Carbon footprint assigment Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Carbon footprint assigment - Assignment Example At present, the outstanding challenge that is facing the human race is global warming, and its most pressing requirement is radically reducing our carbon footprint (Stuart 3) Daily driving cause’s carbon footprint in that fuel is burnt by the engine when driving thus, creating a certain amount of CO2 depending on the distance of driving and the car’s fuel consumption. For people who drive long distances daily, travel could be the largest part of their carbon footprint. The daily driving range is the most polluting thing that is done by most people. When burning gasoline, it releases pollutants that cause water pollution, global warming, and smog. The scientific press is full of dire warnings as to our collective fate if we fail to effect a very substantial reduction in carbon emission and to do so quickly (Stuart 4) In order to change this, the focus should be on saving the energy and reducing the carbon cause. First, it is vital improving fuel economy of the car. This can be achieved by reducing the energy used when overcoming resistance from road and air, braking, and accelerating. Additionally, public transport such as trains and buses should be used instead since compared to driving they are a less carbon-intensive way to travel. Moreover, people should drive less to reduce their driving footprint. Driving and cycling are also good substitutes for short driving distance that are carbon intensive. There may be no easy solution to the problem generating the carbon footprint but the parameters of the debate do not need to be established, different and all, so that we can determine what most at issue is (Stuart 18) There are various challenges that will be faced when changing the daily driving distance that causes carbon emission. We must address urgently the dilemma of ways to persuade trade-off that is possibly the best between survivals economically and ecological disaster (Stuart 21). From a

Curleys Wife Character - of Men and Mice Essay Example for Free

Curleys Wife Character of Men and Mice Essay Of Men and Mice is not kind in its portrayal of women. In fact, women are treated with contempt throughout the course of the book. Steinbeck generally depicts women as troublemakers who bring ruin to men and drive them mad. Curley’s wife, who walks the ranch as a temptress seems to be a prime example of the destructive tendency. Despite the author’s rendering, Curley’s wife emerges as a relatively complex and interesting character. Although her purpose is rather simple in the book’s opening pages, she is the â€Å"tramp†, â€Å"tart† and â€Å"bitch† that threatens to destroy male happiness and longevity. The social setting of the novel is also important, as it could later explain characters attitudes towards other people. It is set in the U.S. in the 1930s; this is the time of the Great Depression. This was a result of the First World War. It affected the rich and poor alike, factory workers and farmers, bankers and stockbrokers. In short, it affected everyone; no one was left untouched. But of all the people hurt, farmers were the worst off. Curley’s wife is first introduced in person to us in a symbolic way; this is shown when George is talking to Lennie about the dream and when Curley’s wife first meets both men. â€Å"Both men glanced up, for a rectangle of sunshine in the doorway was cut off.† The symbolic meaning of the word sunshine is hope, freedom, happiness and dreams. This foreshadows that she may cause trouble or come in the way and could ruin it all for Lennie and George. She is also described as a â€Å"girl†, which tells us that she is very playful, childish and vulnerable. Her appearance later in the novel becomes more complex. But even before this we are forewarned about her, Candy tells George and Lennie about her, making her out at the wrong type to begin with, â€Å"Married to weeks and got the eye? Maybe that is why Curley’s pants is full of ants,† giving us the impression she was a person not to socialis e with. Also tells us that the men on the ranch know that Curley knows that is wife looks at the rest of them, hoping for one of them to try and get close to her, so he can then create a situation for a fight. As Candy relaxes he also goes on to get them to have the same opinion as him about her by saying, ‘well, you look her over, mister. You see if she ain’t a tart†, and the reply from George, ‘Purty?’ making sure that we see her as ‘jail bait†. Then when we first get to see her she is dressed as if she is going out to a party, and Steinbeck also enforces the concept that she is trouble and a tart, by describing her appearance, â€Å"she had full rouged lips†, â€Å"red mules, on the insteps of which were little bouquets of red ostrich feathers†, using the colour red as a foreshadow that she is dangerous. This is the first time also that we see that she is attractive and that she knows it, also that she wants the men to look at her, â€Å"she put her hands behind her back and leaned against the door frame so that her body was thrown forward†, forcing the men to look at her curves. This first sign of nativity shows that she doesn’t understand her affect on men, showing her age as a teenager and her understanding of her sexual attractiveness. We also get an insight to her life with her husband and why she is always coming around the rest of the men. When Candy tells George and Lennie about Curley having his glove full of â€Å"Vaseline† and that he was keeping â€Å"that hand soft for his wife†, tells us that she was also being beaten up, and that nobody could see the bruises because Curley had softened his hand, or he hit her in places where we couldn’t see the bruises. This is the first time we see her as a victim needing help. We also see that see can be cruel, and willing to misuse power. When she confronts Lennie, Candy, and Crooks in the stable, she admits to feeling a kind of shameless dissatisfaction with her life. Her vulnerability at this moment and later when she admits to Lennie her dream of becoming a movie star makes her utterly human and much more interesting than the stereotypical vixen in fancy clothes. She seeks out even greater weakness in others, preying upon Lennie’s mental handicap â€Å"they left all the weak ones here†, Candy’s debilitating age, â€Å"tell an’ be damned. Nobody’d would listen to you, and you know it† and the colour of Crook’s skin â€Å"you know what I can do to you if you open your trap?† in order to steel herself against harm. Dreams are a major reoccurring theme, when Lennie tells Curley’s wife of his and George’s dream she just says â€Å"baloney†, but she has a dream of her own and she proceeds to talk Lennie about it. She has dreamt of being a movie star, which nearly came true when she encountered an actor. ‘He says I could go with that show†, but like most young girl s was forbade from her mother, ‘my ol’ lady wouldn’ let me†. So having her dream pulled out from underneath her she rebelled, and married Curley. However she always wanted to achieve something of herself and loved attention. â€Å"Curley’s wife lay with a half-covering of yellow hay. And the meanness and the planning and the discontent and the ache for attention were all gone from her face. She was very pretty and simple, and her face was sweet and young. Now her rouged cheeks and her reddened lips made her seem alive and sleeping very lightly. The curls, tiny little sausages, were spread on the hay behind her head, and her lips were parted†, this is the first time we are shown her true self – she was a young, innocent, lonely young girl. When you take away all the walls she had erected you come back to a young girl wanting to be loved, who saw Lennie as a way out from Curley’s abusive relationship. As Lennie could hurt Curley, but not realising the danger she was ultimately putting herself into. So in conclusion Curley’s wife is the most depressed and lonely characters in the novel. She has no friends, no future, no respect; she doesn’t even deserve a name. All she wants is someone to talk to but in her mind the only way she can do this is by flaunting herself to the men to get noticed. This leads her to be perceived as a â€Å"tart† by the men. She represents absolute loneliness and desperation to achieve something better in life. Even though she is very lonely, she comes across as a very beautiful woman. She flaunts herself by dressing and acting in a â€Å"tart† like manner, but really she is just making use of her body to gain the attention of the workers to soothe her. If anyone would give her a break, treat her like a person, she would idolise them. Her craving for contact is immense but she, with her background is incapable of conceiving any contact without some sexual context, she is not particularly oversexed, but has been forced to recognise that her sexuality is the only weapon she has, and the only thing that gets her noticed. Consequently she is a little starved. She knows nothing about sex, except the mass information girls tell each other. All through the novel the men make out that Curley’s wife is trouble. But yet there was never any proof that Curley’s wife has ever caused any of the trouble or conflicts. The only trouble she caused was when she died.

L-Shaped Array for Multi-frequency Interferometry Telescope

L-Shaped Array for Multi-frequency Interferometry Telescope Abstract An array of eight antennas with different configuration, more precisely an L-shaped array has been built for the Multi-frequency Interferometry Telescope for Radio Astronomy (MITRA) project. It consists of quite newly designed Dual Polarised Log Periodic Dipole Antennas (DPLPDA). The first stage of the project was to test the existing array of DPLPDA antennas in a parallelconfiguration in the North South direction and to bring forward different improvements. Also, comparision of data was done with the Durban University of Technology (DUT) at Durban RSA where a similar array was constructed. Next, UV coverage of different arrays were simulated. After that, the DPLPDA were constructed.After setting up the array, the antenna response of each antenna was tested and the results obtained was interpreted. The final test was to test the complete array after combining all the antennas. CHAPTER 1 Introduction and Overview 1.1Introduction 1.1.1Radio Astronomy Radio astronomy is the study of celestial objects that emit radio waves.In the 1930’s, Karl Jansky (1905-1950), working for the Bell Laboratories, was trying to determine the origin of the source of noise interfering with radio voice transmissions. He built a steerable antenna designed to receive radio waves at a frequency of 20.5 MHz. From the observations, he found that the period of the earth’s rotation relative to the radio source was 23 hours and 56 minutes instead of 24 hours. Hence, he concluded that the source was follwing sidereal time. He also observed that the strongest radiation was coming from the centre of our Milky Way galaxy.Inspired by Jansky’s work, Grote Reber (1911-2002) built a parabolic radio telescope of diameter 9m in his back yard, in 1937. After several trials, Reber successfully detected radio emission from the Milky Way, in 1938, confirming Janskys discovery. This led to the discovery of a range of celestial objects, such as radio gala xies, quasars, and pulsars with radio emission with various types of antennas. [1] 1.1.2.1 Radio Interferometry Radio interferometry are arrays of radio antennas that are used inastronomicalobservations simultaneously to simulate singletelescopesof very largeapertures and are used to make measurements of fine angular detail in the radio emission. Radio interferometry enable measurement of the position of radio sources with accuracy to allow identification of other objects detected in the electromagnetic spectrum. Michelson and Pease made the discovery of the interferometric techniques in 1921. They were able to obtain sufficiently fine angular resolution to measure the diameters of some of the nearer stars such as Arcturus and Betelgeuse. [2] 1.1.2.2 Aperture Synthesis Aperture Synthesis or Synthesis Imaging is a type of interferometry that correlates radio signals obtained from a collection of telescopes or antennas to produce images. These images have the same angular resolution as that of the size of a single and a much larger telescope or antenna. Aperture synthesis was first discovered by Sir Martin Ryle (27 September 1918 – 14 October 1984) and coworkers from the Radio Astronomy Group at Cambridge University at radio wavelengths. In 1974, Martin Ryle was the first astronomer awarded a Nobel Prize. [3] Very Long Baseline Interferometry(VLBI) also makes use of radio interferometric techniques. TypicallyVLBIrefers to experiments that do not process their data in real time, but record it for latercorrelation to produce the resulting image. It achieves ultra-high angular resolution and is a multi-disciplinary technique. VLBIis used in measuring pulsar parallaxes andproper motion, resolving the cores of radio galaxies and fets from supermassive black holes, among others. [14] Some of the commonly used radio interferometers are: the Very Large Array (VLA) in Socorro, New Mexico,USA; It consists of 27 radio antennas, each of diameter 25 metres, along three arms of a Y-shaped configuration spread over three 21 kilometres tracks providing 351 baselines. [4] the Multi-Element Radio Linked Interferometer Network (MERLIN), operated by Jordrell Bank Observatory; It is an array of 7 radio telescopes spread across Britain with separation up to 217 kilometres operating at frequencies between 151 MHz and 24 GHz. [5] the Australia Telescope Compact Array (ATCA) in Narrabri, NSW, Australia. The telescope is an array of six identical 22 metres diameter dishes with five movable dishes along a 3 kilometres railway track and the sixth one is 3 kilometres west at the end of the main track. The maximum baseline length is 2.7 kilometres and the observing frequencies are from 300 MHz to 8 GHz.[6] the Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope (GMRT) in Narayangaon,Pune, India. It consists of 30 steerable parabolic dish each of diameter 45 metres opertaing at six different frequency bands and where 14 dishes are arranged in a central square and remaining 6 in a three arm Y-shaped array giving a baseline of about 25 Kilometres . [7] Some of the new radio interferometers are: Low Frequency Array (LoFAR) in north of Exloo, the Netherlands (core) and neighbouring countries It is a phased-array of radio telescopes of about 25,000 small antennas in at 48 larger stations where 40 of these stations are distributed across the north of Netherlands, five stations in Germany, and one each in Great Britain, France and Sweden and has a low requency range from 10-240 MHz. [8] Figure 1: The LoFAR Array Atacama Large Millimeter Array (ALMA) in llano de Chajnantar Observatory, Atacama Desert,Chile It consists of sixty six 12 metres and 7 metres diameter radio telescopes observing at wavelengths of 0.3 to 9.6 millimetres . [9] Murchison Widefield Array (MWA) in Murchison Radio Astronomy Observatory, Western Australia It consists of 2048 dual-polarization dipole antennas, each a 44 array of dipoles and operates at low radio frequencies, 80-300 MHz, with a processed bandwidth of 30.72 MHz for both linear polarisations, and consists of 128 aperture arrays (known as tiles) distributed over approximately 3- kilometres diameter area. [10] Figure 2: MWA Antenna tiles KAT7 MeerKAT in Northern Cape, South Africa Figure 3: Aerial View of KAT7 KAT-7 consist of 7 dishes of 12 metres in diameter each a Prime Focus Reflecting Telescopes having a minimum baseline of 26 meters and maximum baseline of 185 metres and have a frequency range of 1200 MHz – 1950 MHz. KAT-7 is an engineering prototype for the MeerKAT. KAT-7 is the world’s first radio telescope array with fiberglass dishes. . MeerKAT, which is still under construction and is slated for completion in 2016 , will consist of 64 dishes of 13.5 meters in diameter having a minimum baseline of 29 metres and maximum baseline of 20 kilometres and it will operate at frequency ranging from 580MHz – 1.75 GHz and 8 – 15 Ghz.[11,12] e- MERLIN is an enhanced and upgraded array of the old MERLIN array.The e- MERLIN instrument is a high resolution radio interferometer connected by a new optical fibre network to Jodrell Bank Observatory. This new system gives rise to a massive increase in sensitivity and observational capabilities.[13] Figure 4: e-MERLIN array European VLBI Netwok (EVN) is an interferometric array of radio telescopes spread across Europe which also includes stations in far-East Asia , South Africa and Puerto Rico that conducts high resolution radio astronomical observations of radio sources. It is the most sensitive VLBI array in the world. It was formed in 1980 and the administering body now comprises 14 institutes[15].TheEVNalso routinely joins other networks, such as theVery Long Baseline Array (VLBA)and the Multi-Element Radio Linked Interferometer Network (MERLIN), to become a globalVLBIarray. The VLBA is spread throughout Mauna Kea , Hawaii and St Croix. It typically consists of 10 VLA radio antennas and as result it has a maximum baseline exceeding 8000 Km[16]. Some of the future African based new radio interferometers are: African VLBI Network (AVN) Multi-Frequency Interferometry Telescope for Radio Astronomy (MITRA) 1.1.3 MITRA (Multi-frequency Interferometry Telescope for Radio Astronomy) 1.1 The MITRA is an international radio astronomy project which aims to do extremly wide field of imaging with heterogenius non coplanar arrays. The acronym of MITRA means â€Å"friend† in Sanskrit. It is a low frequency array telescope jointly started by Girish Kumar Beeharry from University of Mauritius (UOM) nd Stuart David Macpherson and Gary Peter Janse Van Vuuren from the Durban University of Technolagy (DUT) in South Africa. The project is being simultaneously implemented at the Mauritius Radio Telescope (MRT), located at Bras D’Eau Mauritius, site and at the DUT campus site. The projects will then be expanded to the different SKA Africa partner countries and eventually to other African countries. Data from each country will be combined to form an international aperture synthesis telescope using the techniques of Very Large Baseline Interferometry (VLBI). It is a sensitive high resolution multifrequency dual polarity instrument in the range of 200 to 800 MHz. The instrument chosen for this purpose are Dual Polarized Log Periodic Dipole Antennas (DPLPDA)[17]. 1.1.4 African Long Baseline Interferometry Network (AVN) The African Very Long Baseline Interferometry Network (AVN) is an array of radio telescopes throughout Africa. It is planned to form part of the existing global VLBI networks . It will be associated with the European VLBI Network (EVN ). The latteris a consortium of major radio astronomy institutes in Europe and China (Schilizzi). It has member and associated radio telescopes in Europe, China, South Africa (Hartebeesthoek0, Japan(Kashima) and Puerto Rico (Arecibo). The EVN is capable of providing an excellent angular resolution(from 5 to 0.15 milliarc seconds depending on observing frequency) and high sensitivity for VLBI observations. One of the main technological drivers has been the availability of telecommunication antennas all over Africa. Part of the scheme is to modify the existing dishes, of about at least 30 m in diameter, into radio telescopes. All these telescopes will be linked together, and to radio telescopes in South Africa, forming the African VLBI Network. This, in t urn, would be connected to radio telescopes and arrays in Europe and elsewhere in the world, including North and South America, Asia and Australia. The conversion of a Ghana located dish into a radio telescopes has already been begun.The AVN’s plans to convert three more dishes in Kenya, Zambia and Madagascar. It also aims to build four new radio telescopes in Namibia, Botswana, Mauritius and Mozambique. [19] 1.1.5 Electronic Multi Beam Radio Astronomy ConcEpt(EMBRACE) and African European Radio Astronomy Aperture Array (AERA3 ) The EMBRACE demonstrates the technical and scientific potential of the aperture array concept using a phased array station with the essential SKA. There are two stations, one in NanÃ’Â «ay, France and the other one at the Westerbork Synthesis Radio Telescope (WSRT) in the Netherlands. These two stations are prototype arrays for the SKA MFAA. It consists of an antenna array organized in tiles of dual polarization antennas. A large number of antenna tiles forms the collecting area. The signals from the radiating elements of the antenna from each tile are amplified and the initial analogue RF beam forming is applied. Generally, an EMBRACE is designed for a frequency range of 400-1500 MHz of single polarization, a collecting area of 100 m2 , system temperature of 100 K and has two fields of view with 8 digital beams . The idea of having multiple independent beams gives rise to the AERA3 because EMBRACE considers only two beams. AERA3 is similar to EMBRACE but this new aperture array will have a greater collecting area with will be approximately 2000 m2 varying with a frequency range of 400-1500 MHz with full polarization, two fields of view with 64 digital beams, system temperature of 50 K and bandwidth of less than 500 MHz. AERA3 will be used for intensity mapping, surveys of the whole sky and search for pulsars.[20,21] Figure 5: Embrace at Nancay, Paris 1.1.6 The Square Kilometre array (SKA) The SKA will be a revolutionary radio telescope made of hundred of thousands of receptors. They will be linked together, forming a total collecting area of approximately one square kilometre. It will be the largest and most sensitive radio telescope ever built. It will be able to survey the sky faster than present instruments. In 2006, the African consortium and Australia were both shortlisted as potential sites fot building the SKA. In the 25th May 2012, the SKA organisation announced that SKA would be shared between the African consortium and Australia on a 2:1 ratio basis. The African consortium would be undertaking the construction of the high and mid frequency arrays. The Australian would be in charge of the low frequency aperture array. The SKA consists of two phases where Phase 1 is the construction of about 10% of the SKA. It will make use of the existing infrastructure and telescopes already being built by the two countries. That is, the South Africas precursor array the 64-dish MeerKAT telescope and the Australias 36-dish SKA Pathfinder (ASKAP). Additionally, there will be 50low-frequency 1.5 metre high antenna stations, 60mid-frequency 15 metre dishes built in Australia. Finally, 190mid-frequency 15 metres dishes will be built in South Africa. Phase 2 is the extension to a baseline of 3,000 Km or more in South Arica and African partners countries. These are namely, Botswana, Ghana, Kenya, Madagascar, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, and Zambia. Also, a total of about three thousand dishes, with the highest concentration in the Northern Cape, South Africa, and some dishes in the other consortium countries will be built. In Australia, the telescope will extend over a baseline of200 km. It will operate with a frequency coverage from 70 MHz to 30 GHz. The SKA will use aperture synthesis, over a distance of more than 3000km to simulate a single giant radio telescope capable of extremely high sensitivity and angular resolution. The SKA will be able to observe the black holes, stars, galaxies and detect black holes[11,22,23,24]. Figure 6: SKA overview 1.1.7 The Log Periodic Dipole Antenna A log periodic antenna, also referred to as a log periodic array, is an antenna that can operate on a wide frequency band. It was à ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã‚ rst built in 1958 by Dwight Isbell at the University of Illinois, United States of America. LPDA is a directional antenna which possesses constant electrical characteristics such as gain, impedance and front-to-back ratio over the wide range of frequencies. It varies periodically with the logarithmic. The antenna consists of a series of linear elements also known as dipoles and the individual elements connect with a transmission or feed line such as coaxial cable. Each element is placed in an alternating configuration leading to a phase shift of 180o (Ï€ radians). [25] 1.2 Aim The aim of this project is to construct a front-end system for radio astronomical observations in the frequency range 200 MHz to 800 MHz using the Dual Polarised Log Periodic Dipole Antenna model with bandwidth 200 MHz to 800 MHz. The front end system will consist of an L-shaped array of antennas. This L shaped array is the start of a matrix of an eight by eight antennas. It will be used as a prototype for Intensity mapping for large scale neutral hydrogen (HI) mapping. Several improvements to the existing antennas will be made and applied to new array configuration. Also along with the array, a shielded box will be constructed for electronic purposes. This work focuses on the longer baseline sparse mid frequency aperture array (MFAA), in contrast to the dense aperture arrays like EMBRACE and the future AERA3.

Marriage in ancient Rome Essay -- essays research papers

The Roman institution of marriage has been lauded as being the first purely humanistic law of marriage, one that is based on the idea of marriage being a free and freely dissolvable union of two equal partners for life. (Schulz, 1951;103) This is quite a simplistic view, as there were many differing forms of marriage in Rome, from the arranged marriages of the elite to the unions of slaves and soldiers. As we shall see, the Romans' actual expectations of married life and the gains they envisioned they would receive from the experience depended greatly on their age, sex and social status. Unlike our contemporary society, no specific civil ceremony was required for the creation of a marriage; only mutual agreement and the fact that the couple must regard each other as husband and wife accordingly. (Gardner,1986;47) Although not a legal necessity, some weddings, usually the first marriage of elite couples was accompanied by much revelry and song, as featured in one of Catullus' poems. It describes the celebration of the marriage with dancing, singing and the brandishing of torches. Ribald jokes are shouted at the bride and nuts are scattered as she makes her way towards her husband's house. The groom arrives before the bride so that he can personally invite her to come and share his home. Now married, what does the couple expect to gain from the experience? The young bride is most probably in her early teens, as is the girl described in Catullus' poem with the words, "Young boy, release the little girl's small smooth arm". After marriage she will be transformed from a "little girl" into a respected wife. Elsewhere Catullus assures his readers that young daughters are unloved by their parents until they are married. "If, when she is ripe for marriage, she enters into wedlock, she is ever dearer to her husband and less hateful to her parents†¦" (Catullus, Poems 62.57-65) If we are to take this at face value, then marriage for young girls gains them the affection of their parents. A similar sentiment is found in the funeral eulogy from Rome for a woman named Murdia. It speaks of her dealing with her arranged marriage with obedience and propriety and "as a bride to become more beloved because of her merits†¦". (Reading 139, Lefkowitz and Fant, 1982;135) Marriage, for both males and females granted them a larger network of fam... ...her image. He wanders lovesick to her room only to discover she is not there. It is safe to say that one of the gains from marriage for both partners was sexual satisfaction, even if certain men did look outside the marriage bed occasionally. Were the Roman's expectations of marriage likely to be met? The foremost function of marriage, the production of children, was likely to be met by most marriages. Having those children survive and succeed you as heirs or to look after you in old age was another matter. Cornelia bore twelve children of whom only three survived. In an age of high mortality, in which both childbirth and military campaigns were a factor, it could be difficult to establish a lasting partnership, the ideal Roman marriage of one partner for life. It is recorded on the tombstones of the long dead that indeed these marriages did exist, and even if it is but a literary cliche, it is still a testament of their devotion to one another. "Pythion son of Hicesius set up this common memorial to himself and to his wife Epicydilla daughter of Epicydes. He was married at eighteen and she at fifteen, and for fifty years of life together they shared agreement unbroken†¦" Marriage in ancient Rome Essay -- essays research papers The Roman institution of marriage has been lauded as being the first purely humanistic law of marriage, one that is based on the idea of marriage being a free and freely dissolvable union of two equal partners for life. (Schulz, 1951;103) This is quite a simplistic view, as there were many differing forms of marriage in Rome, from the arranged marriages of the elite to the unions of slaves and soldiers. As we shall see, the Romans' actual expectations of married life and the gains they envisioned they would receive from the experience depended greatly on their age, sex and social status. Unlike our contemporary society, no specific civil ceremony was required for the creation of a marriage; only mutual agreement and the fact that the couple must regard each other as husband and wife accordingly. (Gardner,1986;47) Although not a legal necessity, some weddings, usually the first marriage of elite couples was accompanied by much revelry and song, as featured in one of Catullus' poems. It describes the celebration of the marriage with dancing, singing and the brandishing of torches. Ribald jokes are shouted at the bride and nuts are scattered as she makes her way towards her husband's house. The groom arrives before the bride so that he can personally invite her to come and share his home. Now married, what does the couple expect to gain from the experience? The young bride is most probably in her early teens, as is the girl described in Catullus' poem with the words, "Young boy, release the little girl's small smooth arm". After marriage she will be transformed from a "little girl" into a respected wife. Elsewhere Catullus assures his readers that young daughters are unloved by their parents until they are married. "If, when she is ripe for marriage, she enters into wedlock, she is ever dearer to her husband and less hateful to her parents†¦" (Catullus, Poems 62.57-65) If we are to take this at face value, then marriage for young girls gains them the affection of their parents. A similar sentiment is found in the funeral eulogy from Rome for a woman named Murdia. It speaks of her dealing with her arranged marriage with obedience and propriety and "as a bride to become more beloved because of her merits†¦". (Reading 139, Lefkowitz and Fant, 1982;135) Marriage, for both males and females granted them a larger network of fam... ...her image. He wanders lovesick to her room only to discover she is not there. It is safe to say that one of the gains from marriage for both partners was sexual satisfaction, even if certain men did look outside the marriage bed occasionally. Were the Roman's expectations of marriage likely to be met? The foremost function of marriage, the production of children, was likely to be met by most marriages. Having those children survive and succeed you as heirs or to look after you in old age was another matter. Cornelia bore twelve children of whom only three survived. In an age of high mortality, in which both childbirth and military campaigns were a factor, it could be difficult to establish a lasting partnership, the ideal Roman marriage of one partner for life. It is recorded on the tombstones of the long dead that indeed these marriages did exist, and even if it is but a literary cliche, it is still a testament of their devotion to one another. "Pythion son of Hicesius set up this common memorial to himself and to his wife Epicydilla daughter of Epicydes. He was married at eighteen and she at fifteen, and for fifty years of life together they shared agreement unbroken†¦"

History of Life Insurance Essay

From the earliest days, Man has organized himself to control three main hazards, which confronted him, and still do. These hazards are: †¢ DYING TOO SOON †¢ LIVING TOO LONG †¢ BECOMING DISABLED Life Insurance originated and developed to reduce the impact of these hazards by grouping together with others and thus sharing the risk. The story of the origin of life insurance is very inspiring. The idea of guarding against risk is almost as old as mankind. We know that Joseph recommended storing grain during seven fat years in Egypt against the impending seven lean years. Centuries ago in England, little groups banded together into guilds and societies. Members of these guilds and societies by paying small sums were assured that a certain measure of relief would be given to their families if the breadwinner were taken away. In 1705, â€Å"The Amicable Society for a Perpetual Assistance Office† was founded and it became England’s first successful Life Insurance Company. One of the first records of life insurance was in Rome. The groups called Fratres (burial clubs) came together. These were set up by the poor to pay for the funerals of the members and to help the surviving family members financially. The middle ages had guilds for the various types of highly skilled labor. There are accounts that show that these guilds helped their members with various types of insurance including life insurance and disability insurance. Life insurance came into its own in England in the late1600’s and became popular from that time on. During this time period Lloyd’s of London was growing. Lloyd’s whose name came from Lloyd’s Coffee House where insurance was transacted by ship-owners with the underwriters (backers) who met to put together insurance contracts and other shipping and merchant related business. Some people think of insurance as gambling. It really isn’t gambling even though it has the similarities of probability and odds. Insurance serves a public good of sharing the financial risks of existence and life and death among many to serve those who have experienced a loss. The first life insurance company in the United States started in 1735. This company was started for the benefit of Presbyterian ministers’ families. The mutual life insurance companies originally dominated the life insurance. These are life insurance companies that are owned by the policyholders and thus those policy-owners receive their pro-rata share of the company’s profits. There are also stock life insurance companies where the profits are made for the benefit of the stockholders. Similar to the mutual life insurance companies are fraternal life insurance companies, which were started by the various fraternal orders to assist their members. Today the insurance business has evolved to a multi-faceted business with various programs and numerous distribution methods. The internet and the insurance industry is in its infancy with most insurance companies having a web site and now with web sites able to do life insurance. There are choices today that differ greatly from the choices of even a few years ago. The Internet has made information on life insurance accessible just as any subject. But you still need the right knowledge. That may come from a qualified insurance agent who knows their business or from a great life insurance or disability insurance web site that provides great information for you to study. Life Insurance as we know today, developed from these small beginnings into a gigantic industry, which gives people the security they need to maintain financial soundness, morale, and faith. Through war, inflation, deflation, depression, boom, panic, epidemic, and all kinds of catastrophes, life insurance gives the individual the solid financial footing needed to forge ahead as it is based on sound and scientific principles. Any other financial institution cannot approach its record of service. At the times when Banks failed by the hundreds and the investment companies went under, the Life Insurance Companies paid their dues in full and survived the turmoil. Life Insurance Companies have maintained an enviable record in the face of almost every conceivable trial. Life Insurance is truly INCOME INSURANCE; a new source of income replacing the earning power of the breadwinner if unfortunately he is taken away. It is in a sense, TIME, because it is money a person did not have time to accumulate; an estate that will complete the plans there was not time to finish. Life Insurance is sold not because someone may die, but because someone must live. If people die, the contracts, which the life insurance agent has sold, are LIFE for the survivors. If people live, the contracts are life for their old age. While people live, their contracts assure effective thrift and accumulation of funds and reserves for emergencies and for opportunities. It is an unsurpassed vehicle of savings; protection and growth, which has stood the test of time and given people the security they need to maintain financial soundness and peace of mind.

Tax Cuts essays

Tax Cuts essays Dominic Shafer James Bang A09 The article I chose to comment on, The Double Benefit of Tax Cuts is from The Wall Street Journal. It was published on Tuesday October 7, 2003 and was written by Gary Becker, Edward Lazear, and Kevin Murphy. My article covers the current issue of presidential candidates and their plans to make tax cuts. In a debate on economics in September 2003, every Democratic candidate talked about rolling back President Bushs tax cuts. The candidates tried to show that in a time of economic recovery it would be the perfect time to introduce tax reductions, which would help stimulate economic activity over the next year or more. The idea of whether or not a tax cut would help out over a long period of time was not an important issue in this discussion. There were two main ideas behind cutting takes that the candidates talked about. The first reason they talked about is that a tax cut would make sense is because government spending responds to tax revenues, so that lower revenues imply lower government spending. Just as in a business, the spending by the government is limited by its revenue. It was also pointed out that the government budget equation plays a factor on the revenue. Normally, government spending has to do with societys needs and takes taxes to balance the government budget equation, but there is some evidence that shows spending often adjusts to the tax revenue. In the past, tax cuts have shown the dependence of spending on tax revenue. In the 1980s President Reagan proposed a tax cut that helped promote long-term growth. President Bush hoped his tax cuts would stimulate the economy and help future growth. In the late 1980s and early 90s there was a decline in federal spending, which was linked to the need to adjust spending to growin...

Sample Argumentative and Persuasive Writing Prompts

Sample Argumentative and Persuasive Writing Prompts Any of the 40 statements or positions below may be either defended or attacked in an argumentative essay or speech. Selecting a Position In choosing something to write about, keep in mind Kurt Vonneguts advice:  Find a subject you care about and which you in your heart feel others should care about. But be sure to rely on your head as well as your heart: select a topic that you know something about, either from your own experience or  from that of others. Your instructor should let you know whether formal research is encouraged or even required for this assignment. Because many of these issues are complex and wide-ranging, you should be prepared to narrow your  topic  and focus your approach. Selecting a position is only the first tep, and you must learn to prepare and develop your position persuasively. At the end of the following list, youll find links to a number of argumentative paragraphs and essays. 40 Topic Suggestions: Argument and Persuasion Dieting makes people fat.Romantic love is a poor basis for marriage.The war on terror has contributed to the growing abuse of human rights.High school graduates should take a year off before entering college.All citizens should be required by law to vote.All forms of government-funded welfare should be abolished.Both parents should assume equal responsibility in raising a child.Americans should have more holidays and longer vacations.Participating in team sports helps to develop good character.The production and sale of cigarettes should be made illegal.People have become overly dependent on technology.Censorship is sometimes justified.Privacy is not the most important right.Drunk drivers should be imprisoned for the first offense.The lost art of letter-writing deserves to be revived.Government and military personnel should have the right to strike.Most study-abroad programs should be renamed party abroad: they are a waste of time and moneyThe continuing decline of CD sales along wit h the rapid growth of music downloads signals a new era of innovation in popular music. College students should have complete freedom to choose their own courses.The solution to the impending crisis in Social Security is the immediate elimination of this government program.The primary mission of colleges and universities should be preparing students for the workforce.Financial incentives should be offered to high school students who perform well on standardized tests.All students in high school and college should be required to take at least two years of a foreign language.College students in the U.S. should be offered financial incentives to graduate in three years rather than four.College athletes should be exempted from regular class-attendance policies.To encourage healthy eating, higher taxes should be imposed on soft drinks and junk food.Students should not be required to take physical education courses.To conserve fuel and save lives, the 55 miles-per-hour national speed limit should be restored.All citizens under the age of 21 should be required to pass a drivin g education course before receiving a license to drive. Any student caught cheating on an examination should be automatically dismissed from college.Freshmen should not be required to purchase a meal plan from the college.Zoos are internment camps for animals and should be shut down.University students should not be penalized for illegally downloading music, movies, or other protected content.Government financial aid for students should be based solely on merit.Nontraditional students should be exempted from regular class-attendance policies.At the end of each term, student evaluations of faculty should be posted online.A student organization should be formed to rescue and care for the feral cats on campus.People who contribute to Social Security should have the right to choose how their money is invested.Professional baseball players convicted of using performance-enhancing drugs should not be considered for induction into the Hall of Fame.Any citizen who does not have a criminal record should be permitted to carry a concealed weapon.

Analytical Essay Sample on “The Awakening” by Kate Chopin

Analytical Essay Sample on â€Å"The Awakening† by Kate Chopin Kate Chopins The Awakening, focuses on the revolt of the main character, Edna Pontellier, against her role and position in society. As Edna awakens to her body, her senses, and her role as a woman in late nineteenth century America, she begins to challenge societal laws and traditions. Not only does she neglect her obligations to friends and family, but also she ignores societys expectations of her as a woman of wealth and stature. Edna senses the forces that ultimately drive her to the sea after a disagreement with her husband, Leonce, early in the novel. When Leonce demands that Edna come in from outside to retire, Edna begins to understand that he regards her as an object of possession. Though Edna refuses to appease her husband an indescribable oppression, which seemed to generate in some unfamiliar part of her consciousness, filled her whole being with a vague anguish. Edna, however, does not yet realize she is awakening. A certain light [will begin] to dawn dimly within her,the light which, showing the way, forbids it. Madame Reiszs musical performance in Chapter 9 triggers Ednas first true awakening. Her intense physical reaction to the sound of the keys of the piano, including trembling, choking, and crying, are paralleled by the arousal of passion within Ednas soul. Chopin suggests that this was the first time [Edna] was ready, perhaps the first time her being was tempered to take an impress of the abiding truth. Later this same evening, Edna soars beyond the limits fear imposes upon her in an attempt to capture a sense of independence as she swims far out into the sea alone. To Edna, the sea is the place where the individual is free from both the evils and the responsibilities of communal life. This perhaps explains the feeling of exultation and the sense of power to control the working of her body and soul that overtake Edna. While reflecting on her experience in the sea and Madame Reiszs music, Edna remarks, A thousand emotions have swept through me tonight. I dont comprehend half of them. . .I wonder if any night on earth will ever be like this one. From this point on, there is no turning back for Edna. Her awareness continues to grow until her final return to the sea. The newfound strength and individuality that learning to swim alone in the sea affords Edna enables her to release her sexual nature. Ednas friendship with Robert Lebrun takes on new meaning for her as she sits alone with him after her swim: No multitude of words could have been more significant than those moments of silence, or more pregnant with the first felt throbbings of desire. Perhaps it is more accurate to call this a romantic awakening than it is to call this a sexual awakening. It seems more appropriate to assume Edna is beginning to yearn for love and human connection with the opposite sex, not some lustful encounter, since she has not yet awakened to her physical self. As Edna sails to a neighboring island called Cheniere Caminada with Robert the next day, she identifies a sense of freedom within herselffreedom from the constraints her duties as a wife and mother impose upon her. Later this day Edna becomes aware of her body and its natural beauty after Robert compels her to rest at a friends house. Edna, left alone to sleep, removes most of her restrictive clothing and begins to closely observe her body. Though Ednas return to the Grand Isle is a return to domesticitywhich Edna, at this point, associates with burdening responsibility,she was seeing things with different eyes and making the acquaintance of new conditions in herself that colored and changed her environment. Roberts move to Mexico in Chapter 15 forces Edna to recognize the symptoms of infatuation for the first time. Edna longs for Robert throughout his absence, but she lusts for another man when she returns to New Orleans at the end of the summer. Alcee Arobin pleased her at last, appealing to the animalism that stirred impatiently within her. This awakening to sexual desire is followed by an awakening to sexual fulfillment when Edna actually becomes physically involved with Alcee. The first kiss of her life to which her nature had really responded, however, was not the kiss of love which had inflamed her, because it was not love which had held this cup of life to her lips. After months of Ednas anticipation Robert returns home from Mexico and the two are finally able to proclaim their love for one another. There was no human being whom [Edna] wanted near her except Robert; and she even realized that the day would come when he, too, and the thought of him would melt out of her existence, leaving her alone. Edna becomes convinced that human connection is not possible for her. As Ednas awakening progresses throughout the novel, she becomes increasingly aware of her solitude. The people she cares about, even Robert continually leave her alone. Edna comes to realize that her aloneness is a product of her desire for spiritual emancipation. She is not willing to sacrifice self-fulfillment in order to uphold the traditions and expectations of society. Every step which she took toward relieving herself from obligations added to her strength and expansionism as an individual. But Edna knows that complete control over her own life will only come through total relief from social commitments. Thus, she returns to the comforting touch of the sea that enfold[s] the body in it soft, close embrace. As Edna removes her clothing and enters the sea, she is reborn into a world free of constraints, the world she has longed to encounter throughout The Awakening a very prominent masterpiece written by Kate Chopin. You can order a custom essay, term paper, research paper, thesis or dissertation on Kate Chopin at our online custom essay writing service which provides students with high-quality custom papers written by qualified academic writers. 100% plagiarism free and on-time delivery guarantee! Let our writers write a custom paper for you. Get professional essay help at an affordable cost.

Professional Versus Persona judgement in accounting world Essay

Professional Versus Persona judgement in accounting world - Essay Example Personal judgment emanates from an individual based on personal views, values, and opinions. On the other hand, professional judgment emanates from a set of guidelines stipulated by relevant bodies in the respective profession. In the accounting world, the main accounting bodies that govern professional judgment are; The International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) and The International Federation of Accountants (IFAs). Personal judgment may be biased due to subjective reasoning from the accountant. Cottone, (2001) states â€Å"accountants need to move from psychologically based ethical decision-making models to socially constructed decision-making models.† Ethical issues that arise in accounting ought to be handled in objective reasoning (professional judgment) as opposed to empathetic and irrational reasoning (personal judgment). There are numerous users of financial information (managers, investors, lenders, employees, and shareholders). It is prudent that accountants apply the accounting guidelines in line with the Code of Professional Conduct stipulated by AICPA to put the interests of all users of financial information into consideration. In a situation whereby an accountant applies personal judgment to solve an ethical concern, he or she may end up favoring one party. Such acts may be considered discriminatory and may lead to legal action being taken against such accountants. All acco untants should bear in mind that â€Å"professional judgment results in wisdom from experiences being applied in ethical decision-making processes† (Lehr and Sumarah

Management of Industrial Relations Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Management of Industrial Relations - Essay Example For the better part of a century, it has played a key role in the representation and advising of employers all over Australia and their employment law experts have been actively involved in majority of the test cases in the industrial jurisdiction of fair work Australia (Australian Federation of Employers, 2014). AFEI is a nonprofit organization and its membership spans over 3,500 with more than 60 affiliated industry associations, today, their key role is advisory and they also represent and assist employers in as far as meeting their obligations in respect to workplace relations in concerned. They may or may not include collective agreements and unlike trade unions which are comprised of individual workers, employer organizations allocate membership to enterprises instead. However, most of the legal terms that are used to define trade unions can also be applied on employer organizations. It has been argued that employer organization is simply the employer’s response to trade unions which by virtue of their numbers and activism tend to have considerable power over employers. While this is debatable, it is not by any means simple, employers’ organizations to a large extent are indeed the response to trade unions but they also serve other purposes that have no bearing on the issue of labor. There has nevertheless been an extensive history of antagonism between trade unions and employees organization which gives credence to the assumption that in many ways their interests are mutually exclusive. In the 1890’s in Australia, powerful worker unions tried to dictate to the ship owners what goods they should carry this was done through a strike that threatened to bring down the shipping industry and which rewired over 2000 constables to manage. However three years after the fact, the ship-owners had come together and in response

Choose from the book Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Choose from the book - Assignment Example These new governments passed the discriminatory ‘Black Codes,’ which denied Blacks the right to testify against whites, barred entry to juries and state militias, denied them suffrage, mandated yearly labor contracts, restricted the occupations open to them and denied them property rights. When Jackson vetoed the Civil Rights Bills, establishing equality before the law for all races, and the Freedmen’s Bureau Bill, the Republican Congress broke with him. Radical Republicans in Congress embarked on their own reforms, through constitutional legislation, in a period called the Radical Reconstruction, extending from 1866-1877. The Fourteenth Amendment of 1868 guaranteed Blacks civil rights and equality before the law; the Fifteenth Amendment of 1870 mandated racially impartial voting rights; the Civil Rights Act of 1875 banned racial segregation. The Freedmen’s Bureau, whose powers were expanded by Congress, assisted former slaves to assert their rights. Severa l former slaves held legislative office, and entered the Congress, the Senate and the judiciary. Equal civil and political rights for African-Americans were ensured by such constitutional reforms. Former slaves succeeded in obtaining small family plots and a share in revenue through sharecropping. Socially, the African-Americans could now enjoy public conveniences, legalize their marriages and obtain educations. Radical Reconstruction struck a blow against racial discrimination, and laid the foundation for social integration of African Americans. With the election of 1876, and the Democratic dominance of Congress, the Reconstruction came to an end. 5. Explain the course of the Spanish-American War. (Page 663) The Spanish-American War was the offshoot of American expansionism, ignited by rising nationalist sentiment, and the doctrine of ‘Manifest Destiny’: it was the ‘duty’ of the ‘superior’ Anglo-Saxon race to spread Christian and Democratic va lues to ‘backward’ people. The war originated in the Cuban struggle for independence from Spain that began in 1895. American public sympathy for the Cuban revolutionaries was exacerbated by the ‘yellow press’, reporting atrocities committed by the Spanish on civilians. American investments in Cuba, and the perception of the strategic importance of the island in Central America, led President McKinley to dispatch the battleship USS Maine to Havana, to pressurize Spain. The mysterious explosion of the Maine in February 1898, with the loss of nearly 270 lives, was attributed to Spain. When Spain rejected American demands for a cease-fire and Cuban independence, McKinley declared war on Spain in April 1898. â€Å"The splendid little war,† (Foner, 663), to quote Secretary of State John Hay, resulted in only 400 American casualties and ended in four months. On May 1, the Spanish fleet was destroyed by the American navy under Admiral George Dewey at Manila Bay in the Philippines. The charge at San Juan Hill, outside Santiago, was highlighted by the popular press, which made Theodore Roosevelt a national hero. American troops landed in Cuba after another naval victory in July. American victory was declared in August. Contrary to its pre-war statements, America set to acquire an overseas empire. Under the following peace treaty, Cuba became an American Protectorate under the Platt Amendment of 1902, and

Competitive Advantage. The strengths and weaknesses of The Cheesecake Essay

Competitive Advantage. The strengths and weaknesses of The Cheesecake Factory - Essay Example The company has developed a brand for itself owing to various recognitions that it has received for delivering quality services to the customers ([1] The Cheesecake Factory, 2013). With the changing nature of business environment, competition has become quite fierce among the companies. As there lay numerous companies that deal with similar products in the business markets, customers have utmost number of choices for themselves to make. This vital aspect eventually forces the companies to enhance their competitiveness and gain a unique reputation for themselves. 1. Explain the Restaurant's Strengths and Weaknesses, and Justify Your Explanation Strengths of the Cheesecake Factory The Cheesecake Factory has several strengths that differentiate itself from other companies in terms of maintaining long-term sustainable operation over the years. Among the major strengths of the company, its recognition as a quality product or service provider is the prime one. It has been noted that the company has received several noteworthy awards for conducting effective business practices and the quality products or services that it delivered to the customers. A few of the awards received by the company include ‘2012 Nation’s Restaurant News Menu Masters Award for â€Å"Healthful Innovations’, ‘2010 Zagat Survey - Best Desserts and Best Salads’ and ‘2007 Zagat Survey "Most Popular Restaurant, Southern California & San Francisco"’ among others.... News Menu Masters Award for â€Å"Healthful Innovations’, ‘2010 Zagat Survey - Best Desserts and Best Salads’ and ‘2007 Zagat Survey "Most Popular Restaurant, Southern California & San Francisco"’ among others. All these awards signify the extent of satisfaction that it provided to the customers through deliverance of quality product or services. This aspect might work better towards enhancing the brand image of the company in the coming years. The other strength of the company which differentiates itself from others is its specialization in dessert product line. This aspect may enable the company to change or develop its food line in accordance with the changing needs and taste preferences of the customers. Additionally, this diversified approach of presenting itself might further influence the customers to visit the stores of the company frequently and try something new every time. Apart from this, the other strength of the company can be viewed is its personal website which is quite easy to use and interactive wherein customers are able to find maximum information about the products or services that they require ([2] The Cheesecake Factory, 2013). Weaknesses Certain unfavorable aspects associated with the company impose unfavorable impact upon its overall business along with operational performance by a certain degree. In this context, one of the major weaknesses of the company can be apparently observed is the ideals, mission and vision that are quite reluctant to change in accordance with the changing nature of the business market. Since every market has its own need and nature, strategies of the company should need to be developed accordingly. Moreover, another weakness of the company is its lack of advertising. The company will need to remain much aware

Transformational leadership compare articles Essay

Transformational leadership compare articles - Essay Example ose of this study is examine the relationship between transformational leadership in a business environment in France and how employees perceive fairness in terms of distributive, interactional and procedural fairness. This study is important, according to the authors because there exists very little if any, information about the relationship between leaders and other factors such as trust and satisfaction among followers. This study is very significant because it aims to tap in to this area and reveal important information that can help organizations improve relationships between leaders and employees (Bacha, and Walker,2012). The other article is ‘Ethical Preferences of Transformational Leaders: An Empirical Investigation’, written by Krishnan Venkat and Banerji Priyanka. The main objective of this article is to study the relationship between four main factors of transformational leadership and the individual preference of leaders regarding unethical behavior. According to the authors, this study is important because it aims at studying the impact that leaders have in managing unethical behavior in organizations through transformational leadership. The study examines five different ethical scenarios in an attempt to determine how transformational leadership can be used to manage such scenarios (Banerji, & Krishnan, 2000). In the first article, Bacha and Walker (2012) focus on filling the gap in research with regard to transformational leadership by studying the relationship between transformational leadership and the perceptions of employees on the concept of justice or fairness. This area has been overlooked in most scientific studies and these authors aim at revealing substantive information to improve the relationship between employees and their leaders (Bacha, and Walker,2012). The main research question for this article therefore is to find out how transformational leadership can be used to improve the employees’ perception of the concept of justice

Importance of reserch and development to an innovative company Assignment

Importance of reserch and development to an innovative company - Assignment Example With reference to the context, it can be observed that Exxon Mobil Corporation from the United States has comprehensively introduced R&D management into its business process. With due consideration to the aspect, the paper intends to discuss about the ways in which Exxon Mobil makes use of R&D in its business operational process to obtain an edge over its market competitors. Exxon Mobil is one of the leading multinational and publicly traded oil and gas companies of the world having its headquarters in Irving, Texas, United States. It was created in the year 1999 after the merger between Exxon and Mobil and is recognized as a decedent company of Standard Oil founded by John D. Rockefeller. In serving the local communities with oil and gas along with other petrochemicals, Exxon Mobil has been able to expand its business operations on a global basis. Consequently, it has been able to achieve certain milestones which can be identified as the business segments of Exxon Mobil has expanded overseas within a very short span of time. Furthermore, in expanding business to overseas, Exxon Mobil has been capable to possess 31 refineries of oil. With the help of the final products produced in these refineries, Exxon Mobil is serving 21 countries with their products. Contextually, with the help of the sustainable performances in the recent years, Exxon Mobil has ach ieved the status of being the number one corporation in the USA according to Forbes Global 2000 list of the year 2012 by increasing its organizational revenues and profits (Forbes, 2012). Moreover, for surviving in the competitive marketplace, Exxon uses innovative and modern technologies in order to develop an aggressive and advanced operational process for serving the customers. In accordance with the aspect, it is observed that Exxon Mobil has introduced R&D management into its operational process (Exxon Mobil, 2012). R&D management can be defined as the management

Competitive Advantage. The strengths and weaknesses of The Cheesecake Essay

Competitive Advantage. The strengths and weaknesses of The Cheesecake Factory - Essay Example The company has developed a brand for itself owing to various recognitions that it has received for delivering quality services to the customers ([1] The Cheesecake Factory, 2013). With the changing nature of business environment, competition has become quite fierce among the companies. As there lay numerous companies that deal with similar products in the business markets, customers have utmost number of choices for themselves to make. This vital aspect eventually forces the companies to enhance their competitiveness and gain a unique reputation for themselves. 1. Explain the Restaurant's Strengths and Weaknesses, and Justify Your Explanation Strengths of the Cheesecake Factory The Cheesecake Factory has several strengths that differentiate itself from other companies in terms of maintaining long-term sustainable operation over the years. Among the major strengths of the company, its recognition as a quality product or service provider is the prime one. It has been noted that the company has received several noteworthy awards for conducting effective business practices and the quality products or services that it delivered to the customers. A few of the awards received by the company include ‘2012 Nation’s Restaurant News Menu Masters Award for â€Å"Healthful Innovations’, ‘2010 Zagat Survey - Best Desserts and Best Salads’ and ‘2007 Zagat Survey "Most Popular Restaurant, Southern California & San Francisco"’ among others.... News Menu Masters Award for â€Å"Healthful Innovations’, ‘2010 Zagat Survey - Best Desserts and Best Salads’ and ‘2007 Zagat Survey "Most Popular Restaurant, Southern California & San Francisco"’ among others. All these awards signify the extent of satisfaction that it provided to the customers through deliverance of quality product or services. This aspect might work better towards enhancing the brand image of the company in the coming years. The other strength of the company which differentiates itself from others is its specialization in dessert product line. This aspect may enable the company to change or develop its food line in accordance with the changing needs and taste preferences of the customers. Additionally, this diversified approach of presenting itself might further influence the customers to visit the stores of the company frequently and try something new every time. Apart from this, the other strength of the company can be viewed is its personal website which is quite easy to use and interactive wherein customers are able to find maximum information about the products or services that they require ([2] The Cheesecake Factory, 2013). Weaknesses Certain unfavorable aspects associated with the company impose unfavorable impact upon its overall business along with operational performance by a certain degree. In this context, one of the major weaknesses of the company can be apparently observed is the ideals, mission and vision that are quite reluctant to change in accordance with the changing nature of the business market. Since every market has its own need and nature, strategies of the company should need to be developed accordingly. Moreover, another weakness of the company is its lack of advertising. The company will need to remain much aware

Importance of reserch and development to an innovative company Assignment

Importance of reserch and development to an innovative company - Assignment Example With reference to the context, it can be observed that Exxon Mobil Corporation from the United States has comprehensively introduced R&D management into its business process. With due consideration to the aspect, the paper intends to discuss about the ways in which Exxon Mobil makes use of R&D in its business operational process to obtain an edge over its market competitors. Exxon Mobil is one of the leading multinational and publicly traded oil and gas companies of the world having its headquarters in Irving, Texas, United States. It was created in the year 1999 after the merger between Exxon and Mobil and is recognized as a decedent company of Standard Oil founded by John D. Rockefeller. In serving the local communities with oil and gas along with other petrochemicals, Exxon Mobil has been able to expand its business operations on a global basis. Consequently, it has been able to achieve certain milestones which can be identified as the business segments of Exxon Mobil has expanded overseas within a very short span of time. Furthermore, in expanding business to overseas, Exxon Mobil has been capable to possess 31 refineries of oil. With the help of the final products produced in these refineries, Exxon Mobil is serving 21 countries with their products. Contextually, with the help of the sustainable performances in the recent years, Exxon Mobil has ach ieved the status of being the number one corporation in the USA according to Forbes Global 2000 list of the year 2012 by increasing its organizational revenues and profits (Forbes, 2012). Moreover, for surviving in the competitive marketplace, Exxon uses innovative and modern technologies in order to develop an aggressive and advanced operational process for serving the customers. In accordance with the aspect, it is observed that Exxon Mobil has introduced R&D management into its operational process (Exxon Mobil, 2012). R&D management can be defined as the management

The Crucible by Arthur Miller Essay Example for Free

The Crucible by Arthur Miller Essay Arthur Miller set his play The Crucible in the town of Salem, Massachusetts, in the year 1692. The story revolves around a farmer John Proctor and his community, devastated by allegations of witchcraft. The play begins with a group of young girls being discovered to have been dancing in the forest. Fearing the consequences of what they did, the girls begin to lie about their actions. When one of the girls falls ill, accusation of witchery becomes their escape from suspicion. This coincidence only helps exceed the villagers beliefs of supernatural possession. Abigail Williams, the prime motivator behind these series of events, takes this opportunity to accuse Elizabeth, the wife of John Proctor, of practicing witchcraft. In so doing, she hopes to be able not only to effect vengeance on Proctor, who had earlier rejected her after an affair, but to regain him by eliminating her competition. Lies build upon lies as the chain of events escalates and results in many deaths. When John Proctor tries to save his wife and friends, he is forced to question his own values and beliefs and is made to choose between the purity of his name and the value of his life. Miller saw in history a parallel sequence of events: a mass hysteria that gripped people and destroyed the social fabric of their community. The cruel persecution of minorities and the interference of the state in the individuals conscience became the key concerns of Millers criticism of this peoples actions and beliefs. Miller relates the actions of the people in 1692 to present day by stating that when one rises above the villainy displayed, one can only pity them all, just as we shall be pitied someday. Miller portrays these Puritans as a selfish group of people who can claim witchery upon their neighbor or someone with whom theyre disputing for the simple purpose of self-benefit, without even feeling any hint of remorse about it. Their creed was a snobbish sort who carried about an air of innate resistance. They forbade anything having to do with any sort of enjoyment, and in the instance of vacationing from work, they found themselves concentrating harder upon prayer. As Miller makes plain in his explanatory notes to the play, even though the belief in witchcraft was widespread throughout the Christian world, New World Puritanism was much harsher than Old World Protestantism because of the Puritans trials in the  wilderness. The disasters that they endured, coupled with their strict theology, led to persecutions, including the Salem witch-hunts. In 1692, Salem was a small but expanding community of Puritan settlers, founded about forty years earlier in the spirit of building a New Jerusalem. Strict discipline, self-denial and a uniting religion characterized the life in the still hostile environment, where Satan was thought to live close by in the untouched wilderness. Between 1676 and 1692, Massachusetts had undergone major political, economic and social change. As Miller states, It was, however, an autocracy by consent, for they were united from top to bottom by a commonly held ideology whose perpetuation was the reason and justification for all their sufferings. Fights with the Indians and the French had emptied the treasury; poverty and land shortage became widespread, and with the social problems morality declined. This destabilized and demoralized situation indicated, according to the Puritan interpretation, that God had turned his face away from his chosen people and that Satan was reaching out for power. The fear of Gods wrath, evoked and nourished in fierce Puritan sermons, intensified the search for dark forces, which were blamed with the entire weight of peoples frustrations. So their self-denial, their purposefulness, their suspicion of all vain pursuits, their hard-handed justice, were altogether perfect instruments for the conquest of this space so agonistic to man. The theme of hypocrisy comes into play when Reverend Parris questions Abigail about her actions in the woods. She denies any unlawful activity, including anything involving the act of witchcraft. Her duplicity is shown when she speaks to John Proctor and tells him what actually happened when not minutes earlier, she had lied to her uncle about that exact subject. The theme of guilt is associated mainly with John Proctors actions. He committed adultery, and is now in repentance for his irreverent actions. His wife, suspecting disloyalty, questioned Proctor of any misconduct. He admitted to his wife of his transgression, and even though had been exceedingly apologetic since, there was still suspicion amid his wifes scrutiny. As he bade Abigail to cease persisting in seeking his affection, he felt guilt for the fault he had previously committed. The theme of authority is subjected  in an argument between Reverend Parris and John Proctor. Parris feels insulted by Proctors charges towards him. He feels he should have authority among the community, when he knows there is a party against him and all authority. For example, he demands the deed to his house as a mark of confidence that he cannot be put out whenever some majority feels the whim, and many believe asking ownership of the building is like asking to own the meetinghouse itself. The theme of hysteria, continued throughout the play, takes place as the community reacts to the girls accusations. The frenzy begins as people automatically associate any happenings, mysterious or not, with witchcraft. If one is accused, they are unavoidably marked. Their name blackened by the selfish accusations of ruthless teenagers. Hysteria is a main theme developed throughout the play. The girls accusations sent a panic among the citizens of Salem within moments. People started thinking differently; questioning others in suspicion, and undoubtedly speculating whether the most unlikely people were involved in witchcraft. For example, Miller states of Goody Nurse: As for Rebecca Nurse herself, the general opinion of her character was so high that to explain how anyone dared cry her out for a which and more, how adults could bring themselves to lay hands on her we must look to the fields and boundaries of that time. When speaking of Mr. Putnams accusations against people for motives such as land, deeds, or pure covetousness, Miller states that Putnam cries witch upon someone for those simple reasons without feeling any shame or guilt when they are punished for their fictitious accusations. It is Edward and Jonathan who signed the first complaint against Rebecca; and Thomas Putnams little daughter was the one wh o fell into a fit at the hearing and pointed to Rebecca as her attacker. In conclusion, as the act ends, the four themes, hypocrisy, guilt, authority and hysteria are tied together as the girls are questioned and begin to cry out. They find their escape by accusing others of the precise things they had been engaging in. The hysteria continues as fear arises throughout the community, and more people, innocent or not, are accused of witchcraft.

Case Study Malaysias Retail Pharmacy Marketing Essay

Case Study Malaysias Retail Pharmacy Marketing Essay Objective The report aims to provide an overview retail pharmacy industry and evaluate factors that propel and restrain the market, government policies, sales trends, potential growth and market outlook. Challenges related to the pharmaceutical retail sector will be outlined and assessed, and insights into marketing plans being deployed to tap into available market opportunities in Malaysia will also be discussed. Malaysias retail pharmacy : an overview Malaysia comes in at fifth in healthcare expenditure when compared to select Asian nations, and is growing at approximately 13% annually (Frost Sullivan 2008). The total national expenditure on healthcare in 2009 exceeded USD 7 billion, and is projected to surpass USD 10 billion by 2020. Retail pharmacy sector presently however contributes only to 17% of the total expenditure only due to restrictions pertaining to government policies, profession workforce, and population perception. The retail pharmacy sector traditionally can be described using organization size and product/service mix criteria. Sole units are comprised primarily of independent pharmacies, usually owned by pharmacists. Multiple-unit pharmacy organizations, or chains, can be divided into small chain and large chain (e.g. 30 or more units). In addition to organization size, the retail pharmacy sector can be characterized by the product/service mix of the organizations, though there is some blurring of this distinction. Some traditional categories include, supermarket (e.g. AEON), and, beauty and healthcare stores (e.g. Guardian, Watsons). Pure drug store is virtually non-existent in the Malaysian retail pharmacy sector as a result of no dispensing separation between the pharmacists and medical practitioners whereby pharmaceutical products can be sold and dispensed by medical practitioners as well. Consequently, this policy, have and still negatively impacting the pharmacy profession practice and retail viability of pure drug store in Malaysia. Therefore, current retail pharmacies generally offer both pharmaceutical and non-pharmaceutical product/services to maintain viable in Malaysian market. The major participants in the Malaysian retail pharmacy scene are multinational corporations such as GCH Retail (M) Sdn Bhd and Watsons Personal Care Store, local companies such as Caring Pharmacy and Trustz Pharmacy, and a plethora of small independently operated pharmacies. In 2009, the multinationals, GCHs Guardian and Watsons collectively dominated 54% of the total market share whilst 46% was divided among local retail pharmacies as shown above (Euromonitor 2010). Generally experienced in dealing with large industries, these multinational corporations compared to the domestic counterparts, have the experties in handling processing, packaging, logistics, inventory management etc. In addition, they have the advantages of economies of scale, retailing of in-house brand, increase in market profit and share, and wider discount parameter for retail healthcare products. chapter 1 External and internal factors influencing retailers marketing strategies In this bearish economy, retailing in Malaysia recorded a downtempo in current value growth (CVG) in 2009 compared to previous year but still at a positive pace (Euromonitor 2010). GDP forecast was reevaluated in May 2009 from 4% to 5% decline for 2009 in light of deteriorating international economic outlook (Euromonitor 2010). While consumer confidence dwindled, discretionary spending was reduced but appeared willing to spend a little bit more during promotional period or turned to cheaper alternatives such as mid-priced/economical in-house brands or generic medications. With ongoing urbanization trend, higher education levels and better living standards generated greater enthusiasm among post recession shopperconsumers regarding self-medication. This further strengthened the importance of retail pharmacies as consumers were able to acquire OTC healthcare, nutritional products and prescription drugs from retail pharmacies. Overall trend of the retail pharmacy sector is gearing towards the sales of generics and OTCs in times of recession. Price of generics are generally lower, 27%-90%, compared to branded/innovator products (Shafie Hassali 2008). Therefore a more cost friendlier option for consumers whilst profit margins of generics are higher than branded/innovator products, which is favorable to retailers a win-win solution. However, sales of non-prescription products such as OTCs, TCMs, vitamins and supplements are still the main contributor to the retail pharmacys revenue at 79%. These products similarly are seeing growth in sales fueled by gains in cough, cold and allergy remedies, amid global slowdown since 2008. Having said so, retailers still employ different marketing strategies to distinguish themselves from existing competitors and attempt to reposition themselves as market leaders some successful while some struggled. Strategies pertaining to each of the different type of organizations will be further discussed as follow: Strategies employed by multinational corporation The multinationals (i.e Guardian, Watsons) have taken a broad spectrum approach by attempting to diversify from traditional dispensing services common to the concept of a pharmacy, into other other market segments regarding to general healthcare and beauty solution to penetrate into wider consumer segments during the time of recession. The retailers responded by engaging in regular promotions and extended sales period to encourage spending and offering a combination of both pharmaceutical services with beauty care. Rapid expansion strategies undertaken by leading chained retailers resulted in a substantial escalation in the chained store numbers in the nation. 2009 saw a slight improvement in the average selling space per outlet of beauty and health specialist retailers. More retailers began opening stores in shopping malls which were larger than their standalone establishments. Most beauty and health specialist retailers launch their retail chains in Klang Valley. This is largely due to greater purchasing power among urban consumers. Nonetheless, more beauty and health specialist retailers are expanding outside Klang Valley in order to serve the rising population and growing purchasing power of consumers in East Malaysia and secondary states. Launching of budget in-house brand is to cover a wider range of consumer segment. Guardian: target market, product and services, promotion GCH Retail (M) Sdn Bhd is a wholly-owned subsidiary of a Hong Kong based Dairy Farm International Holdings Ltd, listed on the Hang Seng Stock Exchange. Dairy Farm International Holdings Ltd is 78% owned by the Jardine Matheson Group, which is listed on the FTSE Stock Exchange in addition to secondary listings on the Singapore Straits and Bermuda Stock Exchanges (Euromonitor 2010). In Malaysia, the company is involved in the operation of Guardian pharmacy, Cold Storage supermarket and Giant hypermarket outlets. In 2009, as a result of its aggressive outlet expansion, with 20 new Guardian outlets, and proactive promotion including daily specials boosted the companys pharmaceutical market share to 35% Figure 2.0, occupying the largest cut of the retail pharmacy market segment. GCH Retails Guardian brand is leading the pack because the retail format is gradually becoming popular in Malaysia. For instance, Guardian spearheaded the concept of  modern retail pharmacy by providing professional consultation and service by registered pharmacists, plus holistic health and personal care solution. GCH Retails in-house brand offers quality products at affordable prices because the companys in-house products are manufactured and sourced locally. Moreover, the company, targeting all consumer segment, from low to high income earners, was very aggressive in promoting its home brand products in terms of advertising and promotions, while also developing its product ranges. For instance, Guardian dedicated half a page or full-page advertisements in their in-store brochures or leaflets for their in-house brand products. GCH Retails share of in-house brand products has been growing steadily largely due to developing brand recognition as well as the wider range of items available. In response to the Malaysian governments support initiatives designed to spur small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) in Malaysia, it is expected that the company will continue to source new products for its in-house brand lines. External and internal factors analysis External Internal Threats Economic slowdown Decentralized marketing function: inconsistent brand image Weaknesses Retracted consumer spending Increased rivalry between competitors Opportunities Import/Export: Malaysian Ringgit vs Hong Kong Dollar Good management: able to respond to market change Strength Change in consumers spending pattern Both external and internal factors influence how the company decides to operate. The external factors will be the same for all the market players. Watsons personal care store: target market, product and services, promotion Watsons Personal Care Stores (WPCS) is a subsidiary of the AS Watson Group which is wholly owned by the Hong Kong based Hutchison Whampoa Ltd listed on the Hang Seng Stock Exchange main board and has been in Malaysia since 1994. Being the largest beauty and health retail chain in Asia, in Malaysia, with 211 outlets nationwide following the successful merger and acquisition of Apex Pharmacy Sdn Bhd in Jun 2005, WPCS is one of the most accomplished personal care chain stores (Euromonitor 2010). In 2009, albeit with pharmaceutical value share of 19% Figure 2.0, due to increasing number of beauty and health specialist retailers, WPCS remained the largest community pharmacy retail chain in Malaysia. Having said so, continuous marketing efforts and promotions such as television advertisements, complimentary beauty and health information to consumers, and storewide 20% discount campaign, helped restrain its fall in value share. WPCS offers competitively priced and quality in-house brand products. Its in-house brand lines consist of a larger proportion of cosmetics and toiletries, disposable paper products, OTC healthcare products, bottled water and electrical items, is mainly designed for mass consumers, especially the budget end of the market. The company has been very active in pushing its in-house brand. For example, it has dedicated more shelf space in-store for its inhouse brand items. Coupled with growing brand recognition, as well as a wider range of products, the companys share of in-house brand has grown steadily. External and internal factors analysis External Internal Threats Economic slowdown Over expansion resulting in dissipated consumer services Weaknesses Retracted consumer spending Increased rivalry between competitors Opportunities Import/Export: Malaysian Ringgit vs Hong Kong Dollar Extensive outlet coverage nationwide Strength Change in consumers spending pattern Strategies employed by smaller pharmacy Marketing model of smaller pharmacies focus on establishing good rapport with its customer base and to provide individually customized pharmaceutical services for their clients to cater on the needs of selected consumer segments. The smaller retailers responded by provided extended hour services for the convenience of consumers after working hours access to pharmaceutical items and advice. Loyalty marketing is introduced to maintain or expand their customer base in light of even more competitive environment. A loyalty program may be specific to an individual retailer, or an independent coalition scheme involving a few partners. The latter model is gaining popularity in Malaysia and is established in Europe, Australia and Canada. Specialized services exclusive to pharmacy such as pre-packed dosettes medications to ensure better compliance to medicine, insulin dose adjustments for uncontrolled diabetes management and methadone replacement therapy for heroin dependent patient, cater to unique patients segment that is gradually increasing. Caring pharmacy: target market, product and services, promotion Caring Pharmacy Sdn Bhd is a group of pharmacies under one banner collectively shares the same supply and inventory management similar to that of chain stores, however each outlets are independently owned and operated by pharmacists. Caring Group currently have 46 registered pharmacists operating 40 outlets in Klang valley. Therefore giving the Group the highest number of pharmacist to outlet ratio among retail pharmacy operators in Malaysia. With market share of 12% in 2009 Figure 2.0, Caring is emerging fast as one of the most established local community retail pharmacy. Providing extended hour services from the early hours up to midnight proved to be a potent strategy in establishing its market share as it provides time flexibility to consumers. Caring offers professional consultation by registered pharmacists on uncomplicated ailments and medication management solutions such as pre-packed medications similar to the multi dose Webster-Pak ® for the consumers convenience. The group has been actively promoting its pharmacist consultation service. For instance, public awareness talks by pharmacists on health topics such as hypertension, diabetes, weight-management etc. are frequently organized. Launched in 2006, the first pharmacy reward program as a points accumulation and gift redemption card with Malaysias premier multi-party loyalty program BonusLink, enabled Caring to establish closer contact with their regular clients. External and internal factors analysis External Internal Threats Economic slowdown Too focused on domestic/localization growth Weaknesses Retracted consumer spending Increased rivalry between competitors Opportunities Change in consumers spending pattern Good corporate core value: pharmacist service for all consumer segments Strength chapter 2 Strategic recommendation for the retail pharmacy industry The Malaysian as well as the global economy continued to see tough times in 2009. Despite an unemployment rate that was on the rise and consumer spending falling, consumers remained largely loyal to established pharmacy names when it comes to fulfilling their healthcare needs. Some consumers also switched to self-medication in times of minor ailments as a bid to go back to work for fear that they might lose their jobs in the recession. Retail pharmacies are seeing an increase in consumer sales contribution of 0.2% for 2009 against 2008. This was largely due to the expansion of outlets such as Watsons which attracted consumer interest for its one-stop shopping. Offer Mix Product Services Prices Promotion Mix Sales promotion Advertising Sales force Public relations Direct online marketing Target consumers Marketing-mix strategy Target consumers : consumer demographic outlook and lifestyle trend In 2007, the population in Malaysia was reported to be just over 27 million which, according to United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs. By 2015, its projected that Malaysias population will reach more than 30.7 million. Currently, the country has relatively young population, with nearly 60% Malaysians below the age of 30 in 2007. Regardless, the population is steadily aging, with the median age of the population increasing from 22.5 years in 1995 to 24.6 years in 2007. The aging population in Malaysia, usually earning more than their younger counterparts and are usually relatively established in terms of family and home and more aware of their health status, is expected to drive consumer healthcare expenditure. Consumer of this category is expected to drive increased demand for medical and health-related products and services, including pharmaceuticals and OTC drugs, vitamins and dietary supplements, health drinks and medical equipment. On the other hand, its projected that still over one-half of the Malaysian population will be under 30 years-old in 2015 so, while there will be some new emphasis on products for older consumers, younger consumers will remain a potent force, exercising significant purchasing power and driving continuing demand for the wide range of youth oriented products. This category of consumers are becoming more health conscious, recent survey that 80% of fast moving consumer goods shoppers now think about their health more than they did before. Hence, this will spur demand for core healthcare products and influence sales in tangential sectors such as food and beverages, and healthcare services. Offer Mix : Product portfolio adjustment and pricing tactic Product portfolio adjustment As living costs, including healthcare costs, are expected to rise, consumers will be more endeavous to try out economical in-house brand products and self-medicate, respectively. Additionally, more consumers understand the helpfulness of vitamins and dietary supplements as preventative measures against environment, diet and age-related ailments such as joint and back pain, immune systems, osteoporosis and lack of balance nutritional values. The relatively fast growth rate of consumer healthcare sales was not equally spread among in-house brand lines. It should be noted that not all categories saw higher in-house brand growth, as some were mostly dependent on growth by branded products. Within consumer healthcare, in-house brand product line is expected to grow in wound treatment products such as sticking plasters and topical germicidal/antiseptic Figure 3.0, especially in the midst of an economic slowdown and an influenza A (H1N1) outbreak, respectively. Coupled with strict registration requirements in Malaysia for all medicines, either branded or generics, in-house brand is unlikely to perform well in consumer healthcare categories such as oral analgesics, cough, cold and allergy (hay fever) remedies or digestive remedies as consumers remained largely loyal to established brands mainly because these brands are long-time trusted names that consumers find most effective or have simply grown accustomed to purchasing. However, consumers will increasingly demand convenient and effective products so as to meet their increasingly stressful and busy lifestyles. Therefore, easy to apply or easy to use products such as Nexcare Acne Patch and Gaviscon Liquid Sachets are expected to attract consumer interest, especially among the younger generation of the population. Retailers will need to expand their consumer healthcare product ranges in order to maintain competitive in the market. However, retailers should focus on producing lower-cost and in-house branded products such as topical analgesics, antipruritics, other wound treatments, vitamins and dietary supplements, that enjoy strong demand among consumers. Pricing tactic Consumers will be shopping around for the best deals. It is not necessary for retailers to cut list prices, but may offer more short termed price promotions, lower quantity threshold discounts, provide credit to long-standing customers, and more aggressively price smaller pack sizes. In tough times, price cuts attract more consumer support than promotions such as mail in offers and sweepstakes. Promotion mix : conventional advertising and online marketing Despite the growth of electronic communications, printed newsletter and television still play an important role in Malaysians daily life and their pursuit of information and entertainment. As shown in Figure 4.0, printed adspend dominated 54% followed by television adspend at 37% of the total adspend respectively for the year 2009. Major newspapers include three English-language dailies, two Malay-language dailies, five Chinese-language dailies, and two Tamil-language dailies. The Malaysian has a wide range of magazines covering lifestyle, fashion, business, and special interest topics such as fishing, motoring, health and wellness and childcare. Magazines in Malaysia are usually published on a fortnight or monthly basis and are available via subscription, at retail outlets, convenience shops and small grocery stores. The internet has had a significant impact on Malaysia over the past several years. The number of internet users grew from nearly five million users in 2000 to more than 12 million users in 2007, reflecting growth of 144%. Just as significantly, the household penetration rate of personal computers in Malaysia increased from 13.5% in 1995 to 34.7% in 2007. Tethered with such growth, online adspend recorded 72% spike growth from 2007-2009, and is expected to continue capturing readership share at the expense of printed media, in-line with household penetration rate of internet-enabled computers increases in Malaysia. Mobile advertising will be in vogue as internet handheld devices gains market penetration, particularly among the younger population. Advertising platforms such as Apples iAd is a prime example of cutting-edge mobile advertising where advertisements are not just informative but interactive as well. Advertisements of this kind, can be updated real time by retailers with short-term sales promotion similar to Malaysia Airlines Lunch-hour flight deals or provide interactive online shopping experience, will revolutionize conventional concept of promotional advertising. Hence, internet will have an impact on how retailers attempt to reach Malaysian consumers and, in a less significant but nevertheless growing way presently on how Malaysians shop. However, as in most countries, online advertising and internet retailing is expected to increase. conclusion Consumers in Malaysia are changing their healthcare shopping behavior in various ways at times of recession. While many opted for other more economical retailers, there are some who remained loyal to their preferred retailers while reducing the number of trips and spending. They are more comfortable in seeking out deals and using coupons, and will purchase both in-house brands or branded products whichever provides the best value. Definition of value is also changing. Previously, value is often perceived as quality and options, but during recession this is synonymous with price, while moving out of recession, value will mean that consumers get what they want at the best possible price. Pharmacy retailers can capitalize on consumers needs by providing increased personalized marketing and shopping experience. Consumers are shifting towards meaningful and unique shopping experience, particularly in purchasing healthcare items. Consumer in control Present consumers know are clear of what they want and many will go the distance in search of the best offers, some consumers, due to their lifestyle fluidity simply require products that satisfy their needs. Mobile shopping will be the next frontier for retailers to venture into as on-the-go consumers who emphasize on shopping convenience and speed of transactions. Pharmacy retailers can tap into this market and formulate marketing plans unique to loyal mobile shoppers. Conventional in-store consumers are bombarded with too much product information creating confusion and delaying purchases. Retailers and manufacturers should collaborate to satisfy consumers needs such as using attractive colors and creating simplistic product packaging to facilitate consumers search for healthcare products. Retailers diversify and re-brand to stay relevant Pharmacy retailers diversifying into in-house product line will need to factor in consumers shopping preference on established branded healthcare products when formulating in-house product marketing plans. Many consumers maintained loyalty to established brands due to familiarity to a product or confident with its effectiveness. However, in-house branded product line such as wound care, vitamin and supplements are projected to grow due to regional disease outbreak and economic downtempo. New and improve in-house product lines with convenience in mind such as topical analgesics and sachet digestive remedies will appeal to consumers particularly the younger customers. Retailers may need to revamp certain product lines with new design, improve in-house brand offers and a compelling ad-campaign, to appeal to younger consumers. Future of retail pharmacy Retail pharmacy landscape is shifting largely attributed to economic changes, the growth of online retailing and more recently mobile commerce. With increasing use of smart handheld devices in Malaysia, mobile advertising and commerce is projected to grow substantially. Retailers will have to employ a multi-channel marketing approach. Online retailing will provide a platform for retailers disseminate unique and targeted product offers for consumers to research, plan their shopping trips and ultimately attract consumers into stores. Once in store, consumers will look for premium service coupled with simplified shopping experience in terms of product availability and ease of locating the products. Now more than ever consumers becoming more sophisticated and informed in making choices. They desire to know the origin of the product, what they are made of and how their lives can be improved with them. In general, future consumer wants a simplified, personalized and meaningful shopping exp erience with a focus on value.