Monday, September 30, 2019

I Am I Am Not Poster

A balloon is sucked in with air just like human. I can keep it plain and simple. I know how to act when the time is right. I like to celebrate different holidays. Balloons represent many things. I enjoy being creative and making kids happy. I think that a balloon best translates me. Balloons can be used for transportation. N You cannot see through me or in me. You can't make predictions or assumptions about me if you never even met me. Don't try to knock me down or break me apart because it won't work. Have way too much confidence for that, and believe that I'll go somewhere in life with it.I am not like glass. Glass is as clear as a dirty mirror. What I mean by clear as a dirty mirror is you cannot see your reflection through a dirty mirror and you can't see your reflection through glass. Glass is brittle, the imparted causes it to break, shatter or explode. No! Am not brittle. You can't tear me apart that quickly. Glass is very fragile. I'm not. You do not only drink from a glass b ut you use it for many things. I am not used for many things I am used to be one person not 1 0,000 other people, but just one. I don't have billions of different characters and personality.If you're that kind of person that tries too hard to be someone else and act like a brat than you already ruined your reputation. Think that a glass best represents me. CLC am like a bike. A bike rides on the street. When you are riding you are not looking back. Look up to the future I do not look at what and was and stays the past. I keep going and see how far I can go, and when reach my destination I will keep going till there no more room for more. A bike is like a moving machine. I am fun to play with. I also enjoy riding my bike, when my wheels are not flat. A bike sometimes falls and crashes in to places.I sometimes can be clumsy, I may drop, spill, and break something, but never mean it. A bike just keeps moving and moving and moving till the driver puts it on break. Same with me I keep on going and going till put a break on it which is my death. When you're riding your bike all you feel is the cool wind blowing you're on your face and hair. When am on my bike feel like life is put on pause and am the only one moving. Life's a journey so enjoy the ride. A bike can move as fast as a speeding truck, just depends who's behind it. I believe that a bike best translates me.Grades do not represent me. I may do horrible on one assignment but fairly well in another. Grades could mean anything, it could mean this person was tired, didn't know, not fully taught, or was absent. Some teachers time you on the test or quiz and I don't like to be rushed. Some people like me, may think that grades on assignment may make you or break you. That's probably why I'm so worried about my grades. For example, the final exam is worth 15% of your grade so it could hold you for another year or bring you to 9th grade with a good report. Your Choices are crossroads.You may think that grades deter mine if you're smart or not so smart. Some students say I am soaring above the normal learning curve and, others may say I need more help. Some people get nervous when they get a test or quiz and fail. Other may say this is easy and pass with a 100. Grades are like jinx. By, jinx I mean if you did well on an assignment you'll think that you're so smart that you're going to pass this other assignment without studying. All that I'm trying to say is that grades does not represent if I'm smart or not so smart. Others may disagree but this is just opinion Grades do not represent me.

Overcrowding in American Jails and Prisons: An Overview of the Issue and Possible Solutions Essay

The issue of overcrowding in American jails and prisons is not unheard of. It is frequently discussed amongst politicians and American citizens alike. This is a controversial issue considering the large number of different opinions many people have. Though the issue is certainly acknowledged, it is rare that a feasible solution is discussed. According to Vincent Tompkins, one of the many editors in American Decades, most Americans chose to not dwell on the growing crime problem during the 1950s. This was evident through the increase in prison population, which, by the end of the decade, was 22,492 men and women in federal penitentiaries, and 185,021 in state facilities. Tompkins and the rest of the editors compare the amount of prisoners to the size of a city like Tulsa, Oklahoma to put the issue during the 1950s into perspective. However, the amount of prisoners were not the only problem the prison system was faced with. In 1952 alone, there were twenty riots in various federal and state penitentiaries (Tompkins 242). David S. Clark, the editor of the Encyclopedia of Law and Society: American and Global Perspectives, describes overcrowded prisons as, â€Å"a breach of United Nations and other international standards that require that states treat prisoners with respect to their inherent dignity. † Clark calls attention to what follows overcrowding, including restricted living space, poor conditions of hygiene, poor sanitation arrangements, less time available for outdoor activities, etc. He claims the result of these conditions are an increase in violence, including suicide and self-injury (Clark 1177). According to â€Å"Equal Justice Initiative,† an organization that works toward ending mass incarceration, the U. S. incarcerates more of their citizens in comparison to any other country in the world. Jail and prison populations have increased from 200,000 to 2. 3 million in the past 40 years. This not only lead to unprecedented prison overcrowding, but also put a huge strain on state budgets. For instance, Alabama’s prisons were built with the intention of holding up to 14,000 prisoners, but instead hold double the amount—28,000. Alabama is one of many states who are faced with the crisis of overcrowding. The inmate to correctional officer ratio in Alabama is the highest in the country, which only illustrates how serious of an issue overcrowding is. Many Alabama prisoners are on â€Å"waiting lists† for solitary confinement. Due to unsafe prison conditions, â€Å"Equal Justice Initiative† reports a rise in lawsuits where courts have described overcrowding in both state and local facilities as â€Å"barbaric. † The conditions of some of these Alabamian prisons are extreme. Some prisoners are forced to sleep on concrete floors where the, â€Å"sardine-can appearance of cell units more nearly resemble the holding units of slave ships during the Middle Passage of the eighteenth century than anything in the twenty-first century. † Considering these unbelievable facts about prison conditions, the questions remains: how would one resolve the issue of overcrowding? Probably the most universally agreed upon idea is to incarcerate fewer drug offenders. Saki Knafo reports in the Huffington Post that 219,000 inmates in federal prison, which, in comparison to the 25,000 in 1980, is a dramatic increase. Knafo writes that half of those prisoners are drug offenders, and that if 20 percent fewer (non-violent) drug offenders were imprisoned, the federal government would save $1. 29 billion, and prisons would save 125,000 bed years—or a year’s worth of prison time for one person. Among similar lines, another possible solution would be to reduce the incarceration time drug offenders face. If given the opportunity to reduce one year off their prison time by participating in a drug rehabilitation program, Knafo reports the savings to be 880 bed years, and $9.1 million for the U. S. economy. This is supposedly in effect, though due to overcrowding, many prisoners awaiting their opportunity have less than a year of incarceration time when they are offered a place in the program. Expanding this program would not only provide prisoners with a more successful program—which would prevent many released convicts from repeating similar drug related crimes that caused their impri sonment initially—but would also create a number of jobs, which, statistically, would reduce crime rates. Another idea that could potentially reduce the overcrowding in prisons is to release some elderly prisoners from custody. Knafo claims that after the age of 55, released prisoners are â€Å"highly unlikely to commit new crimes, according to many studies. † Despite the lack of a threat those over the age of 55 are, 17,400 federal prisoners are older than 55. It is evident that there are numerous ways to lessen the amount of incarcerated prisoners, while still ensuring the safety of others on the street. Claiming the United States has an addiction to imprisonment when it comes to preventing crime is certainly arguable. Though many of these potential solutions can be considered controversial, it is difficult to deny that things could be done to lessen the overcrowding in prisons and jails. Some might say the U. S. overlooks many alternatives to incarceration. Though arguable, considering the facts and statistics, it certainly could be beneficial for the U. S. to broaden their punishment and rehabilitation methods when it comes to non-violent crimes. Considering alternatives to imprisonment could not only be profitable, but also advantageous.

Saturday, September 28, 2019

Pervasiveness of Marketing

Vital marketing decisions are made by every business; but as important as it is to make the right business decision†¦ it is essential that marketing professionals understand how their marketing impacts our social values. There are several different ways that marketers get their message across to potential customers(1), each marketing communications tool can have different effects on us. Marketing is intrusive, businesses are constantly trying to push their brands in our faces†¦ we barely process one piece of information before the next one comes shooting our way. The pervasiveness marketing has undoubtedly influenced our mind-set and behaviour†¦ a disposable culture creeps closer to becoming reality. It’s because our buyer behaviour is image based, we care about how others see us more than how we see ourselves. This hugely changes our views on society; contemporary marketing has made us believe that we are what we buy, and that the brands we own†¦ are a direct reflection of us. Marketing is an integral business function, but is hardly respected. It continually aims to stimulate demand which leads to new customers†¦ and that leads to more market share. No longer can marketing be tunnel visioned in it’s pursuit for brand awareness. Certain companies have mastered the AIDA model and can use their understanding on countless consumers, the Sony Bravia advert with the bouncing balls(2) went through the whole cycle from attention all the way to stimulating action†¦ making them buy products they didn’t particularly need in the first place. Point-Of-Sale cues are used relentlessly and marketers are accused of not looking at how their decisions impact broader society. Our social values are changing to customers being more self-centred and buying everything that suits them. Our social values include friends, who we want to have a good time with. But playing on the back of our heads constantly, is how cool we think we look, have we impressed our friends? Do we have the right clothes on? Do we have the right phone? As I mentioned, we think that the brands we own are a reflection of us†¦ so we try and buy the right products, not only to suit our personalities; but to fit in. There is one thing that hugely influences our social values, and that’s technology(3). A wireless world is slowly becoming more of an actuality as time goes on. The internet, as enthralling as it may be, has made people ess sociable and more secluded. Perhaps one of the most important social values is quality time with our families; this is not possible if we are glued to the monitor during dinner time. In the past, dinner meant the whole family sitting around a table, having a laugh and eating to their hearts content. The internet has cut into this social value and is influencing young minds. But it’s been a fantastic medium for communication and a brilliant source for information. Both ways can be argued. Advances in technology will introduce location based advertising in the future(4), this makes us even more reliant on technology. This means that where ever we are, we will be targeted by businesses†¦ which directly impact our social lives; making us shop instead of talk to those we may know in the area. The whole notion of positioning is based upon understanding the consumer†¦ not society, making us feel like we can familiarise ourselves with the brand, so that it doesn’t feel like marketing but instead feels like a developing relationship. Segmenting customers is a common marketing tool used when it comes to deciding on a target market. But it has huge disadvantages on society; a common way for segmentation to take place is with airlines. First class, business class and economy are forms of segmenting the market. Customers who have high disposable income doesn’t necessarily have to fly first class†¦ but the positioning of first class in the consumers mind communicates the message that if you can afford it, go for it. First class passengers have made the association that flying in luxury means they are successful and are respected. When in realness, they simply have more money than the average person. Economy flyers are made to think that they are normal, nothing special, but some of them could actually be successful. Some of them may have significantly advanced in their careers, and may have even helped the world! The social values of first class travellers has changed into looking down on other passengers who aren’t flying first class†¦ the feeling of self accomplishment is just an illusion created by marketing. There are other marketing tools which de-individualises customers and sees them as groups and not individuals. An example of this is the postcode analysis, this influences the social values of consumers into thinking that they are only as good as the people who live near them. Marketing professionals need to start respecting customers as customers, and they need to understand the uniqueness of each individual consumer. There is a really important marketing tool that can assess how much marketers are impacting our social values. Businesses can construct a PESTEL analysis of themselves to gain a better understanding of what is in their way†¦ and what they need to take into account before implementing any marketing decisions. MOSAIC is another segmentation tool used by marketers to decide exactly how to target their target market. This generalises too much and doesn’t see customers as individuals, but as titles. There is one main point that marketing critics’ keep bringing up. They see branding as being misleading to consumers, that the associations made with the product or service is just an illusion†¦ and doesn’t reflect the actual quality of the product or service itself(5). Marketers definitely need to take this into account when taking care of brand management. However an argument against this is that branding gives people confidence, it helps consumers see themselves in a desirable light when owning a particular brand. It makes them feel like they are a part of something, this positive feeling surely can’t be criticised. An example of a business who tries to create a strong association is Disney. Their chain of ‘Magic Happens’ adverts definitely play on our emotional strings(6). They play on portraying the dreamy effect with their brand communication, which withholds powerful emotional appeals. Disney sells an experience, something intangible. This works really well when it comes to targeting children, the imagination of a child is endless†¦ with hardly any limits. However this really affects children’s social values, making them almost worship Disney characters. Ultimately, this makes the children think that going to Disney Land is described as ‘a dream come true’; taking their minds off of the important things in life. Another example is Coca Cola. Their marketing strategy relies on making the consumer feel satisfaction when drinking Coke, making the consumer feel refreshed†¦ and ‘happy’. The Coke slogan is ‘Open coke. Open happiness’(7). The association that will be made is definitely an emotional one, and will make customers feel like someone when they drink a can of coke in front of people. This is probably the brand that endangers our social values the most, due to the obvious reason that happiness is achieved through success or through a positive social encounter. Not from drinking Coke, this is nothing more than a positioning strategy. Behavioural psychology explains the laws of classical and operant conditioning. This has been used by many businesses in order to condition a specific response from a customer. Classical conditioning can be, and has been used in various advertisements; in order to create lasting associations that will be profitable to the business. A psychologist called Pavlov tests classical conditioning in one of he’s experiments(8), and since then, he has influenced the use of he’s findings by many marketers. An example of this is McDonalds, the first time we heard the famous McDonalds short and snappy jingle we didn’t know what to make of it. But after a few more adverts we made the association between the jingle and the slogan ‘I’m lovin’ it’(9). Whilst this association was being made, you can visualise the McDonalds logo and any images they want you to see. The general feel of the adverts are happy and upbeat. With time, our association became so strong, that all McDonalds do now is play the jingle, and we all say or think ‘I’m lovin’ it’. This then becomes our unconditioned response to the jingle, which started off as being a neutral stimulus. So as you can see, classical conditioning is a powerful tool that marketers use, and we have attempted to create an advert; whilst trying to apply the laws of classical conditioning. Customers are almost hypnotised into thinking exactly what McDonalds wants them to think. This changes our social values into being more self-centred, making us seek pleasure for ourselves and gets rid of the whole idea of togetherness and sharing. The psychodynamic approach in psychology was devised by Sigmund Freud, an influential figure in psychology. He said that our conscious thoughts and actions are influenced by unconscious drives, such as the sex drive(10). Marks and Spencer food adverts take advantage of this idea. The woman speaking in the background speaks in a soft, sensual voice making it seem the food should be eaten in an intimate way(11)†¦ which almost makes us think their selling sex. According to the psychodynamic approach, our unresolved child issues and our sex drive will influence our conscious behaviour†¦ which is to ultimately buy the food. Marketers need to be very careful with this type of advertising; it’s almost as if the consumers are not in control of what they like. Our social values may have been having a laugh with friends of the opposite gender, but due to this kind of psychological approach to advertising†¦ it may unwillingly effect the perception of the customer. Using psychological approaches in adverts is legal, but it doesn’t mean it’s moral. The mind-set of the customer changes, their perception changes and so their behaviour changes; this can be seen as immoral. Companies ensure they put all side effects of certain products on the packaging†¦ but when are marketers going to actually take into account the side effects of their own decisions? If a certain type of marketing impacts broader society too much, and stimulates demand to an extent that the environment will suffer†¦ the marketers should definitely take it easy and refrain from these types of activities. Every career needs to work towards a better world to live in; this is what morality is all about. ‘The strategic business function that creates value by stimulating, facilitating and fulfilling customer demand’(12)†¦ this is on of the definitions of marketing. But how will consumer sovereignty affect this? The old definition was meeting customer needs profitably, customers may decide what will be produced or on the other hand marketers may decide what consumers should be interested in. It all depends on how society is looked after by marketers, and how society reacts to marketing decisions. Our social values stems from how society operates and how society holds up against continual marketing activities. The decisions that marketers make impact society hugely, it can increase demand and can decrease demand. McDonalds have been successful at stimulating demand, due to this they have had to create 4000 new jobs(13). But even though more demand means success to a marketer, there is always backlash. There is ‘a protest against the promotion of junk food, the unethical targeting of children, exploitation of workers, animal cruelty, damage to the environment and the global domination of corporations over our lives. Marketing strategies are successful at making a profit, but it’s time marketing professionals look after the society which they themselves are a part of. Not necessarily societal marketing, but just using some of the concepts of this type of marketing. I think that it’s a personal challenge to each and every one of us to act and speak in a way which doesn’t reflect the conditioned responses that marketing and movies have created. Our social values echo our personality and what we hold close to our hearts; marketing professionals can change or strengthen this. That means reliability is a necessity as a marketer. References http://inventors.about.com/od/timelines/a/ModernInvention.htm http://www.e-lba.com/ELBA%20Overview%20english.pdf http://nobelprize.org/educational_games/medicine/pavlov/readmore.html http://www.textart.ru/database/slogan/fast-food-advertising-slogans.html http://webspace.ship.edu/cgboer/freud.html

Friday, September 27, 2019

Hedge accounting under IAS 39 and IFRS 9 - A critical comparison Dissertation

Hedge accounting under IAS 39 and IFRS 9 - A critical comparison - Dissertation Example IFRS 9 is still in its development phase and such studies help in changing accounting methods from a rules-focused approach to more of a principle- based view; this is done to encourage more personalities and institutions to apply hedging as it has benefits associated with good pricing and effective financial reporting. All the selected 32 hedge fund managers participated in the survey and the researcher’s contribution helped in bringing them up to speed with the scope of the study and ensured these participants were previously using IAS 39 for relevance purposes. The researcher also queried the achievements and financial performance across all accounting spectrum since these UK based hedge fund managers started applying IFRS 9. ... 41 Results 41 Demographics 41 Research Questions and Hypotheses 41 Quantitative aspects 42 Qulaitative analysis 45 CHAPTER 5: SUMMARY OF FINDINGS, CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 49 Summary of findings 49 Data collected revealed that a majority of the respondents were familiar with the provisions of IFRS 9 having encountered the instrument in their line of work. The proposed changes, therefore, had a direct effect on how the respondents and their organizations would operate upon full adoption. From the analysis of participant opinions, majority had in-depth knowledge of IFRS 9 and IAS 39 judging by the precision of their responses. This was attributed to both their routine responsibilities within the various Hedge Funds and level of education that inclined towards advance financial management for a majority of the sample population. It was therefore fair to form a preliminary conclusion that the respondents were authorities in their own individual rights within the region of hedge ac counting. 49 With the majority of respondents willing and ready to fully move from IAS 39 to IFRS 9, opening conclusions were drawn that the new system was found acceptable by the bulk of industry players making the instrument much better that IAS 39 on the strength of its acceptability. This was further supported by the present rate of the instrument’s application where it was revealed through the collected data, that 97% were actually enjoying larger provisions of the system. Revelations of IFRS 9 eliminating 80-125 effectiveness testing rule and hedging net options stood out as significant positive changes that the new instrument would bring upon adoption. 49 Conclusions 52 Recommendations 53 Bibliography 55 Abstract This study will seek to provide a

Thursday, September 26, 2019

Collaborative Highly Effective Team Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Collaborative Highly Effective Team - Assignment Example From this paper it is clear that lack of trust – Trust is very important in any group, since if you don’t trust other members then you can’t work together since you can’t agree with their ideas because you don’t have trust in them in the first place.As the study highlights that the presence of conflicts – Where there is no agreement always leads to arising of conflicts. If they don’t respect each other as a group, then it will never work. Lack of commitment – In such a situation no one wants to be committed since they don’t agree with each other before they can do a thing. Avoidance of accountability – In a team that is ineffective everyone doesn’t want to be responsible for the consequences that arise. They don’t care what comes out of the actions. The leader ought to operate in a way that protects the vision of the team. When a conflict arises a team leader must ensure that everyone is still committ ed to the team vision. A leader must make sure that the conflicts do not interfere with the vision. A leader must make sure that there is a mutual respect between the two parties involved in the conflict after it has been resolved.  Create time for team members to appreciate each other’s skills - The team should have time to get to appreciate the work of every member by doing this it helps boost the team’s confidence.  Managing emotional concerns that can help the progress – When there is a burning issue the member should come out and express it.  

Blame of Obesity on Fast Food Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Blame of Obesity on Fast Food - Research Paper Example The general consensus is that fast food is the major cause of the increasing levels of obesity. However, after conducting research on the respective notion, it can be stated that the blame of obesity cannot be totally blamed on the consumption of fast food since the nature of lifestyles plays a major role in the incremental weights among individuals. 2. Blame Fast Foods for Obesity? It has been witnessed in the recent history that the number of obese individuals is increasing more than ever. Evangelista, Ortiz, Soto and Urdapilleta stated that recognized organizations, such as World Health Organization, American Obesity Organization, acknowledge the fact that obesity has become a serious illness on a massive scale. Department of Health and Human Services revealed an interesting figure that obesity has increased by 60% in adults and has doubled in children since 1980. Center for Disease Control defined obesity as Body Mass Index (BMI) which is explained in terms of the height and weig ht of the individual. It is commonly witnessed that obese individuals try to earn money out of lawsuits against fast food organizations since they blame them for their obesity. The most obvious argument against such blame game is that no organization or individual forced them to eat anything; the excessive consumption of food has been done as a result of their own desires and wants. It can also be stated that individuals who eat fast food products but do not consume these products at an excessive rate maintain healthy lifestyles. Jaslow reported that fast food chains have been regulated to include the nutrition in all of their food items in New York, California and Seattle since 2008; other states and cities have also joined in with the passage of the years. The presence of labels can communicate the number of calories that are present in any item, thereby giving the consumer complete knowledge of what he is eating. The distribution of such information cannot hold the fast food chai ns liable for any instances of obesity. Rogers stated that lawyers often put the blame on fast food organizations by saying that poorly educated consumer segment cannot read the nutrition values on the fast food items and simply consume this type of affordable food, thereby moving towards obesity. Buchholz provided some relevant figures that negate the assumption that the lack of comprehension of nutrition on the fast food items increases obesity. He stated that around 53% of increase in obesity has been recorded in individuals with no high school education, whereas an alarming rate of 163% increase has been recorded among graduates who are very well able to understand the information on the fast food labels. Buchholz raised an important fact and stated that individuals have started eating between meals more than ever before; Americans used to eat less than one snack in a day in the late 1980s, whereas this figure reached to around 1.6 snacks every day by 1994. Further investigation of this figure shall reveal even more astonishing results for the past decade. This fact tends to shift the nature of the problem from eating heavy fast food meals, such as breakfast, lunch and dinner to munching between the meals that is known to be a major cause of unhealthy living. McKesson Health Solutions LLC and Gupta, Ray and Saha also agreed with this notion and stated that majority of the individuals admit to eating in between the meals and it is considered to be one of the major causes of obesity among individuals. It would not be wrong to

Wednesday, September 25, 2019

Why study the humanities Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Why study the humanities - Essay Example They complete the degrees to make their parents happy but pursue a very different career path where their passion lies. This leads to time wastage and wasting of resources. These parents could have used that money to enroll their children in courses that the students’ desire be it humanities or sciences. Thus, it is important to study humanities due to various reasons. One of them is the ability to understand the diverse cultures of various individuals. It is evident that in the various working stations of individuals, you will find people from various cultural backgrounds. It is important to understand the way of life of such individuals to enable a good working relationship to ensue. Humanities help us understand that there are diverse cultures, values, and beliefs of individuals that need to be respected to avoid conflicts. It enables us to have an imagined way of life created by the different minds thus helping us understand how individuals in different cultural backgrounds live. Humanities also awaken the imagination of individuals enabling them to think critically and independently. From this imagination, individuals are able to develop their creativity. Various works of arts are works of imagination. Imagine watching a play and you feel so connected with it. You feel as if what is happening in the play is happening in real life. That is the works of creativity and that is what learning humanities help to achieve. That movie that you love a lot or that song that you love; it was written and created by a humanity student. Therefore, if individuals think that learning humanities is not important, they should try to figure out what they would do without their favorite music or movie to help them unwind after a very long day. Learning humanities is also important since it allows individuals to learn the cultures of different individuals across the globe. It would be unfortunate to travel to a country that values

Tuesday, September 24, 2019

Apple Computer Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

Apple Computer - Case Study Example The company’s vision and strategy are in providing the world with innovative products. Apple Inc. sees innovation and products with superior ease of use as its major competitive advantages. Therefore, the aim of the given analysis is to discover what internal and external forces were driving the organization to its success, as well as what particular strategies were the key to Apple’s becoming so competitive in a number of industries. Apple’s case is an example of outstandingly implemented diversification and innovation in products and services. To me personally the most interesting thing about this case was to discover how Apple created and used its competitive advantages to compete in multiple niches. In addition, it is interesting to analyze how the company’s management team, its stability and consistency, contributed to the growth and development of Apple Inc. 2) External Analysis Macro Environment Since Apple operates internationally, the number of external forces influencing the company’s operations is quite large. In addition, Apple Inc. has managed to successfully enter and compete in a number of general market segments. Therefore, the company has to monitor and deal with different trends of each of the segments it operates in. furthermore, it can even be said that in many sectors Apple is the company that creates new trends. Apple computer The second quarter of 2008 has shown Apple’s growth rate to be 31.8% since the previous year. At that time Apple became the third largest PC manufacturer in the US, coming after Dell Inc. and Hewlett-Packard – the greatest competitors of Apple Inc. ... tion, it is interesting to analyze how the company’s management team, its stability and consistency, contributed to the growth and development of Apple Inc. 2) External Analysis Macro Environment Since Apple operates internationally, the number of external forces influencing the company’s operations is quite large. In addition, Apple Inc. has managed to successfully enter and compete in a number of general market segments. Therefore, the company has to monitor and deal with different trends of each of the segments it operates in. furthermore, it can even be said that in many sectors Apple is the company that creates new trends. Apple computer The second quarter of 2008 has shown Apple’s growth rate to be 31.8% since the previous year. At that time Apple became the third largest PC manufacturer in the US, coming after Dell Inc. and Hewlett-Packard – the greatest competitors of Apple Inc. Though the competition is quite fierce, Apple refuses to compete on pr ice, relying on reliability, design elegance, ease of use and integrated features of their computers instead. This distinguishes the company in the personal computer market niche. The company, again, showed to stick to its innovation strategy having introduced the newest and thinnest in the world notebook – MacBook Air, thus filled the niche of portable Wi-Fi compatible devices. Personal digital entertainment devices – iPod iPod and iPod Touch have, actually, created a new niche of technologies. These devices enabled users to enjoy the abilities of a portable media player and Wi-Fi Internet device in one. In addition, this pocket PC can download games and other applications, thus contributing to the growth of digital entertainment and game market shares of Apple. Mobile communication devices – iPhone

Monday, September 23, 2019

Story Summary ( two old women ) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Story Summary ( two old women ) - Essay Example The two women then move on to a place where they can avoid dreadful memories and probable enemies. They walk for an uncertain destination until they become exhausted. They halt the night there but the next morning, with their aching joints, freezing lungs and swollen feet and also fatigue, they continue on their journey up to the middle of a frozen lake. The next day, they become success to cross the lake despite Ch’idzigyaak’s misery. When four days is gone over, they come to a slough that reminds Ss’ that they are in the right path. They smile first to their conversation after a long period of time. But, after a tiresome journey, they feel again of death. Being hungry, they eat the rabbit head and broth. Now, taking their belongings, they move on to follow the river. On the sixth day, Sa† can see an opening to the creek. After crossing the river, they see there remains of the long desired fishracks. At the scenery of the fishracks, they feel at home. But, the next day the two older women prepare for colder weather ahead. At this time, they feel that they are much closed to be abandoned. Now, they begin to share their memories of their family and childhood. Ch’idzigyaak remembers the time the family left her grandmother behind and Sa’ remembers how she grew up more interested in what boys did than the girls and how her family accepted her. She tells Ch’idzigyaak, women spend their idle time telling stories and weaving rabbit fur blanket and clothing. In this very day, they capture a grouse and get a change of meat from rabbit squirrel and beaver to the meat of grouse since they start their journey. Now, the winter is passed and it is spring. They catch muskrats and beaver and freeze dry the meat. Now they don’t trust ‘the young generation’. The women decide to move to a safe place where no one will want to go in the fear of mosquitoes. They spend the spring and arctic summer fishing and hunting. They use their ingenuity to store and

Sunday, September 22, 2019

Instruct Clone Essay Example for Free

Instruct Clone Essay Scholars as well as religious and political leaders are bitterly divided on the issue of human cloning. Considering the potential benefits one would gain out of being cloned, I wonder why so many spoilsports are opposed to this miraculous feat of science. If I had my way, I would order several clones of myself and tutor them to act and speak as I do. I would instruct Clone A to report in my place at the office whenever I do something stupid; the boss would never know he’d be scolding another person. Clone B would take my place in the house whenever I expect to be late attending to some after-office activities; my wife would never suspect I’d been up to no good. Clone C would do nothing but stay fit and healthy, ready to be a spare parts supplier just in case one or several of my organs become useless or diseased. When I am bored, I would order my clones to wreak havoc on the neighbourhood and then go into hiding. Naturally I would be the prime suspect. But since I would have a rock-solid alibi, having been seen at the time of the crime several hundred miles away by a hundred people at a speaking engagement, I would have a field day laughing at the discomfiture of the police. A manhunt would then be launched against several John Does while I plot the next felony, possibly against the taxman or the debt collector. If I were a celebrity, I would instruct my clones to make those tiresome public appearances while I get paid for them. If I were a businessman, I would order my clones to do all the crazy things required to corner a deal. i.e. , lose a round or two of golf against prospective clients, say amen to this and that, be hypocrites, in short. While they are at it, I would have all the time enjoying life. I may even run for President, being able to campaign through my clones who shall do nothing but shake hands, kiss babies and make occasional idiotic remarks. There is only one downside to this scenario: human clones may not entirely submit themselves to manipulation by their creators, as Ewan MacGregor did in The Island. In that film, thousands of humans are cloned upon order of paying clients; predictably, the people who did the cloning for profit are the bad guys, and in the end MacGregor single-handedly destroys the entire facility. This is not a film review, but a project of such magnitude would have been impossible to keep a secret, and besides, if cloning technology would be that advanced, there would be little trouble growing human organs from stem cells which medical science is now trying to accomplish even with limited federal funding. I believe such implausible stories like The Island are only meant to scare off people from supporting the cloning of humans. The cloning critics refuse to see it, but the cloning of humans is far more economical than the orthodox way of raising them. To be a resident of planet earth, one has to be conceived and born, which means that some couple have to marry with all the attendant fuss and aches. They would have to work their butts off worrying about bills for milk, vaccinations, day care, baby-sitter, toys, and diapers. What an utter waste of time! Why not have a fully developed, mature, perfectly cloned human being in one fell swoop? Instead of day care centers, we would build cloning factories, churning out brand new copies of extant human beings by the thousands. Think about the employment it would generate, the savings in time and resources that would otherwise be spent in raising humans, not to mention the potential of such industries like bio-engineering and the manufacture of name tags (so people would not be confused). Clones, Unlimited would probably overtake Microsoft and General Motors. On top of it all, I would have a real stab at immortality. I would be immortalized not in books or monuments nor in the memories of men but through being kept perpetually alive in my physical body. There is a great possibility science would find a way to simplify organ transplants. Instead of doing piecemeal transplants, why not just transplant the head into a new body? That would be more simple and cost-efficient. Thus, when my body becomes diseased or paralyzed, surgeons would perform a head transplant, my head replacing the head of my clone. As a result, I would have a spanking new body with healthy organs. As to what happens to my clone who donates his body, I am sure science would find a way to dispose of him. Medical schools need cadavers. I may sound sarcastic, but I believe science always finds a way. I would then have the sheer pleasure of visiting acquaintances and enemies who thought I had succumbed to cancer or kidney failure. I would pump their hands while they gawk at me and tell them, â€Å"You thought I’d died, didn’t you? †

Saturday, September 21, 2019

Marketing And Branding For Online T Shirt Companies

Marketing And Branding For Online T Shirt Companies The current study is aimed to predict the Marketing plan and the Branding through a mix of marketing products for my Online T- shirt Company based in India for the next 2 years. Therefore the current study has been focused to deliver the appropriate marketing plan supported by effective brand positioning related to market the T- Shirts via internet and how will the techniques attract the customers. Thus the T- shirts of the Online selling firm are being separated from the various other marketing policies and brands through this approach. The appropriate recommendations for effective branding which in turn carry out marketing for my company is as below: Analyzing the product and assessing the positive aspects of the product. Preparing the appropriate marketing plan suitable for my firm Branding the product on the basis of the unique quality through repositioning. Regain the edge and strengthening the brand values through marketing plans. Suggesting the future marketing capacity and the opportunity for the firm Adoption of suitable branding strategies such as branding by planning, branding imageries, branding experience and the branding by self expression. SITUATIONAL ANALYSIS: The situation analysis of my firm Online T shirt company has been commenced to study the needs and requirements of the target consumers for better satisfaction and thus for improving the business it is necessary for my business to concentrate more on the clients and an effective study about the internal circumstances as well as the external opportunities, current trends of the market place, and the assessment of the capability of my firm Online T shirt company. Hence for this, I decided to carry out the situational analysis as the main aim through which the 5 Cs of my firm can be evaluated. The 5 C s is the major aspects that are related with the firm that will help me to take better marketing verdicts and strategies. The basic ideology in carrying out the situational analysis is to study the macro economical, micro economical and the internal aspects of my firm. The basic 5 Cs are the common factors related with the firms such as company, consumers, challengers, and collaborators and finally the climate. The following are the major aspects of the situational analysis I want to relate with my firm Online T Shirt Company. Company: For my Company, Online T Shirt firm will include the following aspects under this category: The manufactured goods such as T Shirts. Reflection in the market place The expertise and familiarity Ethnicity and backgrounds of firm Ambitions and future targets Collaborators: These aspects are the major functional players of my firm such as: Dealers Affiliates Distributors Customers: The main aspects of my business are the target consumers and for the analyzing the situation, the following aspect have been selected: Size of the Market and its expansion Major segments of the Market place Outstanding profits that customer is aiming to search for both physical and indefinable profits Impulse behind procurement; significant drivers, profits vs. expenses Resolution maker or the administrative component of the firm Study about the current retail trend that includes the current trend followed by the consumer for real acquirement the merchandise. The sources of customer data resources about the SEO where the shoppers obtain information about the merchandise. Process of buying that is by desire or vigilant judgment Incidence of acquisition, seasonal features of the goods. Capability of purchase with certain quantity at a time Recognition of consumer needs, new trends and inclinations and expected change of trend over time Competitors: the next set of considerations for the analyzing the situations are the factors about the competitors of my company: Authentic or probable rivals Straight and indirect rivals Goods of rivals Place of positioning of goods Market shares Strong points and limitations of competitors Climate: The climate is the fifth C in analysis or macro-environmental factors related with my Online T Shirt Company are: The financial atmosphere such as business cycle, rate of inflation, rate of interests, and other macroeconomic concerns Authoritarian and the political background like policies provided by the government and policies that influence the souk Social and the cultural aspects such as fashion and trends of the society Technical backgrounds such as latest acquaintance that will allow probable innovative traditions of fulfilling the needs of the clients and the blow of expertise on the demand for accessible goods. SWOT Analysis: Thus for analyzing the about facts of my company Online T- shirt firm special strategic tool will be applicable. This tool availing the analysis of situation is termed as SWOT analysis. The following is the SWOT analysis of my Online T Shirt Company. (Kotler et al., 2006. Pp. 63) Strengths for my Online T Shirt Company: The products are of good quality and available in various shades The company has extended line of distribution and global commerce availability The delivery will be done appropriately and on timely basis Carry out the process with lower prices Lesser costs of other expenses and staff costs Weaknesses: As the online business is growing in extent and is available globally several weaknesses may arise and sometimes these are more compared to conventional commerce threats. The following are some of the anticipated weaknesses for my Online T -Shirt Company for next 2 years: Chance for no proper retention due to the availability of identical products No personal feel and checking of products may not be preferred The expenses of transport and manufacturing may rise from what has been quoted All the visitors may not make proper sales order Opportunities: The following are some of the anticipated opportunities for my Online T -Shirt Company for next 2 years: The rapid growth of online users due to appropriate web hosting processes. More availability of traffic and more effective sales of the company The online shopping is very opportunistic and most comfortable The improved security in transactions have increased the scope for online T Shirt commerce as well The company can still be able to provide the service in wide fledge and also in other accessories also that is extension is main opportunity Threats: For my Online T Shirt Company many ascertain various threats due to the high internet usage and some of these might be severe as well. The following are some of the threats to the company: Due to easy entry of various businesses may cause lot of competition and rivalry Lack of customer relationship management will further cause losses Duplication of the products and network security attacks MARKETING AND BRAND OBJECTIVES: Sales and Price Targets The sales and price targets is very important for my company as depending on this the future plan can be made. The target price will decide the sales target of the company. In general the EPS forecasts will be made to suggest the sales target and target prices. In my Company, the proposed sales target can be predicted as Rs. 35, 00, 000 per annum whose price target will fall around Rs. 30, 00, 000. Satisfaction levels and change in awareness The level of satisfaction is very important for any company. My Online T Shirt Company shall deliver the objectives such that the satisfaction is enhanced in consumers by providing the services through active comparison from other services both in prices, quality and efficiency, quality, flexibility, lesser operational prices, swift delivery, more revenue of sales, etc. And in turn the loyalty is built. Thus the awareness will be built in consumers regarding the process and product of online T Shirt Company. The process of uniqueness will develop positive attitude and behavior ultimately providing better opportunity for business. The branding and the sales objectives for the company are thus framed in order to improve the commerce of the company by keeping various aspects in notion such as Sales Price targets, satisfaction level of consumers, changes in customer awareness, attitude, behavior etc. all these will enumerate the effectiveness of branding and marketing in return the major objectives are: To develop viable branding process for my Online T Shirt company To assess the benefits, opportunities of company by delivering threats. To deliver appropriate banding strategies To predict the target price and sales target for next 2 years. To assess the marketing delivered through effective branding strategy MARKETING AND BRAND STRATEGY: For my Online T Shirt Company, the following are the appropriate marketing and branding strategies: Marketing Plan: For my online T Shirt Company the development of the appropriate marketing plan approach will be applicable as it mainly concentrates on the core objective of the business, includes various strategies, budget plan, target consumers, E commerce, pricing process, various risks involved and finally the marketing plan will help evaluate the effectiveness of the process. Hence these factors can be appraised as follows: Present Position Online T Shirt Company is a starting firm that will mainly deal the business through internet starting from selection of T shirts to put a deal and from tracking the consignment to delivering it. Hence my company also wants to improve the off line marketing policy to improve the significance of the company in the Indian market which improves the awareness of clients. Budget Plan As my company is dealt through online, the Budget plan include about 20% of total budget towards internet operation and about 10% to the telephone processing etc. the budget plan is perfect to implement and no necessary changes in the plan anticipated. Customers The target customers for my Online T Shirt Company are from genders male and female, all ages, and target client income shall be from high to middle class. As many of these client bases use the internet more traffic can be maintained. Pricing For my Online T Shirt Company, the pricing will be maintained very nominal so that the costs will be enormously low with eminent quality and lower time delivery from other competitors to draw clients from their base. Marketing Strategies The major strategy applicable for my Online T Shirt Company will be through online marketing and offline marketing that will improve the reputation of business and draw consumers. With the advent of the technology and change in the current trends various forms of marketing concepts can be employed in the marketing of the goods and services delivered by the organization in the unique way of approach. All the marketing techniques will however ultimately have the identical goals such as to acquire the large amount of clients and to withhold the clients and this is very important for my company in order to achieve the objective. The company may go for social networking as marketing base where the customers can explain the simplicity of process, product quality, lower costs and other benefits, mouth marketing, by providing special discounts, complimentary gifts, exclusion some type of taxes etc. Brand Plan The term branding for my Online T Shirt Company will be effectively deliver the motivation to the consumer and help retain through proper satisfaction. Thus the loyalty can be increased by highlighting the service opportunity, effective quality, emotional branding and unique t shirt designs, lower costs, identity as global presence etc. Branding strategy The brand strategy will be of various types such as brand planning, branding by imageries, branding by experience and the branding by self expression. In the case of my Online T -Shirt Company, the first and the last approach will be very advantageous though remaining strategies can also be applied. The first method is planning for branding where by proper research of market and demand for good and competence, the brand can be positioned. The self expression of branding will be built through satisfaction of consumers. ACTION PROGRAMME: The action plan of the company will be carried out by focusing on the 7 Ps of marketing mix in my company. The following are the main factors considered in the company in planning the strategy. 7 Ps: Pricing This type of marketing strategy is implemented to attract the consumers with minimum mark- up which may be lower from other outlets. My Online T Shirt Company may mark the goods with nominal prices with better discounts. Product The product strategy involves developing of novel products which may change according to the consumer current requirements. My online T Shirt Company shall be able to develop the products by keeping specific target clients in view with eminent colors and design aspects with current trends. Distribution My Online T Shirt companies have its own distribution channels and means which can be further improved with the growing expansion of the organization. The company will agree the process of delivery of the goods in harmony with local bodies for a timely liberation of the goods. Promotional My Online T Shirt Company generally follows the drastic promotional program with discounts and offers on various product range. A Google AdWords is the main source of promotions even for small and less branded firms to exercise the commerce equally with effective value. This mode of process will charge less money for advertising. Most of the people make use of Google for their main search option. Place The concept of the place strategy is very difficult to select in the conventional business compared to that of online business. For my Online T Shirt Company, the place of business is internet, where it can be operated from any place. But the main concern will depend to select the delivery place. Participants The participants are the people who are partaking in the business. The major participants of the commerce will vary based on various aspects such as gender, sizes, age, cultures, life styles, incomes etc. the major participants for the case of my Online T shirt company will be people both young and grown-ups and from kids to adults. The people also range with various sizes and genders etc. Process In my Online T Shirt Company, the process of service is to deliver the goods of sales through online interaction and online payment process. Physical evidence The physical evidence is essentially a form of guide and manual, leaflets that will guide the client to make the necessary operations such as keeping an order in the case of my Online T shirt company. PROJECTED PROFIT AND LOSS STATEMENTS: For the Online T Shirt Company to deliver the profit and loss statements it requires various aspects such as resolution of income, recognition of gains and revenues, recognition of loss and profits Revenues: Year 1 Year 2 Net Sales Rs. 30, 00, 000 Rs. 35, 00, 000 Interest Income Rs. 75, 000 Rs. 1, 00, 000 Gain on Sales of T Shirts Rs. 25, 00, 000 Rs. 30, 00, 000 Total Revenue Rs. 55, 75, 000 Rs. 66, 00, 000 Costs and Expenses: Costs of T shirts sold Rs. 30, 00, 000 Rs. 35, 00, 000 Selling expenses Rs. 7750 Rs 9000 General and Administrative expenses Rs. 4000 Rs. 5000 Internet expenses Rs. 5000 Rs. 6, 000 Telephone expenses Rs. 5000 Rs. 5500 Shipping expenses Rs. 10, 000 Rs. 12, 000 Delivery expenses Rs. 40, 000 Rs. 42, 000 Office supplies Rs. 4000 Rs. 5000 Insurance expenses Rs. 50, 000 Rs. 60, 000 Interest expenses Rs. 10, 000 Rs. 12, 000 Income taxes Rs. 5000 Rs. 6000 Total Costs and Expenses Rs. 31, 40, 750 Rs. 36, 62, 500 Net Income: Rs. 24, 34, 250 Rs. 29, 37, 500 CONTROL METHODS: The control methods are the basic requirements of any form of business organization as it will directly effect on the success of the firm. Various plans or strategies are followed in the firm in order to control the process. Annual Plan The annual plans are to deliver the flow of process, goals and objectives which my company wants to achieve at the end of the year. The long range vision is observed to be the key function that will provide with the annual plan of the firm. My Online T-shit company goals are to achieve the target sales of Rs. 35, 00, 000 for next 2 years. Profitability The profitability will be determined as the capability of the firm to deliver the anticipated total income constantly in all the years. My online t-shirt company anticipates a net income of Rs. 30, 00, 000 for the next 2 years. This can be calculated in terms of return of Investments or ROI. Where ROI = (Net profit Amount Invested) / (Amount Invested) Efficiency The efficiency is the most significant term where the achievement of or ability to carry out a job with a least expenses of time and effort: The assembly line increased industrys efficiency Strategic controls and Marketing Audits The audits are carried out internally in the firm so as to appraise the system of accounting. Â  As a management tool, the audit measures and evaluates the effectiveness of management controls. The Naval Audit Service provides an independent audit of programs, activities, systems, and procedures. CONCLUSION: Hence it can be concluded by carrying out study on marketing plan and branding on my Online T-shirt Company is that the effective branding and marketing will in turn carry out the marketing that will help the organization to make strategic positioning. The process of branding will improve with the selection of benefits that may catch the pulse of target consumers and generally the emotional benefits whereas the marketing is the strategic process which will help the organization to sketch the plan of action so as to achieve the goals and objectives of the company. Any marketing technique will focus mainly over the 7 Ps of the product or the service delivered by the company and to study the benefits of rivals and prepare for the plan to defy the responses of the rivals. This concept will also assist the company to determine the level of performance of his company and the rival company. For achieving the goals to generate more sales and brand position as eminent firm will necessities to make a plan of action which is carried out by marketing and brand strategies and early estimation of profits and losses along with the better control factors.

Friday, September 20, 2019

Lean Manufacturing Philosophy and Principles

Lean Manufacturing Philosophy and Principles Research for manufacturing systems: Introduction to report: Prior to the popular adoption of Lean Manufacturing, the demand for variety was not met. Customers wanted variety, including different models and diverse options. Lean manufacturing was invented in order to make it possible to provide continuity in process flow and a variety in product offerings (Womack et al., 1990). Lean techniques were then applied in order to provide the customer what they want, when they need it without any excess costs (Conner, 2004). This report aims to convey the ideas and philosophy of Lean Manufacturing. Moreover, the background of the origins of Lean Manufacturing shall be explored. Furthermore, Muda, Kaizen, the 5Ss, and station organization will be explained. Finally, a practical example that aids to visualize the principles of Lean Manufacturing is going to be given. Ideas and philosophy The definition of lean manufacturing is a systematic approach to identify and eliminating waste (non-value-added activities) through continuous improvement by flowing the product at the pull of the customer in pursuit of perfection. (Kilpatrick, 2003) Furthermore, lean manufacturing is a method that can be defined, refined, and duplicated. It must focus on eliminating waste. Muda, the Japanese term for waste, includes many forms generally overlooked when walking through the plant. The idea of perfection is the waste-free cost of manufacturing a product. Identifying and eliminating waste is a Non-value-added activity, this means that it requires, action, time, or resources, but adds nothing in the eyes of the customer. The purpose of applying Lean manufacturing is to provide the customer with just what they want when they need it, with no excess cost. (Conner, 2004) Moreover, lean manufacturing is a method that depends greatly on flexibility and organization, it is ideal for companies that want new and fresh manufacturing methods. Additionally, lean techniques eliminate large capital outlays for dedicated machinery until automation becomes completely necessary. (Bosh Rexroth Corporation, 2009) Lean manufacturing represents a major change from automation. The less is better approach to manufacturing leads to a vastly simplified, uncluttered environment that is adjusted to the manufacturers demands. Products are manufactured one at a time in response to the customers requirements rather than batch manufactured. The goal is to produce only the quantity required and no more. Although, the lean approach is not the solution for all manufacturing problems, it does offer a flexible solution for assembling more complex products. (Bosh Rexroth Corporation, 2009) Origins of lean manufacturing (Akdeniz, 2015) The Toyota production system not only presently embodies lean manufacturing methodologies, but is ultimately behind the development of the lean business philosophy. Without the Toyota production system, we would not have lean manufacture. At the heart of the Toyota productions systems are two central concepts: Jidoka (intelligent automation) and Just in Time Manufacturing. The origins of Jidoka can be traced back to looms invented by Sakichi Toyoda, the founder of the Toyota group. Traditionally, weaving was extremely labour intensive, manual work, since the weaver constantly had to feed the weft (horizontal yarn) back and forth between the vertical yarns. Sakichi Toyodas mother worked for a loom, and as he used to watch her at work, his mind would ceaselessly churn out new ideas of how to make this a simpler and more efficient process. In 1890 at the age of 24, Sakichi invented an original, easy-to-use wooden hand loom that was almost 50 % more efficient than existing models that existed at the time. A key feature of this loom that led to this increased productivity was the ability of the weaver to use one hand to move the yarn back and forth so that they could feed in the weft simultaneously without interruption. Sakichi continued to experiment with new ideas, created more inventions and in 1924 he and his son Kiichiro developed the Model G, the worlds first high-speed loom that fed in new weft without interruption of work. Later on Kiichiro took control of Toyota and he led Toyota into automotive manufacture. In 1937 Kiichiro Toyoda commenced work on a Toyota vehicle manufacturing plant, and he began to develop his ideas behind Just in Time manufacturing. He wanted to establish a system that produced only what was needed, when it was needed, and in the amount required to meet the demand in order to save time, money, and workspace. As the Toyota Production system (TPS) matured and Toyota began to excel as a corporation, the rest of the world began taking notice. Through implementation of Jidoka and Just in Time manufacture- Toyota was able to become the standard for many companies around the world. In 1984 The TPS was translated into English and General Motors approached Toyota to negotiate a contract that lead to a joint venture. The Toyota-GM plant quickly became the highest ranked in US for quality. The term lean was used to describe the Toyota Production System by a research group led by James Womack, and later on the term was coined as lean manufacture. This was later on shared with the world when a book outlining the researchs findings, The Machine that Changed the World, was released. Nowadays, lean system and methodologies, first developed by Toyota, have been widely adapted and spread to all forms of industry ranging from hospitals, offices, and government administration to retail, the service industry and the military. In each incarnation, lean manufacturing has proved as innovative successful as the last. References: Akdeniz, C. (2015) Lean Manufacturing Explained Can Akdeniz Google Books. Bosh Rexroth Corporation (2009) Lean Manufacturing: Principles, Tools and Methods, (2.5). Available at: http://www13.boschrexroth-us.com/Catalogs/Lean_Manufactuting_Guidebook.pdf (Accessed: 7 March 2017). Conner, G. (2004) Lean Manufacturing: Certification Workshop Participant Guide Gary Conner Google Books. Kilpatrick, J. (2003) Lean Principles. Available at: http://mhc-net.com/whitepapers_presentations/LeanPrinciples.pdf (Accessed: 7 March 2017). Womack, J. P., Jones, D. T., Roos, D. and Sammons Carpenter, D. (1990) Machine that Changed the World James P. Womack, Daniel T. Jones, Daniel Roos, Massachusetts Institute of Technology Google Books. Rawson Associates Scribner. Available at: https://books.google.com.mt/books?id=_n5qRfaNv9ACprintsec=frontcoverdq=the+machine+that+changed+the+worldhl=mtsa=Xredir_esc=y#v=onepageq=the machine that changed the worldf=false (Accessed: 8 March 2017).

Thursday, September 19, 2019

America Needs Greater Voter Participation Essay example -- Politics Po

Government and Politics – America Needs Greater Voter Participation We may live in a country that encourages voting in political elections, yet the level of voter turnout in America is relatively small and continues to decline. Compared to other countries with democratic governments, the United States falls very near the bottom of the list with its percentage of voter participation. One explanation for this disturbing phenomenon states that the American system requires more effort from voters, asking them to participate in â€Å"more elections for more levels of government with more elective offices at each level than any other country in the world† (Schudson 159). In most other democracies, the citizens may be asked to vote only 2 or 3 times over a 4-year period (Edwards, Wattenberg, and Lineberry 246). American voters feel overwhelmed by all that is asked of them. The diverse and numerous elections held in the United States, especially at the state and local levels try the attention spans of voters and decrease their willingness or desire to participate. Reading the local election ballot and trying to determine the actual function of the various obscure local offices such as county clerk, court clerk or register of deeds can be a daunting task. Extracting real meaning from the political jargon used in wording local propositions can also be a challenge and source of discouragement (Schudson 156). Dr. Bill Lyons, of the University of Tennessee, said this of Tennessee state and local elections: â€Å"In Tennessee, we also have a very long ballot with a lot of constitutional offices and we have an awful lot of elections. I think that’s bad because it unnecessarily splits the time and attention of voters† (Flessner 2). Ame... ...n Perspective Sections on pages 208 and 245. Michael Schudson, â€Å"Voting Rites: Why We Need a New Concept of Citizenship†. Allan Cigler and Burdett Loomis, American Politics: Classic and Contemporary Readings, 4th ed. Boston: Houghton Miflin Company, 1999, pp. 156-164. Project Vote Smart, â€Å"PVS General Population and Youth Survey†, Department of Political Science at OSU, http://www.vote-smart.org/youthsurvey.phtml?checking=/, 1999, p. 5. Robert D. Putnam, â€Å"Bowling Alone: America’s Declining Social Capital†. Allan Cigler and Burdett Loomis, American Politics: Classic and Contemporary Readings, 4th ed. Boston: Houghton Miflin Company, 1999, pp. 165-175. Ruy Teixeira, â€Å"Voter Turnout in America: Ten Myths†. Allan Cigler and Burdett Loomis, American Politics: Classic and Contemporary Readings, 4th ed. Boston: Houghton Miflin Company, 1999, pp. 149-155.

Wednesday, September 18, 2019

Goethe & Vonnegut :: essays research papers

Powerful Emotion (3)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Anyone who reads The Sorrows of Young Werther by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe instantly feels the emotional intensity portrayed by Werther, the protagonist. His speculations about life are indeed unique, especially in modern times when life often goes by quickly without notice. Perhaps that is one of the reasons why his immense emotion strikes a chord with readers as coming from someone crazy or dangerous. Werther’s mental state seems incredibly alive at some times while seemingly lifeless at others. This lifeless state of mind is similar to another sorrowful character in Kurt Vonnegut’s Slaughterhouse Five. In his story of Billy Pilgrim, a similar wonder engulfs the reader, causing us to question the cause of both his mindset and of our own. These books bring a couple of interesting questions to mind†¦ How much emotion is too much? How little is too little? These characters struggle with powerful emotion in many ways, and are therefore judged as mad. The two protagonists engage in totally different journeys, but each of them leads the reader to discover the limits of human emotion. These limits are reached by Werther and Billy, therefore leading to both characters’ demise.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In simple terms, I think that Billy Pilgrim in Slaughterhouse Five demonstrates the extremity of too little emotion, in contrast with Werther in The Sorrows of Young Werther demonstrating the extremity of too much emotion. Both of these characters live their lives in suffering because of this lack/surfeit of emotion. I’d like to start my analysis off with the odd style of Kurt Vonnegut and how he portrays his main character.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Billy Pilgrim has mental problems. Too many to name, in fact. He has difficulty in almost every aspect of life because of these mental problems. Vonnegut has concocted an anti-war novel that blames Billy’s health (or lack thereof) on the trauma of being in a war, but poor Billy has many problems even before the war. He seems to be extremely emotionally detached from all aspects of life. Yes, he gets married and has children, but it seems to be portrayed as somewhat sarcastic and unimportant. This is the danger of being unemotional in life.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  One of the strongest points proving Billy’s lack of emotion is when he is at war and essentially tries to set himself up for his enemy to shoot him (Vonnegut 29). The incident seems very ironic considering Vonnegut’s anti-war opinions, because he seems to want Billy to honor the fairness of war.

Tuesday, September 17, 2019

Pancreatic endocrine hormones Essay

Energy, in the form of sugar, is transported in the blood. It is carried throughout the body and into all cells to produce ATP. ATP is needed for all cellular activity of the body. It is essential that the blood can maintain the body’s fuel at a constant level (homeostasis) regardless of how long it has been since the last meal. There are three main organs that regulate the control of blood sugar: the pancreas, the liver and the adrenal glands. The pancreas produces hormones called insulin and glucagon. These hormones work antagonistically to maintain blood sugar levels that are neither too low or too high. The adrenal gland plays a key function in making sure blood sugar levels are high enough. The liver helps with sugar metabolism by creating insulin receptor sites. After a meal, insulin directs the flow of nutrients. This promotes fuel storage in the liver, adipose tissue and in muscles. The flow of nutrients during fasting is influenced by glucagon. Once glycogen stores are depleted, muscle protein is degraded, and amino acids are used for gluconeogenesis in the liver. Triglycerides stored in adipose tissue are broken down under the fasting condition. The concentration of glucose in the blood rises rapidly after the ingestion of glucose ( in a high carbohydrate meal). Insulin carries out its function and starts to bring blood glucose concentrations back down to normal, then this removes the stimulus that tells the beta cells to secrete the insulin in the first place. As a result, the beta cells become less and less stimulated and so the rate of secretion of insulin declines in parallel to the rate of decline in blood glucose concentration. This mechanism is referred to as negative feedback.

Monday, September 16, 2019

Forecast

Dear Ms. Jones: In order to obtain the forecast for the fifth year we had to gather and analyze the data of the four previous years in your company. The trend (data behaving with the same frequency over the years) that was found was the following: The beginning months of the year are the ones with higher sales. As the months go by, sales continue decreasing until December, where sales come back up again. Now, let me explain how we were able to arrive to this conclusion. First, we calculated the average demand by adding up all the sales of all four years and dividing them by the number of months (48). Then, we came up with the ratio by dividing the sales of each period by the average demand. The seasonal index is then obtained by getting the average of the same month ratios of all four years. For example, the average of all the 4 January ratios. The seasonal index is an average that can be used to compare an actual observation relative to what it would be if we there were no seasonal variation. We arrive to the seasonal forecast by dividing the sales by the seasonal index. Then we get the trend line by adding the intercept plus the x-variable and multiplying that by each period. The trend forecast is what will show you the regular trend of the years. That is obtained by multiplying the trend line times the seasonal index. Here’s a snapshot of the trend of the what the fifth year would look like: And here is another graph showing the trend of the four previous years: As you can tell, the sales behavior repeats itself throughout the years. This trend seems to be very consistent. However, I must warn you that the p-value (percentage defective) in the summary output is significantly higher than . 06, (it is a. 404056) and this means this forecast is not very reliable. I also calculated the percentage errors; the absolute percentage error (MAPE) is 3. 85%. This error was calculated by dividing the absolute error (which we got by subtracting the trend forecast from the sales and using the absolute value of that), by the sales, and then getting the percentage of all the absolute percentage errors. I hope this helps you understand the trend of your sales throughout a year. The most important thing for you to identify is the months where you are having higher sales the possible reasons why those sales decrease as the years comes to an end.

Sunday, September 15, 2019

Professional Athletes Are Overpaid

Athletes are talented human beings but are they worth the millions that they are paid? Male athletes are among the most highly paid people in the world. Especially in basketball and football, every player is enormously paid. Though economics is the key to understanding why these athletes earn such tremendous salaries, still, it fails to explain why they actually do deserve it. Giving athlete’s high wages does not only distort them, but also bring downfall to clubs and the country’s economy. The growth and the development of a sport maybe reflected from the wages of the athletes and that is all it does.In conclusion, Team owners pay more to keep athletes on the team to be a winning streak, but whether the drive to win is justifiable remains in doubt. Giving these athletes high wages does not only distort the players, but it also bring downfall to clubs, the country’s economy, and even to the game itself. A normal, typical professional basketball player makes more money playing for only fifteen minutes of a game than a professor can make in the whole year. In addition, that player may perform badly and his only discipline is less playing time.He still receives the same amount of money despite how much he plays, while people Who have the â€Å"real† jobs has to perform well or else they will be dismissed from their place of work. This spoils some athletes and makes them believe that they are special and are above the law. An example of a â€Å"spoiled† athlete is Patrick Ewing, a basketball player who is making millions of dollars per year. He once makes a very absurd comment that said, â€Å"With the money I’m making now, I can’t afford to support my family. † In addition to spoiling the athlete, high wages also cripple the football club itself.For example, the Italian football league, with millions of watchers and viewers, used to be called, â€Å"the greatest league on the planet. † However, they ar e suffering from giving players too much money than they deserved. Up to this date, the clubs in the league face numerous and countless amounts of debts. Many clubs have gone bankrupt and forced to be sold out. In addition, many clubs have quickly gone from thrilling and successful to boring and troubled. Moreover, the football game itself has been disturbed. The pressure to win at any cost means the absence of coaches and ways for new ones.Few coaches are allowed to stick with a club long enough to build a solid, unified team. Many coaches are forced to play a defensive style because playing an open game with risks of losing is not as important as playing for a tie and a job security. The result is hideous and tedious football. In Italy does this not only happen, but also even to the most successful league today, the English premier league. In the summer of the year 2003, a Russian oil-tycoon, Mr. Roman Abramovich, bought an English football club, Chelsea, for one hundred million p ounds.In addition, three hundred million pounds were paid on clearing debts, another one hundred-eleven million pounds for buying new players for the club and of course, outrageous wages for players. Take into consideration that the price of winning the premiership is a measly 15 million pounds, so is it worth buying a club for mil In today's society, many will argue whether or not professional athletes are overpaid. In the present time, athletes are being paid phenomenally large amounts of money for their entertainment.It is my claim that all professional athletes are overpaid because they do not offer society an essential function that improves or enhances our world in comparison to other professionals such as medical doctors, lawyers, and teachers. Society does not value entertainment enough to warrant such high salaries such as those of many professional athletes. There is no reason that these athletes should demand these tremendous amounts of money. This is why you have to put into question their reasoning for demanding such high salaries.When addressing the value of entertainment, there is without a doubt, that we as a society value entertainment highly. Nevertheless, there is no reason that these athletes, who are here merely to entertain us, are paid higher wages than those that save our lives and teach us such as medical doctors and teachers. I find it ridiculous that players make millions of dollars a year, and yet demand more. The entertainment that these athletes provide is solely entertainment; it is not essential to the function or productivity of society.If I were to become a professional football player, I would not complain about my salary for many reasons. I am playing the sport that I love and being paid for it. The minimum wage for football is well over $100,000 a year, as is for many professional sports. These reasons by their lonesome are enough to warrant that the salary professional athletes are paid is suffice. Athletes are paid large amounts of money. It can also be argued whether or not these large sums of money have somewhat â€Å"spoiled† these athletes into settling for nothing less then what they think is a sufficient contract.In an article from the New York Times Patrick Ewing quotes â€Å"with the money I'm making now I can't afford to support my family. † (E13). This comment is ridiculous; there is no way that a multi-millionaire should have a problem supporting their family. These athletes have to set their priorities logically and realistically, a person does not â€Å"need† a multi-million dollar estate they just want one; this is what angers me. Another aspect that can be touched upon is whether they respect the people who provide their paychecks; those being their fans.Athletes argue that they are role models for children and endorse products. This is true, but it is what goes along with the job. I would be prodding if I knew that billions and billions of young impressionable ch ildren wanted to be just like me. You should not have to be paid to be a role model, there is no reason that one should be negative, commit crimes, and do â€Å"bad† things regardless of you being an athlete or not. It should be an honour to be praised and loved by billions; this is why I feel the reasoning of the professional athletes that demand higher wages are illegitimate. .Although sports are a major contribution to our society’s source of entertainment, it is not essential. Medical doctors and teachers, who are essential to the development of our society, do not demand outrageous pay; they can be described as underpaid people. The fans of these athletes are the means of which their paycheck is provided. Some of these overpaid athletes do not respect their fans, so why should they demand higher pay when they do not respect the provider of their 0paycheck. Athletes are role models, this is true, but there are many other societal figures that are role models.I feel that every person should try to be a role model, and inspire the younger generation to be successful. Professional athletes also endorse items such as sneakers, clothing, etcetera; but they chose to do so, it is not forced upon them. The athletes that do endorsements make money from the products they endorse, thus adding to their income. These athletes cry poverty, meanwhile they have various sources of income, and it is just ridiculous. Athletes do have to endure injuries, but that is the risk they have to take when they decide to play a professional sport.They should have acquired other skills that will enable them to enter another profession if they are injured while participating in a professional sport. Athletes have higher standards of living by choice; if for example, a single parent can raise three children on an inadequate salary, there is no reason an individual cannot survive on well over 100,000 dollars a year. I am not saying these athletes should lower their standards to be equal with the level of an indigent, but they should be realistic when saying they cannot survive on several millions of dollars per year. In conclusion, my proposal to this problem is arbitration.Not all of the professional athletes demand outrageous contracts. In many sports, there are already salary caps, which will help remedy this. The athletes have to agree to settle for less and in compensation a possible retirement plan or some form of benefits should be assembled. The only athletes that I truly disagree with are the ones that cannot differentiate between â€Å"needs† and â€Å"wants†. Luxuries are wants, and necessities are needs; if they could settle for less (yet still reasonable) money they would avoid lockouts and holdouts, and continue to entertain our society, which is their whole purpose.The American lifestyle is one in which one is encouraged to obtain as much success as they are willing to pursue. Athletes for example, are earning millions of d ollars a year to perform what many people consider being hobbies or leisure activity. Gone are the days where one played for the â€Å"love of the sport. † Instead, athletes are constantly searching for a new outlet to earn a profit whether it is deserved or not. These individuals are earning nine figure salaries, yet such a contract has become a common procedure and the public has accepted this as reasonable.Unfortunately, the salaries of athletes have become outrageous and beyond the point of just enough to live comfortably. Hitting a baseball three hundred feet does not justify owning ten million dollar mansions on each coast of the United States. Therefore, there should be a system implemented in which professional athletes are limited to a specific salary depending on their performance. Their salary cap can then be adjusted to earn more or less, if one’s production has increased or declined. While the probability of this occurring is uncertain, there is at least o ne certainty.Athletes are some of the most overpaid individuals today in modern society. If athletes truly deserve the money, they make, then why are other professions helping the lives of others and yet make only a small fraction of these gifted men and women. Doctors, police officers, and teachers spend their careers saving lives or educating future generations who will â€Å"hopefully† accomplish great things themselves. Yet, they earn measly paychecks and have few benefits or days off. Athletes would not be half of their potential without a coach or teacher to educate them towards peak performance.An athlete is being paid for entertainment and audience turnout. This has no benefit to others, besides a few hours of reality escape. Somehow, that legitimizes a Nike contract worth ninety million dollars in the sports industry†¦. Every young child who has ever been involved in athletics has dreamed of being a Professional in sports. Why do you think that everyone wants to be a professional athlete? Sure, it is because they get to play for a living. In addition, they get the big bucks. Why Would a person not want to get paid millions and millions of dollars just to play a Sport.Many professional athletes are highly overpaid though. When they sign these 20 and 30 million dollar contracts they are getting paid hundreds of times more than a school Teacher or even a police officer or firefighter. This is ridiculous. They are giving us nothing but entertainment. They are giving us nothing that could help us in the future. When a Player signs a big multi million-dollar contract; it seems that it always has a downfall To it. When this happens, there is an incredible amount of pressure put on the athlete.Once they are paid, the big bucks they are instantly changed from blue collar hard workers To overpaid millionaires. The players might not have changed at all, but everyone’s Perception of them has. They are now expected to make every tackle, get a ba se hit every time and make every jump shot. No one can do this no matter how much money they are Being paid. If players were not being paid so much money then organizations would not Have to charge such incredibly high prices for tickets to the games and for concessions. This can also cause turmoil on the team.If a player is making the millions of dollars And not performing the way that he should be, then the player next to him who is Performing at a higher level is thinking why I cannot get this big money. How greedy are These players when they ask for more money when they are already getting paid 2 million Dollars a year. Ninety percent of the people in this world would give anything to be paid two Million dollars a year. Many people seem to forget that these athletes are doing work That is a game that people played for recreation when they were younger.Sure anyone Admires a man who can hit a baseball 500 feet or can throw a football 75 yards with Incredible accuracy, but should t hese people be getting paid millions of dollars for this. Here is an example of how much some players are being paid these days. Michael Jordan will make up to $300,000 a game and $10,000 dollars a minute assuming he plays 30 Minutes a game. He will also make $52,000 every night he sleeps for 7 hours. Also Consider the $40 million dollars that he makes in endorsements per year. He will be making $170,000 a day. That is a little absurd don't you think.Professional sports have become no more than a human auction where men are bought and sold like inanimate objects. Don't get me wrong I love professional sports and to this day still have the Dream of one day playing them, but lets be serious these guys are drastically overpaid In addition, some of the money should be going to the hardworking every day people. Not to Say that these guys have not worked there entire life for where they are now and they Should be commended for it, but not by paying them millions of dollars for playing a G ame.The richest of the rich in our country are not the hardworking businesspersons anymore, but rather our professional athletes. The salaries of these athletes have grown considerably over the last 20 years who now make obscene amounts for playing a sport. Professional sports athletes should not be paid as much as they now earn. Right now, the President of the United States makes around $200,000 a year. In 1997, in Major League Baseball, the average salary was $1. 4 per year, though that is only the average. Barry Bonds, one of the highest paid in the league, earned $11. in a two-year contract made in 1998. Once again, the President of the United States makes $200,000 a year†¦. not $5. 75 million. Professional athletes create an entire market of supply and demand in the sports obsessed world of some Americans. Teachers, fire fighters and police officers and are jobs that earn salaries of less than $50,000 a year. An athlete is running around playing a simple game, and winning the adoration of fans everywhere while teachers, the most important job above all, receive no respect and barely enough money to live on.Even secondary athletes, not the starters, but the ones you see warming the bench, earn close to what the primary athletes earn, for doing nothing. While the President of the United States is protecting our country, working hard so that we Americans are safe, he is earning a mere $200,000 a year. Is our country worth a meagre $200,000 while our football games are worth $1. 5 million? The athletes’ salaries do not end at their on-field work, but rather with the continuous flow of advertisement and endorsement deals. Spectators have done this to themselves.As they live for sports and create the supply, the demand will always be there for more money. The economy in the sports world is like a never-ending black hole that sucks up everything in its path. As the demand for sports is ever increasing, so will the prices of athletes and sports entert ainment. This high price of talent from athletes causes prices of tickets to rise as well because the sports managers need to bring in more money to feed the greed. At this rate, the only spectators at sporting events will be their fellow athletes. Professional athletes are not overworked and underpaid, but rather under-worked and overpaid.The President of the United States is an example of someone who is overworked and underpaid, not someone who does what they love all day and grosses up to 10 times that of the leader of our country, who defends our liberties so that we are able to have sports at all. Sports will continue to dominate and professional athletes will rule. Spectators create the addiction to sports, and in turn, there will be games to watch and teams to root for. With Thanksgiving football coming near, just remember: is Drew Bledsoe really worth $10. 3 million dollars a year?When our country is in need of millions of dollars, why not take some from the sports-entertain ment business; it seems they have money to burn. Sports athletes are paid outrageous amounts of money to produce the simple entertainment of a game, while the most respected positions in society are robbed of the money that they deserve. Running a country seems to be a lesser duty than kicking a field goal, but if the public wants it, you can watch it. The supply and demand factor will continue as long as the demand is there; but when will our society put an end to this obscenity? Some people complain that professional athletes are paid more.They note that they are paid more that lawyers and doctors who often have many years of formal education. Other people point out that there are relatively few professional athletes compared to the number of members that other professions have and that professional athletes have short careers. Thus, in conclusion professional athletes are overpaid. The issue of whether the professional athletes are overpaid is categorically a perplexing question. Nevertheless, if we look deeper into this question, I believe that the professional athletes do not deserve to be overpaid because of number of reasons that are to be delineated in this essay.Yes, professional athletes are overpaid just like any other professionals such as lawyers, doctors and executives even though they do not have many years of formal education like other professionals from other area of study. Professional athletes are being over paid while hard working Americans are being paid a lot less. Athletes don't offer society anything that will help improve our economy, unlike doctors, the military , firefighters, and other jobs that are needed on an everyday basis. Being a professional athlete is just a waste of time and money.Many Americans believe that athletes are not overpaid; they say that their jobs are harder than ours are and we would not be able to survive [pic] Photo credit: Shirley L. , Chino Hills, CA Author's comments about this article: a day in their sho es. Then you ask yourself this, would someone who plays a professional sport be able to survive a day in your shoes? Do they believe that all of our jobs mean nothing and they are harder? No, we work just as much as or harder than they do. Sports players do not spend their day saving people’s lives from burning buildings, or fighting a war across the world people who believes that athletes are not overpaid there only reason is that they are being paid what they are worth, and how much their contract is worth. If your saying they are paid based on their contract then people whose jobs are more important should have been offered some close or more than their salary. There saying that Americans that have jobs that are needed in today’s society are not worth much at all. If we were to get rid of all the professional sports from being a job, we would not be at wits end, but if we get rid of the jobs that improve ever day life and kept the professional athletes.Then how woul d they get supplies when they get sick who would help them if there house caught on fire or someone broke in, and who would they send over there to fight the war. Professional athletes would not be able to survive in this world and continue doing their job if there was nobody caring for them. Why is it that some children aspire to be a professional athlete? It might be because you have a fun job, but what about the money? The average professional athlete makes over a million dollars a year. That might be why some children want to be athletes.It is unnecessary for someone who plays a game to make that much money (Hoffman, Greenberg, 3). Most parents plan what they want their child to be, so the child grows up liking that not giving any other professional a solitary thought when children are little and they tell you that they want to be a football player or a basketball player. Do you really think that it is for the money, fame or just because it something they like to do. Most childr en see them playing on television and that is the main thing that interest them. They do not get a chance to see all the other hard workers, because they are not worried about being on television.They are worried about doing what is important, stretching the little money they have each day to make sure that there family is fed and taken care of. Hard workers are living pay check to pay check, while athletes are worried about not making as much money as the next sport is making. People are not recognized enough for the jobs they do they way professional athletes are. You might hear about them in the news for a week about what type of tremendous jobs they did of saving thousands of people’s lives, but you never hear about each person individually like you do when some athlete core an unbelievable touchdown, or a slam dunk. If hard workers were making half as much money as pro athletes were than more people would be willing to work at different places all around the world. We wo uld be able to have more job openings. More people would be interested in starting their own business, making a name for themselves somewhere other than in the sports business. Their name will live on, and not die off when your career is over because; you had an injury that made you unable to play for the rest of your life. Where is all the money coming from?The answer is sports fans like you. We pay for the tickets, T-shirts, and apparel of these teams. They can afford to sign new players when they are charging anywhere from $45 to $55 dollars a seat for football and anywhere from $25 to $12 for a basket ball game (direct essay). By paying this amount of money, you are saying that there is nothing wrong with the amount of money they are paying the athletes even though you are not making nearly as much. Sport fans are contributing to the athlete’s paycheck without even knowing it. They might as well be flushing all of their money down the drain.The bad part about it is that i s if pro sports players get a reduction in pay then they will raise all kinds of no =sense saying that they will quit if they don’t get their money. One other thing is that most athletes only do charitable work because it looks good on their half. Do not get me wrong there are plenty of athletes that do good deeds because they have been through just as much as thoughts people are going through now so, they are trying to reach out and let them know that they are there. Nevertheless, that doesn’t give them a reason to get paid more plenty of people who participate in those activates daily that every day.They are just never recognized for them good they do just like fire fighters and police officers as mentioned before. They money that is made at basket ball games and football and any other pro sports should be given to the people who are in need not who are in want. †¢ Professional athletes are exciting to watch, this is no doubt. However, when it comes time to unde rstand and realize how much it is that they make to play the game, whether it be baseball, football and basketball, our heads have to be swimming. This has to be especially true while the United States, if not the world over is in a terrible economic and financial collapse. pic]Granted, we are beginning to see signs that we are coming out of the recession. This only means that the sports team owners and their players are going to continue to make millions more for what they do for only a certain period of time. Professional athletes are well over-paid for what they do. Take baseball for example. Baseball consists of one hundred and sixty games. These games are played between April and October. Granted, some teams go to the playoffs and then two teams battle it out in what we call The World Series. Talking with some people who somewhat like baseball, say, they find it boring.The games can go on for hours upon hours until one team has at least one more run than the other. Most profess ional baseball players, especially those who sign a contract worth ninety million dollars, say for an eight-year run, only perform with a mediocrity that we cannot stand it. So, what do we fans do? We still pay the exorbitant prices of tickets so that we can go and scream and holler to get them to either play better or hope that the umpires get glasses. Professional athletes have to come to a realization that most do not think about. What happens if they are injured? Oh, forgive this writer.They still are paid. What if they are injured and it is a career ending injury? Most still is paid, some do not. Over the years, we have also seen overpaid professional athletes get way over their heads and get caught doing illegal drugs or end up drinking and getting into car accidents or we hear that they have a domestic disturbance because they just cannot handle the success that they have come upon. There are professions out there, which are much more important than a professional athlete is. For instance, there are police officers and firefighters whose lives are on the line each day. They make a mediocre salary.Then there are those who are called soldiers, aviators, sailors, marines and coastguardsmen who put their lives on the line for our freedom and get paid â€Å"peanuts† for doing so. We tend to forget what it is that they do. However, when the ball game comes on television, we cannot wait to make the popcorn, the hotdogs and the apple pie and sit our rear ends down on the couch and again, scream and holler and tell them to go, go, and go. There has to be some kind of overhaul of the professional sports pay plan. If the government can tell us how much we can make when it comes to our salaries, why not tell professional athletes to do the same.Professional athletes are among the most wealthy and well-known people in the United States and around the world. Millions of people for their impressive athletic abilities admire all athletes such as Derek Jeter, Mic hael Jordan, Peyton Manning, and Tiger Woods. Most professional athletes are very talented, dedicated, and very hard workers. However, do they truly deserve all the praise people give them and multimillion dollar contracts simply because they are good at playing sports? Some athletes truly do not, because even while knowing thousands of young boys and girls are looking up to them, they still set bad examples.However, regardless of if they are good role models or not, no one should be paid millions of dollars merely because they are good at playing sports. Most professional athletes worked very hard throughout their lives to end up on the teams they are on today. Then once they make the team, they most likely still work very hard by exercising vigorously in practice and weight rooms, trying their hardest on game days, and doing what they can on a regular basis to improve themselves. Although this takes much commitment and hard, physical work, they do not deserve millions of dollars f or it.This year, the median salary in the NFL is around $770,000 for one season! The Washington Redskins have the highest payroll at $123 million and the New York Giants have the lowest at $76 million. The national average that a teacher makes in one year is $53,000. It is not logical for someone who is playing football, basketball or any other sport to be making hundreds of thousands more a year than a teacher who helps other people on a day-to-day basis. Professional athletes do nothing to improve the lives of others—other than themselves and their teammates when they do their jobs. All they do for other people while on the job is to entertain.Other professions such as a nurse, firefighter, police officer, or teacher help others on a daily basis, possibly risking their own lives, and still do not get as much credit, respect, or money as people who play sports for a living. However, too many Americans, sports and entertainment have a greater priority over these people and th erefore professional athletes are well paid and well known. As a result, professional athletes are treated like celebrities, and unfortunately can get away with doing practically anything. One example was when a NFL player murdered a man and only received an insignificant punishment.In June of 2009, Dante Stall worth of the Cleveland Browns was sentenced to thirty days in jail for manslaughter after making a confidential, financial settlement with the family of the victim. Dante was driving after a night of drinking in Miami Beach and hit Mario Reyes, age 59 while he was on his way to the bus stop after getting off from work. Although this was an accident, it was an accident that was caused by and illegal action by Stall worth. He could have faced up to fifteen years in prison, but because he co-operated and had the money to make a settlement, he was treated differently.Unfortunately, cases like this occur all the time with professional athletes and rich and famous people. It is not fair for people to be treated differently (especially when it comes to the law) only because they are rich and famous. If anyone else in the public, who was not wealthy, had committed the same crime, they would have had to carry out the jail sentence. Something needs to be done to stop these kinds of things from happening because this is not true justice. Also, professional athletes need to be more aware of what they are doing because there are millions of people—including young children—who look up to them.Professional athletes are role models for young boys and girls everywhere and should consider those before they do things they really should not be doing. Several athletes have set bad examples for children by doing drugs, being involved in shootings, taking steroids, and participating in many other illegal activities. One example was when Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps was caught in a photograph of him smoking marijuana. The picture was released three months after he won a record of eight gold medals in the Beijing games and it was broadcasted on the news and online everywhere.Either many young children most likely saw this and were disappointed or it may have encouraged some to try it because they just witnessed their favourite athlete doing it. Although, several professional athletes learn from their mistakes and usually turn them around by correcting their behaviours. Others do not even do anything wrong at all and make great role models for kids. Several professional athletes make great role models by performing well in games, expressing good sportsmanship, donating to charities, and getting involved in their communities.All professional athletes should behave this way because they have such great influences on the lives of other people. Although even if they are great athletes and role models, they still do not deserve to make as much money as they do and they should not be treated differently than the public when it comes to the law. I t is sad that in society today our priorities are so messed up that we give those who play sports for a living, hundreds of thousands more a year than other people who make a difference in the world every day.If we lived in a world without professional sports to entertain us, life would be a little more boring, but we would live on. But if we lived in a world without doctors, firefighters, policemen, teachers, or construction workers, life as we know it would cease to exist. Paying professional athletes as much as we do is ethically wrong and we should give other people such as teachers the respect and payroll they deserve, because they make a difference in the lives of others every day. Would not it be great to make nearly $111 million a year simply to play a game?Many professional athletes, such as Tiger Woods, apparently think so; or else they would not be cashing their paychecks. However, do these athletes really deserve all that money? In my view, not. If you ask me, profession al athletes are making far more than they deserve, and in a society where salaries and wages are traditionally based on the value of one’s work, that seems wrong. I believe a person should be paid according to the job’s economic importance and value to society. Take education, for instance. Teaching is one of the most economically important occupations if you really think about it.Our future economies rely on how well we educate our youth, and yet teachers are paid a mere fraction of what a professional athlete receives. If you were to calculate how much Kobe Bryant is paid for every basket he scores, I am sure it earns him the equivalent of the average teacher’s yearly salary. That is simply outrageous. Yet, some would argue that the teacher only provides service to a single classroom, while superstar athletes like Kobe Bryant are entertaining fans all around the world; bringing them both excitement and relaxation with their athletic exploits.Perhaps those maki ng such an argument are not aware that Kobe Bryant’s salary also dwarfs that of the president of the United States, Barrack Obama, who only makes approximately $400,000 a year. Obama’s critical decisions affect the entire world every day, as he is hard at work trying to revive our nation’s economy and protect our nation’s security, and yet the newest unproven rookie in the NBA will earn more than the president this year. Again, simply outrageous when you really think about it. Moreover, teachers aren’t the only ones deserving of higher wages.Police officers, firefighters, and doctors throughout the country both risk their lives and save the lives of others for a fraction of what many sports, stars make. Those in the military leave their families at home for months at a time to defend and protect our country’s freedoms, knowing they may never return, and all for a pittance compared to what even many scrubs in the NBA make. If you ask me, it i s a shameful that these heroes aren’t given the same recognition by society that is afforded Brett Favre, Michael Jordan, or LeBron James.Do not mistake what I am saying for some sense that these athletes have had it easy getting where they are, either. I fully understand that making it to the pros isn’t an easy thing to accomplish. It takes a tremendous amount of dedication and talent on the part of the athlete, not to mention an incredible number of hours of hard work every day just to earn the privilege. However, in the end, all athletes do is entertain. Is that actually worth the price we pay them?I believe it’s not, and that at the very least, that if these athletes want to continue to reap the rewards of their fame, they must begin to prove they can be positive role models for both future athletes to follow, and the children who grow up admiring and practically worshipping them. They must begin to show that they are more deserving of the fortune that (I be lieve) is unfairly bestowed upon them by our society. How often have we heard about an athlete drinking and driving, using drugs, or sexually harassing some woman?If you ask me, there should be a zero tolerance policy in every single sports league for such behaviour, precisely because they are so highly paid. Simply put, if Alex Rodriguez (or any athlete) believes he deserves to make, as much money each year as he does, then he must also recognize that he should be allowed to cheat and take steroids. This is because if we, as a society allow that, then what we are teaching our children is that it’s okay to use illegal substances such as steroids, because in the long run it will pay off.In order for these high-priced athletes to gain more respect, they will need to have a more significant impact on their communities. They will have to become more involved, and willingly give back in terms of time and resources to those who have made it possible for them to live in such luxury. In addition, a system needs to be put into place that prevents players who have never even really proven their value in professional sports from hijacking teams for all they can get.Now, of course the owners themselves are partially to blame, as they just keep on spending and spending, but something must be done. Take the case of JaMarcus Russell for instance. The former No. 1 overall pick in the 2007 NFL Draft, despite being recognized as being one of the biggest busts in NFL history, will still walk away an incredibly wealthy man. That is because the deal he was given by the Raiders when he came into the league (a six-year $68 million contract) included $31 million in guaranteed money.Simply put, this person did nothing for the Raiders whatsoever, and is walking away a multi-millionaire. Again, that is outrageous. In any job in the real world, if you don’t perform to your employer’s expectations, you’re fired, and there’s no guaranteed money (unless of course you’re the CEO of BP or Enron). Finally, it all comes down to the fact the system of paying professional athletes is broken. They are swimming in money, much of it totally undeserved or unearned, and it needs to stop. When asking people whether they think athletes are paid excessively much money, most agree with me. Do you?