business owners. 1. Student Errors:Â  * The common error made by the students is to choice their profession, which may not be according to their capabilities and talent. Therefore, it is necessary to choose the profession according to the talent and abilities. * There are students, irregular in their studies because they do not manage a proper schedule for studies. To avoid this, they need to plan for their study goals properly. 2. Employees Errors: * The relationship of an employee with his boss and colleagues matters a lot in understanding his nature of working. He must have the ability to follow the management decisions and direct his subordinates properly. * Violation of rules from the employee’s side. Every organization has its rules and every employees needs to follow these rules in order to work for the benefit of the organization. 3. Business Owner Errors: * Failure of any business is that when business owners don’t set their goals to attain. So in order to avoid the failure there must be strategy and rules. * Business owner may not have strength to get the required quality of work from workers. He must have grip on every aspect of his business. 4. Personal Life Errors: * Some people do not have clarity in their life. It is one of the major error or mistake of life. One must set goals to enjoy a successful life. * Some people are trying to find the shortcuts for enjoying a successful life which may prove fatal for them. Therefore, go for hard work rather to find shortcut paths.

Mass Media Is Always A Powerful Tool Media Essay

Mass Media Is Always A Powerful Tool Media Essay Introduction From the past until today, mass media is always a powerful tool and having a big influence among the peoples. No one can assert that mass media was bring zero effect to the peoples. On the 18th century, the first theory about mass media theory was being introduced. The theory is about how strong the media can directly influence the people perception and action. Over the years, there are many theories are being introduced. Mass media theories are commonly used at the age of propaganda and one of the most successful propaganda is Nazis propaganda during World War 1. Propaganda is to influence public opinion through the use of media. Nazi Propaganda was generated in many different forms of media such as radio, cinema, speeches, visuals, events, brochures and etc. Besides that, there are also many famous mass media theory being introduced like magic bullet theory, freudianism, behaviorism and etc. There are a lot of arguments about the mass media theories from the past until today. Some philosopher disputes that media are bringing negative influence to the public, and they claim that media should be under control. However, there are also some theories explain that it brings positive effect such as libertarianism theory says that people are good and rational. So that, they support the media should have the freedom to report on everything and let the public to judge by themselves. Although there many debates about the usage of mass media, but no one can deny or underestimate the power of mass media. Mass media play as an important tool in nowadays, and there are no advanced countries banned the media. In fact, this means that every advanced country also rely on the media to communicate with their citizen. Media work as a tools for government to spread the news and promote their latest policy to the public. The mainstream media in Malaysia has always been perceived as an important agent of change for most of the governments policies. The mainstream media are newspaper, television station and radio station. The mainstream media are used to encourage the acceptance of the concept by the citizens of Malaysia. On 16 September 2010, Malaysia Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak was introducing 1Malaysia concept to all corners of the nation. The concept is about the culture of excellence, perseverance, acceptance, education, integrity, meritocracy, humility and loyalty. One of the main objectives of this concept is unity and integration. 1Malaysia aims to improve the relations among Malaysians, regardless of racial, religious or cultural backgrounds. As we know, Malaysia is a multi-racial country and the three main races of Malaysia are Malay, Chinese and Indian. Besides that, Malaysia also forms by several minority races such as Baba-Nyonya, Kadazan, Ibans, Eurasian, Orang Asli and etc. The concept of 1Malaysia is to achieve all races living together hand-in-hand in harmony. In addition, 1Malaysia is also the concept to achieve the goal of Vision 2020 which introduced by Malaysia 4th prime minister Tun Dr. Mahathir Bin Mohammad. Vision 2020 is about evolution Malaysia to a fully develop country in the year 2020. 1Malaysia concept aims to strengthen unity, rejuvenate the spirit of unity and camaraderie among people of Malaysia. Najib said the concept would be implemented in an organized and systematic manner to ensure that no community was isolated from development of and kind. He said the concept was shored up by two main principles, which were mutual respect for one another and trust in one another. When we have respect for one another, it means we have the open attitude of appreciating the concept of unity in diversity. The trust for one another will not come about all of a sudden. It has to be developed in an organized and determined way. he said. To achieve development for the country, the people must have a positive attitude of acceptance among the different races that will lead to unity. In short, the concept is to improve race relations in Malaysia and the mainstream media play as a key in order to achieve the goals. Propaganda Propaganda aimed to influencing the attitude of a community toward some cause or position by presenting only one side of an argument. Propaganda is usually repeated and dispersed over a wide variety of media in order to create the chosen result in audience attitudes. The desired result is a change of the attitude toward the subject in the target audience to further a political or religious agenda. Moreover, propaganda also can be used as a form of political warfare. One of the most successful propaganda is Nazis propaganda during World War 1. The propaganda being use after Hitler took power in 1933 Richard Alan Nelson define that propaganda is a systematic form of purposeful persuasion that attempts to influence the emotion, attides, opinions, and actions of specified target audiences for ideological, political or commercial purposes through the controlled transmission of one-sided message via mass and direct media channels. A propaganda organization employs propagandists who engage in propagandism applied creation and distribution of such forms of persuasion. By focusing on the 1Malaysia concept, the theory was been used commonly in Malaysia. The people can always get in touch with 1Malaysia concept in Malaysia. The government is always propagandizing the 1Malaysia concept to Malaysians. Common media for transmitting propaganda messages include news reports, government reports, historical revision, books, movies, radio, television, posters and etc. For example, we can always see the poster that Najib with the 1Malaysia significant pose and the significant pose was been recognized by the Malaysians. Other than that, Malaysian also can find out 1Malaysias logo everywhere. Moreover, 1Malaysia is also come out with a theme song, and the lyric is kita satu bangsa, satu negara, kita satu Malaysia and it means we are one nation, one country and one Malaysia. This all action is also trying to influence the public opinion through the use of media. They want people to remember the 1Malaysia concept and they remind people every day and want people to change their attitudes. Political Economy Theory Political economy theorists study elite control of economic institutions, such as banks and stock markets, and then try to show how this control affects many others social institutions, including the mass media. Political economy is the interplay between economics, law and politics and how institutions develop in different social and economic systems. It also says that to understand the media, ones must look at the whole picture which includes the ownership of media and the control group of media. In Malaysia, the elite will be the government and most of the mainstream media are privatization but all the media are related to the government and political party. In fact, Fleet Holding, a company which is under the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) has the 80% share of the News Straits Times Press and majority share in Utusan Melayu Press. These two presses are also producing the newspapers which have the largest readership in Malaysia. Moreover, the company also owns the share of 40% of Malaysia television station, TV3. In the other hand, Huaren holding Sdn. Bhd which link to Malaysian Chinese Association (MCA) have the share 58% of the other Malaysia English paper, TheStar Newspaper. From this we can found out that the Malaysia mainstream media have a close relationship with the political parties. It was easy to reach a large audience by promoting 1Malaysia concept. The government or political party can show the benefits of the concept bring at the newspaper. People are more tend to believe what the newspapers carry. For example, 175 1Malaysia clinics by year end are reported on the TheStar newspaper on September 15, 2012. In fact, when the newspapers always carry the positive news of 1Malaysia concept, it helps to gain supports from Malaysia citizens. Authoritarianism Authoritarian theory describe that all forms of communications are fully under the control of the government. Authoritarians are necessary to control the media to protect and prevent the people from the national threats through any form communication. As we know, Malaysia is an authoritarian country and all the media are fully control by the government. Basically, the government has all rights to permit any media and control it by providing license. If any media violate the government policies against license, then the authority has all right to cancel the license and revoke it. In fact, Malaysia also comes out with a law which is Printing Presses and Publication Act 1984. This is use to control the usage of printing presses in Malaysia. Under the law, all printing presses require a license granted by the Home Affair Minister and require to renewing the license. Besides that, Malaysia government also makes certain censorship. Censorship is a suppression of any communication which may consider as harmful to the people, king, government and the country. The censorship helps to protect the rulers and authorities from sensitive issues. It used to protect the government to avoid been criticize by the media. The government has all right to restrict any sensitive issues from press to maintain peace and security in the nation. This was a powerful ability for the government and it helps to promote the 1Malaysia concept. Agenda Setting Theory The idea of agenda setting began in 1922 with Walter Lippmanns Public Opinion book. The originally suggested that the media sets the public agenda, in the sense that they may not exactly tell you what to think, but they may tell you what to think about. The three consequences of agenda setting effects are forming opinions, priming opinions through an emphasis on particular issues and shaping an opinion through an emphasis on particular attributes. First, it studied by the researchers, media use issues to influence the people what people should think about. And then media focus on the characters of issues how people should think about. The agenda setting theory are commonly used by the politician. The gatekeeper plays as an important role in this theory and usually the media is the one who play as a gatekeeper. Gatekeeper controls over the selection of content discussed in the media. The media only show you what they comprehend as an important issue. Due to the Malaysia was an authoritarian country and the media are fully control by the government, the government can use the media to publicize the 1Malaysia concept. When the media publicize the 1Malaysia concept and it will become agenda setting theory. The media will indirectly tell the public what they have to discuss and what they have to focus. When the issue becomes a discussion among the Malaysians, it will strengthen the acceptance of the concept by the citizens. Marxist Theory Central to Marxist theory is an explanation of social change in terms of economic factors, according to which the means of production provide the economic base which influences or determines the political and ideological superstructure. Marxism encompasses an economic theory, a sociological theory, a philosophical method and a revolutionary view of social change. Marx argued that the hierarchical class system was at the root of all social problems and must be ended by a revolution of the workers. He believed that elites dominated society primarily through their direct control over the means of production, the base, or substructure, of society. But elites also maintained themselves in power through their control over culture. The inequalities between social classes are still happening in today society. For example, the riots happened in Malaysia on 13 May 1969 was an important incident in Malaysia history. The incident make the government emphasizes on the economy balance between the races and it come out with a policy which is New Economic Policy. Although this incident happen many years ago, but the problem of social classes are still remain in Malaysia today. The government member and royal family of Malaysia are call as the aristocrat in Marxist theory. In order for the government to maintain their status quo, the elite own the capitalism with their base. For example, Malaysias second privatize TV station Metrovision, the four share holder company was closely related to UMNO. The companies are City television Sdn.Bhd, Melewar Corporation, Utusan Melayu and Medanmas Sdn. Bhd. 1Malaysia concept aims to improve the citizens living standard to escape from poverty. In fact, the government is the one who control of the superstructure which are the media. 1Malaysia concept is also helps the government to maintain their status and their power. The government wants to maintain their status and also achieve the peaceful among citizen or bourgeoisie and proletariat in Marxist theory. 1 Malaysia concept is the best way to achieve the goal for the benefit of country or benefit of the elite through the ownership of mainstream media and control of the message production-ideology. Conclusion In conclusion, the media was always a powerful tool from past to now. In 21th century, media are becoming more powerful in this digital era, because people nowadays cant avoid getting in touch with media. Media was able to directly and also indirectly influence the people. So, the government should always use the media in a correct way. In fact, the mainstream media in Malaysia has always been perceived as an important agent of change for most of the governments policies. Malaysia government was able to make full use of the media and skillfully use the media to promote the 1Malaysia concept. In short, government make good use of media is one of the key to lead our country evolve to an advanced country to achieve the vision 2020 and also the 1Malaysia concept.

How I’Ve Changed over the Past Year

How I Have changed over the past year? Humans are as changeable as the weather. Or perhaps a more frequent changer. And being one myself I’m no different. Every night when I look back to the previous day I see no change. But when I look back to the year that has just passed, I do see the difference. The experiences I went through changed me to a better or may be something close to a reformation. Nevertheless I’m not the same anymore I was always known to be short-tempered and egoistic. But last year one incident really changed the way I was and thought. My sudden fluctuations in temper made me lose a lot of friends and the loneliness I was in taught me to be more friendly and patient. My friends always knew how to react to my rudeness but unfortunately I forgot my new friends were not accustomed to it. I met some buddies in a friend’s birthday party, last year, who were more than just casual acquaintances. One of them dropped coke over my new silk dress and that did it! I started yelling at her without noticing I am ruining the party. To my surprise the girl started crying and ran away while I was left standing clueless. The birthday boy came up and said â€Å"I think you better go wash yourself, Sunnu, before the spots get dry. I’ll call you later. † He never called and probably would not have if I had not met him in a mall a few days later. â€Å"Yes, I didn’t. But neither did you. † He answered when I asked why he did not call. â€Å"But you said ‘you’ will call. â€Å"Yes, but don’t you think you were at fault and should have taken the first step and said sorry? † I was very confused. I did not know what he meant. Why should ‘I’ be sorry? It was ‘her’ fault, not mines. But now I know why he did not. I was too egoistic to even think of being sorry, let alone saying it. She did a mistake unintentionally, but I did a bigger mistake by not doing what I should have done – forgive and forget. I realized this when one day one of my friends told me â€Å"Sunnu, you never accept the fact that even ‘you’ can make mistakes. You are always too angry to even think what other people might feel at your choice of words. † I was lonely. My friends had left me trying every possible ways to make me realize. But this lone feeling gave me time to think over everything and that is when I realized how wrong I was. One day, one week, one month and in a year I changed myself. I was a reformed Sunayna. I was better and the proof is all the old friends and many new ones happily smiling on the pictures in my â€Å"My Friends† album on Facebook.

Arguments in Favour of Single-Sex Schools

The subject on individual sex schools has drawn broad and different sentiments in the public sphere for a long clip. Persons, groups, establishments and governments have so far presented different ideas sing the subject. By definition, the phrase, â€Å"single sex school† means a signifier of a school where by male childs and misss attend different schools. To be precise, individual schools implies, misss go toing a school that is specifically for misss while male childs go toing a schools that is specifically for male childs. Therefore, individual school unlike the conventional or instead traditional schools ( assorted schools ) is an political orientation that even though has been in existed for a long clip, some people in the community feels it is a good thought that need to be embraced. Meanwhile, there are some people excessively who feel that misss and male childs should larn together in the same school as it will assist them develop together as one. Regardless of the ma ny ideas that have been presented opposing the position, individual sex schools when implemented, they are good for instruction. One of the grounds why individual sex schools are good for instruction is that ; they create a feeling of safety, encourages pupils to encompass their life style every bit good as detering any signifier of distraction in the class of prosecuting their dreams through instruction. There are a figure of pupils whose instruction has been affected due deficiency of concentration in category. This is because some pupils find it so difficult to concentrate when they are in a conventional category. This is a job that is really common with male childs as opposed to misss. Boys tend to lose focal point in a category of assorted gender because they will be seeking to move different in order to pull their female category couples. Worse still, it is truly difficult for male childs to concentrate on larning while there are a watercourse of cunning ladies to look up to in the same category. However, it is of import to observe besides that, this job does non impact all male childs but so the per cen tum of male childs who get distracted from larning because of beautiful misss in category is higher as opposed to the per centum that does non acquire affected ( The Many Advantages of Single-Sex Schools, n.p ) . Meanwhile, there are a figure of misss who get affected excessively when in a conventional school. This arises on affairs refering safety. Psychologically, immature misss fear being touched physically. This creates fear among them and as such they are non in a place of set abouting their surveies in a normal manner. On the other manus, female pupils will experience free and safe if they are enrolled in a female school where by they are meeting fellow misss. This creates assurance and therefore s encouragements their academic public presentation, a clear indicant that same sex schools are good for instruction. On top of that, it is besides factual that both male childs and misss develop different in the procedure of turning up. This is apparent given the fact that, misss dev elop quicker every bit compared to boys. Furthermore, the believing capacity of ladies grows exponential faster as opposed to that of male childs. This indicates that the demands of misss are to some extent different from that of male childs. Therefore, there is demand to promote individual sex schools that will assist misss and male childs understand the demands of their bodies’ good which finally can be translated to good public presentation ( Single-Gender Classes, n.p ) . Harmonizing to Gilbert ( par. 5 and 6 ) , the instruction system has been stormed by females as opposed to males. Gilbert presents his determination that, the figure of female decision makers in most schools is higher as compared to males in many schools. He besides states that, the figure of female instructors in assorted schools is higher than those of male instructors. Gilbert besides observes that, female pupils have the ability to detect their emotions good as opposed to pupils. On top of that misss are besides known to be better readers as opposed to male childs. Worse still, the current instruction system tend to stress more on cooperation. This leaves male childs stranded in their surveies, because they prefer more physical actions and competition. In fact, Gilbert asserts that, this type of system favours misss who excel while the public presentation of male childs keep on deteriorating. In his decision, Gilbert therefore argues that, assorted schools merely favours misss as opposed to male childs. In his justification, he asserts that, coeducational schools affects male childs in that they lose attending in acquisition, every bit good as stoping up enduring from developmental upsets. Therefore, Gilbert suggests that, the best manner to advance equality in instruction for both male childs and misss is to follow scorch sex schools given that coeducational schools tend to prefer misss as opposed to male childs. Another position as to why individual sex schools are good for instruction as opposed to coeducational schools is from the point of instructors. Given that the behaviour and demands of both male childs and misss are different, teachers’ public presentation is besides affected in the procedure of bringing in category. This sis because, there is no uniformity in footings of nearing different issues in the same category. As such, a instructor must handle a boy different every bit good as a miss in a alone manner excessively. This affects teachers’ preciseness. However, encompassing scorch sex schools, instructors will be able to associate their instructions methodological analysis to the behaviour of their pupils and therefore good for instruction ( The Many Advantages of Single-Sex Schools, n.p ) . Meanwhile, an environment plays a great function in pupil public presentation. A favourable acquisition environment contributes to high public presentation of pupils as opposed to an unfavourable environment. A relaxed environment is good for a acquisition set up as opposed to a helter-skelter environment. This works for both male childs and misss. However, one thing that need to be clear is that in coeducational schools, male childs and misss try every bit much as possible to affect one another. In so making they feel fixed in that they are supposed to move in a mode that attracts one another. In the procedure, a miss or a male child may fear inquiring a inquiry because she/he may believe it will non affect their opposite sex opposite numbers. This affects the pupils in showing themselves openly and if continues for a long clip, it becomes a wont that can non and will ne'er be erased. Actually it becomes portion of their life and accompanies them in the remainder of their unrecorded. In comparing to individual sex schools, pupils have cipher to affect and as such, they fear less in inquiring inquiries, that is an of import component in larning. Furthermo re, the ability to prosecute with others without experiencing intimidated by the gender of the opposite sex flicker arguments and conversation that enhances instruction in a positive mode ( Kennedy, n.p ) . Indeed, instruction is one of import gift to both male childs and misss. It is through instruction that male childs and misss can be able to accomplish their assorted dreams in life. Therefore, there is demand to accommodate a theoretical account that works for both of them. Over clip, there has been a argument as to whether individual sex schools improve pupil public presentation. This argument has drawn a batch of positions from the pupils themselves, parents/guardians, instructors, human support groups every bit good as the legal authorization. Even though there are opposing positions refering the encouragement of individual sex schools on the premiss that ; they tend to divide misss and male childs doing them fear one another and therefore taking to isolation every bit good as lending to high degree of divorce in the long tally, individual sex schools are good for instruction for assorted ground. One of them is that they encourage a feeling of safety, promotes a feeling of safety every bit good as avoiding any signifier of distractions. Another ground is the fact that boys and misss develop otherwise every bit good the undeniable truth that schools are stormed by females as opposed to males, which makes male childs uncomfortable. On top of that, instructors are besides more productive in individual sex schools as opposed to coeducational schools due to uniformity. Furthermore, individual sex schools enables pupils to prosecute in arguments and conversation without any signifier of gender based bullying. Plants Cited Gilbert, Michael. â€Å" Single-sex Schools Help Children Thrive. †The Christian Science Monitor. The Christian Science Monitor. Web. 4 May 2015. Kennedy, Robert. â€Å" What Are the Advantages of Single Sex Education? † Web. 4 May 2015. â€Å" Single-Gender Classs: Are They Better? †Education World:. Web. 4 May 2015. â€Å" The Many Advantages of Single-Sex Schools. †CRC Health Group. Web. 4 May 2015.

The Date Palms Industry in UAE Essay Sample

The Date Palms Industry in UAE Essay Sample The Date Palms Industry in UAE Analysis Essay The Date Palms Industry in UAE Analysis Essay The date palms industry in UAE is a vast industry that generates a significant amount of revenue and employment for people. The industry had been in existence for several thousand years and was the main source of income before oil was discovered in the region. As an agricultural industry, date palms offer a large compensation for the Sahara region because it provides work and sustenance for over 60% of the population. Basically, date palms are an agricultural relief for an area with very extreme temperatures like the UAE among other countries. The date palms are found in areas that are arid or semi arid, but with a water supply either as an oasis, a river like the Nile for Egypt, or an irrigation system as used in other parts of the desert nations. Aside from the fruits that are considered an Arabic delicacy all over the world, date palms are also useful in the making of confectionery and sweets, as well as baking products among other things. In addition, the industry not only provid es labor in the production department, but also in marketing, processing, packaging and exporting as well as local supply and vending. Thus, it can be considered as a very lucrative industry in the UAE and beyond. Considering how vast and extensive the date industry is in the UAE, this research proposal is aimed at examining the details of the industry with regards to the culture, history, benefits, and types of date palms cultivated in the UAE. The study involves examining companies that deal in the date palm industry to establish how they operate, and the driving force behind them in a bid to establish just how beneficial date palms are to the social and economic well being of the UAE. Date Palms In their analysis, Alhudaib, Arocha, Wilson and Jones (2007) established that date palms belong to the Palmae family, and their scientific name is Phoenix dactylifera. Just like other palms, they are tall with a great capacity to survive in high saline conditions and water scarcity. As a fruit tree, the date palm outdoes all other fruit trees with regards to tolerance and value considering it can be replaced in a very short time and can be used continuously under good conditions without being completely depleted of its resources. In more ways, the date palm can be considered as an exotic fruit that is tied to the heavenly religions and with the most emphasis in Islam considering even mentioning in the Koran and thus takes on a central position in the meals especially during Ramadan and other religious festivities (Al-Maary, 1995). Date palms are also a great part of the socio economic structure in many nations, most Arabic including Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Iran, United Arab Emirates, Pa kistan, Algeria, Sudan, Oman, Libya, and Tunisia (Oxford Business Group, 2009). This plant does especially well in areas otherwise considered to be barren and beat up by the sun and other degrading forces of nature. Furthermore, it can be stated that date palms are not as demanding as many other fruit trees, and thus they are able to do well in some of the harshest conditions known to plant life. Also, considering that the fruits do not all ripen at the same time, these plants provide the farmer with sufficient harvesting work in the ripening season as they have to be waited before they can be harvested. Also, the fruits are consumed worldwide and thus have quite a large market for the large volumes produced in the Sahara region and beyond. In their research, Oxford Business Group (2009) establishes that date palm is a highly tolerant plant and its fruit is a drupe with one seed which shape and size depends on the variety. The tree is propagated from either the seeds or the offshoots which only grow in the first four to five years after planting and have to be removed carefully to avoid damaging the entire plant. The fruits also do not ripen at the same time and thus harvesting is occurring later and not at once as in the case with other fruits. Various varieties produce different fruits with some being soft, others semi dry and others simply dry. They all however have a pleasant taste and are healthy, complete and with a very high energy content. The date palms are best suited for desert regions of the Arabic Peninsula, Sahara and Sabel (Oxford Business Group, 2009). In the UAE, the date palms are largely grown in three main regions which include the Western and Eastern Coastal areas as well as the Inland areas and Oases (Noack, 2007). The country has dedicated itself to cultivating date palms in all regions in which the trees can grow as it is considered not only as an agricultural oil well, but also as an enabler of agriculture owing to the shielding properties of the tall trees and deep roots. Moreover, they are believed to protect the shorter trees and annual crops from harsh weather conditions like excessive heat from direct sunlight, and the strong desert winds. The fruits are also highly nutritious and have both a cultural and religious value to people of the UAE. Unlike other regions which devote their date palms plantations only to areas with a natural water supply, UAE uses underground water supply in some of its date palms plantations to increase the amount of land that is viable for its cultivation. It is for this specific reason, along with the fact that the UAE is a geographically endowed nation with vast expanses of land at its disposal that have propagated the nation to the status of world’s highest producer of date palms. The History of Date Palms The history of date palms, along with the history of many other crops, has been hard to trace accurately. However, studies place the date palms as far back as 4000 BC with appearances in many historic writings and geological findings that include the Egyptian civilization, Syria and larger Mesopotamia. The fruit is also extensively mentioned in Islamic writings and it must have existed well before the religion has been founded. Currently, the cultivation of these date palms is largely limited to the Arabic countries in the Arabian Peninsula and the Sahara region stretching from Egypt all the way to Nigeria. All these countries draw their inspiration from the fruit’s global consumers who are attracted by its exotic nature besides the nutritional values. The date palms are largely considered as a natural part of the ecosystem in the Gulf region. Most of the population cannot imagine a land without date palms as they have grown to see them as a part of the environment (UN Press Release, 2004). Even in ancient stories that are passed down from generation to generation, date palms are frequently mentioned implying they have always existed. While these fruits may not have originally come from the UAE, they are an irreplaceable part of its historical heritage and now even more as a part of its socio economic construct. In the UAE, date palms were just another fruit trees and were largely produced for local consumption and for the tourism industry. However, under the leadership of the President, the crop began receiving much more consideration as an opportunity to build a civilized society that can sustain itself through agriculture and not just depending on the oil industry. As a result of this opinion and vision, the UAE increased its production of date palms by more than 4000% in a span of about 10 years. Date Palms in the Culture of UAE As a largely desert country, the UAE does not have many crops to boast about. However, the country has very deep attachments to the date palms. Historically, these fruit trees were considered heavenly by the ancient religions and they also were symbols of God’s mercy with regards to its ability to withstand the scorching desert sun and severe water scarcity and provide fruits for people to live on (UN Press Release, 2004). The UAE is largely Islamic, in that Islam is not only the state religion, but also largely the only religion that can and should be practiced within state borders. This means that every citizen has a tie to the date palms considering it has religious roots. Moreover, the fruits are offered as gifts and blessings, and make up a large part of the menu during religious festivities that include the Holy Month of Ramadan. In this sense, the entire population of the UAE recognizes these fruit trees and acknowledges their centrality in the religious practices and festivities. Also, there are quite a number of tourists who visit the UAE and are taken through the date palms culture and history thus increasing their interest in the fruit. Most of the produce, before exportation picked up, was actually meant for tourists and local consumption. To this day, the country has a date palms festival during which visitors are encouraged to buy various types of date palms at very competitive prices from different producers and marketers available. Generally, the nation’s leadership has a lot of faith in the country’s agricultural potential with special regard for the date palm and this faith has played a great role in pushing the UAE to its current status away from oil dependence. As a visionary leader, the President continues to lead the nation into an era of abundant wealth and prosperity that is not dependent on the oil resources of the Gulf region, and agriculture is at the center of this plan with date palms playing the leading role. The Socio Economic Aspect of Date Palms in UAE The UAE is a country with well developed economy, largely hinged on oil exports and tourism. There are numerous economic activities, however, currently agriculture has been given a top priority as well. Given the instability in the global oil market, the UAE government has sought to create an economy that can sustain itself even without its oil resources. To realize this vision, agriculture has been emphasized and the country is now very successful in producing its own dates as opposed to importing it from other Arabic countries in North Africa and the rest of the Arabian Peninsula. This was of course achieved through a series of policies and incentives that were formulated and enforced by the government of the day. As more people became interested in the agricultural industry, the country’s sustainability also increased and currently it is largely independent of the oil industry given its agricultural potential. Initially, most of people in the UAE were living in poor conditions given that not everyone could get work in the oil industry. Also, there wasn’t much to do in an economy that largely depended on oil. With the introduction and emphasis of agriculture and especially date palm trees, there has been a drastic change in the living conditions of a vast majority of people in the UAE. The industry currently employs a sizeable portion of the population in cultivars, and packaging companies as well as the exporting industry. In the global front, date palms employ over 60% of the Saharan population by providing income generating opportunities as farmers, local vendors, exporters and middlemen. Numerous members of the UAE community have managed to amerce vast wealth from the date palm industry through cultivars, exporting companies, local supplies, and packaging companies. The date palms have not only improved the lives of people in the UAE, but also greatly grown the country’s economy and pulled it out of its previous dependence on oil as its major economic resource. The industry has also saved the country from having to import dates from other countries for its largely Islamic population given its importance to them. International Perception of the Date Palms For many years, date palms have been an exotic fruit to people outside the Arab world. The concept of the date palm remains a fascinating one in which most foreigners are curious about. As a fruit, it is considered rare and luxurious, often associated with royalty and power. The fact that the fruit is also mainly cultivated in Arabic countries also adds on to their fascination as they associate it with Arabic culture and heritage. Therefore, the international community largely perceives date palms as an Arabic staple delicacy which is highly valued and appreciated in numerous other cultures as well. Considering that the fruit has religious connections in Islam, the global community also perceives it as a religious symbol especially during the Holy Month of Ramadan. The main reason behind this association is that many Islamic families stock their fridges with these fruits during the holy month and give them away as gifts to their friends and relatives. This is how most foreigners get to experience date palms for the first time, although others have to visit an Arabic country for their first encounter with date palms. The Date Industry Globally and UAE Nowadays, there are ten major date palms producing countries in the world. These include Egypt, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Tunisia, Pakistan, Sudan, Algeria, Iran, Yemen and Oman. Out of these countries comes a total of about 10 million tons of date palms distributed across the world for consumption. A majority of these date palms end up in the hands of Muslim believers while the rest is consumed by people from other religions with a love for the fruit or a curiosity based on what they may have read or heard of it. Egypt, with its dependence on the Nile for water, boasts of the highest volumes of date palms produced. The nation has date palms planted all over in areas that are accessible to water. Its date palms are also high yielding varieties owing to the fact that they have an all year round access to the Nile’s waters. The country has also largely invested in irrigation as a way of sustaining its agricultural sector and thus they have the best chance of leading the pack in production and export of dates. However, they do not have sufficient capacity to package and export all of their date palms given the industrial limitations in the country. On the other hand, Saudi Arabia elevated date palms as the most important cash crop with a representation of vitality and growth in its national emblem. With its vast land under date palm plantations, this country commands a market share of up to 18% worldwide with a production that is approximately 10% of the world’s total date palm production. In essence, Saudi Arabia has given the date palms industry the priority it deserves and thus they are reaping the benefits of their focus. Tunisia also boasts of a great amount of date palms production coming in with over 120,000 tons annually. This nation has dedicated over 60% of its land to cultivating date palm plantations and they supply more than half of Europe’s date fruits demand. However, Algeria produces 500,000 tons and competes with Tunisia for the Europe confectioneries market, and has dedicated over 80% of its land to date palms given their pivotal position in the desert’s ecosystem. These countries, however, do not only use the fruits off the trees. They also use the other non fruit components for various things like feeding the livestock, building fences, mulching, weaving baskets, making textiles, and roofing among other things. They have also established new ways to use the fruit tree’s fruit and non fruit parts as raw materials for industries, such as sweet making, confectioneries and baking products among others. Of all the date palm producing countries in the world, the UAE has the largest amount of land dedicated to the crop and this is estimated to be about 220,000 hectares with a potential production of over 800,000 tons of date fruits annually. The world’s date palm industries largely produce for export into the European market, but the local markets also play a big role in the industry. For example, Egypt is unable to process all of its date fruits for export despite the high amount of produce realized annually and thus it largely produces for the local market and its immediate neighbors. Growth of the Date Palms Industry Initially, dates were a local delicacy. A fruit considered to be wild and only palatable to the desert dwellers. With the spread of Islam, this perception changed and more people began to identify with the fruit. A further spread of civilization then opened the date fruits market up for exploitation by creating markets for the fruit both far and wide. As the demand grew, the enterprising nations gained interest in the industry to a point that some economies are currently hinged on the date palms production for sustenance. In the beginning, the industry was all about producing the fruits and packaging them for export. However, there have come many more uses for the produce as opposed to being consumed as a fruit. Sweets and confectioneries, as well as baking products and even health supplements are being made from the date palm fruits. In this sense, the market is not restricted to the end consumers, but to sweet factories and bakeries which use them fruits as ingredients in their recipes. Also, the industry largely had to suffer destruction and degradation by pests and diseases. With revolutionary studies and discoveries in the field of disease and pest control in agriculture, the problem is in control and probably on its way to elimination. While there still are few reports of pests and diseases, the damage is no longer as crippling to the industry as it used to be in the past. The industry now stands among the most successful in agriculture and possibly the second best industry after oil in the Arabic countries. In some of these countries, dates production and export as a source of revenue is only rivaled by tourism in second place after oil production. Considering how many people have been employed in the date palms industry, it is not exactly determined, but in the Sahara region alone over 60% of people directly depends on the date palm plantations for their livelihoods (Bashah, 1999). Thus, this means that the industry has the potential of sustaining a very large percentage of the populace in terms of work and sustainable income. This in turn means that the world’s population is less likely to have as high levels of poverty as it has been without the date palm plantations. Benefits of the Date Palms Industry in UAE Date palms have a wide variety of benefits to the populations as a fruit, a tree, a cash crop, a symbol in the national emblem and even a cultural and religious delicacy. The date palms have been cherished throughout history for a number of reasons some of which are known to us and proven by science, while others remain mystical and mythical to the present generations (Ferry Gomez, 2002). Some of the known benefits are discussed below with a special focus of the agricultural, nutritional and medicinal, socio economic and religious values of the date palms. Agricultural Values Date palms are mainly planted in desert regions with high temperatures, high salinity and low humidity, but with an access to water. These areas are often around oases or just in the desert where irrigation has been factored in as an aid to agriculture. In such areas, there is very high sunlight intensity, strong winds and often extreme temperatures both cold and hot alternating. Date palms are often tall trees with deep and strong roots (Saudi Press Agency, 2009). Their leaves are long and provide a shade as well. Using the principles of soil conservation, trees help to break strong winds and thus protect the soil from being eroded. In an agricultural setting, these trees not only prevent soil erosion, but also protect the smaller trees and plants from being broken or uprooted by the strong desert winds. Thus, this means that the farmer can easily indulge in the cultivation of other smaller fruit trees as well as annual crops within the date palms plantations. Additionally, the date palms have both fruit and non fruit components that are useful to the farmer. The low quality fruits can be used to feed livestock. The leaves are also often used for fencing and mulching in horticulture to protect the fragile plants from harsh environmental and climatic conditions. Basically, it can be said that the cultivation of date palms in the desert regions enables the farmers to engage in other farming activities thus boosting sustainable food production along the economic benefits of exporting this exotic fruit that is a secondary oil well in the Arabic world. Nutritional and Medicinal Values The date fruit is a drupe, with one seed per fruit. The fruit has numerous nutritional attributes aside from the pleasant taste and high energy content. The fruit is largely valued for its high fiber content as well. Other than its sophisticated categorization, date fruits are a real asset when eaten on a regular basis as they have numerous significant benefits to the body. With regards to its medicinal values, there are a large number of ailments and physical troubles that the fruit and other tree components are said to handle successfully. While there may not be sufficient scientific proof to strengthen or eliminate these claims, some of them have scientific explanations while others are left to speculation from stories passed on from previous generations. Some of the problems said to be solved through the use of parts of the date fruits and trees are ulcers, halitosis, sore throats, colds, fevers, toothaches, diarrhea, cystitis, edema, kidney and liver problems, as well as ague, alcohol induced hangovers, and gonorrhea. All these problems are delegated to various parts of the date palm tree including fruit seeds, roots, bark, flower and even leaves. Socio Economic Values The date palm tree, due to its majestic height is considered to be a beauty in the desert. For this reason, it is often grown in residential settings as a method of landscaping vast lands. The trees are also used to as land marks and for boundaries in cases of vast land ownership. Another major use of the date palms is that they provide food not only for people, but for animals as well. Over the years, desert populations have depended on the date fruits to feed themselves and their livestock too. As a cash crop, date palms provide an alternative source of sustainable income that pulls countries away from their dependence on oil as an economic driver. As an agricultural produce, date palms give countries a sustainable source of income that is not only dependable and sustainable but also environment friendly. The industry employs a significant number of individuals in production, processing, curing, packaging, marketing and exporting. Also, there are a number of other industries, such as confectionery and sweets that depend on the date palms industry, thus more jobs and more revenue. Another significant socio economic value of the date palms industry is that it has encouraged desert dwellers to settle down and practice agriculture as opposed to moving around and engaging in clashes and livestock rustling. Previously, desert communities were considered hostile and insecure, but currently they are settled and producing over 10 million tones of the precious fruit annually. In these countries, date palm production has boosted national income thus improving the living conditions of the general population. As countries grow richer on agricultural production, more people are likely to benefit as compared to oil production which often benefits the wealthy few who have land titles and money to buy oil rigs. Religious Values The highest amount of date fruits is often consumed during the Holy Month of Ramadan globally. The fruit is mentioned in the Koran and thus the Islamic community has a religious connection to it. Also, during the fasting period it is considered an asset due to its high energy content. The date fruits have a capacity of up to 3000 calories per kilogram and this is among the highest in all foods (Greiner, 1998). Otherwise, it was historically lauded by the ancient religions that considered it symbolic in their communion with heavenly powers. Challenges of the Date Palms Industry In all the ten top producers of date palms in the world, three challenges stand out significantly. These are pests and diseases, inadequate skilled labor and insufficient capacity for processing the fruits in readiness for exporting. Other major constraints are lack of research, climate changes, and market limitations. While these countries have all prioritized date palms production and exportation, they are yet to deal effectively with these problems as discussed below. Pests and Diseases Just like the rest of the agricultural industry, the date palms industry is heavily riddled with problems of pest and disease control (Mahmoudi et el., 2008). The farmers sometimes are exposed and experience severe losses due to pests and diseases and especially the Red Palm Weevil that causes extensive damage to palm groves. This results in significant damage to the crop and thus extremely low yields if any at all. As scientists try to come up with ways to eliminate this menace, farmers remain at risk of experiencing tremendous losses in the industry. Inadequate Skilled Labor Date palms take a relatively long time to grow and mature into a productive plant with a full capacity to be fruitful for years on end. Before they mature, however, they need a lot of care including cutting the offshoots for planting. If this is not done well and carefully then the trees are at risk of not being as fruitful as they should be. Another challenge in managing date palms is in caring for them and protecting them against pests and diseases. This also needs some amount of skill that is often lacking as most plantations are run locally by untrained personnel and farmhands. Insufficient Processing Capacity Some of the date palms producing countries have such high yields that they are unable to process all of it for exportation (Sawaya, 2000). This leaves the farmers with most of their produce to sell cheaply to the local market or export illegally to their neighboring states for processing and exportation. It is for a reason that the countries do not have the commitment to expand their processing industries or build more to satisfy the large date palms production that they have. Lack Of Research Agriculture requires constant research to come up with more productive and more resistant strains of crop. While there are several agricultural research facilities worldwide, none of them has focused its attention to this very important cash crop. The date palms have been left to adapt to the environment and suffer their fate of pests and diseases without trying to modify them and make them stronger and with a better chance of survival (University of Delaware, 2004). Also, research would have been able to create strains of the crop that do not need such extreme climatic conditions and can thus be grown in the tropics as well. This would further enlarge the industry and create more produce for the market. Climate Change Date palms are very specific in their required conditions for growth. The trees need to be able to access water regularly so that the roots can soak it up for the rest of the plant (Zohary Hopf, 2000). Also, the fruits need a prolonged summer heat with very low humidity in order to ripen well. With the changes in climate, however, these conditions are being threatened and thus the trees may not be able to yield good fruit in the same high quality and quantity as before (United Nations Development Program, 2004). Market Limitations Some people grow the date palms, but are unable to sell it due to the fact that most local markets are already flooded with the product. The cost of processing and packaging for exportation on the other hand is also seemingly too steep for some small scale farmers and thus they are unable to sell their produce at all. live CHAT Methodology The research will involve interviews with stakeholders in the date palms industry in the UAE. First, we will need to collect information on how much date fruits are being exported annually and to which specific destinations. Also, we will need information on how many date palm trees are there in the country and possibly find out how expensive or cheap it is to run these plantations as well as the average realized profit margins. Another important information will be which industries the data palm industry is partnering with locally in terms of product modification and manufacture of sweets, confectioneries, baking products and any other items from date palm derivatives. Considering how large the country is and how wide spread the date palm plantations are, it would be much easier to conduct the research through the use of secondary resources with regards to information about the cultivars (Williams, 2008). All the major ones are well established and thus information on them can be easily found online and in business publications. Thus, this part of the research will involve the business websites and online journals as well as publications. The information required from the government can also be found online in the economic journals as released by the government annually. This is where we will get information on how many tones of date fruits are being exported on an annual basis and to which countries do they go. The local industries can also be contacted through their websites to provide information on what business is like for them and which local industries they are partnering with to improve the date palm industry. This will also involve primary research as the required information may not be readily available on the company websites and online journals or articles. Lastly, the study will obtain primary research by interviewing the local citizens in order to find out just what they think about the date palms industry in the UAE and what should be done to improve the situation and prevent it from deteriorating as it supports a large portion of the population as well boosts some aspects of the tourism industry as the staple exotic fruit of the Arabic world that is sought after by foreigners. The collected information will then be analyzed and represented in the form of charts and graphs as it will be comparing the date palms industry’s performance and growth potential in the UAE with the rest of the world to establish the industry is doing in a global scale. Considering that this country is just one out of the top ten date palm producers in the world, detail is a key component of the study as the minor details may be the distinguishing factors between good performance and better performance.

Braun Essays

Braun Essays Braun Essay Braun Essay HBS Case Analysis: Braun: The Syncro Shaver Dr. Cunningham ICM Braden Bellack EID: byb75 ! ! â€Å"When you see the moon, you can’t fly directly to it because it moves. You have to aim ahead of it in order to reach it†- Peter Schneider, head of Design at Braun. History Gillette’s 1967 purchase of Braun democratized the Braun brand and made it accessible to markets in the U. S. , Europe, and Japan. Braun made sure that it held on to its â€Å"German Soul† which was known for cutting-edge engineering and design. The dual branded Braun Oral-B Plaque Remover, launched in the early1990’s caused the Braun brand to be visible in the worldwide market for the first time. The innovative development of Braun’s Flex Integral shaver created large market share increases due to its faster, closer shave. The washable shaver category is introduced by National (Panasonic) in 1995 causing Braun to lose market share. Since 1995, Braun shavers have been steadily losing market share in its three major markets, Europe, Japan, and the U. S. Situation Analysis External Analysis Market Analysis In 1996, the electric shaving (also called dry shaving) market was worth $2 billion and consisted of more than 37 million units. The market slumped to $1. 8 billion in 1998 and saw a one million unit drop as well. The U. S. and Europe account for half of the dry shaving market with Japan accounting for another quarter. The power shaving market is defined by new innovations taking away market share from old er products. This is seen by Phillips Norelco’s rotary shavers and then Panasonic’s washable shavers taking market share from Braun’s Flex Integral. New products in the dry shaving market, historically, have to be innovative, different, and better in order to be successful. To remain competitive in the dry shaving market a company must take market share away from the competition rather than maintain market share because of the constant innovation and the fact that the market has not risen since 1996. Wet shaving is actually more expensive on a per-shave basis. Foil vs. Rotary shavers Foil shavers tend to give the user a closer shave and have been around longer so consumers are more familiar with them. The vibration involved because of how the foil shave works causes an unpleasant â€Å"itchy† sensation in the hand of the user. ! Rotary shavers offer a more comfortable shave, but don’t give a close shave and take longer. However, rotary shavers don’t vibrate, so there is no uncomfortable feeling in the hand. Rotary shavers then generally win the battle over comfort while foil shavers win in closeness, and the newer foil shavers are quicker so they have an edge in the convenience category as well. Wet Shaving The electric razor can not equal a traditional wet shave in closeness, and most consumers who choose dry shaving over wet shaving do so to avoid the time and process of shaving with shaving cream and water every morning. Electric razors offered the benefit of being able to shave on the go (like in your car). Still however, wet shaving was the preferred method of daily hair removal for the majority of men. Competition Figure 1 !#$%'()*+),$-. /,0$12. ,$3$,(,40+4$. 51$678. (9,:$ ()*+,! #$! -. /00/12! 345)60758! 96:/,;

IT in US healthcare Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

IT in US healthcare - Essay Example A potential answer to this question is the slow pace of adoption of IT in the healthcare industry. In the last few decades, the benefits of IT in the manufacturing and service industries have been well demonstrated. These benefits can just as easily be implemented in the healthcare area. For example, much of current record keeping is paper based, disorganized, and often illegible. Thus, records can be easily lost or scattered, and are poorly linked together. This disorganization can cause up to 80% of errors in healthcare administration. Clearly, the information needs to be organized architecturally according to a designed framework while keeping in mind the privacy of health records. Automation and streamlining of information storage would enable the seamless flow of information and would contribute to overall cost reduction. Cost containment is one of the key drivers of this kind of change, particularly in light of the growing elderly population combined with a shortage of physicia ns and nurses. The rising proportion of healthcare costs with respect to the gross domestic product (GDP) is an important indicator of the significance of this issue. In 1960, healthcare costs amounted to 7.2% of the GDP. By 2005 they have escalated to 16% of GDP and are predicted to continue to grow to 20% by 2015. The increase in the average human lifespan has been made possible by the advancement in medical science and technologies. Despite the high cost, the availability of healthcare in America is dismal compared to other developed nations where the average healthcare cost is typically around 8% of the GDP [13]. Today, forty-four million Americans cannot afford health insurance because health-care costs have risen four times faster than wages [14]. Many hospitals and vital health care services are out of reach for needy Americans. The United States will spend 10 trillion dollars in health-care in next 10 years, which will have a significant negative impact on the economy. Worse, government programs such as Medicare do not cover the hospital costs. These unpaid expenses add to the cost private insurance for individuals and employers. To be sure, the cost of health-care must be addressed on a top priority. The inherent efficiency of the system is perhaps the leading culprit in producing these consequences. Condition of Current Practices is Critical Utilization of information technology in the healthcare industry has been minimal, and its adoption slow. Although health insurance is among the leading industries, 90% of the transactions within this $30 billion industry are performed by phone, fax or mail. Fewer than 5% of prescriptions from U.S. physicians are managed electronically. Most healthcare organizations spend only 1% to 4 % of their revenues on IT. This is half the amount that organizations in other leading industries spend on their IT infrastructures [3]. Clearly, more effort must be directed toward facilitating the implementation of IT in the healthcare field by addressing the barriers to its adoption. Some hospitals have already started to capitalize on this opportunity by using electronic medical record keeping technologies, and hospital information systems (HISs). For example, Kaiser Permanante allows its users to book and cancel appointments on-line. Such initiatives must be expanded in order to fully realize the benefits of IT for reducing the cost of healthcare. Indeed, they hold great promise for making

Air Cargo Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Air Cargo - Assignment Example It is worth mentioning that the airline sector has been developing in a massive rate and is growing faster than any other segment across the globe (Hvidt, 2013). Additionally, with the development of logistics, the transport sector of the GCC regions is identified to be flourishing in a massive manner. The GCC countries are majorly inclined in developing mobility connections across the countries with the aim of enhancing their network and transportation facility. Furthermore, with the recent development in trade and commerce, development of roads, airports and bus networks has become quite evident. This has further promoted the development of transport sector, which evolved largely after the decision made by the government towards making the airways sector privatized (Saif, 2009). With this concern, the essay intends to analyze and discuss about the airline and air cargo operations in the three GCC countries namely Bahrain, Qatar and UAE. Moreover, an attempt has been made in identifying the factors that contributed in evolving and changing such conditions over the preceding 30 years with making future projections about the development of the same. Since World War I, the aircrafts in the GCC nations were majorly used carrying lightweight materials. Presently, world cargo exchange is majorly based on air transport for both transferring lightweight as well as heavy weight materials. There has been a series of development that has been incorporated into the cargo sector for carrying the heavy materials throughout the globe. The cargo careers are highly modified to ease carrying the different materials across diverse regions. However, there always been a strict monitoring prevalent in the sector, which enhances the credibility of the careers to carry heavy goods. The types of cargo that are carried into the varied gulf countries generally constitute most of the foreign