The effect of drying process in Micro Brushes Case Study - 1

The effect of drying process in Micro Brushes - Case Study Example This implies that the surface tension is not strong enough to accommodate the increase in the pillar elasticity (Tresco 350). The elastic modulus of the pillars can also be altered by adding a softener to the original polymer so as to decrease the stiffness of the pillars or mixing the polymers with Si nanoparticles to increase stiffness of the pillars. The result that the number of posts per assembly is inversely proportional to the modulus. When either the diameter or the modulus increases, the observed range of assembly size decreases, showing that the range is proportional to the maximum assembly size (Decker 620). Figures a, b and c above shows the effect of the pillar modulus concerning the size and arrangement of accumulated clusters. Figure d shows the plot of the number of posts per assembly as a function of the modulus for a certain given diameter (Kang et al. 6325). Evaporation-induced self-assembly in the micro brushes is due to the competition that exists between the capillary and the Van Der Waals forces. The inter pillar adhesion is also important in determining the nature of the final assembly of the micro bristles. The assembly is normally biphasic. The second phase is very much observable when the pillar stiffness is relatively high as observed in SEM image S2G. A large assembly forms under the influence of the capillary force but as the liquid dries, it breaks into smaller clusters that are equal to the immediate precursors. Given the fact that adhesion alone balances the elastic deformation in the dry system, it is observable that adhesion is not sufficient to maintain the last storage of the assembly. The balance between the adhesion and the elasticity determines the number of hierarchical stages that will be preserved in the micro bristles in the micro brushes. The balance between the elasticity and the capillary will determine the m aximum size that the micro

Marketing Essay Example for Free

Marketing Essay Crispy Crunch’s main problem is that they haven’t advertised their product in many years. Since then the target market has changed a lot and has a very high multi-tasking behaviour. It is hard to pin point the exact needs and wants of this culture anymore except for one thing, they are all very technologically routed. With the internet at our finger tips, TV whenever we want, and smartphones in everyone’s pocket. That is the only thing you can really count on this day in age. The chocolate bar market is mature and experiences only modest growth annually. There are 4 major players all with similar marketing strategies; find something unique in the product and promote it. Chocolate bars can be found in the same locations and are sold at very similar prices so they must use marketing communications to distinguish themselves. Crispy Crunch has had little to none in the last five years. Crispy Crunch’s goal is to break into the top ten again and increase market share from 3.5% to 4% within 12 months. The current awareness of Crispy Crunch is 35% among the target market, which must increase significantly in order to increase market share and profits. My main recommendation is to reach out to the target market using the only real linking factor among them; the internet. I think rich media is the best way to reach this audience because it makes use of technology and is available to audiences of many different tastes and lifestyles at all hours of the day. Search advertising is when an advertiser is listed within or alongside search results in exchange for paying a fee each time someone clicks on the listing in those search results. If Crispy Crunch were to apply that type of advertising they could buy such words as â€Å"chocolate†, â€Å"crispy†, or â€Å"delicious†. When someone searched a phrase with these words they would see Crispy Crunch’s ad. Pros This is a great way to advertise since you only play for the clicks you get. It is available 24/7 to a large audience and 80% of all internet traffic begins at a search engine. Cons This form of advertising can be an annoyance to consumers, therefore they become put off the product. Rich Media Rich media Incorporates animation, sound, video and interactivity into the advertising messages, like a short commercial. Marketers have found that a 10-second ad is the maximum acceptable length for an online video ad, and if it is to be viewed entirely it must be entertaining. Pros The similarity to television makes it attractive to traditional advertisers. Many TV shows are now being viewed online; these ads are often placed at the beginning, between scenes and at the end. They are available 24/7 to a large audience. Cons Sometimes it can be hard to make an ad interesting in that short of a time frame. Some viewers find these ads to be an annoyance. Mobile Advertising Advertisers are trying to capitalize on the popularity of cell phones by sending ads via text message. Marketers interested in reaching younger targets are getting involved with text messaging. They are asking consumers to get involved with their brands by running promotions that include short codes with their marketing material, often found on posters, packaging, bottle caps, etc. Consumers can enter or scan codes to participate in contests, download free music, and get ring tones and prizes. Pros This is a great way to advertise because of the speed, directness, portability, and low cost. It is very common with younger target markets. Cons These messages are often seen as an annoyance and intrusive and are too closely related to telemarketing. Some of these ads may even cost the consumer for the data they use. Recommendations I recommend that Crispy Crunch begins advertising with the use of rich media. I think this is best suited to reach their target group which has a high multi-tasking behaviour. Many people in the age group of 18-29 year olds have hectic schedules and are now watching episodes of their favorite shows online because they are not always able to watch it and this form of television has allowed them a more flexible lifestyle around their shows schedule. Rich media also provides 24/7 access, it can reach many people at once and it is not as invasive or annoying at other methods of advertisement such as direct response, text message or email while still being very cost effective. I would also urge Crispy Crunch to stick with their previous slogan â€Å"The only thing as good as your Crispy Crunch is someone else’s.† as well as the general message of the campaign. The ads were short, funny, and to the point. I think that the people in their target market have most likely never seen the previous ads or have forgotten about them. Sometimes bringing back the old is very well received. AW did very well bringing back the vintage vibe of their restaurants. The ads from the 1989 campaign were very well received and upped market share then and I’m sure they could do it again with the same overall message, they just need the attention.

Three Admirable Souls :: essays research papers

Three Admirable Souls There are different people that have certain qualities that make us admire them. Some people have their own admirable souls. The three nationally known figures that I admire and respect are Jackie Robinson, Billy Graham, and Condolezza Rice, due to all of their recognizable tributes that they have given not only to their families but to everyone around the world. The first person I admire and respect is Jackie Robinson there are many reasons for my admiration for Mr. Robinson. To begin with Jackie Robinson proved to be a man of courage and self respect. He earned and proved this courage and self respect by accepting a very challenging invitation to become the first African American to enter the Major League Baseball, where there was only Caucasian players. For example, when he first began to play he was faced with racism with this also came along, discrimination, physical, and verbal abuse. While facing this racism, Jackie Robinson held on to proving himself a man of self respect and looking forward to proving that a man should not be valued or accepted by the color of his skin, but by the inward person, which makes us who really are. Jackie Robinson behaved like a gentleman despite of all the challenges before him and so by doing this he gained respect by those around him and opened opportunities for other African American players to enter the National Baseball League. These are the qualities of Jackie Robinson courage, humbleness, and self respect that have come to make me admire and respect him. The second person that I admire and respect is Billy Graham. Billy Graham is a world famous evangelist that has been called to preach the Gospel according to his religious belief. Billy Graham began his ministry in the United States and England for the "Youth of Christ Crusade", which eventually led him to have large-scale evangelistic campaign in Los Angeles in 1949. I admire his dedication to his ministry because he has taken the gospel so that every one will have an opportunity to receive salvation according to his religious belief. Billy Graham is still obedient to the calling of his ministry because of his fifty six years of preaching and at the age of eighty seven his obedience is still having an influence on young and older people. Those who have had an encounter with Mr. Graham have had their faith stronger and have spiritually grown.

Green School Initiatives Essay

Introduction – Kate The idea of â€Å"Green Initiatives† in schools at any age level is a positive step towards installing sustainability in the minds of future generations. To reduce the amount of energy needed, recycle rain water, lessen landfill space and cut the barrels of oil used by Americans daily; can insure that our natural resource will be intact for many years to come. However, obstacles to Green Initiatives are costs, program management and proper data collection. Is it possible to initiate Green Methods in schools and really save cash as a result? It is possible. Let us examine which eco-friendly ideas work for institutions and which do not. Relevant Facts – Mandy, Miranda, Kate, Tomika & Alicia Why should schools â€Å"go green? † When a school â€Å"goes green,† that school is making the choice and the commitment to make their school more environmentally friendly. This includes doing things â€Å"to reduce carbon footprint, or the amount of carbon dioxide emissions produced† (Whelan, 2007). More and more, taking care of the environment is becoming an issue among people. They all want to know what they can do to make their environment safer and cleaner. Schools are becoming no exception to this endeavor. It does not take much for a school to make a difference. It can be something as simple as recycling plastic water bottles or something more complex such as installing energy-efficient solar panels in the roofing. Today’s schools have become more environmentally aware and many would like to incorporate green learning and living into their school systems. The definition of a green school is â€Å"a school building or facility that creates a healthy environment that is conducive to learning while saving energy, resources, and money† (www. greenschool-buildings. org). A school can be green in many ways; primarily this paper focuses on how a school can best go green. Much of what is discussed is school construction and renovation; however we also highlight some other areas in which schools can initiate green methods. The nation’s schools are currently built to code and meet government health and safety standards; is this enough or is there a better way? A study was performed of 30 green schools built 2001 – 2006 in 10 states. Some highlights from that study include: ? Green school construction costs less than two percent more compared to conventional schools, at about $3 per square foot. ?Direct and in-direct financial savings to the school and community were about $70 per square foot – 20 times as high as the cost of going green. ?Green schools, on average, use 33% less energy than convention schools. ?Reduction of average water use by 32%. Because of the process of water storage the school created with their green design, the city of Dedham, MA valued the improvement at $400,000. ?Highly reflective green roofs life expectancy to last 30 – 50 years or longer. ?An average reduction of 38. 5% in asthma, over five separate buildings, due to improved air quality. ?Today asthma rates are rising 20-50% every ten years throughout the world (Holguin 2004) There are some other reasons that schools choose to get on the good side of the environment by going green. An important reason behind this decision is in an effort to â€Å"provide a healthy, productive, comfortable environment for students and staff† (Lafee, 2010). This is because going green calls for cleaner air If a school is more environmentally sound, it is more likely that there will actually be a decrease in students being absent because of the cleaner air. Building green is especially beneficial to those students that have breathing problems. Many schools, as they are going green, are beginning to install solar panels in an effort to conserve energy and create clean energy. What are the benefits of using solar panels? They range from â€Å"economic, health, environmental, and financial benefits† (What Are the Benefits of Solar Power? , 2010). By using solar panels in schools, the schools are saving money on their electric bills. Solar panels are allowing schools to cut down on air pollution. Rather than cleaning them every month, solar panels only have to be cleaned once a year. Solar energy panels also allow for the demise of deadly fumes from fuels such as kerosene and gasoline. This makes for cleaner air indoors, which leads to a decrease in respiratory issues. The use of solar energy panels does not put out carbon monoxide, so they improve the quality of air. Finally, using solar panels in schools will allow â€Å"children to understand the significance of green architecture and renewable sources of energy† (Solar Energy Finally†¦, 2010). Wind power is used through the use of wind turbines that are installed inside the school grounds. By installing wind turbines on school land we bring other benefits to the school. As with solar panels, wind power also decreases a school’s electric bills. Using wind turbines give schools certain tax breaks. Having a wind turbine also â€Å"adds an experiential dimension to the schools’ science, math, and civic classes† (The Benefits of Wind Power, 2010). There is a program called the Wind for Schools Project whose purpose is to â€Å"install small wind turbines at rural elementary and secondary schools while developing Wind Application Centers at higher education institutions† (Wind for Schools Project, 2010). The program basically educates schools on the use, as well as the benefits of, wind power. One of the biggest ways that schools are going green is by having the students recycle their empty plastic milk and beverage containers after lunch. Schools put recycling bins in their cafeterias in an effort to encourage students to put their containers in them rather than a garbage can. What are the benefits? Doing this â€Å"conserves resources, helps the environment, saves schools money on disposal costs, creates the volume needed to have a viable recycling program, and teaches children social responsibility† (Why Recycle Plastic Milk and Beverage Bottles? , 2010). An additional benefit of recycling plastic beverage containers is that leaks and odors are decreased because the plastic containers have caps on them, and the students are encouraged to replace the caps on the empty containers. The types of containers that are recyclable are â€Å"all plastic beverage bottles (i. e. milk, soda, water, juice) and aluminum cans† (Recycling Plastic Milk Bottles At School, 2010). While it is true that recycling in schools is dependent upon the school district, most school districts are on board with this form of going green. They are willing to make the accommodations that are needed for this endeavor. The concept of a school going green may be better understood by its students if they are a part. If they feel that they are part of something, it will make them want to try harder. Green schools offer other advantages that might not be immediately apparent. The school is actually a teaching tool. Think about it. High school students could actively learn about renewable energy from the school’s solar panels. The middle school students could study ecosystems in their own wetland. The elementary students could grow organic vegetables and eat them for lunch. The student(s) would receive the full green experience. An additional way students are applying these concepts in the classroom are in art classes, instead of having students use recyclable materials, allowing them to use materials from nature. This can include making projects with leaves, sticks, sand, or any other outside objects. Not only is this fun for the students, but it is also environmentally-friendly. â€Å"There are different ways to create a work of art using found objects† (Kauffman, 2009). Students who use natural objects are more likely to be inspired. And using natural materials is very cost-effective for the schools. This type of art is especially rewarding to smaller children. This is because they get to â€Å"play† with stuff. Normally would not have the chance to. Some elementary schools have started implementing â€Å"garbage art. † Garbage art supplies include â€Å"beans, rice, buttons, fabric, string, dry pasta, yogurt, dryer lint, pencil shavings, etc. † (Pedersen, 2010). For younger students, this type of art is more likely to be more fun than any of the aforementioned options. The opportunity that â€Å"green building† in schools provide to the students, teachers, and the community is substantial. Along with the health benefits, there are cost savings to the school and to the city the school is located in. Continued growth within the green initiatives and design benefit the country and the world environment overall. (www. greenschoolbuildings. org) When students are involved their moral is up, if student morale is up, the desire for students to learn also increases. A school that is more environmentally conscious benefits because their students will not only be learning how to help the environment, they will be implementing that knowledge as well. Schools that go green will positively impact student health in other areas than just cleaner air. Cleaner air results in higher test scores and teacher retention. Green buildings are designed with proper acoustics so the teachers can be heard and have more control of the classroom environment. Students are exposed to more natural daylight helping them perform at their individual best and avoid seasonal depression due to lack of sunlight. Another more energy-efficient practice is softer lighting in the classrooms. If a school has inadequate lighting, whether it is too bright or too dim, it can actually cause students to have headaches due to possible straining to read. If a school decides to go green in the way of softer lighting, it will be easier for students to see and cause less straining for them. On top of all these benefits to the children and staff there are operational cost savings with utilizing daylight, reducing energy and recycling water. Going green means that building repairs, upgrades, and system replacements will assist in lowering utility costs from renewal efforts. (www. greenschoolbuildings. org) Green schools generally do not cost more than a conventional school to operate. The costs are much less to operate a green school due to the efficient use of water and energy. A green school can typically save $100,000 in, in-direct costs in a given year. An estimated $20 billion could be saved over the next 10 years if all schools performed green renovations and all new schools were built green. (www. greenschoolbuildings. org) Other areas where schools can and are â€Å"going green† are as follows: †¢Recycling Programs – working with recycling brokers to recycle glass, plastic and paper †¢Using old material such as cardboard boxes as art supplies †¢Going â€Å"IT Green† – recycling computers, putting computers on standby when not in use and scanning copies instead of producing paper ones. Many schools are switching to low voltage IT servers. At the University of Buffalo’s Center for Computational Research they are switching to energy-thrifty supercomputer servers and saving $150,000 annually. (Carter 2009) †¢Taking advantage of assistance from organizations like the â€Å"Go Green Initiative. org† that helps train school staff in green teaching methods so they can teach their students. They also assists in obtaining grants for schools; give quarterly progress reports to schools and give tools to track and quantify your green savings. Clearly one of the biggest benefits of going green within the school systems is That it teaches our children how to live better and make the world a better place in which to reside. These are life lessons that people carry along with them into adulthood. So, in addition to saving the planet, saving money, and having healthier children; this concept will be carried on into the future. Incorporating â€Å"going green† into the lives of our children would install very much needed values and morals that they can live by as adults. Problem Components/Root Problem – Mandy & Kate Some green initiatives like recycling water or material require very little investment; however construction can be another matter. Building a new school or renovating an existing school to go green, one must look at the big picture not only individual costs. In lean times like these many communities do not have extra funds to invest, so a common barrier to green projects is initial cost. There have been many green projects through the years that have not worked out due to prohibitive upfront costs. There are groups that believe that the government should aid in jumpstarting these projects to make the initial investment more affordable. (â€Å"Green economy,† 2010) However in recent years these costs are going down as green building becomes more commonplace and supplies become more plentiful. In reality the cost of going green is not much higher than it is to stay conventional. Going green may take some project management and innovative thinking, but is not off budget. Perhaps the biggest complication regarding cost comes in when schools are converting an existing structure. â€Å"Green schools cost a little more to build – generally 1% to 2% extra – than conventional schools† (King, 2010). Another drawback for new green school construction lies in what can occur during the whole â€Å"going green† process, especially if the â€Å"green school† is being built from the ground up. â€Å"Permits, zoning requirements, and other bureaucratic obstacles imposed by planning commissions, school boards or other government agencies† (Kennedy, 2010). Whether it is a new school going up or a current school being re-modified, money plays a huge part in just how green a school can go. For example, a school may have the funding for more energy-efficient lighting, but not have the money for better and more efficient air ducts. Not having enough funding can put the halt to preventing a school from becoming more environmentally sound in a heartbeat. Another hindrance to a school going green is that often not everyone involved is on board with the idea. â€Å"The problem with America’s public education system is it’s failed to empower our communities, parents and teachers with the tools and authority they need to provide the quality educational experience our children need, expect and deserve† (King, 2010). This is basically saying that if the parents and teachers are not given what they need to provide a good, sound education for their children, in and out of school, then no amount of environmentally-correct changes to the school are going to be effective. In many areas of the country, the design requirements are not an additional burden in the price of the bids. There are many financial benefits to new green construction or renovating. Some benefits that accrue over the life of the building are reduced energy and operating costs, improved well-being and more cost effective insurance prices. (www. eda. gov) The US Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design – LEED, sets standards for green initiatives. LEED rates projects based on the materials used and how they are sourced, the design, construction, and efficiency of systems to include water, energy, air quality, lighting, acoustics, waste and transportation. (www. ecoliteracy. org) Generating and Evaluation of Alternatives – Miranda & Kate Like any large project this puts schools in the position of determining what best suits their specific needs. By setting up specific â€Å"implementation plans† based on needs and monetary ability we can simplify a schools decision. We can also allow them to make more gradual steps. In a perfect world with abundant funding all schools would be free to immediately make the necessary changes; unfortunately that is not a reality for most. Schools could choose to make their decision in the following ways: †¢Low investment – green initiatives taken independently- Analyze possible areas of immediate change on their own. Make changes in their everyday routine such as recycling or reusing bottles, paper, glass and plastics. Building a rain water catch system for water reuse. They can estimate the cost savings to the school and savings to the environment. This will expose the children to the concept of recycling and reuse while helping to teach them. †¢Medium initial investment – green initiatives taken independently – schools can independently address the low initiatives outlined in option one while also investing in larger improvements. These improvements could include low voltage servers, schedules for electrical output and using computers that go to â€Å"low power† usage when on standby mode. This requires more of an initial investment by the school but allows the school to see greater return in their investment in the form of cost savings. †¢High initial investment – green initiatives taken on independently – schools can independently address both medium initial investment items and renovations to existing structures (like solar panels) or the building of new structures. Ultimately this would bring the greatest cost savings to schools and would have the greatest impact to the student’s environment and green experience. †¢High initial investment – green initiatives taken on with assistance – schools can work with organizations like the â€Å"Go Green Initiative† from start to finish. Instead of â€Å"reinventing the wheel† and learning through experience schools can use the opportunity of organizations that are established just to help them. These types of initiatives provide communication with other schools about their â€Å"green† projects, educate schools staff to â€Å"teach green methods†, provide information on green building, provide data tracking and even educate the community. Schools can make changes at any level they desire and on their own time schedule. Chosen Alternative – Tomika & Kate We believe that schools and the environment would benefit most from a High initial investment – green initiatives taken on with assistance option. Schools can get assistance from many of these organizations for absolutely free and initiatives don’t have to start as high investment. You can make small changes like recycling and using the cost savings to fund student activities. You can reduce your energy waste by conserving water and turning off computers when not in use. Representatives from organizations like the Go Green Initiative can help you communicate the â€Å"why† to your community. They can help explain why green changes with be profitable to the school in the long term. Once the community has seen the short term savings they will be more open to more long term green projects. You need community support and open communication to successfully incorporate change into any public structure. Having an outside source will also give you vast data from other school districts that have gone through the same changes you are tackling. These organizations can assist you with measurements for your green savings, but more importantly they can also measure your savings to the environment; this is a huge tool that motivates entire communities and makes your school more marketable to new families. Implementation Plan – Tomika & Kate 1. Determine what your schools objectives are, what do you wish to achieve? 2. Speak with the school board and the community about their ideas, concerns and involvement with any potential project. 3. Contact several organizations like â€Å"Go Green Initiative† and get information on each of them to present to your board. 4. Discuss the different organizations with your board and the community and pick one to work with. 5. Convey to the organization assisting you what your goals and objects are, your budget concerns and specifications. Ask for ideas to implement immediately that will show short term return on investment and improve the school environment. 6. Have a training session and meeting to review all aspects with the school board, superintendent and any interested party. Establish six month goals that are specific, measurable, attainable and timely. Determine who is responsible for data collection and programs implemented. 7. Obtain data and review progress in six months. Proceed from there. Alternative Choice – Tomika The alternative choice would be to have schools manage the projects themselves, beginning with small. They could conduct their own research and check with other local schools to see what green plans have been successful for them. Most of the steps would remain the same as the chosen alternative but there would be more â€Å"legwork† to be done by the schools themselves. From finding green materials and contractors to studying alternatives it would simply be more difficult to get information. It would however be possible. There may be some people in the immediate community with experience that could assist the school with their green initiatives. Either way schools have to start somewhere and any changes are better than none at all when it comes to the environment. Conclusion-Alicia Going green is very crucial and relevant to the future of the children as well as the planet. Starting the green system within schools is the best thing to do in order to educate the children on the importance of saving the planet, keeping everyone healthy, preserving energy, and saving money. This allows the practice of â€Å"going green† while learning and living it at the same time. Today’s funding in schools is mostly low. Therefore having the option to transition from small changes and then building up to larger more substantial changes is vastly important. Even more important is communication within a community to reach a greater common goal and seeking assistance from an outside source can be a huge benefit when trying to better your community. References Benefits of Wind Power. (2010). Retrieved November 20, 2010, from http://www. northernpower. com/wind-power-basics/benefits-of-wind-power. php. Green school buildings. (n. d. ). Retrieved November 18, 2010, from U. S. green building council website: http://www. greenschoolbuildings. org/gs101. aspx Green school design: cost-effective, healthy, and better, for eduction. (n. d. ). Retrieved November 18, 2010, from Center for Eco literacy website: http://www. ecoliteracy. org/essays/green- school-design-cost-effective-healthy-and-better-education. Green economy. (2010). Economy Watch, Retrieved from http://www. economywatch. com/market/market-types/green-economy. html Kauffman, Rachel. (2009, July 13). Lesson Plans Using Objects Found In Nature. Retrieved November 21, 2010, from http://www. lessonplanet. com/directory_articles/art_lesson_plans/13_July_2009/48/lesson_plans_using_objects_found_in_nature. Kennedy, Mike. (2010, February 10). Overcoming Obstacles to Going Green. Retrieved November 19, 2010, from http://asumag. com/green/overcoming-sustainability-obstacles-201002/. King, Ledyard. (2008, July 31). Costs, Concerns Push Schools To Use Eco-Friendly Elements. Retrieved November 20, 2010, from http://www. usatoday. com/news/education/2008-07-31-green-schools_N. htm. Lafee, Scott. (2008). Going Green: Environmentally Friendly Schools Pay Off. Retrieved November 23, 2010, from http://www. csba. org/NewsAndMedia/Publications/CASchoolsMagazine/2008/Spring/InThisIssue/GreenSchools. aspx? p=1. Pedersen, Lisa. (2010, February 22). â€Å"Found† Art Materials. Retrieved November 28, 2010, from http://www. familynavigation. com/found-art-materials. Raderstrong, Jeff. (July 21, 2008). The Seattle Times. Retrieved December 5, 2010 from http://seattletimes. nwsource. com/htm/localnews/2008063326_solarpanels21m0. html Recycling Plastic Milk Bottles: Benefits and Getting Started. (2010). Retrieved November 30, 2010, from http://www. nutritionexplorations. org/sfs/schoolmilk_recycling_survey. asp. Recycling Plastic Milk Bottles At School Frequently Asked Questions. (2008). Retrieved November 22, 2010, from http://www. NutritionExplorations. org. Solar Energy Finally In The School Yards. (2010, October 25). Retrieved November 30, 2010, from http://www. renewablepowernews. com/archives/1914. Solar Panel Cost. Retrieved December 5, 2010 from http://www. solarpanelsedge. com/ar/solar-panels-cost. php The New Era in Solar Energy. Retrieved December 5, 2010 from http://greenfieldsolar. com/industry. php What Are The Benefits of Solar Power? (2010, February 9). Retrieved November 21, 2010, from http://www. alternativeenergyhq. com/what-are-the-benefits-of-solar-power. php. Whelan, Debra Lau. (2007, September 1). Going Green: Eco-Friendly Schools. Retrieved November 20, 2010 from http://www. schoollibraryjournal. com/article/CA647263. html. Go green initiative. (n. d. ) Retrieved November 17, 2010 from http://www. gogreeninitiative. org.

Assess the case against Moral Elitism Essay

Moral Elitist believe in a metaphysical claim: there are moral facts and an epistemic claim: we have access to them. According to moral relativism, there are no moral principles or values objectively real and applicable to everyone; rather, what’s right/wrong and good/bad essentially depends on individual preference or culture, and this varies from person to person or group to group. There is not just one moral fact but instead there are millions and we access them be research. There are two different forms of moral elitism one is cultural relativism which based on societies and the other is in the individualistic form, moral subjectivism. Moral relativism seems tolerant (â€Å"you do your thing and I’ll do mine†), but is it reasonable to believe? We should think not. First, let’s look at it in its group or cultural form, cultural relativism. According to cultural relativism, ethics essentially depend on one’s culture or tribe. That is, CR says action X is right or good if the society says X is right or good, and X is wrong or bad if the society says X is wrong or bad. Action X may be right in one culture but wrong in another. Our culture may hold that apartheid is wrong, but another culture may be okay with apartheid, because of a difference in the history of interracial relations. On cultural relativism, then, morality is wholly a matter of cultural invention, i.e. social construction and because such circumstances vary from group to group, so do the constructed moralities. Thus, we shouldn’t impose our culture’s moral values on others, and others shouldn’t push theirs on us. There are no better or worse societies, they are just merely different and so one society cannot judge another. Instead we should be non judgemental and celebrate diversity. Cultural relativism sounds good, but is it sound? Let’s assume that cultural relativism is true, this would be very problematic. The biggest problem for this argument is put forward by G.E Moore’s Open Question. He suggests that the relativists have mis-defined morality, it makes to sense to ask whether society approve of something or it, but does this make it automatically good? This ends up giving support to obviously evil regimes and evil cultural practices. For example it becomes impossible to criticize the Nazis. If Nazi culture says that genocide is right, then, for Nazi Germany, genocide is right. It was just their culture, after all. But we know that we can and should condemn such regimes and practices. There is also the criticism put forward by Objectivists who believe in moral development, where sometimes we have to go against the popular view, we need to be able to compare different societies. For example surely the German society now is much better than how it was like with all the racism involved when Hitler was in power. Objectivists believe that societies are a hierarchy where some are in fact better than others whereas cultural relativism believes in breadth where all societies are equal, but surely their tolerance goes too far? If cultural relativism is true, then internal cultural reform is disabled. What the culture says is right is right, so it’s not possible for one’s culture to be mistaken let alone reformed. Yes, one can critique acts according to cultural standards, but it’s not possible to criticize one’s own cultural standards. However they do arise for example Jesus, Gandhi and Martin Luther King, they were all trying to apply another standard for example Martin Luther King was trying to apply the standard of equality. The existence of cultural reformers is a fact, and this fact counts against cultural relativism. Cultural relativism also self-refutes. If CR is true, it allows for the possibility of a society having a non-relative or absolute morality. That is, on cultural relativism a society could hold that cultural relativism is false, and they would say that this morality is true. So, if cultural relativism, then it is also not true. This is a serious logical problem. There is also the problem of which culture? The one you’re born into or the one you presently occupy? When asking someone what cultural groups they belong in they will struggle as they have loads, for example being a student, a Muslim etc. Now let’s look at moral subjectivism. According to moral subjectivism ethics are merely a matter of individual preference. That is, to say action X is right or good if I like X, and X is wrong or bad if I don’t like X. Depending on our feelings, action X may be right for you but wrong for me. You may not like abortion, but I may be okay with abortion, if my feelings are not as troubled by it as yours are. Morality, then, is basically a matter of taste, and tastes vary. People should choose our own morals and have freedom, not simply just accept our parents, society or religion. They are relative to the individual and so are presented through our personal feelings. Feelings are the main index and guide to show what morals we should follow. However this could result in problems as intra-personal criticism is lost. If moral subjectivism is true, whatever we feel is right is right. In other words, we can never be wrong morally and we cannot criticize ourselves (all we can be is true to our feelings). This does not destroy subjectivism but it serves as a red flag against IR, because our pre-theoretic experience of morality is that we sometimes make moral mistakes, in spite of our feelings. We also cannot criticize others. We can’t truly morally condemn the behaviour of, say, Jack the Ripper clearly liked killing women; the feelings of a person justified their actions. In other words, according to subjectivism: Who are we to judge them? There is also the problem of how are our feeling a reliable guide to right and wrong? Sometimes we can misjudge and feelings can cloud our judgement, for example someone with a bad temper might kill someone by accident due to their anger issues. Also reason can sometimes change our feelings, for example if I am on a diet but I feel like I really want a chocolate ice cream, reasoning about this would convince me not to follow my feelings and opt to eat something healthy instead. In conclusion we have seen the two types of moral elitism. Both are quite sophisticated and a lot more open minded. Surely our feelings mater sometimes when it comes to moral decisions. There cannot be just set moral facts as how would everyone even agree about what they are. When trying to decide what is right and wrong, everyone seems to disagree so surely our feelings and following our own society would lead to our moral decisions. However many problems arise logically from moral elitism as sometimes we cannot choose our own morals instead we are a passive recipient where morals impose themselves on us. Following our society or feelings do not necessarily lead us to what is right or wrong and so it’s reasonable to conclude that individual moral relativism is flawed—logically, factually, and morally as following it will lead to wrong situations where wrong things will be condoned. Therefore moral elitism should be rejected.

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buy custom History Final essay The Social Security Act The Social Security Act indicated a sharp exit from past American custom. The U. S. had customarily struggled to alleviate social problems. Before 1929, the government of the United States did not furnish such plans as public assistance, old-age pensions, unemployment compensation, or medical health insurance that was only provided to war veterans. Nevertheless, the Social Security Act changed all this thus helping the people financially, and making their life better (Achenbaum 65). Hiroshima and Nagasaki The bombing of Nagasaki and Hiroshima led to the beginning of the cold war. The arrival of this nuclear weaponry cemented the way for the weapons race that stayed for about forty years. This race was between the U.S.S.R. and the United States. The bombing of Japan has remained significant in shaping the U. S. war policies. In addition, it has also shaped the relationship, between Japan and America in helping to reconstruct Hiroshima and Nagasaki (Hakim 24) The Cold War The cold war produced a lot of military tension between the West and the East. This led to the formation of military alliances. For Example, the treaty of Dunkirk that was formed by France and Britain fearing that the Soviet Union would take control over Europe since it had a huge army. Other treaties that are significant today include the N. A. T. O. that was formed by telve countries including the U. S. They signed the treaty because Russia was becoming a threat to democratic world (Kolko 23). The World Bank and the IMF The World Bank is a very important source of technical and financial assistance to the developing nations. The mission of World Bank is to alleviate poverty through its partners such as International Finance Corporation. On the other hand, the IMF encourages global financial corporations and international trade. Both these financiers have helped in the development of the third world countries. Furthermore, they have improved international relationships (Goldman 89). The Vietnam War This war changed the history of conventional warfare in the extent of anti-guerilla combat, guerilla combat, and the increased dependence in helicopters. The Vietnam War was a war of the people. This is because it was difficult to distinguish guerilla fighters from non-combatants, and since some civilians took part in the war. The impact in terms of the lives that were lost was huge. This made the U. S. to change its military tactics (Hubbell 209). Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and the Civil Rights Act of 1964 Activist Luther King Junior sowed the seeds of healing and brought hope to the United States. He taught the values of courage, justice, dignity, truth, and humility. Martin led a movement that was able to achieve historic reformms. One of the reforms is the Civil Rights Act of 1964 that was of great importance to America's social and political development. Through the act, racial discrimination went down to the extent that the African-Americans were able to vote, get education and jobs, which were reserved for whites only (Marable 89). Sarah Palin Sarah Palin is a supremely gifted politician both in her toughness and in captivation. She was the first woman and the youngest person to hold the Governor's Office in Alaska. She has managed to voice out the problem of her people no matter the population. For example, the bridge that cost more than two hundred million dollars from the federal funds was to serve a population of fifty in Gravina Island. Although this was a lot of money, it showed that in development the population does not matter much (Johnston 21). Barrack Obama and Osama bin Laden The election of Barrack Obama as the American president marked a turning point on the America's social and political beliefs. It reminded the American Citizens of the best of U. S. Furthermore, the American society will forever know that the American presidency is not for a particular race but for everyone. On the other hand, Obama has shown a good leadership in the capture of Osama. Barrack Obama is a man who changed the way people thought about the Islamic society, and the way people felt about security (Mendell 76). Buy custom History Final essay

Pseudo Professional Essay Writers Traits That Must Set You Thinking

Pseudo Professional Essay Writers Traits That Must Set You Thinking Pseudo Professional Essay Writers Traits That Must Set You Thinking Are you looking for a bad writer to hire? The one who will waste your money and hurt your grades? Actually, it’s not a hard work to find such a person, it’s more difficult not to get into a trap of such a person! While searching for professional essay writers, you will get a lot of responses from different candidates. As practice shows, most of these responses will contain telltale warning signs, indicating that the particular applicant wont treat you with a good paper. This article highlights three common traits that almost all bad writers share. If the applicant has at least one of these traits, do not hire him/her, unless you want to flub up your grade and throw your money away. 1. Unreliable with Deadlines Bad writers fail to meet deadlines. Either they are disorganized, or they wait until the due date. If you face the feedback that says that the particular writer has once missed the deadline, it is implicit that he/she is going to miss it again and again; and you may be the next sacrifice. This is a bad deal for you, since it can hurt your grade, as well as can cause long-term issues like making you fall behind in your class. Thus, you have to omit such writers, as they cause nothing but troubles. 2. Use of Word Salad Many bad writers try to mask their downsides with big words and overly complicated sentences. They make essays difficult to read and hard to comprehend. As a result, it affects the grades negatively. If the professor cannot understand what you are trying to say, he/she will take points off the assignment. Do you really need it? So, if, while looking through the samples, you find the plot too hard to understand at the first reading, it’s better not to risk your own piece. Just spend some much time and find a better candidate. 3. Rambling and Incoherent Sentences Submitting a long-winded essay may hurt your grade a lot, but turning in an incomprehensible assignment is going to cause much more damage. If the writer’s pieces are full of confusing and nonsensical paragraphs, do not even toy yourself with the idea that your paper will be better. It is absolutely likely that the same mistakes will be committed to your project and they will cost you dearly. Moreover, you risk to be caught on the wrong foot, when your professor will ask you some questions due to your piece and you will be unable to explain such a tricky utterance. If you wish to waste money on the bad writer, who will hurt your grade and hinder your chances for success, go ahead and hire someone who meets all the criteria listed above. Otherwise, do the smart thing and work with the competent and skilled professional. Expert essay writers always meet deadlines; communicate the idea clearly, as well as write in the accessible vain. They will help you create the best essay ever that is delivered in time and contains all the information you need to get the highest score.

Defining Omitted Variables Bias

Defining Omitted Variables Bias Omitted variables bias (or sometimes omitted variable bias) is a standard expression for the bias that appears in an estimate of a parameter if the regression run does not have the appropriate form and data for other parameters. For example, many regressions that have wage or income as the dependent variable suffer from omitted variables bias because there is often no practical way to add in a workers innate ability or motivation as an explanatory variable. As a result, the estimated coefficients on variables such as education as likely to be biased because of the correlation between educational attainment and unobserved ability. If the correlation between education and unobserved ability is positive, omitted variables bias will occur in an upward direction. Conversely, if the correlation between an explanatory variable and an unobserved relevant variable is negative, omitted variables bias will occur in a downward direction.

BU6603 ITM_Assignment_Aug-Nov_2014_2 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

BU6603 ITM_Assignment_Aug-Nov_2014_2 - Essay Example In the following sections, brief history of Apple and gradual growth of the company through technological innovation have been discussed along with role of Steve Jobs therein. Apple is a multinational corporation which was founded in 1976 by Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak and Ronald Wayne. However, Wayne left within some period while Jobs and Wozniak continued in the business. The vision of Jobs and Wozniak was to develop a user friendly computer device and change consumers’ perception regarding computer. Wozniak developed first computer of Apple, Apple I which however did not gain much recognition. Wozniak and Jobs introduced Apple II in 1978, which was a revolutionary move as they developed colour graphics for the first time. Sale of the device grew from $7.8 million in 1978 to $117 million in 1980. Apple raised its first IPO (Initial Public Offerings) in 1980 and started trading as a public company (Mac World, 2014). In 1983, Wozniak left the company due to diminishing interest in Apple’s daily operations. In 1984, Apple developed the Macintosh which was a huge success in the consumer market. After this brief success, power struggle among executive members of the organisation resulted in departure of Steve Jobs. Absence of guidance from prominent leaders resulted in declining market share and financial problems in the firm. Steve Jobs returned as interim CEO in 1997 after Apple purchased his company, neXT. During late 1990s, expert suggested that Apple should shutdown and pay off its shareholders, but Jobs brought in turning point of the company by inducing the iMac. Following iMac, iPod was introduced in 2001 while iPhone was unveiled in 2007. In 2008, Wal-Mart’s online music store faced stiff competition from iTunes store. In 2010, the technological innovation at Apple moved a step ahead with entry of iPad (Terrell, 2008; Mac World, 2014). In 2011, death of Steve Jobs left Apple seeking direction and leadership. The

MGT WK3 GROUP ASSIGNMENT Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

MGT WK3 GROUP ASSIGNMENT - Essay Example This task is sub-divided into various duties and responsibilities pertaining to the corporation’s workforce. Stewart and Brown (2010) states that the human resource department usually plays a critical role in the organisation, which reflects on the bottom line of the organisation and it even contributes towards that achievement of the organisation strategic goals and missions. Mathis and Jackson (2010) further ads that the human resource management within an organisation can as well contribute to the competitive advantages of an organisation. In regards to the organising function of Microsoft Corporation’s human resource department it can be stated that the department organizes the workforce of the corporation by first ensuring that at all times the corporation has the right staff at the right place in all of its branches across the world. In this regard Stewart and Brown (2010), states that the department organises the recruitment and selection of best-qualified candidates who will work for the corporation in various capacities and who have the potential to help the corporation in achieving is strategic goals and objectives. Secondly, while organising the human resource of the corporation the department undertakes jobs analysis and descriptions in order to ensure that every member of the staff has a clear role in the corporation and that there is no collusion or replication of roles. Equally, during the job analysis, the department clearly outlines the requirements or qualifications that are required from employees in order to be able to perform certain duties and responsibilities as stipulated (Stewart and Brown, 2010)). According to Mathis and Jackson (2010), the human resource department is also tasked with the mandate of organising how each member of the staff will be compensated and they normally organize this

Diabetes Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Diabetes - Assignment Example Metabolism is the functionality of the body cells to convert the food and its constituents to attain energy. It helps the cells to grow and divide. The food that our body digests is converted to most simple type of sugar that is glucose. Glucose is entered into our blood stream by our digestive system. Blood transports the glucose to the cells. Insulin is the hormone that helps the glucose to enter the cells. Without insulin our cells are unable to absorb the glucose. Pancreas produces insulin and maintains the level of insulin in the blood. The hormonal system distinguishes how much insulin should be produced to absorb the glucose. It also stabilizes the amount of glucose that is present in the body by producing different amount of insulin according to the diet we intake. Diabetes is a condition in which either body is unable to produce set level of insulin or produce no insulin or the cells of the body do not respond to wards the insulin. The condition may also occur if the pancreas fails due to imbalance hormonal system or any other condition. Without the insulin, the body is unable to convert the glucose into energy. The blood has increased level of glucose. Some glucose is expelled out of the body through urine. The cells are unable to gain the glucose. Besides polyphagia (frequent urination), polydipsia (increased thrust) and polyuria (increased hunger) are the common symptoms of the diabetes, diabetes may cause immense damage to other systems of the body. Following complication may occur as the result of untreated diabetes. Eye complications (eyesight got affected due to diabetes),  Foot complications (foot muscles are unable to heal and foot wounds are unable to heal and take more time to heal),  Skin complications (skin lacks the sensitivity),  Heart problems,  Hypertension (lack of energy and glucose to the cells may bring the condition of hypertension), Mental health (The

Corporate Governance Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Corporate Governance - Essay Example This notion of corporate governance is similar with the explanation provided by Cadbury (1992). Fine corporate governance is linked with a lesser cost of capital, elevated returns on equity, better efficiency, consideration of the roles and responsibilities of the Board of Directors, integrity and ethical behaviour, disclosure and transparency and more constructive handling and equitable treatment of each and everyone of the shareholders in a firm such as respect for the rights of shareholders and recognition that the company has legal and other obligations to all legitimate stakeholders (Claessens, 2006), unlike in this case study. David and Victoria are the directors of the Becksville Limited and own between them sixty five per cent of the shares. There are two other shareholders who take little or no part in the running of the company. Both David and Victoria are also the directors of Worldspice Limited which is a company, like Becksville Limited, that deals with sporting and entertainment activities. Worldspice Limited went into a creditors voluntary winding up and there is a substantial deficit such that the creditors expect no more than 10 pence in the pound. Worldspice Limited had become insolvent mainly as a result of many speculative investments in attempting to develop the company’s activities. This speculative attitude was also adopted by David and Victoria in the running of Becksville Limited and this company has suffered losses resulting in the company being unable to pay a dividend for the past three years. David and Victoria have taken  £25,000 per year each by way of Directors remunerat ion during this period. David and Victoria have also in 2004 and 2005 made considerable donations amounting to  £100,000 to various charities. The minority shareholders of Becksville Limited have now discovered that David and Victoria in June 2005

Evaluate and develop an argument for or against the following Essay

Evaluate and develop an argument for or against the following statement the people process is more important than either the strategy or operations processes - Essay Example It is therefore just right to expect that nowadays, when we talk of systems and strategies, it should define a good, reliable, and flexible process. But it should be understood that we can say that most systems are just ideal when it comes to design but not in the implementation. Who makes the design work for a company Who makes the non-living ideas move for the company Isn't the answer human processes Perhaps the reason is because no matter how we try to improve the system or the strategy design, it will forever fail to recognize the maker of the design. When we talk of human processes, what comes into our mind Human processes in simple terms refer to that process in one company or group that does not take for granted the significant factors like the individuals as the main mover in a company. This process involves human's knowledge, skills and intellectual ability to be the fuel of the running company. And if the operations process is considered as the forefront of a business, human processes can be considered as the root and trunk of an organization where the lifeblood of the company flows and grows (Peoplecube 2007). Now what is being argued in this paper is the advantage of human processes over the strategy and or operations processes. ... Humans at that time took control of technology in the form of design engineers. Companies considered human factor as an indispensable thing to be considered because that was the area that can either make or break a product's use. Through the design for example, a product can either benefit or pose a threat to the user. When an engineer designer makes a wrong move in his masterpiece, that product can annihilate group of individuals in just a snap of one's fingers. That was also the time when usability testing became part of certain processes. Usability testing enables the first hand users to test what is working and what is not to a certain product. This whole idea of human factor causing a glitch to the company's process maybe blamed for giving birth to the concept of processes becoming more significant than the processor. This can then lead us to thinking that perhaps, that's also the same reason why software was invented by scientists, perhaps to avoid the human factor defects (Use rnomics 2005-2007). But then again, since we are talking about human processes as a thing of significance than that of operations processes, it is good for us to look at proper managing of human's knowledge and abilities to better see the benefits it could bring to an organization if it is trying to optimize its personnel's capabilities. Knowledge of the people is the house of new ideas and the bank of solutions to the different problems being encountered by the company. This is the reason why modern companies invest in trainings for their employees while others back or support their workers in finishing graduate degrees especially if the

Understanding of Lean and Just-in-Time Production. Zara's innovative Essay

Understanding of Lean and Just-in-Time Production. Zara's innovative business organization - Essay Example Understanding of Lean and Just-in-Time Production. Zara's innovative business organization The Just-In-Time production is the first way which ensures more efficient use of resources. Many firms incur extra and overhead costs who stock-up resources beforehand. Through this firms waste space and monetary resources. At Portakabin JIT production methodology is used which pulls the resources itself into the production process. Portakabin only holds resources for orders which are in process hence no extra cost is incurred for idle materials and resources. Also advance systems are being used which make calculate exact reorder points with little or no error hence keeping the production process on time. Another way that Portakabin utilizes in lean production is the reduction of waste. How Portakabin reduces waste is quite innovative and hadn’t been done in the construction industry before. Portakabin started modular production of components required for an order at separate sites which greatly reduced the size of on-site production facility and the no of laborers required th ere hence reducing the traffic and environmental pollution at on-site facility. It also used such designs which required standard size resources easily available hence no customization or trimming would be required. Re-use of materials along the production process which were up to the mark and passed testing. Portakabin also promotes recycling of the little waste produced during the construction process and also employees advice of waste contractor. Explain how just-in-time production would operate in delivering and assembling a new Lilliput Children’s Centre. (15 marks, 300 words) Just-in-time production technique eliminates the cost of storage of resources while at the same time no cash is tied up in the holding stock hence the cost of the nursery significantly reduced. At Portakabin advance replenishment systems have been employed which work efficiently with zero or little error margin which is quite less to pose a threat to the production process. This system identifies t he exact reorder points necessary to place order for the resources hence reducing the cost by no extra inventory while the production stays on schedule as the resources are replenished at the right time. Also Portakabin enjoys an ISO 14001 international standard assuring it is an environmental friendly organization and follows procedures which reduce pollution and works for the benefit of the organization. As it’s a Children’s center it has to have an environment that is healthy through usage of quality material. Portakabin follows quite rigid and though safety policies for children safety and does not compromise on it. In the case it has been highlighted these children’s centre provide work as a resource for the whole community. Using JIT this resource can be created in half the time as compared to other methods if employed also using modular building techniques make the rooms multipurpose which can be used as kitchens, creche facilities, and training rooms as well as nurseries. If other traditional methods which employed on-site construction and non-modular designs were used the construction process time would have exceeded by many folds and would have limited the center’s usage because of its specific design and texture of rooms. Evaluate the impacts on Portakabin of using lean production. (15 marks, 400 words) Usage of lean production at Portakabin

Evaluate and develop an argument for or against the following Essay

Evaluate and develop an argument for or against the following statement the people process is more important than either the strategy or operations processes - Essay Example It is therefore just right to expect that nowadays, when we talk of systems and strategies, it should define a good, reliable, and flexible process. But it should be understood that we can say that most systems are just ideal when it comes to design but not in the implementation. Who makes the design work for a company Who makes the non-living ideas move for the company Isn't the answer human processes Perhaps the reason is because no matter how we try to improve the system or the strategy design, it will forever fail to recognize the maker of the design. When we talk of human processes, what comes into our mind Human processes in simple terms refer to that process in one company or group that does not take for granted the significant factors like the individuals as the main mover in a company. This process involves human's knowledge, skills and intellectual ability to be the fuel of the running company. And if the operations process is considered as the forefront of a business, human processes can be considered as the root and trunk of an organization where the lifeblood of the company flows and grows (Peoplecube 2007). Now what is being argued in this paper is the advantage of human processes over the strategy and or operations processes. ... Humans at that time took control of technology in the form of design engineers. Companies considered human factor as an indispensable thing to be considered because that was the area that can either make or break a product's use. Through the design for example, a product can either benefit or pose a threat to the user. When an engineer designer makes a wrong move in his masterpiece, that product can annihilate group of individuals in just a snap of one's fingers. That was also the time when usability testing became part of certain processes. Usability testing enables the first hand users to test what is working and what is not to a certain product. This whole idea of human factor causing a glitch to the company's process maybe blamed for giving birth to the concept of processes becoming more significant than the processor. This can then lead us to thinking that perhaps, that's also the same reason why software was invented by scientists, perhaps to avoid the human factor defects (Use rnomics 2005-2007). But then again, since we are talking about human processes as a thing of significance than that of operations processes, it is good for us to look at proper managing of human's knowledge and abilities to better see the benefits it could bring to an organization if it is trying to optimize its personnel's capabilities. Knowledge of the people is the house of new ideas and the bank of solutions to the different problems being encountered by the company. This is the reason why modern companies invest in trainings for their employees while others back or support their workers in finishing graduate degrees especially if the

African american history Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

African american history - Essay Example They include Igbo, Wolof, Mande, Akan, Fon, Bakongo and Makua amongst others. This people did away with their tribal differences and forged a new culture and history that was acreolization to their pasts and present. This African American developed a culture that was referred to as a black culture. The culture is deeply rooted in Africa. This culture has affected the United States as part or distinct from its culture. It has enormously influenced the American culture as whole. Although slavery restricted the practice of African American culture, their beliefs, values, and practices survived and have blended or modified the white culture (Joanne 64). Within 18th and19th centuries, both white and black Americans worked to stop slavery (Franklin and Higginbotham 285). Many antislavery societies were organized to fight so that slaves could be freed. Main slaveholders considered freeing slaves to disrupt British trade. Most notably, Prince Hall a free slave submitted petitions to end slavery but it was largely ignored. The other challenge of revolution against slavery set in when President Washington stopped recruitment of soldiers into the revolutionary army. The free slaves participated in the revolution against slavery and participated in American revolutionary war. America won the battle against the British rule (Franklin and Higginbotham 327). President Thomas Jefferson referred to slavery as ‘abominable crime’ and declared the independence of slaves yet he was a life long slaveholder. During constitutional convention of 1787, there was declaration of freedom of equality between the blacks and

Improving Performance and Productivity in a Pharmaceutical Company through Total Quality Management Essay Example for Free

Improving Performance and Productivity in a Pharmaceutical Company through Total Quality Management Essay The high technology pharmaceutical company needs organizational change to improve its quality of performance and increase productivity because the adoption of advanced manufacturing technology (AMT) is costlier than training and replacing skilled workers (Sargent, 1997), and it requires â€Å"large resource base, a good reputation and wide experience and contacts† that often lack a strong technical base (Bessant Rush 1995, p. 07). Total quality management (TQM) approach is recommended to make the company improve and standardize its process through collaborative learning (Adler, 1993), enhance employee expertise and knowledge (Kirkman, Lowe, Young, 1998), and help the company increase its production volume and quality (Lawler, 1994). TQM â€Å"makes quality control an inherent part of the production job and checking is achieved either through automatic monitoring systems or by training the operator in quality monitoring† (Doyle, 2002, p. 174). It involves management practices that encourage employees to be more responsible in ensuring the quality of the products or services and their overall performance for the company’s competitive advantage (Dean Bowen, 1994). Changes should be made to attain the objectives of TQM such as: (1) implementation of cross-training and skill-based program to promote cross-functional teams, help employees develop skills and enhance knowledge, and motivate them with rewards like cash and flexible work scheduling; (2) commitment to the values of quality and service in order to keep a long term customer partnership; (3) innovation of product design in order to attract more customers and meet their demands (4) ensuring effective data and records management application to secure and make information accessible and reliable; (5) improvement of the quality of business management with suppliers and dealers; and (6) enhancing top managements performance efficiency, commitment, and flexibility in decision-making and human resources management.

Is Free Trade Possible?

Is Free Trade Possible? Tom Hobson ‘Free trade is neither possible nor desirable.’ Do you agree with this Statement? Roger Scruton makes the claim free trade is neither possible nor desirable in A Political Philosophy and takes a conservative political viewpoint in defence of national sovereignty (2006). Taking the statement within the realm of international political economy it draws in the debate of the role of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) in advancing free trade as its aim, the economic debate between those who advocate free trade from Adam Smith and David Ricardo and their modern advocates and those who oppose it including Joseph Stiglitz and an analysis of the power relations that entail in free trade negotiations as well as the consequences answering first whether it is possible and secondly its degree of desirability. Free trade in a majority of production areas and scenarios is possible but its desirability is the key debate, the domestic consequences for both developing and developed states can distort national economies in a globalised world. It is a complex issue that is largely ap proached through the WTO. Free trade has an impact on developmentalism for industrialising countries and is connected to hegemonic theories of world governance to uphold the system. Free trade is a possible concept for a globalised world but it is largely undesirable when considering the human impact of market forces. Krasner argues that a hegemon is required for a global system of free trade to be viable, the essential principle is that the distribution of power amongst states dictates the international economic system. He highlighted the role of Britain during the 19th century and the US post World War One and marked the decline in power of the US up to the 1970s being the precursor to the end of a liberal international free trade system. According to Krasner only an open hegemon has the sufficient power to provide the public goods and any other system is inherently unstable (Krasner Webb, 1989, pp.183-184). But in the contemporary international political economy with the rise of China economically and militarily alongside the supremacy of the US there are infact increases to the global liberalisation movement (Chestnut Johnston, 2009, pp.252-253). Hegemonic stability theory has a place in contemporary international political economy but it is not overriding. The realist hegemonic stability theory is very rigid for a free trade international system and empirical evidence shows it is true that a hegemon can meet the public goods cost without jeopardising its own state security it isn’t necessarily the only situation where free trade stemming from state power can flourish as we can see with the rising bipolar international system including China. Krasner’s theory concentrates on the Cold War era and how far the US was willing to open world trade at its own expense in order to have an advantage over the Soviet Union in absolute power (Krasner Webb, 1989, p.196). The state power relationship that Krasner offers for open trade in the global system is very convincing in terms of state security and his realist perspective of the international political economy is as a part of international relations rather than separate. It shows that contrary to Scruton’s statement that free trade is possible within a system whereby public goods are met by a state or states are able to meet the demand without risk to their own security. But a more technical approach taken by Richard Baldwin on regionalism and its problems show that international trade is inhibited by the numerous regional rules and argues that a multilateralisation of the existing systems will be required for a truly global free trade system (Baldwin, 2006, p.1451). Two of the issues he analyses are the current asymmetric negotiations whereby nations and interest groups seek to minimise losses rather than maximise gains and race to the bottom tax competition unilateral negotiations as an alternative to regionalism and mulitlateralism which leads to fragmentation in the supply chain (Ibid, 2006, pp.1469-1471). A good example of asymmetric negotiations can be seen between the US and China on tyres in 2009. The Interest groups of labour including United Steel and Allied Industrial and Service Workers International Union pushed US negotiations to introduce tariffs on Chinese imports of tyres on the premise of saving US jobs and manufacturing (i.e. minim ising losses). The result of US imposition of tariffs argued by Ilkensen is a cost to the consumer of $600-700 million annually which results in a cost of $300,000 annually per job saved (Ilkensen, 2009). This follows Baldwin’s argument that unilateral and asymmetric trade negotiations lead to strength in interest groups and poor outcomes. It is also an example of Barry Eichengreen’s perspective on the role interest groups have on limiting policy of free trade with reference to the Smoot-Hawley tariffs of the 1930s, the movement towards protectionism by domestic pressure groups (Eichengreen, 2003, p.59). the strength of institutions beyond the state in affecting the outcomes of trade negotiations are able to prevent the posibility of free trade in the international political economy as this example and Eichengreen highlight. Further to this the position of Richard Baldwin on the strength of regionalism in forcing such action as well as inhibiting the prospect of global international free trade by having a multitude of incompatible rules and aims. The possibility of free trade is disputed; the broad theory of Krasner would indicate that it is possible but the specifics of unilateral trade and regionalism show the limits of global free trade. Turning to whether free trade is desirable concentrates on the WTO and the effects of free trade. The comparative advantage of Smith and Ricardo according to Ilkensen applies in the supply chain of the globalised modern political economy because it is how countries ascend or descend the chain, liberalisation of trade restrictions allows producers to serve the global supply chain in specific areas of comparative advantage. He uses the example of the Ipod with highly skilled engineers in Californa and low wage manual workers in China maintain low costs so that consumer prices are not high and members of the labour force can be freed to work in other sectors (Ilkensen,2009, pp.10-15). His argument rejects the idea of international trade being a zero sum game that is assumed by the critics of free trade, his emphasis is on productivity to create growth. The central argument is that all consumers benefit from free trade and the emphasis of the entire argument should shift from producers to consumers (Ibid 2009 pp.10-15). Ilkensen’s analysis of a global supply chain also rejects the premise of a global north/south divide and he argues that there is not national competition but global cooperation (Ibid, p.4). Similarly, the mutual reduction of tariffs ends the prisoner’s dilemma that ends in a Nash equilibrium that satisfies neither party and as argued by Subramanian the developed nations in the WTO system have reduced their tariffs the most while allowing the rest to maintain protection of 2/3 of their imports (2007, pp. 152-154). Ilkensen’s argument ignores many aspects of international political economy and purely concentrates on the economics of the process of free trade. The rejection of the orthodoxy on primacy of producers over consumers is a very market based approach that concludes it is positive for all involved and a desirable outcome of trade negotiations particularly when you highlight that developed nations are seen to give greater concessions. The WTO is an advanced and technical, monitoring and compliance mechanism for managing trade relations where tackling asymmetric power is the key to its existence where every member is given equal standing and access to the Dispute Settlement Understanding (Lanoszka, 2009, pp 47-51). Contrasting the view of Ilkensen are the criticisms placed against the WTO. Sarah Joseph highlights the dependency theory of Singer-Prebisch where free trade deepens the international division of labour that does not work in long term development because it entrenches positions of nations within the core industrialised west, the semi-periphery and periphery of developing nations (2013, p.8). This marxist interpretation of the international political economic system emphasises the asymmetric trade negotiations forced upon developing nations by the WTO to ensure the west’s supremacy in terms of international relations and economics. She argues that with it being in the developed world’s inter est to ensure a lack of diversity in the economies of the developing nations to create an underclass of labour that relies on manufactured imports and foreign direct investment (Ibid, p.9). She accuses the WTO of serving goods and services of big business rather than individuals; in particular that of the Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) for creating worldwide patents on drugs which therefore prevents their mas use across developing nations to tackle health issues (Ibid, pp. 285-287). Joseph’s critical analysis of the effect of the WTO in pushing for free trade highlights the dominance of the west in maintaining the status quo and not creating the development it promises. In this the problems of free trade show that it is not universally desirable as an economic system. Similarly Joseph Stiglitz attacks the system of free trade for preventing development in the poorest nations by forcing them to state infrastructure and industry. Stiglitz agrees with Scruton’s argument that liberalisation and international economics need to be sensitive to national economies in order to ensure growth and progress; he argues that free trade is about efficiency nations rather than growth, comparative advantage assumes full employment, stability in developing countries’ and uses the example of Southeast Asia where high investment in physical and human activity acted as catalysts for growth (Stiglitz Charlton, 2007, p. 15-25). For developing countries protection of infant industries is more often than not optimal because foreign investment is dependent on selling at a loss until productivity rises which will not happen and in terms of state building the easiest form of revenue is import tariffs and the priorities of a developing economy are not in efficie ncy but growth (Ibid, 2007, pp.32-29). The argument of Stiglitz takes a different perspective on the aims of developing nations from efficiency to growth in their own context; developing nations have very different needs to those that are developed in terms of human development. He highlights the fact that free trade only benefits developed nations that force liberalisation on other nations through the WTO (Ibid, 2007). A further argument against free trade can be found in the environmental lobby that sees potentially global economic expansion as ‘inimical to the goal of preserving a clean, healthy, and sustainable global commons’ (Grossman Krueger, 1991, p.2). The analysis of the report by Grossman and Krueger was specifically regarding the NAFTA trade agreement and the environmental impact on Mexico. Specifically it highlights the problem with Mexico being a relatively poorly developed nation that should industrialisation occur due to liberalisation then pollution will grow under an undeveloped regulatory framework (Ibid, pp.3-4). But the Kuznets curve refutes the basic assumption of the report that economic growth leads to exponential environmental degradation by concluding that the greater the GDP per capita the lower the overall pollution in the long term (Stern, et al., 1996, p.1159). Free trade has initial environmental degradation but the long term forecasts of the Kuznets curv e negate the argument against free trade as a desirable system of international economics. The possibility of free trade is a debated topic and though the technical approach of Baldwin argues that global free trade isn’t a possibility with the complexities of regionalism the overarching argument of Krasner that a hegemon, or as argued more recently a number of nations, providing public goods to fulfill the global demand without incurring too great a cost is a convincing argument in the contemporary international political economy that free trade is possible. But the key debate is whether free trade is desirable in a global context. Taking international economics as a global supply chain then Ilkensen’s argument that the comparative advantage of each country placed within this chain then free trade is necessary to lead to the most efficient forms of growth and all benefit. But the arguments of Stiglitz, Charlton and Joseph emphasis the underlying principle that global trade is a zero-sum system that embeds the current and historical inequalities between the gl obal north and south. To conclude on whether free trade is desirable is dependent on whether the aim is growth or effieciency; growth that it is unfair to developing nations, efficiency that it benefits all. It is too complex a subject to conclude either way in this essay whether it is desirable. Bibliography Baldwin, R., 2006. Multilateralising Regionalism: Spaghetti Bowls as Building Blocs on the Path to Global Free Trade. The World Economy, 29(11), pp. 1451-1518. Chestnut, S. Johnston, A. I., 2009. Is China Rising?. In: E. Paus, P. Prime J. Western, eds. Is China Changing the Rules of the Game. NY: Palgrave Macmillan, pp. 237-260. Eichengreen, B., 2003. The Political Economy of the Smoot-Hawley Tariff. In: J. Frieden D. Lake, eds. International Political Economy: Perspectives on Global Wealth and Power. London: Taylor Francis, pp. 47-59. Grossman, G. Krueger, A., 1991. Environmental Impacts of a North American Free Trade Agreement, Cambridge, MA: National Bureau of Economic Research. Ilkensen, D., 2009. Burning Rubber: Proposed Duties on Chinese Tyres Whiff of Senseless Protectionism. Free Trade Bulletin, Volume 39, pp. 1-4. Ilkensen, D., 2009. No Longer Us Versus Them, London: International Policy Network. Joseph, S., 2013. Blame it on the WTO. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Krasner, S. Webb, M., 1989. Hegemonic Stability Theory: an empirical assessment. Review of International Studies, 15(2), pp. 183-198. Lanoszka, A., 2009. The World Trade Organisation: changing dynamics in the global political economy. London: Lynne Rienner. Scruton, R., 2006. A Political Philosophy. London: Bloomsbury. Stern, D., Common, M. Barbier, E., 1996. Economic Growth and Environmental Dgeradation: The Environmental Kuznets Curve and Sustainable Development. World Development, 24(7), pp. 1151-1160. Stiglitz, J. Charlton, A., 2007. Fair Trade For All. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Subramanian, A., 2007. The WTO Promotes Trade, Strongly but Unevenly. Journal of International Economics, Volume 72, pp. 151-175.

Child Witch Hunts in the Congo :: Informative Essays, human rights, Africa

All in the name of ‘God’ witch hunting has been a justification for many years of the harshest capital punishment of innocent men; children and women. Witch hunts have occurred for more than 200 years and it has been an on going issue of abuse of human rights. Witch hunting dates back to the 14th Century in Europe, the starting point of these witch hunts, and Britain. Thus reaching its peak in America during the 16th Century. The famous of all witch hunting cases was ‘The Salem Witch Trials’. Witch hunting has been a major human rights abuse in The Democratic Republic of Congo. The process of witch hunting and exorcism began during late 2001 and has continued to this current day. Present issues such as this have risen again in early 2009. The witch hunting crisis in Congo has circulated issues of these so called ‘exorcisms’ as being an abuse of human rights as well as child abuse. In order to prevent any further acts of human rights abuse the C ongolese Government has taken a considerate amount of legal and non-legal measures. As the death toll rises to 40,000 due to witchcraft exorcisms, more than 14,000 have been abandoned by their parents. The Congolese Government has used non-legal measures as a means of protecting children’s rights. The non-legal measures were forcefully used by the Congolese Government through rounding up homeless children that were disowned and accused of witchcraft by both their parents and pastors. Abandoned children have been taken into custody by the Congolese authorities, as a use of legal measures, and put into orphanages as a means of protection. Many Congolese authorities have taken use of this opportunity to start addressing the abuse committed against children via the use of non-legal measures. Through the effective use of non-legal measures Congolese authorities have used such measures to re-educate the people of Congo. Using religion as a strong non-legal measure to educate the parents and religious leaders that such abuse on children is unwarranted. In an alarming trend increasing number of children are being accused of witchcraft. This has prompted the government to launch a parliamentary commission of inquiry with a view to toughening the law. Such accusations are specifically prohibited by Congo’s new constitution, which distinctively prohibits accusing children of witchcraft. The Congolese Government has reviewed the constitution through parliament, as a legal measure to prevent child abuse.

History and myth Essay

‘The World’s Wife revises fairytale, history and myth and reworks it into contemporary, feminist fables. ‘ With reference to three of the poems in the volume examine the techniques employed by Duffy in writing contemporary feminist fables. Duffy’s volume â€Å"The World’s Wife† is a collection of dramatic monologues where Duffy becomes a ventriloquist inventing the words, which famous, silent, wives from history or myth might have said. Her use of humour and play on clichi s creates a collective female voice where dominant male characters are being criticised. Duffy reworks contemporary feminist fables and adopts different personae by employing different techniques, which are particularly displayed in her poems, â€Å"Mrs Midas†, â€Å"Mrs Lazarus† and â€Å"Mrs Aesop†. Duffy’s use of witty humour in the poem â€Å"Mrs Aesop† allows her to condescend the male counterpart, by turning his famous fables against him and questioning his manhood. On the contrary, â€Å"Mrs Lazarus† portrays a more emotional persona grieving over her husband’s death, where her ‘other half’ fails to consider the impact of his return. Similarly, in â€Å"Mrs Midas†, the male character is overcome by greed, blinding his ability to comprehend the repercussions of his actions. The metaphorical autobiographies allow Duffy to adopt a variety of dramatic personae and assume a multiplicity of voices, which portray issues and views sensitive to her own. She explores the notion of the self in relation to the other, particularly in the poem, â€Å"Mrs Midas†. The poet is able to present a wide range of emotions through the practical persona that feels a sense of exasperation due to her husband’s selfishness. The sensual qualities of the persona are highlighted through the use of soft sounds, ‘breath†¦ brow’, and ‘my fingers wiped the other’s glass’. She is then depicted as multitalented, especially in comparison to her husband who ‘was standing under the pear-tree snapping a twig’. His pointless and ridiculous activity belittles his usefulness and thus increasing his wife’s, as it does not require much talent to carry out such an activity. The persona undertakes an anecdotal approach, principally when the tragedy is building up, belying the serious concern, ‘I said’ and ‘What in the name of God is going on? ‘ show the use of colloquial language, which help the persona’s voice emerge. The phrasing used throughout the poet emphasizes her practicality and ability to make sense out of any situation, ‘I served up the meal’ and ‘So he had to move out’, illustrate that she is not theatrical, but is calm and logical, which is a comparison to her partner’s childish and immature behaviour, ‘he toyed with his spoon’. The persona is able to rise above him, assert her authority and her use of bitter sarcasm introduces comedy to the poem. Duffy’s use of the clichi , which is commonly present in her poems, is used to show how worthless he has become and how ashamed and fearful she is for him, as he is a ‘fool’ who could not think beyond his short-term greed. Similarly, â€Å"Mrs Lazarus†, also has to face the consequences of her husband’s return after she finally manages to deal with her grief over his death and move on. The dramatic persona created in this poem is extremely loyal to her husband and devastated at the fact that she has lost ‘her other half’. ‘Howled, shrieked, clawed’ and ‘one empty glove’ reinforce the imagery of suffering and grief-stricken state. She is a persona very expressive of her emotions and goes through the entire pain of her loss, even to the extent where there are images of suicide because of what she is feeling, ‘double knot†¦ round my bare neck’. The alliteration of soft, ‘slept.. single.. stuffed’ and harsh sounds, ‘gone†¦ gutted†¦ glove’, bring emphasis to the range of her emotional suffering. As her memory of him and grief is receding, she develops a more practical, factual tone in her diction, ‘Then he was gone’, showing that she has finally moved on. When her husband returns, her phrasing and diction changes and it begins to sound more harsh and bitter, ‘rotting†¦ grave’s slack chew’, as a reflection of the fact that he is insensitive to her emotions, despite everything she has been through.

Business leadership: Skills that Take to be a Good Leader

People often refer to leadership as a skill that a certain person has.   It is a kind of skill in which a particular person can make other people follow him without skepticism.   However, if leadership is â€Å"properly† defined, it is a process of accomplishing things through a person who influences people to work and deliver what it is that is to be delivered.   In addition, since not all goals that are set will be successful, leadership is an adventure.   In reaching goals, the person leading must think of various ways to accomplish all the things that they want to accomplish for there are times that they will fail due to an erroneous decision, or an error on the method or approach that they used.   When they fail, they are back to the starting point and will work on again by analyzing what went wrong and by formulating a new plan minus all the points that caused their failure on their first trial.Nowadays, people should be fully aware of the definition of leaders hip since this is particularly crucial and very prominent in every setting – from school, workplace, government, among others.   However, there are still people who are not familiar about what leadership really is; as said before, it is regarded as a skill that one possess that is why a particular person can make other people follow him of her. Moreover, it is assumed to be a quality or characteristic of a person.   Only a lesser portion of the population knows that leadership is a process that requires several skills and specific qualities from a certain person in order for him to be able to influence the people who works under him towards the achievement of a goal.Anyone can become a leader just as long as they develop the skills that are needed; moreover, anyone can lead even though they are not the president of the country, a coach of the team or a captain of a ship.   In other words, anyone can be a leader when the situation calls for him or her to lead others.   You do not need any badge or a prestigious office in order to be a leader.   However, if you are a leader you are not similar to a boss in every sense.   Bosses are usually known to be the people who always boss others and push people around. In contrast, if you are a good leader, you are not doing these things to the people under you.   Then again, a leader and boss may be synonymous if the latter does things by influencing empowered and effectual people.Leadership can take place anywhere and one particular venue is in the business sector.   In order for a certain business to work and succeed, there should be a number of people who will exert effort and do all the needed actions and tasks.   However, these people will not be able to work in a proper manner without someone who will lead them; otherwise, each would just do everything in his own way.   Business leaders or owner leaders should lead them on the right track on the way to success; he should provide everything that his team or employees will need, and also offer responsibility. The leader’s view of his employees will affect the decisions to be made throughout the process of accomplishing the goals, they should be aware of the responsibilities that they need to fulfill – the kind of responsibilities that employees are expecting to be fulfilled by their leader.A leader in a business establishment, like any other leader, has to deal with two things: the job at hand and the group he should lead.   These two aspects are essential in the process of leading a business entity; if there is a group but there is no job, a leader is not needed. The case is the same if there is a job but there is no group to carry it out.   The leader can also only tell if he led in a right way if they got the job done and, at the same time, the group is still held together.   If the job was done but the group was dissolved, the accomplishment and success are both useless because the leader who to ok charge of the job was not a good leader.   Any person who wants to be a good leader should know that getting the job done is not the only thing that matters.When it comes in being an effective leader in the business sector, one should have the important leadership skills, namely: honesty and integrity, competence and credibility, forward looking and visionary, inspiring and motivating, and good communication skills.   These five sets of skills are very significant in succeeding in any organization, wether the team is within the business arena or not.Honesty – meaning to be true and trustworthy – and integrity – which connotes acting in a just and honorable manner – are very essential skills in being a leader.   Your team should be able to trust you because without trust nothing will be accomplished.   Trust is the key to any effective employer-employee relationship.   In addition, all your actions must be logical and rational, not based on im pulse and sudden outburst of emotion but on the principles that you believe in.   Though being honest, most of the times, cause trials to the person who practices it, it is better to be truthful all the way so that your team will trust and follow you for they will believe that all you will say are true whether those words are positive or not.   For an instance, if an employee delivers an unsatisfactory job, you should tell him in all honesty that you are expecting or needing something more that what he had presented. While the employee may feel bad the criticism may help him do things better, and will contribute to having a quality result in the end.The next set of skills are competence and credibility; competence talks about being appropriate to a certain job or task while credibility refers to being reliable and trustworthy.   If a person wants to be a leader, he or she should be competent to lead other people; he or should have the capacity to influence and convince the tea m about the things to do and the decisions to be made.   Being a leader demands a lot of responsibility and comes with a lot of pressure, a person in order to lead must be able to keep his composure whenever the situation gets out of hand and stressful, otherwise, he, along with the team, will go downhill.In addition, this person should have all the abilities, experience and expertise to lead, these factors will lead to being trustworthy for when the people he or she will lead see that he or she knows what he or she is talking about and he or she has the full grasp of the goal and all the situations then they can trust him to lead them.   Just like when reading a book about new innovations in the medical world, people will only buy and believe it if the person who wrote it is an expert. In as similar vein, a leader should have enough background about the task at hand so that the people will see if he or she definitely knows what he or she is talking about as a subject matter exp ert.Thirdly, a leader should be forward-looking which means he or she should has his or her eyes on the things that might take place in the future, this is a necessity in order for the leader and the team to be prepared and alert of what is to come whenever they make a decision.   The leader should be the first to see the consequences of each of their actions and consequences in order to avoid mistakes and failures; he should evaluate and study every situation and option presented to him or her carefully before choosing and making a final decision.   Additionally, being a visionary is also important, with this characteristic, a leader has a specific and precise vision of what he wants in the future, it is here that the goal is formulated and this vision is what will keep them on track.   If the leader has a vision to have his company the leading business firm in the country, all of his actions, decisions and moves will all be towards this vision, without any kind of vision, th en there is no goal at hand to be achieve; thus, there is no reason to work at all.Subsequently, a leader should be inspiring and motivating.   Inspiration and motivation are two important factors in order to have a drive to work, a leader should inspire and motivate his team to work for the goal they want to achieve.   An effective leader should not only give his or her team the things they have to do but also the reason why they should do them, he or she should provide them the purpose of their tasks and, of course, their goal.   Inspiration and motivation are very important each and every one of us; an athlete cannot get himself to perform his best when he lost his motivation and a writer would not be able to write a bestselling novel without any inspiration.   As a leader, you should remind your team to believe in themselves, this also means that you must have the drive, determination and spirit for these are what you need to motivate them.Last but not the least is that a leader must have good communication skills.   In order to lead, a leader must communicate to his team for that is the only way for him or her to deliver them the instructions, to give them inspiration and motivation, to be honest to them, to convince them that he is credible to lead, and to share to them his vision.   Good communication skills and leadership go on together, if you can be a good communicator, you will be able to express yourself very well, both thoughts and feelings.   You have to establish good and effective communication with your team in order to convey not only words but also meanings.   In addition, if you become an effective communicator, you will be able to project a confident and sincere image that people likes to see in a leader.   You should maintain good communication with your team; otherwise, you and each of your employees will draw into isolation which will bring negative effects on the business because it can cause in making wrong decisions .In the next four or five years, I would want to develop these skills in order to contribute to my success, particularly, honesty and integrity, competence and credibility, and good communication skills.   These three set of skills are, in my opinion, the most essential in becoming an effective leader, for that reason, these are the skills that I will focus on developing in the next four to five years.   Honesty and integrity are very important because it is through these that trust can be build and establish.   Developing honesty is not easy because humans are subject to lie most of the time intentionally and unintentionally due to their nature.One particular reason why we lie is because we do not want others to be hurt that is why we resolve to saying â€Å"white lies†, however, in the business realm, these lies and other kind of lies should be avoided because covering negative things with such will affect the result of the job.   In order for me to develop honesty, I must learn to say truthful things and also learn the proper way to address them especially those negative matters so that people would not be hurt and for them to see for themselves the aspects that they could work on the aspects they should work on.   On the other hand, to develop integrity, I should learn to focus on my principles and be able to control myself in order to act rationally not based on my impulse and sudden emotional outburst.   Through this, I will be able to avoid acting unjust and harsh towards other people.The next competence I want to develop is competence and credibility.   To develop these two, I must gain a lot of experiences in order to expand my competencies and credibility.   I must learn to take responsibility for a lot of things, and to handle different kinds of situation and, as well as, pressure in order for me to be considered as competent.   In addition, I should acquire the necessary qualities and attributes such as charisma, communicat ion skills, confidence, and responsibility to be competent enough to be a leader.   On the contrary, in order to be credible, I need to study the things I need to learn regarding the task at hand, since I am planning to enter business, I must equip myself with the appropriate knowledge on how the business world works and about the certain business I would enter to so that my team will look at me in a way that I perfectly know what I am talking about and what I want to happen.  Lastly, I would want to develop my communication skills because I believe that communication is the most important thing between the relationship of an employer and an employee.   Without good communication skill, I would not be able to convince them to work for me, I would not be able to share them my vision and the plans that I have in order to achieve our goals, and I would not be able to tell them what I have in mind or if they are doing the right thing.   It is only through communication that will I be able to inspire and motivate them to do the things we have to do.   Most relationships fail due to lack of good communication, which is why for me this is the most essential skill in becoming an effective leader.My team should always hear me out in reminding them of our goals and in briefing our plans. Without communication, they would not do the things they have to do and worse, they will just move according to their own way.   If that happens, the job would not be accomplished and the group will not stay intact.   The process of leadership can only be considered a success if the job was done and the group still stays together as a cohesive team.Some of the most influential leaders in the history have all the five important leadership skills, especially the three that I have chosen.   Queen Elizabeth II of the Great Britain held the British monarchy and institution with a steady hand which is why they remained solid throughout the time she was placed in the throne, sh e understood the needs of reforms and even opened her accounts to the public in order for them to see that they are one with the people when it comes to decreasing the costs of their lifestyle.Then there is also Arnold Schwarzenegger who was elected as the governor of California, people may raise their eyebrows or have already raised them when he ran and won the election, but he is a visionary and this was evident on the economic policies that he have imposed on California in order to reduce the effects of global warming, he is also the one responsible in restoring the state’s environment – he have reduced the pollution in air and water, and even restored the habitats for the animals.   All these measures were done for his vision of making California acquire electricity on natural sources like wind, biomass and sun by the year 2020.Likewise is in the case of President Hu Jintao of China, who aims to get through the economic and social tensions rising in the country t hat was brought by the country’s growth for he wants to build a society living in harmony.   He was the one responsible of China’s rapid growth in the international world economically; he also radiates an aura of a knowledgeable, intelligent and confident leader.   Also, if there is anyone who had a lot of pressure and stress in leading, it could be Mayor Michael Bloomberg of New York City who needed to rebuild the city that never sleeps after the unforgettable nightmare of â€Å"9/11† – this is what competency is about.While in the world of business, Bill Gates, co-founder of Microsoft from the year 1975, dominated as the world’s most influential business leader.   He has the kind of determination that he used in his leadership that led to the change of the face of programming and information technology.   Dropping out of Harvard University did not seem to become a waste as he is now one of the world’s richest men.   And there is also Steve Jobs, co-founder of Apple, who is responsible for today’s most hyped gadgets.Being a leader is not impossible for anyone of us, we may be born with the potential leadership skills, and all we have to do is to develop them to become an effective leader. The five sets of skills I have discussed are really important to become an effectual leader.   Leaders should be honest to everyone including himself; he should have integrity, the competencies and credibility to become one. He should provide inspiration and motivation to give his followers the drive to work. He should be forward-looking and should be a visionary to be prepared and focus of the future. Lastly, he should be a good communicator to convey all of these to his team.   Being a political leader or a business leader necessitates all these skills; one may just need to adapt one’s focus as applicable in the setting where one is expected to lead.