Midterm paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Midterm paper - Essay Example According to Twain, if there was no slavery, then the war would not have occurred. Slavery was the leading cause of the American Civil War. The American author argued that the case would have been avoided if the South's protests against slavery took place earlier (Roderick 35). According to the author, the war was inhumane, and everybody deserved equal treatment. Question 2 Mark’s novel, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, is written with a negative perspective of the society. This is portrayed by the proceedings of the characters in the novel, as well as Mark’s use of symbolism to put across his views. The author illustrates the society as full of racial discrimination and slavery in order to justify the need for slavery (Roderick 35). For instance, Mark creates characters like Aunt Sally and Miss Watson who, although, are morally upright and religious, deem slavery as essential for life. This eventually causes people to dislike the book instead of praising Mark Twain. In â€Å"The Adventures of Tom Sawyer†, critics claimed that the plot of the novel had been copied from â€Å"The Vicar of Weilby† by Steen Blicher (Roderick 35). ... On curiosity, Ford took apart his brother’s toy just to see how it functioned, and after that, he put it back together. Ford was persistent in his work. He tried all the means even though he did not succeed many times. Ford was smart. This is because he designed the Model T car, the V8 engine, the assembly line and a vehicle out of soybean plastic among others (Roderick 76). Henry Ford was also strong since he created the Quadracycle from scrape virtually by hand. A successful trait of individuals in any field is their commitment to constant learning. Ford affirmed many times that the long hours put in studying and practicing contributed to enhancing his abilities and they never seemed like work when he was excited by his study. In his 20s, Henry was still working in another company, yet he found ways to enhance his machinery and tools even at work. Question 4 Henry looked outside of his given conditions for fresh opportunities and the possibility to pursue his likes, which we re not being fulfilled. Hence, his opposition to farm work led him to the point of an apprentice worker at the age of 16 (Roderick 77). Even when he went back to the farm, he followed this interest in engineering and mechanics to the level that he could work on his conditions. Ford was highly motivated to be an engineer. Henry Ford realized that he could sell more cars, and he could only trade more cars by restraining turnover and maintaining workers on the assembly line (Roderick 77). Ford’s treacherous $5 a day policy worked even though the general public was cheated, or at the very least inaccurately paid. It was a fair gesture by Ford. Job seekers were lined up every day outside the Ford industry for months after this

Gap Year After Graduation Essay Example for Free

Gap Year After Graduation Essay Nowadays, students leaving high school regularly travel, do voluntary work or a job in a gap year before going on to higher education. Undoubtedly, students occupy various benefits from experiments in gap year. It is apparent that after rigorous terms, a gap year which students possibly travel, volunteer society or do temporary work before deciding to join in higher education stimulates positively their practical and adaptive capability. Initially, those dynamic activities possibly enhance empirical ability of youngsters who passively acquire knowledge during high school. In evidence, learners feasibly comprehend miracles of foreign languages when they practice experimentally via travelling or voluntary work in abroad. More significantly, not only can a gap year improves practical ability but also enhances communication skill through youngster’s real factual experiences. Only by adapting to a changeable and flexible environment can students expend their personal skill and learn how to communicate effectively. Accordingly, a period time which students perform them after high school period effects advantageously to their practical and soft skill. That the young experience in gap year is not only a principal platforms which help them choose higher education form but also a chance to become more mature. A gap year with profound considerations cumulated by real experiments justifies what kind of higher education they are advisedly appropriate for. The young who are able to apply into universities and passionate studying advanced knowledge identify accurately their choice. Nevertheless, others who are appropriate for practicing in actual life also ascertain that their selection is vocation. Additionally, facing to challenge of real life leads them to be awareness profoundly of the changing world. Hardly can the young be mature when they always are protected carefully by parents and are not responsible for themselves. Briefly, a gap year is precious chances which support the young identify what they real want. Therefore, challenge in real life which students pass in a gap year is also valuable experiments for developing in the future.

BP Oil Spill: Marketing Terms and Key Concepts Essay -- Marketing

According to BP website (â€Å"BP at a Glance,† n.d.), â€Å"BP is one of the world's leading international oil and gas companies, providing its customers with fuel for transportation, energy for heat and light, retail services and petrochemicals products for everyday items.† Currently, they are the world’s third largest oil company and the largest oil and gas producer in the United States (Hoover’s, Inc., 2012). Prior to 2010, BP attempted to brand itself as an environmentally friendly company by expanding its markets into alternative energies, such as wind and solar. On April 20, 2010 a BP-licensed oil rig located in the Gulf of Mexico exploded and killed 11 people (Kinver, 2011). In addition to the people killed, the oil spill released 4.9 million barrels of oil into the Gulf (Kinver, 2011). At the time, the effect on the environment, people, and BP were not fully realized. It is known that the Gulf of Mexico is home to many different types of wildlife including shrimp, fish, and pelicans. Although it is still too early to measure the full impact of the spill, scientists are doing their best to study it. Some conclude that the long-term effects could be devastating while others figure that it will not be as bad as originally speculated (Kinver, 2011). In addition to the wildlife, the people of the Gulf area experienced great loss as a result of the oil spill. Many of the residents rely on the fishing industry either directly or indirectly. Since the fishing industry took a hit, the people and towns suffered as well. In fact, many of the people have left and businesses shutdown (Dymond, 2012). The oil spill of April 20, 2010 was the worst in U.S. history (â€Å"BP p.l.c.,† 2012). While BP learned many valuable lessons from t... ...rieved from http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-17186786 Gulf of Mexico Restoration. (n.d.). Retrieved on April 7, 2012, from www.bp.com Hoover’s, Inc. (2012). BP p.l.c. Overview. Retrieved April 7, 2012, from Hoover’s database. Jennings, M. (2010). What bp teaches us about ethics, risk, and business management. Corporate Finance and Review, 15 (2), 38. Kinver, M. (2011, April, 19). BP oil spill: The environmental impact one year later. BBC News. Retrieved from http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-13123036 Raymond, M. A. and Tanner, J. (n.d.). Principles of marketing. Retrieved from http://www.flatworldknowledge.com/pub/1.0/principles-marketing Vranica, S. (2010, June 7). BP steps up bid to fix image: Company readies series of tv spots to address its response to gulf oil spill. The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved from ABI/Inform Global

Gordon Growth Model

What is Gordon Growth Model, â€Å"This model is use to determine the fundamental value of stock, it determines the value of stock based on sequence or series of dividends that matured at a constant rate , and the dividend per share is payable in a year† Stock Value (P) = D / (k – G)————–Equation 1 Where D= Expected dividend per share one year from now G= Growth rate in dividends k= required rate of return for equity investor This model is useful to find the value of stock, with following assumption should be taken into account while calculating value of stock, which are: 1.That dividends remains to grow continuously on a constant rate 2. The growth rate should remain less than the required return on equity Relationship between monetary policy and stock market Monetary policy is a state owned measure which is an an important determinant of stock prices , lowering of increase in interest rate couzld be use by fedration to influence stoc k prices. it is very useful to find theâ€Å"value of stockâ€Å". Monetary policy effetcs stock prices in two ways: 1.When in certain circumstances when the federations or the controller of monetray policty lowers interests rates, the return on bonds or securities (which is also considered as an alternative assest to stocks) decreses, this results that the investors who have invested ,are ready or accept to receive a lower required rate of return on an investment in equity. This will automatically reduces the amount of equity , hence it will also lower the (k – G) (denominator in Gordon Growth model).The lowering of this denominator will lead to increase in the value of stock (price of stock). Hence it will increase stock prices. The lowering of interest rate is also a way from the federation to stimulate and energise the economy, this will help to have a higher growth rate in dividends. The rise in dividends can also results the denominator (k – G) to decrease, it also results in higher stock prices . 2. The denominator in equation is always under the monetary policy influences. Because of that, the stocks and stock prices are also influenced by monetary policy.This model clearly demonestrate how monetary policy influence not only stock markets but also investors , stackholders, those who are investing at that particular time. It is always have been seen that the stock market analyst keep an eye on monetary policy measures as monetary policy always an important factor to know the stock prices etc. The relationship between stock prices and monetary policy is an important factor that directly impacts the economic situation of a country, so this measure should be use carefully. Should one follow the typical recommendation of an investment advisor to buy an actively managed mutual fund?If we are really interested in having a real outcome or return on our investment then it is not an ideal thing to follow the typical recommendation of an investmen t advisor: this recommendation could be from a direct advisor or we can have such information or prediction read outr from article or news etc, I f we really want to buy some already active mutual funds than it is totally not enough to go on word of the mouth of someone or listen to hot tips from our investment advisor. Basically it is all about correct and uptodate informations oft he market,this can be a useful way of knowing and gaining profits as an investor.One oft he most important factor which an investor can do is, not always buyand sell securities, for those who are interested in buying mutual funds,it is a best practice to buy no-load mutual fund,which are with lkow management fee. Plus it is also important that we should always be informed about the market, especially any new information about our intended funds that we are interested in buying. From studies it has been established that having a good track record of past performences when investing does not guarantee that the future will also be bright. This is what the efficient â€Å" market hypothesis predictsâ€Å".

“Helen” by Hilda Doolittle Essay

The first thought I come up with when reading Doolittle’s Helen is the extreme difference between her poem, and Poe’s poem, Helen. Doolittle and Poe both describe Helen using her face, eyes, legs, hands, and knees; however, Doolittle expresses the speaker’s growing hatred of Helen while Poe adores her deeply. Doolittle makes an interesting choice when she says â€Å"all Greece† instead of â€Å"all Greeks.† She appears to be referring to more than just the people of Greece, but instead the entire culture that lies within Greece. Doolittle expands upon the speaker’s hatred of Helen by including â€Å"all Greece,† especially with her continual use of such dark and descriptive words as â€Å"hate† and â€Å"revile.† I find it interesting that Doolittle starts the first two stanzas with â€Å"all Greece† and the third words describing an extreme dislike, and still begins the final (third) stanza with â€Å"Greece sees unmoved†¦Ã¢â‚¬  still being insulting towards Helen. The entire poem remains with the same theme, and continues being both vivid and descriptive. In the first stanza Helen is described with words like olive and white which are both associated with beauty, but she is also described as having â€Å"still eyes† which creates the idea of a statue like person. The second stanza becomes more involved with Helen being detested by Greece. She is described as wan and growing paler (white). She is remembering what she did wrong in her past, and this begins to change her beautiful appearance. In the end, Helen progresses to either a completely statue-like stage, or perhaps even death. She is unmoved with â€Å"cool feet,† white, and â€Å"amid funereal cypresses.† These words are most associated with death, the skin is a pale color – almost white, and they are cold to the touch, just as Helen is described. She goes into this statue/death stage being hated by Greece for causing the Trojan War. The poem encompasses the fact that Greece has no mercy for Helen, even when she smiles. The only way for her to attain compassion, love, and mercy is through her death.

Free Essays on My Tutoring Job

In my junior year I became a tutor for elementary school students in Salvation Army’s After School Program and worked four days a week after school. I really enjoyed doing the job because I could help the children with their homework and was able to earn enough money for my own expenses. The challenge to me was that I had to have a bible lesson for the children every Friday. Basically it was included games and songs that I must think of for them. Since I have been in the Youth Fellowship there for two years, the pastor trusted me enough that I could get this job done well. The pressures were all on me. It was my great pleasure to do my best to let the children know more about Jesus, but at the same time; it was very difficult to me because my bible knowledge was limited. Besides that, I had never taught anyone in my life. All the sudden I had 28 students; it was incredible. Fortunately, there were many useful teaching materials (pictures, crafts, videotapes...) that the church supplied to me that helped me make the teaching lessons more efficient and interesting. I had to prepare everything for the story before Friday. That was where I started to take things seriously and started being mature. By doing this job, I learned to take on more responsibilities and be more organized. I had three students who were six years old. They were pretty good friends and always played together. The problem was every time I was talking to the class, they whispered to each other on their seats. Their action bothered the rest of the class. I warned them a couple of times but they seemed to ignore me. I was kind of frustrated at that moment. And later I thought that my job was to make them be positive; I shouldn’t be mad at all; this is what God wants me to do for Him. I was to play a role model and guide these children to His way. And I believed I could do it. So the next Friday I told them to separate from each other and dur... Free Essays on My Tutoring Job Free Essays on My Tutoring Job In my junior year I became a tutor for elementary school students in Salvation Army’s After School Program and worked four days a week after school. I really enjoyed doing the job because I could help the children with their homework and was able to earn enough money for my own expenses. The challenge to me was that I had to have a bible lesson for the children every Friday. Basically it was included games and songs that I must think of for them. Since I have been in the Youth Fellowship there for two years, the pastor trusted me enough that I could get this job done well. The pressures were all on me. It was my great pleasure to do my best to let the children know more about Jesus, but at the same time; it was very difficult to me because my bible knowledge was limited. Besides that, I had never taught anyone in my life. All the sudden I had 28 students; it was incredible. Fortunately, there were many useful teaching materials (pictures, crafts, videotapes...) that the church supplied to me that helped me make the teaching lessons more efficient and interesting. I had to prepare everything for the story before Friday. That was where I started to take things seriously and started being mature. By doing this job, I learned to take on more responsibilities and be more organized. I had three students who were six years old. They were pretty good friends and always played together. The problem was every time I was talking to the class, they whispered to each other on their seats. Their action bothered the rest of the class. I warned them a couple of times but they seemed to ignore me. I was kind of frustrated at that moment. And later I thought that my job was to make them be positive; I shouldn’t be mad at all; this is what God wants me to do for Him. I was to play a role model and guide these children to His way. And I believed I could do it. So the next Friday I told them to separate from each other and dur...

Bollywood vs. Hollywood essays

Bollywood vs. Hollywood essays When we think of the movie capital of the world we think of Hollywood, California. Actually, the worlds movie capital is in Bombay. This place is called Bollywood, which is the nickname for the Indian film industry. When comparing Hollywood and Bollywood there are more differences than similarities. We would assume that the United States produces more movies a year than anywhere else in the world. Bollywood is known to produce more than 800 films a year, when the United States produces half as many. Movies that are produced in India follow a format called masala. They are three to four hours long, where in the United States movies average about two hours in length. Other features of an Indian made movie include intermission, songs and dances, and most likely have a lot of sexual content and violence. Unlike Hollywood, Bollywoods film production center is government owned. In the United States it is common to hear of individual stars working on two or three films at once. In Bollywood it is common for an individual star to work on as many as ten films at once. Both Hollywood and Bollywood highly promote their films and stars. Bollywoods lead stars are making about forty percent of a two million dollar If asked what movies were produced in Hollywood, the list would go on forever. When asked the same about Bollywood the most common answer would be, What? What is Bollywood? American Desi, Company, and Grahan are a few movies that were released in Bollywood in 2001. The only American Blockbuster hit to ever hit the top five charts in India is Titanic. Today, it is more common to hear of Indian made films being played in American and British theaters than it is to hear of American movies being Fourteen million people go to the movies in India on a daily basis, which is much more than the United States. Due to this fact, Bollywood has ...

Using the Six German Modal Verbs

Using the Six German Modal Verbs Modal verbs are used to indicate a possibility or necessity. English has modal verbs like can, may, must, and will. Similarly, German has a total of six modal (or modal auxiliary) verbs that you will need to know because theyre used all the time. What Are the German Modal Verbs? Man kann einfach nicht ohne die Modalverben auskommen!  (You simply cant get along without the modal verbs!) Can (kà ¶nnen) is a modal verb. The other modal verbs are just as impossible to avoid. You have to (mà ¼ssen) use them to complete many sentences. You shouldnt (sollen) even consider trying not to. But why would you want to (wollen)? Did you notice how many times we used modal verbs while explaining their importance? Here are the six modal verbs to look out for: dà ¼rfen -  may, be permitted  Ã‚  Ã‚  kà ¶nnen -  can, be ablemà ¶gen -  like  Ã‚  Ã‚  mà ¼ssen -  must, have tosollen -  should, ought to  Ã‚  Ã‚  wollen -  want to Modals derive their name from the fact that they always  modify  another verb. Additionally, they are always used in tandem with the infinitive form of another verb, as in,  Ich muss morgen nach Frankfurt fahren. (ich muss  Ã‚  fahren) The infinitive at the end may be left off when its meaning is clear:  Ich muss morgen nach Frankfurt. (I must [go/travel] to Frankfurt tomorrow.). Whether implied or stated, the infinitive is always placed at the end of the sentence. The exception is when they appear in subordinate clauses: Er sagt, dass er nicht kommen kann. (He says he cannot come.) Modals in the Present Tense Each modal only has two basic forms:  singular  and  plural. This is the most important rule you need to remember about modal verbs in the present tense. As an example, the verb kà ¶nnen  has the basic forms  kann  (singular) and  kà ¶nnen  (plural). For the singular pronouns  ich,  du,  er/sie/es, you will use  kann  (du  adds its usual -st  ending:  du kannst).For the plural pronouns  wir,  ihr,  sie/Sie, you will use  kà ¶nnen  (ihr  takes its usual -t  ending:  ihr kà ¶nnt). Also, note the resemblance to English  in the pairs  kann  / can and  muss  / must. This means that the modals are actually simpler to conjugate and use than other German verbs. If you remember that they have only two basic present tense forms, your life will be much easier. All of the modals work the same way:  dà ¼rfen/darf,  kà ¶nnen/kann,  mà ¶gen/mag,  mà ¼ssen/muss,  sollen/soll,  wollen/will. Modal Tricks and Peculiarities Some German modals take on a special meaning in certain contexts.  Sie kann Deutsch, for example, means She knows German. This is short for Sie kann Deutsch... sprechen/schreiben/verstehen/lesen. which means She can speak/write/understand/read German. The modal verb  mà ¶gen  is most often used in its subjunctive form:  mà ¶chte  (would like). This implies the probability, wishful thinking, or politeness common in the subjunctive. Both  sollen  and  wollen  can take on the special idiomatic meaning of it is said, its claimed, or they say.  For example,  Er will reich sein,  means He claims to be wealthy. Similarly, Sie soll Franzà ¶sin sein, means They say shes French. In the negative,  mà ¼ssen  is replaced by  dà ¼rfen  when the meaning is the prohibitive must not. Er muss das nicht tun, means He doesnt have to do that. To express, He must not do that, (not allowed to do that), the German would be,  Er darf das nicht tun. Technically, German makes the same distinction between  dà ¼rfen  (to be permitted) and  kà ¶nnen  (to be able) that English does for may and can. However, in the same way  that most English speakers in the real world use He cant go, for He may not go, (doesnt have permission), German speakers also tend to ignore this distinction. You will often find, Er kann nicht gehen, used  instead of the grammatically correct version, Er darf nicht gehen. Modals in the Past Tense In the simple past tense (Imperfekt), the modals are actually easier than in the present. All six modals add the regular past tense marker -te  to the stem of the infinitive. The four modals that have umlauts in their infinitive form, drop the umlaut in the simple past: dà ¼rfen/durfte, kà ¶nnen/konnte, mà ¶gen/mochte, and mà ¼ssen/musste. Sollen becomes sollte;  wollen  changes to wollte. Since the English could has two different meanings, it is important to be aware of which one you intend to express in German. If you want to say, we could do that, in the sense of we were able to, then you will use   wir konnten  (no umlaut). But if you mean it in the sense of we might be able to or its a possibility, then you must say,  wir kà ¶nnten  (the subjunctive form, with an umlaut, based on the past tense form). The modals are used much less frequently in their present perfect forms (Er hat das gekonnt, meaning He was able to do that.). Instead, they typically take  on a double infinitive construction (Er hat das nicht sagen wollen, meaning He didnt want to say that.).

Face-to-Face vs. Online Library Research Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Face-to-Face vs. Online Library Research - Essay Example From this activity, I learned that face-to-face library experience can provide more relevant information about local events than online library search, while traditional research also increases my knowledge about library use in general and my research topics; although it takes longer than online research and online research can access more resources sometimes faster and easier. Face-to-face library experience can give more relevant information about local events than online library search. Librarians and their assistants already know the â€Å"Get a Clue† program of UVU Library. Interviewing them offers comprehensive and updated information. They can tell me the history and purpose of â€Å"Get a Clue,† as well as outcomes and future plans. Online library sources, on the contrary, do not have access to the local knowledge and information that the librarians and assistants can offer me. Online research cannot offer opinions or perspectives also on â€Å"Get a Clue† as an important program for helping students become oriented on various library services and become comfortable in using them. As â€Å"Get a Clue† research shows, traditional library experience enables me to maximise the use of library services and resources more than online research. Online research is about sitting in front of a computer and mostly accessing materials from there, or finding reference numbers for finding non-online resources. I do not interact with library staff or learn more about old and new library services. On the opposite, face-to-face library search helps me know what other materials are present that I cannot access online, such as videos and other media resources. This research approach also allows me to know library services that can further advance my research. Thus, traditional research provides extra materials and knowledge that are not always accessible through online research. Face-to-face library research, however, has

Electronics (coursework 1 of 1) operational Amplifier Design Coursework

Electronics ( 1 of 1) operational Amplifier Design - Coursework Example Non-ideal Op Amps might have inputs, at the two pins, having unequal voltages; there may be current flowing out or into the two input pins. The non-ideal characteristics are responsible for circuit loading, introduced noise, and the reduced Gain and input resistance (Rin). Input offset voltage is a small voltage that is applied at the input terminals in order to make the output voltage zero when two inputs’ terminals are grounded. A number of signal inputs can be integrated into the inverting amplifier via connection of individual sources with separate resistors to an Op Amp’s input; this will result into inverted sum of all the inputs. A summing amplifier’s input combinations produce an output that reflect weighted sum of the total inputs. Figure 1 shows a summing amplifier, a modification of an inverting amplifier; the inverting amplifier has been utilized since it can handle several or many inputs simultaneously. The summing amplifiers are practically used audio mixers and digital temperature recorders. A prelab procedure was carried on a summing amplifier as shown in Figure 1 with the power supplies at  ±10 V, choosing R1 to be 4.7 kâ„ ¦, hence VOUT= - (2 VA + VB ) if R3 = R1 = 10kâ„ ¦. Pspice was utilized in verifying both hand-calculations and the circuit operation. The circuit’s plots were taken, gains compared between hand-calculations and theoretical, and the ratio of VOUT and VIN were observed using the waveform amplitudes. The circuit was maintained as above in the Figure.2, and values from the prelab were used. The dual supply was  ±10 V. A 3 Vpp and 1 kHz sine was channeled at input A while a voltage of 7V from the power supply was channeled at input B. Accurate sketches of the output and input waveforms were taken; using a â€Å"DC† couple oscilloscope. From the formula = = 2VA + VB it is possible to obtain the Digital to Analogue Conversion

Is Freedom of Speech Really Free Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Is Freedom of Speech Really Free - Essay Example Kersch (2003, p.2) writes that, â€Å"American’s belief that freedom of speech is part of their national birthright, a birthright that sets the United States above other nations, has been a constant throughout U.S. history, as many foreign visitors have observed. But the scope of that freedom has shifted radically over the course of U.S. history.† This is a very sad and eye-opening statement which can better be understood after reading the following incident. Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, delivered a speech recently in Washington, D.C. regarding the disappointment she was having in foreign leaders about respecting people’s freedom. Ray McGovern, who was a former CIA employee and a peace activist, attempted to make a protest against Hillary’s speech. He was put to silence after guards grabbed him; pulled him off cruelly; abused and double-cuffed him with metal handcuffs; and put him in jail, bleeding. Ray was abused because he opened his mouth while the Secretary of State was strongly assuring the citizens about the freedom of expression, in her speech. Ray shouted, â€Å"So, this is America?† while the cops dragged him away. The video footage can be seen on YouTube and the report by O’Connor (2011) can be read online. Is this the freedom of speech that our politicians guarantee us when they take our votes? This is nothing other than mere hypocrisy. Brad O’Leary’s book, Shut Up America!: The End of Free Speech, (2009) has beautifully explained that restrictions on freedom of thought and expression is very dangerous for our sustainability as a nation. He writes that, â€Å"In the 2008, Presidential Election, Congress issued no complaints about the content of television and print coverage of the race for the White House. But today’s congressional leaders want to punish talk radio for its critical coverage of television and print media bias† (p. ix). He asserts that today we do not enjoy f ree expression of ideas. A specific agenda is always forced on us making us believe that we are so unenlightened and provincial that we cannot understand our own good. They make us believe that we are not smart enough to be able to understand the difference between biased ideas and agendas and we cannot sort out things ourselves. We are told that we cannot form good opinions without their support, so we have to adopt their ideas and perspective to survive freely. â€Å"This group sees Americans as petulant children who refuse to eat their vegetables, and their solution is to forcefeed us what we clearly and definitely have rejected†, asserts O’Leary. A University of Florida student named Andrew Meyer asked some questions of Senator John Kerry in 2007 during a forum. He was constantly and excitedly trying to ask Kerry why he approved the 2004 election even after numerous reports of disenfranchisement of black voters and pre-prepared electronic-voting machines. Meyer was thought of being impolite and obnoxious. The police attacked him and eventually forced him to submit after Tasering him (FOXNews, 2007). Tasering means applying electric shock by means of a weapon which is used by police to control suspects. In the YouTube video, Meyer can be heard howling with pain, "Don't Tase me, bro, don't Tase me". What does this incident tell us about the freedom of speech? Is it really free? Certainly not. We can no more raise our voices. We cannot ask questions of our officials. We cannot say that we are not satisfied. We

Marketing Plan Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words - 1

Marketing Plan - Essay Example This has campus at Hendon, Trent Park, Cat Hill, Enfield and Archway and now Dubai in the United Arab Emirates. Any student enrolling with Middlesex University must take membership of Middlesex University Students Union (MUSU) within 14 days of enrolment. MUSU aims at representing the students of the University in matters affecting their educational experiences. It also aims at t o provide a recognised means of communication between the students and the University authorities. It promotes and encourages student societies, cultural, sports and social activities. It provides high quality and high value for money services that will meet the needs of students of the University and at last it ensures the students to be centre of their services. Academic year 2004-05 saw the university management force MUSU, against the wishes and votes of MUSU members, to give up its commercial areas, i.e. shops, bars, cafeterias and entertainments. These have now been taken over by a company called Scholarest, a major player in catering facilities to UK educational institutions, who already handle catering facilities for the university proper. This situation has arisen due to a dispute over a  £250,000 debt owed by MUSU to the university.2 There are various corporate objectives for MUSU. It is a service organisation and is aimed to provide services to the students to make their student life comfortable and their educational experience memorable to them. The Union is one of its types for its target group that is Middlesex University students. Each and every student is bound to be member of the union. This is one of the strength of Union because the number of members in the union will increase with the increase in the number of students. One of the major weakness in the past have been control over budget where MUSU have been failed to continue its catering services which has been given to an outside agency due to the overdue payment to the

California State and Local Government Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

California State and Local Government - Essay Example It also does the establishment of mandatory funding levels (Patterson 26). The funding restoration order to some agencies and programs is done by the California Supreme Court. Legislatively, the government of California is made up of the Assembly minority, the governor, the Senate president pro tempore, the Assembly speaker and Senate minority leader. Legislative campaign funds are controlled by the California legislature. Therefore, they have a say in influencing in their caucus votes in the Big Five meetings (Patterson 19).   Currently, California uses the plurality voting system in its elections. In certain cases, municipalities such as Berkeley and San Francisco use a system of preferential voting or ranking choice voting. The Democratic Party and Republic Party are the major political parties in the U.S congress and state legislature representation (Patterson (21). Others include Peace and Freedom Party, American Independent Party, Libertarian Party and Green Party. The court of appeal of U.S` decision may be reviewed by the U. S Supreme Court when asked by a Party in Judicial Branch of California. In Federal Government Judicial Branch, the case is heard by the highest state court when asked by the parties. In the Judicial Branch of California, the judicial power is invested by the constitution article 111. The state courts are established by the laws and constitution in the federal government (Patterson 34). There have been conflicts between the local government and the state of California fiscally for the three decades ago. This arises when the local revenue gives much control of the state government and also state and local spending and taxing limitation (Patterson 27). Therefore, the California government needs to stop fighting because of fiscal resources and focus on the main problems that plague the state to resolve budget

Marketing Plan Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words - 1

Marketing Plan - Essay Example This has campus at Hendon, Trent Park, Cat Hill, Enfield and Archway and now Dubai in the United Arab Emirates. Any student enrolling with Middlesex University must take membership of Middlesex University Students Union (MUSU) within 14 days of enrolment. MUSU aims at representing the students of the University in matters affecting their educational experiences. It also aims at t o provide a recognised means of communication between the students and the University authorities. It promotes and encourages student societies, cultural, sports and social activities. It provides high quality and high value for money services that will meet the needs of students of the University and at last it ensures the students to be centre of their services. Academic year 2004-05 saw the university management force MUSU, against the wishes and votes of MUSU members, to give up its commercial areas, i.e. shops, bars, cafeterias and entertainments. These have now been taken over by a company called Scholarest, a major player in catering facilities to UK educational institutions, who already handle catering facilities for the university proper. This situation has arisen due to a dispute over a  £250,000 debt owed by MUSU to the university.2 There are various corporate objectives for MUSU. It is a service organisation and is aimed to provide services to the students to make their student life comfortable and their educational experience memorable to them. The Union is one of its types for its target group that is Middlesex University students. Each and every student is bound to be member of the union. This is one of the strength of Union because the number of members in the union will increase with the increase in the number of students. One of the major weakness in the past have been control over budget where MUSU have been failed to continue its catering services which has been given to an outside agency due to the overdue payment to the

Strategy Management in Small Export Business of China Dissertation

Strategy Management in Small Export Business of China - Dissertation Example issertation would include the components of the various small business firms of China, their analysis from the strategic perspective, framing research questions for the survey, conducting a survey based on the industry, evaluating the findings obtained from the survey, drawing the conclusion and suggesting appropriate recommendations for the issues faced by the industry. Additionally the study aims at investigating the significance of internal and external business forces for small export enterprise in southeastern parts of china, and will inevitably aim at analyzing these small business’s successes and failure from the strategic management standpoint during the time period 1980 to 2012. 1.2 Background of this study China is a significantly developing country and therefore China have broad market environment, as a result there are lots of foreign companies to enter the Chinese market. These foreign capital enterprises within the original industry remains monopolized by small, medium, state-owned enterprises which lead to the strong impact of China's state-owned enterprises in some industries. In addition, international competition has developed in the Chinese market gradually. At the same time, China's domestic competition has also contributed to the globalization of market competition. Therefore, at present the production and operation of China's small enterprises have to experience and face international competition. Over the earlier 2 decades, the small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) of China have gone through more or less three development stages, together with the expansion of China’s improvement and establishment. The first stage was from the time period 1978 to the year 1992. This era had been characterized by the development of SMEs in scale and... The study aims at investigating the significance of internal and external business forces for small export enterprise in south-eastern parts of China, and will inevitably aim at analyzing these small business’s successes and failure from the strategic management standpoint during the time period 1980 to 2012. China is a significantly developing country and therefore China has a broad market environment, as a result, there are lots of foreign companies to enter the Chinese market. These foreign capital enterprises within the original industry remain monopolized by small, medium, state-owned enterprises which lead to the strong impact of China's state-owned enterprises in some industries. In addition, international competition has developed in the Chinese market gradually. At the same time, China's domestic competition has also contributed to the globalization of market competition. Therefore, at present, the production and operation of China's small enterprises have to experien ce and face international competition. Over the earlier 2 decades, the small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) of China have gone through more or less three development stages, together with the expansion of China’s improvement and establishment. The first stage was from the time period 1978 to the year 1992. This era had been characterized by the development of SMEs in scale and number. This was the result of the government’s support for and encouragement of the formation of collective, self-employed and township enterprises.

Hobbes and kant Essay Example for Free

Hobbes and kant Essay The first humans on earth were primative clans that stuck together. As time developed so did the mind of the human. As the minds of humans started to expand, society developed and so did its many other aspects. One of those aspects is the social contract. A social contract are theories that try to explain the ways in which people form states and/or maintain social order. The notion of the social contract implies that the people give up some rights to a government or other authority in order to receive or maintain social order through the rule of law. It can also be thought of as an agreement by the governed on a set of rules by which they are governed. Two theorists that had very strong views on the social contract were Thomas Hobbes and Immanuel Kant. Although both of these theorists believed in a social contract they both had different views on what it exactly meant. Hobbes was a different kind of philosopher that had a very pessimistic view on humanity. In Hobbes’ book the Leviathan, he believed that humans were naturally nasty creatures and needed to be regulated in a society. For Hobbes one thing he also believed in was Utilitarianism, which is the desire for pleasure that drives our actions, basically, the most useful choice for your benefit. Hobbes had a theory that was called â€Å"the state of nature†, which in the eyes of Hobbes was life for humans before any kind of laws or governments. He says that the state of nature is a violent place with no lows. In the state of nature there is no business, no account of time, buildings, and there is always danger around the corner. For Hobbes the â€Å"state of nature† was a savage place that could only be fixed by laws, there is only peace when there is no war and no war is a place with laws. Hobbes came to the conclusion that humans cant live in groups without law. Hobbes was Lopez 2 someone who thought that too much liberty was a bad thing for humans. Hobbes would say that the â€Å"state of nature† is because too much liberty. This is why Hobbes believed in the social contract, a sovereign must be established to regulate on the population. In Hobbes version of the social contract there must be a commonwealth or common state in which all citizens can feel safe. Citizens must feel safe in the common wealth in order for success and it’s the responsibility of the sovereign to make sure it is successful. Yet another important variable of the social contract is the consent of the mass. You must have â€Å"consent† from the governed in order to have a commonwealth. Hobbes does not believe in free will so when he says, â€Å"consent† what he really believes is that the commonwealth will happen regardless of the individuals consent or not. But with giving consent the governed must realize that they are giving up certain liberties and freedoms. One of them being that they can not question the authority of the sovereign to rule, cant kill the sovereign, and/or protest his will. The liberty of the commonwealth is altered because they must now live a certain way in order to live in it. The liberty of the governed is limited to the sovereigns view of liberty. Hobbes also believed that humans had reason. In order for this to happen humans need reason. Reason separates humans from reasonless animals. Humans have reputation, humans know private and public boundries, they can persuade and lie, and use that reason to make them a better liar. Once there is a commonwealth man is turned artificial. Kant’s version of the social contract is a bit different from that of Hobbes. For Kant the sovereign must recognize the original contract as an idea of reason that forces Lopez 3 the sovereign to give his laws in such a way that they could have arisen from the united will of a whole people and to regard each subject, insofar as he wants to be a citizen, as if he has joined in voting for such a will. This original contract, Kant stresses, is only an idea of reason and not a historical event. Any rights and duties stemming from an original contract do so not because of any particular historical provenance, but because of the rightful relations embodied in the original contract. No empirical act, as a historical act would be, could be the foundation of any rightful duties or rights. The idea of an original contract limits the sovereign as legislator. The consent at issue, however, is also not an empirical consent based upon any actual act. The set of actual particular desires of citizens is not the basis of determining whether they could possibly consent to a law. Rather, the kind of possibility at issue is one of rational possible unanimity based upon fair distributions of burdens and rights in abstraction from empirical facts or desires. Kant also believed in cosmopolitan right or ideal. Kants particular discussion of cosmopolitan right is restricted to the right of hospitality. Since all peoples share a limited amount of living space due to the spherical shape of the earth, the totality of which they must be understood to have originally shared in common, they must be understood to have a right to possible interaction with one another. This cosmopolitan right is limited to a right to offer to engage in commerce, not a right to demand actual commerce. A citizen of one state may try to establish links with other peoples; no state is allowed to deny foreign citizens a right to travel in its land. Settlement is another matter entirely. Kant is strongly critical of the European colonization of other lands already Lopez 4 inhabited by other peoples. Settlement in these cases is allowed only by uncoerced informed contract. Even land that appears empty might be used by shepherds or hunters and cannot be appropriated without their consent Cosmopolitan ideal is an important component of perpetual peace. Interaction among the peoples of the world, Kant notes, has increased in recent times. Violations of cosmopolitan right would make more difficult the trust and cooperation necessary for perpetual peace among states. The categorical imperative is the central philosophical concept in the moral philosophy of Immanuel Kant. Introduced in Kants Groundwork for the Metaphysics of Morals, it may be defined as the standard of rationality from which all moral requirements derive. According to Kant, human beings occupy a special place in creation, and morality can be summed up in one ultimate commandment of reason, or imperative, from which all duties and obligations derive. He defined an imperative as any proposition that declares a certain action (or inaction) to be necessary. Kants is similar to the social contract theory of Hobbes in a few important characteristics. The social contract is not a historical document and does not involve a historical act. In fact it can be dangerous to the stability of the state to even search history for such empirical justification of state power. The current state must be understood, regardless of its origin, to embody the social contact. The social contract is a rational justification for state power, not a result of actual deal-making among individuals or between them and a government. Another link to Hobbes is that the social contract is not voluntary. Individuals may be forced into the civil condition against their consent. Social contract is not based on any actual consent, one might say the voluntary choice to join a society. Since the social contract reflects reason, each human being as a rational being Lopez 5 already contains the basis for rational agreement to the state. A substantial difference between Kant and Hobbes is that Hobbes bases his argument on the individual benefit for each party to the contract, whereas Kant bases his argument on Right itself, understood as freedom for all persons in general, not even just for the individual benefit that each party to the contract obtains in his or her own freedom. Hobbes and Kant had similarities and differences but for both the ultimate focus of the social contract was for a sovereign to rule over a society for the good of the commonwealth. Both theorist had different views on the aspects of the social contract. Hobbes believed that too much liberty causes humans to be ruthless and unjust in the â€Å"state of nature†. And the only way to break from the â€Å"state of nature â€Å" was to get a sovereign to rule and regulate. While, Kant believed in rights themselves and the cosmopolitan ideal. Both of these theorist were respected in their day along with their theories. The social contract is still a concept that exists today and could even be applied to our own country but the bottom line is that there will always have to be a social contract between state and population weather anyone likes it or not.

Definitions And Theories of Teamwork

Definitions And Theories of Teamwork Definition: group cohesion is a dynamic process which is reflected in the tendency for a group to stick together and remain united in the pursuit of its goals. Stages of development There are four stages of development a group will go through but the time it takes to go through each stage is variable. These stages are: Forming Storming Norming Performing Forming This is when everybody meets for the first time and starts to get to know each other. This stage can be used to test whether or not the team can gel together properly or not. In a team situation the coach may use small games or strategies to break the ice between the new group members. This can also be explained as the stage where new team mates get together for the first time in search of a common goal or cause. Storming In this stage each individual is fighting for there place in the team therefore it can be a stage of very intense intergroup competition. This intense competition may include rebellion against the leader, conflict between individuals or resistance to the way the team is being developed or managed and the tactics that are being adopted. Norming The players now begin to realise that they are all there aiming for the same goals and therefore either agree on a way of getting on in order to achieve these goals or they leave the group. Now the group starts to cooperate and work together to reach their common goals. The group now pulls together and the roles are established and become more stable. Performing This is the stage where the relationship between the players is well established and they all pull together with the aim to achieve their common goals. Issues of leadership and strategies are well established and agreed upon. When a new player joins the group a new stage of storming and norming will occur and the new players will either be accepted or rejected. This refreshing of the team can be a good shake up as it prevents the team from going stale. Successful teams seem to be settled and take in two or three new players a year to keep the team fresh but the introduction of too many players can disrupt the team and change the nature of the group completely. A good example of this is Manchester united in the 1990s where an influx of youngsters came up through the youth teams and the reserves to the first team. They had already been through the norming stage therefore they knew what norms were expected of them, this is why they achieved so much so quickly. They brought in two or three players each year to keep the team fresh and to help develop the team. The team started to decline in 2001/02 when they signed Juan Sebastian Veron as he was seen to disrupt the group dynamics and reduce the teams effectiveness. Social/task cohesion In sport different teams may have different skill levels therefore team cohesiveness may be the difference between two teams that might mak the difference between winning and losing. There are two types of cohesiveness. Social cohesion Task cohesion Social cohesion can be defined as a general orientation towards developing and maintaining social relationships within a group. (Carron, Widmeyer, Brawley, 1985) Task cohesion can be defined as a general orientation towards achieving a groups goals and objectives. (Carron, Widmeyer, Brawley, 1985) In sports coaches and players, coaches especially, should be more concerned with task cohesion than with social cohesion. An increase in task cohesion can help lead to success. This can be achieved by setting goals. This goal setting can play a major role in the development of the teams task cohesion and it will lead to the development of the players skills. Success is also important in the accomplishment of team cohesion. This success doesnt have to be winning it can also come in the form of achieving goals that have been set by the team. Goals can help significantly in the development of task cohesion. A good example of a team that has good task cohesion but no social cohesion is the New York Yankees team of the 1970s when they were constantly bickering but they still went on to win the world series several times. The more success a team experiences, the higher the cohesion. (Bird, 1977; Carron, 1982).http://www.fcbarcelona.com/imagenes/jugadores/futbol/Partidos/Liga-2005-06/Betis-FCB/240905_CronikaAlegria.jpg Carron (1982, 1988) model of cohesion Albert Carron came up with a system for studying cohesion within sport. This system looks at four areas: Environmental Personal Leadership Team factors Environmental This refers to the normal factors which hold a team together eg contracts and scholarships. Other factors include age and geographic closeness. Having team members of the same age living in the same area increases the opportunities for interaction and communication between the group. The size of the group will also affect cohesion because of the manufacturing of cliques. Smaller groups always tend to be more cohesive than larger groups. Personal This is in relation to each person within the group; there are major differences between each individual in the group. Carron has split personal factors into 3 separate groups: Demographic attributes eg gender Cognitions and motives eg anxiety Behaviour eg ability to follow rules Leadership This refers to the leadership and behaviour. The role of leaders is important in team cohesion in offering communication towards team goals. Another factor is the relationship between the team and the coach as a good relationship will ensure a more cohesive group. Team This includes desire for group success, group roles, group position and team stability. Carron believed that the longer a team have together and also have a desire for success show higher levels of cohesion. Shared experiences of success or failure are also essential in developing cohesion within the group, as it brings the team closer together. Model of Cohesion Cohesion and performance, what comes first? There have been numerous studies showing that there is a relationship between team cohesiveness and success. The better the team the more cohesive the team. What research has not shown whether or not these successful teams performed well because of the cohesiveness of the team or is the team cohesive because they have shared the experiences of winning. Both of these explanations may be correct. Slater and Sewell (1994) measured team cohesion in sixty university level hockey players representing three male and three female teams, early, midway and at the end of the season. This research has shown that early success resulted in late cohesion and early success resulted in late success. Slater and Sewell (1994) concluded that while early success related to later cohesiveness, the stronger relationship was between early cohesiveness and later success. They proposed that cohesiveness and success were mutually dependant. High cohesiveness Greater success Higher cohesiveness Low cohesiveness Less success Lower cohesiveness As you can see from the above model, the cohesiveness of a team early on in the season affects the success of the team which in turn affects the cohesiveness of the team later in the season. This study shows why one of the main priorities of a coach is to develop a highly cohesive team. Team cohesion is shown to be related to a teams success on the field. Although many studies have found that a teams cohesion was related to is subsequent performance, many other studies found that team cohesion had very little to do with how successful the team became. Success is related to the type of cohesion that exists within the team. More specifically, if your team has a high level of task cohesion, meaning that they play well together and remain united in the pursuit of the teams goals, then they are more likely to enjoy success. On the other hand, having a high amount of social cohesion, meaning that the team members are good friends and that they enjoy each others company, means very little in the way of predicting your teams performance. It has even been found that teams who are high in social cohesion play worse as a team. The key is not necessarily that your team members like each other, but that they are united in their efforts to achieve the team goals set forth at the beginning of the season. Higher levels of team (task) cohesion appear to be related to team success as the season progresses, and as the team becomes more successful, the degree of team cohesion appears to increase as well. Some might say the relationship between team cohesion and team success is a circular system. As team cohesion improves, so does the teams performance, and as the teams performance improves, it becomes more and more cohesive.It also appears that the link between a teams performance and its subsequent cohesion is stronger than the link between the teams initial cohesion and their performance early on in the season. The answer, according to previous studies in sport psychology, to the question whether performance or cohesion comes first, is both. http://www.baseballnews.com/features/teamchemistry.htm Building an effective team and developing cohesiveness Team cohesion is shown to be one of the most important factors in a successful team therefore is of vital importance that the coach encourages team cohesion, especially in societies such as Britain and the USA where people can be very self centred and dont care about the team. Coaches therefore figure out strategies to bring the team together, this is known as team building. Carron et al. (1997) came up with the following steps for team building. Each player should be acquainted with the responsibilities of the other team members. As coach, learn something personal about each team member and use it to gain cooperation. Gain pride in the sub teams within larger teams e.g. the defence Involve players in decision making to make them feel the team belongs to them. Set the team goals and celebrate when they are attained. Teach each team member their responsibilities and convince them of their individual importance. Allow team members to have disagreements. Prevent the formation of cliques within the team, by giving every member opportunities to perform and avoiding scapegoating. Use routines in practice designed to teach team members how dependant they are on each other. Highlight the positive aspects of play, even when the team is on a losing streak. Leadership in sport Definition: leadership can be defined as the behavioural process of influencing individuals and groups towards set goals. (Barrow, 1997) Trait theory of leadership Early research on leadership was based on the psychological focus of the day, which was of people having inherited characteristics or traits. Attention was thus put on discovering these traits, often by studying successful leaders, but with the underlying assumption that if other people could also be found with these traits, then they, too, could also become great leaders. In the 1920s researchers tried to show that characteristics were common to all leaders therefore to be a good leader you had to have these qualities inbuilt when you are born. This means that a person who is a good leader in one situation is a good leader in any situation. McCall and Lombardo (1983) researched both success and failure identified four primary traits by which leaders could succeed or derail: Emotional stability and composure: Calm, confident and predictable, particularly when under stress. Admitting error: Owning up to mistakes, rather than putting energy into covering up. Good interpersonal skills: Sble to communicate and persuade others without resort to negative or coercive tactics. Intellectual breadth: Able to understand a wide range of areas, rather than having a narrow (and narrow-minded) area of expertise. McCall and Lombardo (1983) Stogdill (1974) identified the following traits and skills as critical to leaders. Skills Adaptable to situations Alert to social environment Ambitious and achievement-orientated Assertive Cooperative Decisive Dependable Dominant (desire to influence others) Energetic (high activity level) Persistent Self-confident Tolerant of stress Willing to assume responsibility Clever (intelligent) Conceptually skilled Creative Diplomatic and tactful Fluent in speaking Knowledgeable about group task Organised (administrative ability) Persuasive Socially skilled Kirkpatrick and Locke (1991) identified eight characteristics which are associated with successful leadership. They are: drive, honesty, motivation to lead, self-confidence, intelligence, expertise in the purpose of the group, creativity and flexibility. Kirkpatrick and Locke then concluded that inspirational leaders do not need to be great men or women by being intellectual geniuses or omniscient prophets but they do need to have the right stuff and this stuff isnt equally present in all people Kirkpatrick and Locke (1991) Behavioural theory This theory states that anybody can be a good leader by learning the behaviour of an effective leader therefore this theory says that the qualities of a good leader can be learned and developed through training and experience, contradictory to the trait theory this one is saying that good leaders are made and not born. As early researchers ran out of information in their research in personal traits of leaders, they turned to what leaders did, how they behaved and especially towards their followers. They moved from leaders to leadership and this became the dominant way of approaching leadership in the 1950s and early 1960s. Different patterns of behaviour were grouped together and labelled as styles. A variety of schemes appeared, designed to identify and develop peoples style of working. Despite different names for these schemes, the basic ideas were very similar. The four main styles that appear are: Â · Concern for task. Here leaders put emphasis on the achievement of concrete objectives (achievement of goals). They look for high levels of productivity, and ways to organize people and activities in order to meet those objectives. Â · Concern for people. In this style, leaders look upon their followers as people and can identify their needs, interests, problems, development and so on and be able to work around these to get the best out of them. They are not simply units of production or means to an end. Â · Directive leadership. This style is characterized by leaders making decisions for others and expecting followers to follow instructions, such as a team captain on the pitch giving instructions to the rest of the players on the field. Â · Participative leadership. Here leaders try to share decision-making with the rest of the players but when the need arises that a decision has to be made quickly then his attention turns back to directive leadership. Many of the early researchers that looked to participative and people-centred leadership argued that it brought about greater satisfaction amongst followers. However, as Sadler (1997) reports, when researchers really got to work on this it didnt seem to stand up. There were lots of differences and inconsistencies between studies. It was difficult to say style of leadership was significant in enabling one group to work better than another. The main problem may have been one shared with those who looked for traits. The researchers did not look properly at the context or setting which the style was used in. Is it possible that the same style would work as well in a group of friends? The styles that leaders can adopt are far more affected by those they are working with, and the environment they are working within, than had been originally thought. Interactional approach The interactional approach looks at the interaction between the person and the situation rather than the personality of the leader. This approach stresses the following points: Effective leaders cant be predicted solely on personality. Effective leadership fits specific situations, as some leaders function better in certain circumstances than others. Leadership style needs to change to suit the situation A good example of the way this theory works is; relationship orientated leaders develop interpersonal relationships, provide god communication and ensure everyone is feeling good within the group. However, task orientated leaders are concerned with getting the work done and meeting objectives. Stafford Browne et el. (2003) Critics argued that the continued focus on the leader, rather than the situation where leadership takes place, provided a limited view of leadership. This is why an interactional approach to leadership was developed. This took into account the leader, the situation at the time, the type of people who are being led and the interaction between them. This interactional approach is examined in the work of both Fiedler and Chelladurai. Fred E. Fiedlers contingency theory says that there is no best way for managers to lead. Situations will create different leadership style requirements for a manager. The solution to a managerial situation is reliant on the factors that are imposed on the situation. E.g. a coach may have to act on a situation such as player getting injured. He/she must get the suitable replacement. This is not planned it is an unexpected situation that has arisen and must be dealt with. (Woods 2001) Fiedlers Contingency model Fiedlers model assumes that group performance depends on: Leadership style, described in terms of task motivation and relationship motivation. Situational favourableness, determined by three factors: 1. Leader-member relations Degree to which a leader is accepted and supported by the group members. 2. Task structure Extent to which the task is structured and defined, with clear goals and procedures. 3. Position power The ability of a leader to control subordinates through reward and punishment. High levels of these three factors give the most favourable situation, low levels, the least favourable. Relationship-motivated leaders are most effective in moderately favourable situations. Task-motivated leaders are most effective at either end of the scale. Fiedler suggests that it may be easier for leaders to change their situation to achieve effectiveness, rather than change their leadership style. A good example of this approach was with Brian Mc Eniff when he won the 1992 All Ireland final with Donegal but has failed to do so since with rows in the camp between mentors and players. The leader was powerful but the relationship wasnt warm therefore pressure took its toll and he had to resign. Multidimensional model of sport leadership In 1978 Chelladurai proposed a multidimensional model of leadership developed on the basis of leadership theories and their effectiveness. Performance outcomes and satisfaction could be achieved by effective leader behaviours. This means that if things arent going particularly well the leader must stand and be counted and motivate his players to succeed. In this case the coach has to be able to change his leadership style to suit the situation. This model says that if a leader behaves appropriately for the particular situation and these behaviours match the preferences of the group then they will achieve their goals. The model Antecedents Leader behaviour Consequences 4. required behaviour 1. situational characteristics 7. performance satisfaction 5. actual behaviour 2. leader characteristics 6. preferred behaviour 3. member characteristics Situational characteristics The characteristics of the situation the group is in such as; size, type of sport or winning or losing, Leader characteristics The personal qualities of the leader such as; confidence, intelligence, assertiveness and self-motivation. Member characteristics The different personalities of different types of athletes such as; age, gender, ability and experience. Required behaviour The type of characteristics required from a leader in a particular situation. For example if a team is losing with 5mins to go, is it better for the leader to make the decision himself or discuss it with the group? Actual behaviour This is the behaviour the leader actually displays Preferred behaviour The preferred leadership of the team depending on the situation. Performance satisfaction This is the extent to which the team is satisfied with the performance of the group under this leader. A good example of this approach was with Brian Kerr when he was in charge of the Irish soccer team. He had a mix of different approaches between autocratic and democratic. Normally he was democratic with his more senior players making decisions and enforcing leadership. When things werent going to plan though he stepped in as the autocratic leader to set things right again. Leadership styles There are a number of different leadership styles that I will look at, some more successful than others. The different types of leader are; Autocratic authoritarian Democratic leadership Laissez faire Autocratic authoritarian This type of leader dictates to the group, he doesnt ask for advice, comments or ideas from the group. He is the one who makes all of the decisions. This leadership style has advantages and disadvantages. The advantages are that the members of the group can be directed towards purposeful actions even when stressed and exhausted. The disadvantage is that wise group members do not have the chance to input useful information into the group and thus they may find it difficult to motivate themselves. Democratic leadership This type of leadership encourages the involvement of the whole group as individuals and as a group. Participants are encouraged to give feedback, ideas and to help make decisions. If the group leader were to be absent then the group would be efficient enough to continue what they were doing on their own. The bad side of this style is that it can cause trouble when decisions need to be made quickly in an emergency. This type of leadership is usually the most successful. Laissez faire This style of leadership encourages group independence in the sense that the group makes their own decisions, the leader only gets involved when the group gets into difficulties or in cases of emergency. Lewin (1939) found that this type of group tended to become more aggressive with each other when things went wrong. Leaders in this type of group often fail to motivate the members of the group and fail to deal with a crisis.

Trust in Emersons Self-Reliance :: Self Reliance Essays

Trust yourself, your intuition, and your nature. According to Emerson's Self-Reliance, these qualities are essential to contentment and harmony with one's self. Self-reliance is an appeal to the individual to obey his instincts and to challenge tradition and conventional wisdom. According to Emerson, those who are truly self-reliant have the ability to mark their place in history as great and genuinely creative men. Emerson urges the reader to live by his instinct and listen to his intuition, "Trust thyself: every heart vibrates to that iron string." Don’t fear your original thoughts, trust them and live accordingly. Great men and artists appeal to us because of their creative nature, "In every work of genius we recognize our own rejected thoughts." If we don’t live according to our nature we are not men. Be bold and brave about your convictions, "And we are now men, and must accept in the highest mind the same transcendent destiny; and not pinched into a corner, not cowards fleeing before a revolution, but redeemers and benefactors, pious aspirants to be noble clay plastic under the Almighty effort, let us advance and advance on Chaos and the Dark." Recognize your nature whether it be good or bad, "No law can be sacred to me but that of my nature." Emerson instructs the reader to avoid the common pitfalls that tend to hinder man's virtue. Emerson identifies consistency as being an enemy of the creative thinker, "A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds", "With consistency a great soul has simply nothing to do". Emerson isn’t implying that we live erratically but that we should be introspective about our positions and ideals. We should not hold the same position simply because it is the one we have always taken. We shouldn’t be preoccupied with the impression we leave on others, "What I must do, is all that concerns me, not what the people think." According to Emerson, our inconsistency should be our testimony. Your inconsistent actions will explain to others what you are, "The voyage of the best ship is a zigzag line of a hundred tacks." Emerson also points out man's fear of being misunderstood. We often fail to present or discuss our original thoughts and ideas in fear of being misunderstood. Emerson asks, so what? Weren't all great innovators misunderstood? Emerson says: "Misunderstood! It is a right fools word. Is it so bad then to be misunderstood?

How a business can grow it’s customer base Essay

Coles Group Limited The Grocery industry is one of the most important industries in the Australian economy. The industry employs a big proportion of the workforce and is connected to many other industries in the economy environment. Supermarkets are one of the key players in the grocery industry providing around 70% of the value of the retail market for food and groceries. The  two major grocery chains – Woolworths and Coles – dominate with almost 70% market share of an industry valued at A$80+ billion. Over the past 5 years the sector has been witness of some significant developments. Dynamics were changed after new players like Costco entered the market and ALDI verified a rapid growth since its first appearance in 2001, making colossal to chase market shares by reviewing their campaigns. Some key statistics for the participants in the industry are presented in the Table 1 Table 1.1: Players in the grocery industry Retailer Market Share Woolworths 41.1% Coles / Bi-Lo 31.0% Other supermarkets ALDI 14.0% Speciality Foods / Franklin 7.1% Source: Coles Data, 2012 Coles is one of the two major supermarkets operating in Australia. In 1927 became property company and was launched on the Melbourne Stock Exchange; in 1985, Coles Myer Ltd.was established after a A$918 transaction. Myer was divided from the Coles Group to private equity interests in 2005, it has therefor not been part of the group since then. Westfarmers was founded in 1914, and in 1985 has been restructured to a public company and was listed on the ASX. Coles Supermarket is part of the Coles Group and subsidiary of Westfarmers for a total of: 749 full service supermarket retailer stores 792 liquor stores and 92 hotels 627 national fuel and convenience stores The reaserch conducted shows that Cole’s market share of 31% has not moved materially in recent years; is one of the successful supermarkets in Australia in terms of customer satisfaction, innovation in product strategy, marketing strategy, financial capability and strong work culture. To analyze the Global segmentation, we can consider the presence of Westfarmers  in New Zealand, but the nation largest employer remains committed to providing a satisfactory return to shareholders. The management of Coles supermarkets has not had many political barriers except the adherence to the sector’s rule and regulations. The slow growth uncertainity in the Australian economy poses a threat for thr retail players. The links between supermarket and fuel industries have been normalised. In response to concerns that cost of living pressures were affecting families, in 2008, the Australian Government commissioned the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission to review of the industry. In 2010, the Trade Practices Act was recast as the Competition and Consumer Act, with several competition policy amendments in recent years. Supermarkets themselves have developed new pricing and marketing strategies. In 2011 Coles partenered with WWF-Australia to improve the sustainability of the seafood supply chain and to educate consumers about sustainable choices. Coles has also adopted new technologies developing its online shopping facilities. It also invested to improve its supply chain and distribution system with significant impact in cost savings. Coles’s commitment to their Ethical Sourcing Policy, a wide range of products, great logistics and a strong brand image among its internal Strengths. Being an important presence in the market, its operating cost is overall high and its management presents Weaknesses. The possibility to seek new sales opportunity and cut cost through technology and the potential to increase the customer base presents only a few of the Opportunities that Coles may have. The uncertainity that Australian economy presents, the vulnerability to attack by the key competitors of the market are to be seen as external Threats. From 2012, Coles has a new pricing and marketing strategy called ‘Down Down’. This has been a high profile campaign designed to increase its company performance. Other supermarkets have their own pricing strategies to compete, including IGA’s with â€Å"Locked Down Low Prices† from July 2012 and Woolworths’s â€Å"everyday low prices†. Over the last four years, Coles sales have increased by $4.8 billion to around $24 billion. Coles have out-performed the supermarket sector overall over the last four years, market share has gone up slightly. Growth in revenue reflects changes in prices and volumes. On the face of it,  a campaign like ‘Down Down’ should have the effect of lowering prices and increasing volumes. To obtain an overall picture of the savings to consumers we aggregate the price movement during this period and calculate a savings figure – based on both old volumes and current volumes. We find that in 2011-12, the one-year savings of the price reductions during the ‘Down Down’ campaign (i.e. over the 18 months from January 2011) is between $1.05 billion and $1.19 billion. The midpoint is $1.12 billion. The benefits of scale are generated due to the large average store size and the ability centralise their procurement so that they obtain better terms. Overall, Coles finds that the larger its stores, the more efficient they are, as measured by costs per store size. On average, a store that is 1000m2 larger has costs that are 3% lower – reflecting the spread of a number of fixed or standard costs for a store that are incurred regardless of store size. Over the past four years, Coles have also increased the productivity of assets, part of these improvements come for the fact that Coles operates larger stores whilst keeping the number of stores relatively constant. In this period Coles have divested or closed almost 90 smaller and underperforming stores and has acquired or built almost 90 larger, more productive stores. Sales generated from every square metre of selling floor area have increased almost 20%. While sales revenue has increased by 25%, total selling floor area has increased by 4.5%. Private labels are unbranded products purchased by supermarkets and then sold as their own products. Typically, these products are che aper than branded products because of limited marketing activities. Historically, private brands had an image of being quite avarage, targeting the most price-sensitive consumer; these days they are increasing thought of as an equal-quality, lower-price alternative. According to Coles’s data on ranging and space allocation decisions, Coles brand products are treated in the same manner as proprietary brand products. In many cases Coles brand products are located together with similar brands and less shelf space than proprietary brands. Coles periodically reviews if their brand is over/under represented by examining the quantity they sell relative to the space on the shelves. Private labels have been a matter of policy discussion: critics have asserted that they are part of a strategy to dominate the supply chain, thus reducing the viability of branded products. Table 1.2: White bread 650 Retail Prices Margin above COGS Coles Smart Buy White bread 650g $1.00 1% Wonder White Bread Wholemeal Plus Iron 700g $3.31 5.4% Table 1.3: Eggs 12 Pack 700gr Retail Price Margin above COGS Coles Eggs Free Range 12 Pack 700gr $4.04 24.5% Farmpride Eggs Free Range 12 Pack 700g $5.44 20% ï ¿ ¼Ã¯ ¿ ¼Ã¯ ¿ ¼Ã¯ ¿ ¼Ã¯ ¿ ¼Ã¯ ¿ ¼Ã¯ ¿ ¼Ã¯ ¿ ¼Ã¯ ¿ ¼Ã¯ ¿ ¼ Source: Coles Data We analyze the margins for branded and private label products, following the Tables 1.2 and 1.3. For the white bread the branded product yields greater margins for Coles – for Eggs, the opposite. This suggests it is unlikely that Coles systematically achieves higher margins on its own products and directly encourages consumers not to buy branded products. According to Macquarie, Coles and Woolworths hold 72% of the Australian grocery market. The concentration of competition has made the rivalry palpable, penetrating deep into consumers mind. â€Å"Our customers want good honest food which is fresh, available and affordable†, says Simon McDowell, marketing director of Coles. Woolworths upholds those same values: â€Å"We want our customers to trust us to deliver best quality food and the best value every time they visit one of our stores,† said Lizzy Ryley, GM marketing at Woolworts. The five main players in the Australian retail food industry have vastly differen t approaches. Woolworths and Coles have well-known and similar business models, and command the lion’s share of the domestic food and liquor market due to their long history in Australia. Woolworths is commonly perceived to be more ‘premium’ while Coles promises  low prices, but in reality the experiences offered by both are incredibly similar. Beneath all the taglines and promotional strategies , the mandates of both Woolies and Coles are based on two things: fresh food and value for money. Aldi, like Costco, operates in the eastern states and sells private label (Aldi-branded) groceries, electronics and everyday household goods like bathroom taps. IGA operate small-scale, privately owned, stores across the country specialising in everyday groceries and liquors. In terms of size, Aldi’s 305 stores (March figure) are believed to generate in excess of $5 billion, Costco generated $612 million in 2012/13, while Woolworths reported sales of $58 billion and Coles $36 billion in the 2012/13 financial year. IGA sales data couldn’t be found as they are private companies, however Metcash (ASX: MTS) supplies IGA stores and reported revenue of $13 billion in 2012/13. Therefore, as a rough estimate it can be assumed that Aldi, Costco and IGA account for between 15% and 20% of the Australian food and liquor market. To make the Company a more effective organisation and in order to maximazie the shareholders value, I would focus on increasing staff productivity as well as motivation, not to mention the emphasis of maintaining or increasing profit margins where possible; developing the ‘Down Down’ campaigne and lowering the average prices by a further 1.9% . I would enfasise Exploiting the presence if Westfarmers in New Zealand, I would try an international market penetration and the trading environment. Following a comprehensive reform program that began in the mid-80s, the New Zealand economy is now largely deregulated, and more internationally competitive. Food prices rose 0.6 percent in April 2014, and were up 1.5 percent on a year earlier, Statistics New Zealand declare. The monthly rise follows a 0.3 percent fall in March, and a 1.0 percent fall in February. Niche products and Australia’s reputation for product safety can help the company with the penetration.   I would try and finalize the acquisition of EziBuy, a leading direct retailer of apparel and homewares in Australia and New Zealand, so it will act as a launch pad for our next phase of growth but most importantly it would represent a stop for the expansion of Woolworths into the country. Last but not least I would continue investing in important environmental projects and partnerships to further reduce the impact on the environment and I would also improve efficiencies within the  supply chains, reducing gas emissions across the overall business. In the future I would develop a marketing campaigne based on our recycling and sustainable efforts and we will continue to work on ways to both reduce the waste and increase the level of recycling in our stores. References http://finance.ninemsn.com.au/newsbusiness http://www.deloitte.com http://www.stats.govt.nz http://www.austrade.gov.au/Export/Export-Markets http://www.woolworthslimited.com.au https://www.coles.com.au http://www.euromonitor.com ABARES, 2011, ‘Agricultural commodity statistics 2011.’ King, Matthew, 2012, ‘One shopping basket, four supermarkets, who wins?’ Wesfarmers, 2012, ‘Annual Report 2012’.

Max Weber: Iron Cage

According to him the modern era human beings, especially in the western capitalist society are increasingly being caught in the process of Rationalism and the factors elated to it such as, Bureaucracy, Disenchantment and Individualism. Through this essay we intent to agree with Weber about how he thought that Modern Capitalism in which people are rational is literally inescapable process in which they are getting locked into, and this ultimately gives rise to bureaucracy.We will give some evidences proving Weber ideas on how the protestant ethics contributed to the rise of capitalism and also show how there are no solid alternatives to this problem of bureaucracy. In his book â€Å"Protestantism and the Spirit of Capitalism†, Weber told us the Protestants who started off with an Ascetic life to whom their work was there â€Å"calling† I. E. Their only purpose in life was to work all day and not get pleasure from the fruits of their labor as self consumption was consider ed morally wrong because they were not to enjoy the money they earn on themselves.But later on with the emergence of the modern capitalism, the Protestants eventually ended up in focusing more on the pursuit of money. They started applying rational and scientific methods in the ways of making money to increase their profit margins. This rational way is very much evident even today because people have lost their religious values and in the capitalist society we have now, they just want to seek more and more profit and build wealth more than they possibly could require.According to Weber this went against the traditional Catholic Doctrine where they intent to avoid materialist pursuit by adopting the spiritual way of life. This had a huge impact on people's life because in the capitalist society today most people are not concerned with the nature of their job nor do they enjoy it much as long as heir social status is maintained and their financial goals are accomplished.Weber through his writing has explained how people especially in the west were developing this rational, methodological and a calculating approach to lead a life which had completely triumphed over the old traditional and irrational way of making money to please the God. In the process of making money, whether you like it or not you are forced to adopt this methodological way where you work day and night not to get close to God but to gain profit and this is what Weber thought as the â€Å"Iron Cage of Capitalism†, in which you continually pursue your calling and the spirit of capitalism is a cage where we are imprisoned in.However Weber felt that the protestant ethics did not directly lead to spirit of capitalism, but it is one of the main factors that lead to it. According to him the old traditional way which was based mostly on kinship and values has shifted its form to goal oriented rationality. This is where Weber is switching his writings and explaining how the modern capitalism whic h gave rise to strict set of rules and regulations is directly giving rise to the growth of Bureaucracy because bureaucracy is the main example of Rationalization.Weber argued that the rational goal oriented profit seeking ways had a tremendous impact on people's lives because this had dominated their behavior so much that the old spiritual values are being lost in the modern era. People were abandoning God, religion and spirituality in the name of freedom, insisting that it was not possible to free with the restrictions that the religions impose but they forget to realize that they themselves were becoming slaves oftener own material pursuit.This is what he meant by â€Å"Iron Cage† of Rationalism. This had increased their interest in power and authority which has taken the form of bureaucracy. Weber also explained the long term processes of Rationalism from which the magic has taken Out Of the world and there are no intrinsic mysteries in the world because the life has beco me so predictable and understandable that we could know the reason behind anything in world hence it makes life very dull and boring.According to him the modern world has lost its enchantment because people have mastered in the scientific knowledge in the rational way ND science has empowered them. In the book, Max Weber: Reading and Commentary on Modernity, Bureaucracy is described as â€Å"the means of transforming social actions into rationally organized action† (pig 214). Weber now is giving the example of bureaucratic organization which is enslaving people. According to Weber, Bureaucracy does have a lot of positive implications because these are effective in reaching the goal in a rational manner.It gives individuals more security in their respective work areas unlike the feudal system and also sakes more specialists in a particular area of the organization. However Weber also points out the negative effects of bureaucracy as well. Bureaucratic organizations are the dom inant form of institution in the modern society. It involves Hierarchy in offices where there are clear command of structures and expects the employee who is on bottom to report the higher employee and so on.It has written documents for the rules of conduct and you have to obey whatever the organization expects from you. They are also considered as very impersonal because they take away our emotions and feelings out of the situation and force you to do exactly what is required from their job and now your â€Å"impersonal† duty of office becomes your â€Å"calling† of life, because even if you disagree with something you still have to do it because you are mandated to follow instructions and obey the authority.In other words, in this process of Rationalization where people are forced to do whatever the bureaucratic organization expects it to do is what Weber thought as the â€Å"Iron cage† of the Bureaucracy. This restricts people to be creative and spontaneous a nd you are trapped into this cage forever escaping from the traditional religious ways. Weber goes on to say that this has a drastic consequences in people's lives as it had created inequality which keeps on increasing and keeps popping up, getting bigger and bigger as it is spreading everywhere.Weber saw some alternatives to these dominant organizations such as a charismatic leader who can break away its populace from this organization because according to him it was the charismatic style of organizations that maintain social creativity by giving people more freedom from the rules and regulations. According to him a charismatic leader is a person who is creative and possess extra ordinary qualities who makes up their own rules and this is a good solution because charismatic ruler is somewhere in between the 2 extremes forms, Bureaucratic and traditional organizations.The big feature of expansion of bureaucracy is taking the charisma out of the organizations which trying very hard t o be an alternative and opposite of bureaucratic organization. However there is also a problem associated with charismatic Organization hat it has a transitional phenomenon, which means it is very hard to make it last for a long time in its purest form because eventually it ends up becoming either Traditional or Bureaucratic.He also explains another alternative is; for examples if you have a community involved in every single decision, it becomes very messy and hard in terms of getting things done in the right way and efficient manner because everyone has the equal calling. So these are the reasons you can't escape bureaucracy and it has become the basic feature of the modern capitalist society. As Weber states; â€Å"Once fully established, Bureaucracy is among those social Structures which is the hardest to destroy†(pig 214).

Baltimore (Maryland) As A Transportation Network And Sea Port

Baltimore is located in North central part of Maryland state, on the Patapsco River, 40 miles (60 Km) North East of Washington D. C. and 75 miles (125 km) South West of Philadelphia (Holcomb, 2005). The city lies in a humid sub-tropical climate zone and experiences very high humid summers around July and warm winters around January (Ogle, 1996). Baltimore towns were founded in the 17th Century as commercial ports. The town was established on July 30, 1729 and was named after the first proprietary governor of Maryland province Lord Baltimore (Holcomb, 2005).Baltimore grew rapidly from â€Å"mid to late 18th century as a granary for sugar-producing colonies in the Caribbean† (Ibid, 2005). Since the distance of Baltimore from the Caribbean is shorter as compared to other large ports such as New York City port and Boston, it was popularly used because it reduced transportation time as well as reduced spoilage of goods (Starr, 1991). After the British forces had burnt down Washingt on DC, they invaded Baltimore in 1812 but the US forces won in that war (Ogle, 1996).Afterwards, development grew explosively due to increase commerce in America and abroad. This lead to construction of federally-funded National road, privately-funded Baltimore and Ohio railroad (Oslon, 1997). This boasted Baltimore as a major shipping and manufacturing centre (Ibid, 1997). On February 7, 1904, great Baltimore fire gutted down more than 1,500 buildings in about 30 year and brought down city to ruin (Ogle, 1996). But two years later, through the help of city council the buildings were set back. The city grew in area as more suburbs were founded (Higham, 2004).From late 1970s, the Inner Harbor was revitalized in a bid to modernize the port to increase the capacity and make it more competitive (Ogle, 1996). In 1979 the Baltimore convention centre was opened (Higham, 2004). In 1990s it was revamped and expanded as it became a major tourist destination. In the 21st century there has been development of Inner Harbor with sites like sport centre, ESPN Zone and Baltimore World Trade Centre (Martin, 2003). During the 19th and 20th centuries, Baltimore served as a ship building and transportation hub for the Mid Atlantic states due to its large natural harbor.In the 20th century, the city competed vigorously with New York and Philadelphia in developing and maintaining large port facilities to attract merchants (Oslon, 1997). Baltimore port which was originally developed to â€Å"transport crops, today the port moves more than 30. 6 million tons of cargo annually from automobiles to zinc† (Anuta, 1983). This port has a major economic impact on Maryland state and neighboring states like Virginia, Washington DC and New York (Starr, 1991).The state is an industrious town with motor manufacturing and steel processing forming its economic base and backbone (Ogle, 1996). Nevertheless, shipping and transportation is a major economic engagement due to its strategic locati on as well as its developed and networked transportation system. Baltimore city has a number of interstate highways. These federally-funded state highways link Baltimore with other states (Robert, 2005). There are also two tunnels that pass through Baltimore harbor within the city. These are the four bore Fort McHenry Tunnel and two-bore Harbor tunnel (Ibid, 2005).Baltimore is well served with passenger rail. Amtruk’s trains serve between Baltimore and major cities in US, for example, just outside the city Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport Rails Station is a renowned traveler’s stop (Oslon, 1997). Besides, MARC commuter rail services connect Baltimore’s two intercity rail stations; the Camden Station and Penn Station with Washington DC’s Union station and stops in between (Robert, 2005). Maryland Transit Administration provides people in Baltimore city with public transit.The bus network in the city is comprehensive and efficien t. Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport (BWI) and Martin State airport serves Baltimore with air transport services (Anuta, 1983). Baltimore is a preferred transport hub and sea port that is very important to Maryland State as well as neighboring states like New York and Virginia (Higham, 2004). This is because it has a well-defined road network that gives it great comparative advantage. Its deep water port facilities are modernized and handle bulk goods conveniently.There are various advantages of Baltimore port as compared to other ports around that region. These include geographical advantage. Baltimore has interconnected multi-model system of transport and it offers one of the low cost shipping and transportation services (Starr, 1991). It also has well-maintained state roads connect Baltimore to the rest of the US. Baltimore Beltway surrounds the city and other interstate highways connect Baltimore to all directions (Robert, 2005). People can easily make across Baltimore metropolitan area through the city’s extensive local road system.Due to its central location in the densely populated North West corridor of US, Maryland state and Baltimore in particular has geographical advantage over other ports as a distribution centre (Holcomb, 2005). Baltimore can be accessed by overnight tracks that haul goods to major markets of North East, South East and Mid West due to the strategic location (Ibid, 2005). According to Maryland Distribution Council (http://www. mdc. org) the consumer market that is within overnight reach of Maryland state represents a whooping 80 million people (32% of US population), $1.2 trillion in effective buying income (35% of the US total) and $566. 2 billion in retail sales (33% of US total) (Anuta, 1983). According to MDC the private haulers number over 5,000, common and contract carriers that serve within Maryland and its environ (Ogle, 1996). Baltimore port handles in the ranges of 30. 6 million tons of c argo every year and it is ranked number one in Poll-on Roll off cargo in the East coast (Starr, 1991). Another comparative advantage is the technological advances in the port that has computerized its operations.The port boasts the use of Electronic Data Interchange (EDI), hand held computers, computerized gate computers and scanners which in a great way have had a positive impact on the efficiency and effectiveness of the port (Ogle, 1996). Economically, Baltimore has large skilled labor force that is important in running of its vibrant economy. It has large tracks of warehouses, that is, over 23 million square feet and cold storage space (Starr, 1991). It has developed in service industry and has comprehensive international banking services (Robert, 2005).Baltimore still has other comparative advantages over other ports surrounding it. These include excellent inter-model connections by water, rail and tunnel, rail service that is on-dock at all terminals provided by CSX and Norfol k Southern, is rated as one of the safest and most secure ports in the world, presence of advanced and electronic cargo data system which makes the process of clearing and forwarding efficient and time-saving, cargo consolidation, export parking and crating services. It also has excellent tracking services whether it is a local dray or a long haul (Robert, 2005).Baltimore harbor’s importance to neighboring states like New York City and Virginia are numerous. With the well-maintained interstate highways one can drive to Baltimore from New York City for only two hours, and less than one hour from Washington DC (Higham, 2004). There are also options to use trains or fly into the city. The city offers exciting tourist destination. Ellicott City is a charming village with restored historical sites with art galleries, quaint shops, gift shops and restaurants (Ibid, 2004). Baltimore offers a great investment destiny for businessmen and businessmen have identified the city for invest ment.Investors from New York and neighboring states are investing in hotels, transport and other services (Ogle, 1996). The Baltimore port ahs become a magnet for development that has spread outside the city to nearby states like Virginia (Oslon, 1997). This is because of the ability to handle large bulk of goods that are shipped into these states for development and also serving as exporting port to these states economies (Starr, 1991). The Baltimore port has contributed to growth of nearby regions such as Virginia and Philadelphia through provision of jobs.Direct related jobs, induced and indirect jobs have increased due to increased cargo movement in the port (Holcomb, 2005). Out of these 16,500 are direct jobs and about 34,000 induced and indirect jobs and other jobs that are directly related to activities at the port in nearby states are in hundreds of thousands (Anuta, 1983). Through taxes paid by businesses that engage in shipping, handling, transporting, importing and export ing goods, Maryland State and neighboring regional states, get tax revenues that greatly help them fund their budgets (Higham, 2004).Baltimore port has enabled growth of service sectors in Maryland state and other states (Oslon, 1997). These sectors that developed include banking, insurance, admiralty, law, maritime services, consignee service and surface transport (Ibid, 1997). This has impacted an increased business income of participants like national trucking firms, freight forwarders and bankers. The value of the port of Baltimore to neighboring states has increased due to increased due to increased cargo moving via the port into these states (Martin, 2003).Through the port goods are exported and imported into these states that generate about $50 billion of their economic activities in 2007 (Ibid, 2003). Some of the challenges that Baltimore port faces is environment degradation due to material waste disposal (Starr, 1991). However, legislation was passed to control waste of dr edge materials. Environment Trust Fund was set up to fund building of a site for the disposal of the material dredged from the shipping channels leading to Baltimore harbor (Anuta, 1983).Environment impact statement was prepared after public hearing, where citizens proposed provision of commercial shipping by maintaining channels approaching Baltimore port, which in turn saw an outright prohibition to open water disposal and recycling of waste for agricultural and other purposes (Robert, 2005). Traffic congestion is another challenge that faces the city and Maryland state in general. There was a bill that proposed state local and regional transportation plans to reduce vehicle mileage by at least 10% by 2020; however the US senate rejected the proposal (Holcomb, 2005).The assembly has approved removal of the annual state sidewalk funding capital which amounts to about 2 million dollars which will see increased funding of state in sidewalks that will manage transport in the city stre ets (Oslon, 1997). Crime situation in the state is a major challenge to this city port (Anuta, 1983). The crime statistics for 2005 revealed approximately 269 homicides which is about seven times the normal rate (Starr, 1991). Generally overall crime rate have worked hard to reduce crime activities and give the city a safe environment (Martin, 2003).Conclusion Baltimore port is a very important not only to the Maryland state but to the whole region. This port serves as a major entry and exit point of goods and people from Atlantic to Mid West and the whole of United State. Its strategic geographic location has given it a comparative advantage over rival ports. Many of businesses around the region use these ports to export or import their goods as it is cheaper considering the short distance to the coast. Increased activities this port has translated to economic growth in the region.The impact of the use of the Baltimore ports on the regional economies can be identified in sectors su ch as, tourism sectors, transport and haulage sectors, banking and other financial service sectors as well as public sector. More service industries are developed in Maryland and nearby estates to support the growth brought by enhanced use of this port. Despite these positive influences the use of ports has on the region there are some negative impacts that can be identified as having came out of the use of the ports.Drug importation through these ports has been a challenge not only to this state but to the whole nation. Drug barons use this as sea entry point to US market. They disguise their consignment as legal trade goods to get clearance and access to their intended markets. Maryland Port Authority has stepped up and taken measures like use of scanners to scan contents in containers and use of drug detectors. The state security forces together with federal security agents should help reduce crime in the city.Insecurity has been recognized as a major force that can greatly decel erate the rate of development in the city. Investors flee areas that they know their investments are not safe. Maryland Port Authority should implement ways of improving harbor management and services for instance, ensuring that there is sufficient safety from hazards like fire, theft, accidents in the work place as well as ensuring that information technology system is up-to-date and fully functioning.In turn, this will radically enhance Baltimore harbor transportation network, thus reducing obstacles such as delayed transportation, drug trafficking and traffic congestion. References Anuta, Michael J. (1983). Ships of our Ancestors. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co. , Inc. Higham, Eileen. (2004). Tuscany-Canterbury: A Baltimore Neighborhood History. Baltimore: Maryland Historical Society. Holcomb, Eric L. (2005). The City as Suburb: A History of Northeast Baltimore since 1660. Santa Fe, N. M. : Center for American Places. Martin L. Millspaugh.(2003). The Inner Harbor Story. Th e Urban Land Institute. Washington, D. C. Ogle, Maureen. (1996). All the Modern Civilization Baltimore. Johns Hopkins University Press. Olson, Sherry H. (1997). Baltimore: The Building of an American City. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. Robert C. Keith (2005). Baltimore Harbor: A Pictorial History. Third Edition. The Johns Hopkins University Press. Baltimore and London. Starr, J. (1991). The Port of Baltimore: Off the Beaten Track? Maritime Policy and Management 18, 171-181. http://www. mdc. org