Chocolate Research Paper

WOMEN STUDIES ECO-FOOTPRINT PROJECT Topic – Cocoa Beans Production Process Chocolate is a key ingredient in many foods such as milk shakes, candy bars, cookies and cereals. It is ranked as one of the most favourite flavours in North America and Europe. Despite its popularity most people do not know the unique origin of this popular treat. Chocolate is a product that requires complex procedures to produce. The process involves harvesting cocoa, refining coca to cocoa beans, and shipping the cocoa beans to the manufacturing factory for cleaning, coaching and grinding.These cocoa beans will then be imported or exported to other countries and be transformed into different types of chocolate products. Cocoa beans grow in countries like Cote d'Ivoire, Ghana, Indonesia, Brazil, Nigeria, Cameroon, and Malaysia, but the highest cocoa producing country is Cote d'Ivoire. The production process of cocoa beans include: first, cocoa is harvested manually. The seed pods of cocoa are collecte d and the beans are selected and placed in piles. These cocoa beans are then ready to be shipped to the manufacturer for production.Cocoa grows in pods that sprout off the trunks and branches of cocoa trees. The pods have the shape and almost the size of football. The pods start out green and turn orange when they are ripe. When the pods are ripe they are harvested gently with machetes. Machines can damage the trees or the clusters of flowers and pods that grow on the trunk, so workers have to harvest the pods by hand, using short, hooked blades mounted on long poles to reach the highest fruit. The cocoa seeds then undergo a process of fermentation by placing them in large, shallow, heated trays or by covering them with large banana leaves.If the climate is right, they may be simply heated by the sun. Workers mostly women come along periodically and stir them up so that all of the beans come out equally fermented. This process may take up to five or eight days. After fermentation, t he cocoa seeds are dried before they can be scooped into sacks and shipped to chocolate manufacturers. Farmers simply spread the fermented seeds on trays and leave them in the sun to dry. The drying process usually takes about a week and results in seeds becoming reduced to about half of their original weight.During the production process, labor is not equally divided between men and women who work in the planation; this brings us to the issue of gender division. The gender divide that exists on the cocoa plantation is that most farm work is conducted by men, although most certainly there are tasks where women are very active, such as scooping the beans from the already opened husks, turning the beans during the fermentation and drying process, and sewing the jute sacs needed for the packaging of the dried beans. Women in the farms normally tend to the needs of the family.When female labor is hired during the harvesting time the wages given to them are not the same as those for men. Perhaps another reason why men are preferred is because of their assumed higher productivity rate compared to that of women. Due to different practices followed in individual regions, even within countries, the participation of women and their assigned tasks vary enormously. For instance, because of the popular method of sun drying cocoa beans in Ecuador, it is necessary to â€Å"clean† the beans. This job is mostly undertaken by women.This is not the case in Ghana or Brazil where sun drying is accomplished while protecting the beans from foreign matters and waste. It is interesting to note however that there is no specific pattern for the assignment of tasks to women, except during the harvest when the scooping of the beans from the opened pods is primarily performed by women in most cocoa producing countries. Given the great differences in the systems of production in producing countries it is difficult to find a common percentage that reflects the average participation of the female work force.It is worth mentioning that unlike the coffee agricultural sector, there are no associations or specific groups that house ‘women only’ involved in the cocoa sector at any level, although all associations and cooperatives are open to all who qualify. Due to fluctuation of cocoa prices in the world market, farmers have no long-term security, and in some situations, they do not have enough funds to support their farming business.Cocoa farmers are always faced with financial hardship; they are not able to provide for their families as they would want nor have enough funds to start up their own farming business because they only receive a fraction of the proceeds from the selling of the beans on the world market and there are many people in the trading chain. Cocoa farmers around the world face many challenges. It is estimated that about one-third of global cocoa crops are destroyed by pests and diseases every year. Many cocoa farmers have limited acc ess to the latest agricultural technologies or methods of cultivation and few of them ave business backgrounds to help them effectively market their products and manage their operations. Many of the farming communities live in poverty and are infected with diseases. Industry groups, governments and consumers worldwide have raised concerns about the use of pesticides and child labor on West African cocoa farms. An interview conducted by Christophe Koffi showed that one major problem that women in cocoa production encounter is the lack the of financial capability or backing due to the fact that most of these women find themselves in a male dominated occupation.It is very difficult for them to secure financial aid or loans to manage their farms. For instance, â€Å"Women cannot inherit or even create a cocoa plantation under our patriarch-dominated tradition,† said Vanie, criticising what she called a â€Å"backwards and misogynist† practice† (Koffi, 2008) because w e still live in a patriarchal dominated society where women do not have the right to own lands and properties. This paper further talks about the sustanability in the production process of cocoa.We will be looking at Lindt& Sprungli’s which is a family company and a major producer of chocolate and other cocoa products with a headquaters in Kilchberg, Switzerland. Lindt & Sprungli is one of the few chocolate makers that have complete control over every step of the production chain starting with the precise selection of the finest cocoa varieties from the best growing areas in the world right on through the careful and expert processing until ending with the elegant packaging.Lindt gets its cocoa beans mostly from Ghana and Central and South America. Lindt has been very conservative in the amount of energy its invests in the chocolate production process. Each existing and future facility and investment undergoes very detailed analysis to determine how much energy can be saved. Through better insulation and energy recovery, Lindt & Sprungli was able to cut down on energy consumption by more than 13% per ton produced between 2004 and 2010.The company intends to continue reducing the energy consumption rate per ton produced by an average over the coming years. According to the Lindt publication, The company’s efforts: since 1999, Lindt & Sprungli’s Swiss subsidiary, Chocoladefabriken Lindt & Sprungli (Schweiz) AG, has been an active member of the Lake Zurich Energy Model Group†¦The Swiss government and independent engineers have audited the progress and as a result, the Swiss subsidiary has been granted the official certificate. Kilchberg, 2012) Since 2007, Lindt & Sprungli under water conservation has been participating in the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP)†¦Since then, the measurements of water emissions and energy consumption have been largely based on the concept of the ‘Methodology Fossil Fuels’ set out in the CDP P rotocol†¦Waste water, Lindt & Sprungli continuously monitors and analyses the use of water and the output of wastewater in the production process and intends to further reduce the use of fresh water in this process, which, in turn will impact the output of wastewater (Kilchberg, 2012) The major people that benefit from cocoa production are mostly the big corporations. The corporations exploit cocoa farmers in the sense that they do not pay them the true worth of their labour. Women who work on the farms are underpaid and marginalized. There is also the issue of child labor where children of school going age are forced to work on the farms instead of going to school thereby denying them the right to education. The big corporations are not forth coming in releasing information as to how and where they get their cocoa beans from.Most of these African countries where these big corporations get their raw materials from do not have access to good roads, health care facilities, school s, electricity, and there is poverty in most of the communities. These big corporations buy the cocoa beans at a very cheap rate and then import them to the western society and the refined product is processed into different kinds of chocolates (e. g. chocolate drink, chocolate bars of different shapes and sizes and chocolate candies etc. ) which are sold consumers at exorbitant prices considering the price at which the cocoa beans are bought from the cocoa farmers. This explains how capitalism and big corporation exploit cheap labour. Almost everyone enjoys a bit of chocolate every now and again. But if you take a closer look at how cocoa is produced, it may well leave a bitter taste in your mouth.The conditions under which the cocoa farmers in many producer countries live and work are worrying: Despite the fact that cocoa is usually their main source of income, the families struggle to make a living from it. Child labour is not uncommon. As consumers we can work with NGOs to find means of helping the farmers to adapt to new systems of cocoa farming that result higher yields, under socially more acceptable and environmentally friendly conditions, to meet market demands and hence ensure a stable flow income. As a major part of the global cocoa industry which has remained inactive and invisible for so long, consumers of chocolate can demonstrate that they want slavery in the cocoa sector stamped out, and your pressure can highlight their lack of commitment and make them more accountable.Finally all cocoa products, including chocolate, run the risk of being tainted by child labour and slavery. To achieve a satisfactory standard of ethical production in chocolate consumers must help to ensure that companies commit to credible and sufficient actions against such things as use of child labour and the exploitation of cocoa farmers and not make false and unsustainable promises to consumers of being â€Å"slavery- free†. The consumers can liaise with government bodies and NGOs to negotiate fair prices for the purchase of cocoa products and this will in turn help the farmers to gain access to basic social amenities of life. Reference Page Archer, D. (2012).ADM’s commitment to sustainable cocoa. Milwaukee: Copyright 2012 Archer Daniels Midland Company . Clarkson, T. (1998). Anti-slavery. Retrieved November 15, 2012, from www. antislavery. org: http://www. antislavery. org/english/privacy_policy. aspx Kilchberg. (2012, April 22). The environment in the Production Process. Retrieved November 13, 2012, from www. Lindt. com: http://www. lindt. com/swf/eng/company/social-responsibility/lindts-sustainable-cocoa-supply-chain/ Koffi, C. (2008, November 7). Ivory Coast women defy taboos. Retrieved November 11, 2012, from iol News: http://www. iol. co. za/news/africa/ivory-coast-women-defy-taboos-1. 423405

Gothic Architecture

The fall of the Roman Empire and the events that occurred in Europe leading up to the Middle Ages (has) have had a lasting effect on architecture and design today. The enduring values of medieval art and architecture can be split up into five major styles, early Christian, Byzantine, Islamic, Romanesque and Gothic. The most influential period was the Gothic, which is known for its significant change from classical architecture; this change from classical architecture aided in the Gothic era's transformation to its own identity.The Medieval period is known for its constant airfare and battle, and most people feared death and eternal damnation; the Catholic Church gained its wealth and power through people's fear. Due to the high level of religious devotion during this time, it is evident that church leaders, such as the Pope had more power than Kings and Queens. Even serfs wanted to maintain a relationship with God, so they paid small fees to be part of the church. Scott, page 149) Ca thedrals and churches were sacred spaces, an escape from the hardship and brutality of life, indicating that religion during this time was the most important influence in medieval culture, art, and architecture. It is evident in the monumental cathedrals and churches. Many argue that art and design weren't important during Medieval times. It is evident, however, through careful observation of monumental cathedrals and churches built during the early Middle Ages that the time period cherished art and design, rather than disregarded it.Religion was the most central aspect to life, and the intricate and divine detail included in these places of worship, such as the Notre Dame Cathedral show that art and design was very much appreciated. During the time of the Roman Empire, soldiers protected the middle and lower classes until it fell. The law then no longer protected the individuals, so they turned to the Lords to keep peace and protection. Thus began a period of time called the middle ages and the start of feudalism, which existed for over a century.Everyone's life was lived out against a backdrop of fear; fear of violence, bloodshed, brutality, fear of starvation, fear of dying, and fear of ones fate in the afterlife. Famine and sickness were major factors in death during this time, considering they depended on ropes and agriculture to prosper, and the cold climate led to less food on their plates and nothing to sell at the market. Even when food was abundant, serfs still lacked a dependable source of essential vitamins, leaving them weak and vulnerable to death.Their water was polluted and there were no sanitation systems, which often led to epidemics. They lived in hovels that were poorly wood constructed shelters that had no indoor heating; no windows to bring in natural light and generally caught fire. (Cantor, page 383) Their only defense against living in these harsh environments was elision; faith in God was their only hope for salvation in the after lif e. People also believed when misfortune struck, whether in the form of fire, drought, famine, and war, that they had failed God. Constantine the Great was considered to be the last great emperor of Rome.Although his reign was before the middle ages, he played an important transitional role in history through his recognition of Christianity, which became the prominent religion in Europe until the Reformation. Due to the fact that civilization survived in such harsh living conditions, the Christian faith brought everyone together in a more positive light and shaped their lives from birth to death; their purpose on earth was to serve god, who was above them. Humanism wouldn't make its presence known until the beginning of the renaissance, which was not until a century later, and society was Just adhering to the norm.Following the norm gave them great security, physically and emotionally. In any society that thrived for protection from the harshness of life through religion, people look ed to however could secure your happiness in heaven; this person had the most political and cultural power. The Roman Catholic church was the supreme power during the Middle ages, and the laws of the land and leading roles of government were all in the hands of church leaders such as bishops and archbishops. The Pope was considered the most powerful, as he was God's representative on earth.Although priests and kings had their individual responsibilities from the church, priests had a commitment to God, to communicate with him on behalf of the people, handing down Gods rules of conduct, where as the King was responsible for the people to adhere to those rules of conduct; he was noninsured God's Solider. The king had lords and nobles who served him, controlling the land in exchange for protection of the serfs, villains or peasants. To maintain such an operation, one might have as many as 500 serfs in his household, while those lower on the social scale might have an average of 70.Sinc e the church had extensive land holdings, it had great leverage in structuring feudalism (Blackmore, Robbie, page 68). The definition of feudalism is, â€Å"A political and economic system of Europe, based on the holding of all land in fief or fee and the resulting relation of rod to vassal and characterized by homage, legal and military service of tenants, and forfeiture. † (Cantor, page 164) Feudalism is known for its negative connotation; however, it still gave people a reason for salvation, and aided in their interest in a higher existence.Feudalism put fear in society's eyes, yet funded the construction of the cathedrals, which ironically had the opposite effect. Cathedrals were one response to the unsettling conditions of such a feudal society, but also became powerful and emotional masterpieces bringing the image of heaven to earth. These places of worship would serve to the lower classes and became city landmarks, a place where the village could experience solidarity. Together cathedrals and the cities they resided in would prosper. Having centered themselves in the heart of the town, places of worship brought people from the countryside to the center of the city (Scott, page 69). Unlike the more classical based architecture that came before it, the Romanesque style, Gothic architecture was built with excess. The Gothic characteristics strove for extreme proportions and dimensions; this created new structures to heighten the buildings, as well as improving window sizes to bring in enough light. Gothic architecture had wider windows and doors than those of Romanesque buildings.According to their understanding, â€Å"light is a substance, yet it differs from other substances through its ability to penetrate glass or precious stone without splitting them† (Hovercrafts, page 51). The flying buttresses, pointed arches, ribbed vaults, soaring ceilings, and stained glass windows characterize gothic design, making it functional, yet dramatically appealing. They clearly understood the importance of light, and how bringing that element into the building changed people's perceptions and attitudes. Notre Dame Cathedral is one of, if not the most profound example of gothic architecture.Construction of Notre Dame began under the direction of Maurice De Sully, Bishop of Paris in 1163. Geometric proportioning was fundamental for gothic design, which also led to the flying buttresses. When Notre Dame started its construction the walls were so thin, that arches on the exterior had to support the vertical and narrow proportions. The flying buttresses were not originally exposed and didn't become acceptable until the end of the 12th Century. Cathedrals during this time were competing to be the tallest, which symbolized wealth and power (Scott, peg 94). Geometric proportion was indeed a constant preoccupation in the middle ages,† (Gridlock, page 14) and this created a whole new style for the nave and an increase in the size of the stain glass windows. This cathedral's high alter was consecrated in 1189, and the nave was finished around 1196. The west faded of Notre Dame was completed between 1225 and 1230. The west faded displays an important characteristic to the gothic style, the rose window, which has many efferent conceptions on its significance.Relating back to the Romans and the culls centered upon the Pantheon in Greece, some view it as the symbol of the sun, and God, also as its original form a flower which represents Mary, and lastly, heavenly Jerusalem, which is known to be a round city (Hovercrafts peg 50). Not only did the window symbolize god, but also the shape of the building as well, The Latin Cross was the architectural shape of the building, as if God was looking down from heaven recognizing their faith. The towers topping the west faded were completed around 1250.It took over 200 ears to complete, taking into consideration the climate, need for materials and transportation, labor, and warf are. A tremendous amount of effort implies the importance the cathedral had to the population. Abbot Surer believed, â€Å"everything that is most precious should be used above all to celebrate†. Abbot Surer was an influential leader during his time and patron of the arts. He was a classmate and friend to the future King Louis VI, who later appointed him Abbot of church Saint-Denis (Cantor, page 398 ).His duty was to enhance the stature of the church Saint-Denis, and under his power the church was renovated so rustically that it has become the first example of the Gothic style also known as the â€Å"heavenly capital†. Light was the primary source of faith and divine inspiration, opening up the dark Romanesque walls and cramming it with aisles and replacing the clerestory windows with stained glass. Stained glass is another important element to the cathedral's design; one of the oldest surviving stained glass windows dates back to 1065, and can be found in the Cathedra l of Sagebrush in Germany. (Cantor, page 397) www. Sobs. Rag Popular designs depicted scenes from the bible as well as the lives of the Saints. Some also illustrated everyday life, showing Artisans at work. Romanesque cathedrals had such thick walls and small windows, they provided poor light, whereas Gothic cathedrals had windows so large that the stained glass would lay out on an entire floor. Understanding that light symbolized God, as the light came through the colored glass, often gave individuals a feeling of intense spirituality, not only illuminating the church, but them as well. Since few people could read or write, the windows also gave them a source of religious instruction.Sculptures were used as well throughout dihedral history. Sculptures of little monsters called Gargoyles conveyed more then one message, primarily to instill fear into the city. These Gargoyles represented the evil on earth, but were also said to scare off evil spirits, assuring citizens that it was a holy place. (Cantor, page 397) Ornamentation throughout the middle ages gave people an understanding to life and glorifying god. Over 80 cathedrals, and 500 abbey churches were built in the gothic style, (Cantor, page 104) astonishing monuments of Gods glory, each remained intact until the reformation.Cathedrals didn't build over night, like today with skyscrapers that take six years to build. It took up too two hundred years, some generations wouldn't even get to see them completed although worked on them their whole life. Workers would use the most basic tools, and the number of tools required for such a task were quite small, for example hammer, epic and axe, saw; working in conditions that modern day health and safety laws would forbid today. (Scott, page 21) It clearly shows the importance of these building to the people during that time period.Everything about he medieval cathedral, special use of light, layout, and sculptors are all inspirations of God. People feared that fai lure to use the best human creativity might be interpreted by the God as something less than full devotion, so they felt compelled to use all of their artistic, engineering and craft based creative individuals to create the finest space they were capable to build. Architecture was their doorway to a better life and as evidence shows the monumental cathedrals and churches built during the early Middle Ages were cherished art and design. Gothic Architecture The fall of the Roman Empire and the events that occurred in Europe leading up to the Middle Ages (has) have had a lasting effect on architecture and design today. The enduring values of medieval art and architecture can be split up into five major styles, early Christian, Byzantine, Islamic, Romanesque and Gothic. The most influential period was the Gothic, which is known for its significant change from classical architecture; this change from classical architecture aided in the Gothic era's transformation to its own identity.The Medieval period is known for its constant airfare and battle, and most people feared death and eternal damnation; the Catholic Church gained its wealth and power through people's fear. Due to the high level of religious devotion during this time, it is evident that church leaders, such as the Pope had more power than Kings and Queens. Even serfs wanted to maintain a relationship with God, so they paid small fees to be part of the church. Scott, page 149) Ca thedrals and churches were sacred spaces, an escape from the hardship and brutality of life, indicating that religion during this time was the most important influence in medieval culture, art, and architecture. It is evident in the monumental cathedrals and churches. Many argue that art and design weren't important during Medieval times. It is evident, however, through careful observation of monumental cathedrals and churches built during the early Middle Ages that the time period cherished art and design, rather than disregarded it.Religion was the most central aspect to life, and the intricate and divine detail included in these places of worship, such as the Notre Dame Cathedral show that art and design was very much appreciated. During the time of the Roman Empire, soldiers protected the middle and lower classes until it fell. The law then no longer protected the individuals, so they turned to the Lords to keep peace and protection. Thus began a period of time called the middle ages and the start of feudalism, which existed for over a century.Everyone's life was lived out against a backdrop of fear; fear of violence, bloodshed, brutality, fear of starvation, fear of dying, and fear of ones fate in the afterlife. Famine and sickness were major factors in death during this time, considering they depended on ropes and agriculture to prosper, and the cold climate led to less food on their plates and nothing to sell at the market. Even when food was abundant, serfs still lacked a dependable source of essential vitamins, leaving them weak and vulnerable to death.Their water was polluted and there were no sanitation systems, which often led to epidemics. They lived in hovels that were poorly wood constructed shelters that had no indoor heating; no windows to bring in natural light and generally caught fire. (Cantor, page 383) Their only defense against living in these harsh environments was elision; faith in God was their only hope for salvation in the after lif e. People also believed when misfortune struck, whether in the form of fire, drought, famine, and war, that they had failed God. Constantine the Great was considered to be the last great emperor of Rome.Although his reign was before the middle ages, he played an important transitional role in history through his recognition of Christianity, which became the prominent religion in Europe until the Reformation. Due to the fact that civilization survived in such harsh living conditions, the Christian faith brought everyone together in a more positive light and shaped their lives from birth to death; their purpose on earth was to serve god, who was above them. Humanism wouldn't make its presence known until the beginning of the renaissance, which was not until a century later, and society was Just adhering to the norm.Following the norm gave them great security, physically and emotionally. In any society that thrived for protection from the harshness of life through religion, people look ed to however could secure your happiness in heaven; this person had the most political and cultural power. The Roman Catholic church was the supreme power during the Middle ages, and the laws of the land and leading roles of government were all in the hands of church leaders such as bishops and archbishops. The Pope was considered the most powerful, as he was God's representative on earth.Although priests and kings had their individual responsibilities from the church, priests had a commitment to God, to communicate with him on behalf of the people, handing down Gods rules of conduct, where as the King was responsible for the people to adhere to those rules of conduct; he was noninsured God's Solider. The king had lords and nobles who served him, controlling the land in exchange for protection of the serfs, villains or peasants. To maintain such an operation, one might have as many as 500 serfs in his household, while those lower on the social scale might have an average of 70.Sinc e the church had extensive land holdings, it had great leverage in structuring feudalism (Blackmore, Robbie, page 68). The definition of feudalism is, â€Å"A political and economic system of Europe, based on the holding of all land in fief or fee and the resulting relation of rod to vassal and characterized by homage, legal and military service of tenants, and forfeiture. † (Cantor, page 164) Feudalism is known for its negative connotation; however, it still gave people a reason for salvation, and aided in their interest in a higher existence.Feudalism put fear in society's eyes, yet funded the construction of the cathedrals, which ironically had the opposite effect. Cathedrals were one response to the unsettling conditions of such a feudal society, but also became powerful and emotional masterpieces bringing the image of heaven to earth. These places of worship would serve to the lower classes and became city landmarks, a place where the village could experience solidarity. Together cathedrals and the cities they resided in would prosper. Having centered themselves in the heart of the town, places of worship brought people from the countryside to the center of the city (Scott, page 69). Unlike the more classical based architecture that came before it, the Romanesque style, Gothic architecture was built with excess. The Gothic characteristics strove for extreme proportions and dimensions; this created new structures to heighten the buildings, as well as improving window sizes to bring in enough light. Gothic architecture had wider windows and doors than those of Romanesque buildings.According to their understanding, â€Å"light is a substance, yet it differs from other substances through its ability to penetrate glass or precious stone without splitting them† (Hovercrafts, page 51). The flying buttresses, pointed arches, ribbed vaults, soaring ceilings, and stained glass windows characterize gothic design, making it functional, yet dramatically appealing. They clearly understood the importance of light, and how bringing that element into the building changed people's perceptions and attitudes. Notre Dame Cathedral is one of, if not the most profound example of gothic architecture.Construction of Notre Dame began under the direction of Maurice De Sully, Bishop of Paris in 1163. Geometric proportioning was fundamental for gothic design, which also led to the flying buttresses. When Notre Dame started its construction the walls were so thin, that arches on the exterior had to support the vertical and narrow proportions. The flying buttresses were not originally exposed and didn't become acceptable until the end of the 12th Century. Cathedrals during this time were competing to be the tallest, which symbolized wealth and power (Scott, peg 94). Geometric proportion was indeed a constant preoccupation in the middle ages,† (Gridlock, page 14) and this created a whole new style for the nave and an increase in the size of the stain glass windows. This cathedral's high alter was consecrated in 1189, and the nave was finished around 1196. The west faded of Notre Dame was completed between 1225 and 1230. The west faded displays an important characteristic to the gothic style, the rose window, which has many efferent conceptions on its significance.Relating back to the Romans and the culls centered upon the Pantheon in Greece, some view it as the symbol of the sun, and God, also as its original form a flower which represents Mary, and lastly, heavenly Jerusalem, which is known to be a round city (Hovercrafts peg 50). Not only did the window symbolize god, but also the shape of the building as well, The Latin Cross was the architectural shape of the building, as if God was looking down from heaven recognizing their faith. The towers topping the west faded were completed around 1250.It took over 200 ears to complete, taking into consideration the climate, need for materials and transportation, labor, and warf are. A tremendous amount of effort implies the importance the cathedral had to the population. Abbot Surer believed, â€Å"everything that is most precious should be used above all to celebrate†. Abbot Surer was an influential leader during his time and patron of the arts. He was a classmate and friend to the future King Louis VI, who later appointed him Abbot of church Saint-Denis (Cantor, page 398 ).His duty was to enhance the stature of the church Saint-Denis, and under his power the church was renovated so rustically that it has become the first example of the Gothic style also known as the â€Å"heavenly capital†. Light was the primary source of faith and divine inspiration, opening up the dark Romanesque walls and cramming it with aisles and replacing the clerestory windows with stained glass. Stained glass is another important element to the cathedral's design; one of the oldest surviving stained glass windows dates back to 1065, and can be found in the Cathedra l of Sagebrush in Germany. (Cantor, page 397) www. Sobs. Rag Popular designs depicted scenes from the bible as well as the lives of the Saints. Some also illustrated everyday life, showing Artisans at work. Romanesque cathedrals had such thick walls and small windows, they provided poor light, whereas Gothic cathedrals had windows so large that the stained glass would lay out on an entire floor. Understanding that light symbolized God, as the light came through the colored glass, often gave individuals a feeling of intense spirituality, not only illuminating the church, but them as well. Since few people could read or write, the windows also gave them a source of religious instruction.Sculptures were used as well throughout dihedral history. Sculptures of little monsters called Gargoyles conveyed more then one message, primarily to instill fear into the city. These Gargoyles represented the evil on earth, but were also said to scare off evil spirits, assuring citizens that it was a holy place. (Cantor, page 397) Ornamentation throughout the middle ages gave people an understanding to life and glorifying god. Over 80 cathedrals, and 500 abbey churches were built in the gothic style, (Cantor, page 104) astonishing monuments of Gods glory, each remained intact until the reformation.Cathedrals didn't build over night, like today with skyscrapers that take six years to build. It took up too two hundred years, some generations wouldn't even get to see them completed although worked on them their whole life. Workers would use the most basic tools, and the number of tools required for such a task were quite small, for example hammer, epic and axe, saw; working in conditions that modern day health and safety laws would forbid today. (Scott, page 21) It clearly shows the importance of these building to the people during that time period.Everything about he medieval cathedral, special use of light, layout, and sculptors are all inspirations of God. People feared that fai lure to use the best human creativity might be interpreted by the God as something less than full devotion, so they felt compelled to use all of their artistic, engineering and craft based creative individuals to create the finest space they were capable to build. Architecture was their doorway to a better life and as evidence shows the monumental cathedrals and churches built during the early Middle Ages were cherished art and design.

Internal Revenue Service Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Internal Revenue Service - Essay Example Special rules apply for traders in securities who are in the business of buying and selling securities for their own account tax (Internal Revenue Service, n.d. b). According to the Internal Revenue Service (n.d. b), to be engaged in business as a trader in securities, all of the following conditions must be met: The objective of profiting from daily market movements in the prices of securities and not from dividends, interest, or capital appreciation. The activity must be substantial, and Continuity and regularity of trading activity. Furthermore, according to the Internal Revenue Service (n.d. b), the following facts and circumstances should be considered in determining if the activity is a securities trading business. Typical holding periods for securities bought and sold. The frequency and dollar amount of trades during the year. The extent to which the activity contributes to the generation of income for a livelihood, and The amount of time devoted to the activity. Further, a taxpayer may be a trader in some securities and hold other securities for investment. The special rules for traders do not apply to the securities held for investment. A trader must keep detailed records to distinguish the securities held for investment from the securities in the trading business. The securities held for investment must be identified as such in the trader's records on the day he or she acquires them (Internal Revenue Service, n.d. b). Both the limitations on capital losses and the wash sale rules continue to apply. However, if the mark-to-market election was timely made, then the gains and losses from sales of securities are treated as ordinary gains and losses. Further, neither the limitations on capital losses nor the wash sale rules apply to traders using the mark-to-market method of accounting (Internal Revenue Service, n.d. b).

Minicase-8 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Minicase-8 - Essay Example However, under the ED, only those conversion options that â€Å"establish an ownership relationship will be classified as equity† (ED-FI, p. 4). This means that, once converted, the shares are not redeemable and that the holder bears the risk of the changes in the market value of the issuer’s shares of stock. If the option does not meet this criterion, the entire convertible bond will be classified as liability. Prior to the issuance of SFAS 145, the standard used to account for early extinguishment of debt was FASB Statement No. 4, Reporting Gains and Losses from Extinguishment of Debt. Under Statement No. 4, the gains or losses realized from the early settlement of debt should be shown as part of the company’s extraordinary items in its income statement. This classification is required regardless of the reason behind the early settlement. Under SFAS 145, gains or losses from early extinguishment of debt can now be classified as part of the income or loss from continuing operations in the income statement; provided that early extinguishments of debts are part of the recurring transactions for the issuer. However, if such early extinguishments of debts are unusual or are infrequent transactions, the gains or losses realized from such early extinguishments should still be classified as extraordinary items in the income statement. The change was made because FASB recognized that early payments of debt have become part of the risk management strategy of certain companies. Such transactions are now also viewed as recurring financing activities that an entity can utilize to manage its interest rate risk. FASB also thinks that this change is consistent with the definition of unusual or extraordinary transactions under APB Opinion No. 30 and will reduce the frequency of using the caption â€Å"extraordinary items† in t he income statement. The requirement of SFAS 145 related to the classification of gains or losses from early extinguishment of debt affects

Management Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 7

Management - Assignment Example The company also has strong marketing and advertising capabilities; it spends its advertising money more efficiently that its rivals are thereby getting greater returns in terms of revenue and product awareness (Böhm, 58). Such strong marketing and advertising capabilities have provided the company with a competitive advantage in the market than its closest rival. The market share of the company I likely to increased due to increased demand for glass products, necessitated by rising need for scientific research as well as education. The company, therefore, should aim at increasing its productivity to meet that demand. This will help  the  R&H Filter Company to use the opportunity as a competitive advantage. The R&H Filter Company mostly used waste glasses as raw materials; it recycles glass products. The company has a positive attitude towards green environment, which has offered it a positive public image. It has been seen as conserving and preserving the environment. Therefore, a new wave for stricter regulations regarding emission of CO2 and carbon monoxide would positively affect the company. The company should put the rapid changes in technology into use to develop high-quality and innovative products so as to be able to tackle the intense competition in glass products. Even though, the company’s high investment in research and development lead to high revenue volumes, The R&H Filter Company still has a high cost structure, the costs are driven by their generous employee compensation, benefits and pension plans (Ferrell and Michael,

Management Strategies Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Management Strategies - Assignment Example This is because the opinions and the level of exposure to an industry vary with the individual. The study also elaborates how managers in other fields can fit in the management of unfamiliar fields by applying universally adapting strategies. Managers, therefore, emerge as resourceful personnel if they have a wide scope of experience rather than being centralized to one line of thinking. When Barnevick was chief executive officer at ABB, profitability was based on acquisition of firms as a means of diversity to enhance the competitiveness. The plan worked well for the firm noting the changes in profitability and the return on capital. The maxim on ‘thinking Global while acting local’ relieved massively on acquiring firms which had local impact in their respective regions. The products offered were standardized for the markets, hence global. This is evidenced by the fact that some were being exported to other areas such as Africa. While dealing with global products, the f irm was profitable. The down trend in ABB started after the change of management when Barnevick stepped down as CEO. The scenario explains the consequence of change in management in an organization. It expresses the need to hire leaders who can impart continuity in the operation. The close down of Combustion engineering was a case poor market choice. It expresses the need to research extensively before carrying out an investment. Though operating separately, firms under the same umbrella should be controlled by sound centralized structures. The competitiveness of ABB became widely challenged due to minimal bureaucracy. With a compact structure, signals of failure become detected at early stages facilitating counter action. After handing over to Lindahl, the profitability reduced to making losses due to different management styles. Lindahl, however, acted like an economist by consolidating the market to areas which offered a competitive strategy. The new CEO concentrated on using the Asian markets where costs of production were low. The case explores how managers implementing the same strategy can embrace different roles. Barnevick’s focus relied on firm acquisition while Lindahl focused on labor intensive manufacture. The new leadership strategy once again increased the profitability of the conglomerate. Lindahl’s successful leadership was not satisfactory since the position was handed over to another CEO, Jorgen Centermann, who held the position of the Automation business. Centermann’s strategy focused on customer segments. Centermann can be noted as a modern manager due to the indulgence in the use of internet in the business. The strategy introduced, however, drove the firm back to making losses rather than propel it forward. All the CEO’s above relied of the global standardization in order to enhance competitiveness. A totally different perspective came into being with the replacement of Centermann with Dormann. This CEO did not have knowledge of the electrical engineering field like the previous CEO’s. Within a short period, Dormann was able to uncover the deficiencies in the firm and set out to eliminate them. With the keen leadership, the board became aware of various investments done for the firm under the leadership of Barnevick and Lindahl. The firm unearthed interests vested in assets such as jets and armored limousines. They also discovered that pension schemes set up in the past for the two CEO’

The life of david gale Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

The life of david gale - Essay Example The movie raises a number of issues in the modern day society. False representation, shoddy police investigation, and bribery affect the implementation of justice in the current day society. Unfortunately, in as much as everyone is aware of the occurrence of such vices, no one takes notice of any action to prevent their perpetuation, and the rest of the society lives on as though the vices are not ever felt. This movie therefore offers a challenge by revealing the extent to which one can ever go to unearth the societal evil. It takes a strong heart and a patriotic spirit to develop the type of personality shown by the lead character in the movie (Schermerhorn 66). Broadcasters use movies and television programs to advertise products and services. Broadcasting media houses earn their revenue mainly through the adverts. In selecting the advertising time, marketers consider a number of factors key among which is the audience base of the programs and the relation of the product and or service to the audience. The Life of David Gale is a thriller movie, one shown in most television shows late in the night and targets an adult and analytical audience. Products and services advertised in its wake should therefore target a similar audience. Wells Fargo is an English company that offers security services besides being a bank. The organization prides itself in integrity and effectiveness of their process of executing client dictates. The company advertised some of their freight, security, and their banking services in the course of the movie. Some components of these adverts are in correspondence with the theme addressed in the movie (Penz, and Andong 99). The movie espouses on the absence of an effectual and legal system; it shows an indecent police system. David Gale is deliberately betrayed by the women he thought he

Workplace Violence Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Workplace Violence - Research Paper Example Non physical violence such as intimidation, abuse, threats etc, physical violence like punching, kicking, pushing etc and aggravated physical violence using weapons are the major categories of workplace violence. â€Å"The National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health says there are 3 people murdered every day at work. Murder is the second highest reason for death in the workplace with over 1000 being killed every year!† (Workplace Violence Statistics) Workplace violence is not good for the interests of either the employers or the employees. It can destroy the mutual relationships between the employers and employees. Cooperation is necessary among the employees since most of the organizational works are at present completed using team work. Workplace violence will destroy the cohesion of various teams formed in an organization for completing different works. This paper briefly analyses the topic workplace violence, its causes and possible preventive measures. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, an average of 564 work-related homicides occurred each year in the United States from 2004 to 2008. The BLS reports that "most shootings occurred in the private sector (86 percent) whereas 14 percent of shootings occurred in government. ... ting better salaries compared to the employees of few decades before, but along with the increased salary, they are getting increased stress also from their workplaces because of increased responsibilities. Failure to fulfil the expectations of the employer may result in loss of jobs and hence employees always work under pressure. The employee is connected with his family, society and workplace in different ways. All these institutions give more responsibilities to him. It is difficult for him to find enough time to fulfil all his commitments. Overtime duty is strictly implemented in many organizations because of manpower shortage and overload of works. Thus the current employees are tied most of his times to the organization and they are not getting enough time to meet their other requirements. In short, most of the current employees are working under immense stress which can lead towards workplace violence. Private sector employment laws in America are weaker compared to the public sector laws. Private firms in America give more freedom to the workers as part of their modern scientific management principles. However, workers often exploit their freedom in an unhealthy manner which may lead towards increased workplace violence in the private sector. In public enterprises, strict screening is performed at the gates for guns and weapons, before the employees enter their offices. On the other hand, in private organizations, such intense screening is not there and it is easy for the private employees to enter the company premises with guns like dangerous weapons. One research study about workplace violence showed that: â€Å"91.6% of shootings on the job committed by men and almost 38% of shootings in the workplace happened in "white collar" situations† (Workplace Violence

Learning to look Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Learning to look - Essay Example For instance, the pixelated image is pushed to the greater part of the lower left corner, leaving a smaller edge on the upper right corner of the image for the print message. A closer look also indicates some form of harmony in the image. For instance, the pixelated part is seen to be the image of a building. To create harmony, the letters on the upper right corner are also fashioned in a way to also reproduce the image. There is also some rhythm in the image achieved through the repetition of the P-shaped figures in the pixelated part of the design. However, the image lacks motion as well as focus due to the fact that it does not have a basic or obvious flow of direction. The most striking thing about this ad is its lack of attractive colour. The designer uses an image which has been pixelated thus making the image and the whole advert in essence less attractive. In this regard, the advert may be criticised in terms of its ability to attract the audience since people seem to be attracted towards crystal-clear images and warm colours. The advert is geared towards generating curiosity as opposed to any other emotion. In this regard, it has used elements which leave the person wanting to know more. A pixelated image is an icon of hidden details and in this case, it shows that there are hidden details which the individual needs to know. The advert is geared towards getting the individual to log into a certain website and thus its ability to cause the curiosity is important. It offers little detail as to what it is talking about, only giving the reader an opportunity to explore their curiosity in order to guarantee that the audience will be provoked to vi sit the website. This method is becoming a modern way of advertising because unlike in earlier days, today’s businesses or any advertising parties have websites where the audience can get more information as well as engage them. The context of the ad is also important in deterring the design.

Tobacco Company Strategies Towards Health Awareness Essay Example for Free

Tobacco Company Strategies Towards Health Awareness Essay Threats faced by the tobacco company is the raise of awareness on the hazard of smoking and the big increament in taxes. The awareness campaign usually came from the local government which tax is paid to. On the other hand, number of smokers keep on rising each day eventhough the proggresive campaign towards the awareness of hazards of smoking. Several resistance towards the development of tobacco company. Like wise, the company has to raise the good image of their company. By doing this, the bad image as a tobacco company which lead to unhealthy life style will be reduce. They tried to emerged with a lot of positive approach towards the effort on banning smoking in public area. The world tobacco industry generated sales of almost $721 billion in 2010 according to analyst. Cigarettes represent the leading market segment with revenue exceeding $681 billion, which accounts for almost 95% of the overall market. The yearly rate of market growth is expected to accelerate to be 4. 5% until 2015, bringing the market to almost $890 billion. The tobacco market involves the retail of tobacco, cigarettes, cigars, cigarillos and chewing tobacco. There are currently around 1. billion smokers in the world; this figure is expected to climb at a rate of almost 4% per year. Tobacco is grown in over 120 countries worldwide, using close to 4 million hectares of total agricultural land available globally. Around 12 million cigarettes are smoked every minute around the world. Around 35% of men in developed nations smoke, compared with 50% of men in developing nations. Abou t 22% of women smoke in developed nations, compared with less than 10% in developing nations. Cigarettes represent the largest share of the tobacco market in sales volume and value. Though consumption levels have fallen, the absolute number of smokers has been climbing along with the global population and disposable incomes, reports Global Industry Analysts. China is the largest regional market for cigarettes. Cigars do not generate the same sales or sell in the same high volume as cigarettes. In a more recent trend, the social cachet attached to cigars has been boosting sales. As consumers become more health conscious, they are opting for cigars for their lower level of harm to health. Cigarillos, which are cigars that way less than three grams, represent the market segments recording the most rapid growth. In the past, cigars have been much less marketed than cigarettes, associated with a different demographic (that of the older male), and have not been paid much promotional attention by companies. Advertising of cigars is on the rise, along with aromatic filter varieties, which appeal more to younger and female demographics, and there are increasing numbers of tobacco-only stores in operation. The three leading companies in the global tobacco market are Philip Morris International, China National Tobacco Corporation and Japan Tobacco. Philip Morris International is the world’s largest tobacco company, which sells its products in 180 countries, and held a 16% stake in the international market outside of the US in 2010. Excluding China, the company holds almost 28% of the global market. As tobacco consumption in developed countries declines due to health awareness, tobacco companies are concentrating more on developing countries, including Latin America, Asia, and the Middle East. The industry is focusing its efforts on advertising strategies such as offering low-risk products and re-launching existing products to attract female consumers. More recent product offerings include cigarettes flavored with mint, citrus, and vanilla, and low-risk products with reduced toxins and carcinogens or free of nicotine. The global tobacco industry continues to struggle with negative publicity due to health concerns, high taxes, and state regulations. Once seen as a social pass time, smoking is now perceived as anti-social and damaging to health, causing premature deaths and lunch cancer. Companies are now required to include health warnings on their product labels and are no longer allowed to undertake marketing campaigns. For example in America, the tobacco industry has funded state initiatives that provide resources to help smokers quit smoking as per the  Master Settlement Agreement  regulated by the U. S. government. For example,  Phillip Morris  USA operates a  Ã¢â‚¬Å"Quit Assist†Ã‚  website that acts as a guide for those who choose to quit smoking. Companies and organizations can sponsor events, programs, festivals, performances, individuals, groups, teams, equipment and/or facilities, by providing financial support for activities, promotions and services. Sponsorship refers to the donation of money, services or in-kind support in exchange for recognition of the donation (e. g. , being listed as a â€Å"sponsor† of an event, production or competition). Many companies, including tobacco companies, engage in sponsorship for the purpose of promoting a product or a cause, supporting a needy group, establishing name recognition for a company or brand, earning publicity for a â€Å"good deed,† or building an image for a company, organization or product.

Development of Microprocessor Based Automatic Gate

Development of Microprocessor Based Automatic Gate ABSTRACT In this paper, we give detailed information about development of microprocessor based automatic gate. In common gate operations many times troubles will occur, using microprocessor based automatic gate, we can completely remove these troubles easily. We are going to use this automatic gate in Automatic Car Parking. The automatic gate senses vehicle which they come near to it. It automatically opens, wait for a definite time, and closes after the time has passed. This system can also regularly check the number of vehicle that entered the parking area and calculate the available space limit of the area. The automatic gate developed in this paper is controlled by software, which can be modified any time whenever the system needs the change. Keywords: automatic gate, microprocessor, automobile, traffic controllers. INTRODUCTION Need of automatic gate is rapidly increasing day by day. This system described the use of microprocessor as a controller. This automatic gate is nothing but the alternative of manual gate. Manual systems are costly, time consuming. Micro controlled gate are  used in making sound system, Robot, automatic breaking system, etc. This automatic gate can be used in parking of residential home, organization, in public car parking. This system consists of an automatic remote control to open and close the door for parking. It opens the door only when the space is there. The automatic gate which is used here is not for security purpose. It is just developed to eliminate the problems which are faced by the older manual method. SYSTEM OVERVIEW The system presented here is microprocessor based automatic gate. Here microprocessor is used to control the sensor which gives the information about space limit. This system opens, wait and closes door for car. And counts the number of car entered or exit. This system consists of trigger circuit, sensor, CPU and memory module, display, gate and power supply unit. First sensor gives input signal to system. The sensor is optical when the car cross it then the signal is HIGH otherwise it is LOW. Trigger is responsible for the HIGH and LOW signals. This trigger coverts the analog signal to digital. If the signal is HIGH then trigger sends the signal to interface unit. Then the car enters the parking. If the signal is LOW then the car never enters to the parking area. Power supply unit supplies DC voltage for system. Block diagram of system HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE DESIGN The system design is divided into two parts: Hardware design. Software design. Hardware design Sensor unit Trigger circuit CPU module Memory module Display unit Gate control unit Power supply unit 1. Sensor Unit:- It is an optical sensor; this is the light dependent register. This will change its resistance with intensity of light. In this system we use ORP12 it is called as dark resistance of 10ÃŽ ©. When light ray are focused then resistance is low and if lights are disturbed, resistance will start increasing to dark resistance. Two pair of resister is used one for entrance gate and another for exit gate. Sensor unit send output to trigger circuit. When light ray focused output voltage is v01 and v02. And when light is getting interrupted then the voltage increases to 5v. 2. Trigger Circuit:- This is made up of trigger, two input NAND gate. This receives the output from sensor unit. If there is output from sensor unit then only trigger circuit go HIGH, otherwise it remains at LOW level. 3. CPU Module:- This provides system clock, reset and access to address data and control bus. Additional circuits are used which are: Clock circuit. Reset circuit. Clock circuit: Crystal Oscillator is used to implement clock circuit. Cristal oscillator is more reliable for the high level output voltage. In this design the CPU which is used, has a clock cycle. Thus we use crystal oscillator and is pass through flip flop. Reset Circuit: After the power is supplied this circuit initializes CPU if Halt occurs. If the CPU is reset the execution starts. It will clear the interrupt. 4. Memory Module:- In this module two techniques are used linear select and fully decoding technique. In linear select each bit select a device, can be done with small system. Doesn’t need any decoding hardware, but it is time consuming. In fully decoding memory address is required to select memory device. Address Decoder: It tells about space in memory to allocate the address pointed by microprocessor. In this combinational circuits are used. It can enable multiple inputs. When all enables are active then only decoder has active low outputs. 5. Display Unit:- Display unit uses the decimal and hexadecimal format for displaying purpose. Display unit consists of- Z80 PIO: It provides 8-bit I/O port. It needs a driver to fed output to 7-segment display. Whenever a vehicle crosses the gate, this unit send signal to driver. BCD to 7 segment decoder: For displaying decimal digit, decoder is used to take 4-bit BCD input. 7-segment display 6. Gate Control Unit:- Gate control unit is made up of PNP and NPN transistor Diodes Motor. Transistors are used to control opening of gate through motor. There is time interval of 10 seconds between opening and closing of gate. Diodes are used to protect transistor from reverse bias register to improve switching line. A DC Motor is used to control opening and closing of gate. 7. Power Supply Unit:- Power supply unit designed is 5v DC and is doesn’t change even if there is variation in AC voltage. Component of power supply unit is:- Transformer: 220 or 240 transformer. Diode: converts AC current to DC. Filter Capacitor: used to reduce ripple voltage. Regulator: it receives DC input, and return it as the output Software design Software design is referred as the coding. Here we have to program the system. Program modules are: Main Program Sensor Subroutine Delay Subroutine Output Subroutine Steps involving in software design: Algorithm Flow Chart Coding Algorithm START 1. cnt1 = 0, cnt2 = 0, lim = 20 2. Read the sensor bit 3. Compare sensor bit with entry code and exit code. a. If sensor bit = entry code then goto step 5 b. Elseif sensor bit = exit code then goto step 6 4. Go to step 2 5. a. Open, wait and close b. Increment cnt1 and display c. Go to step 7 6a.Open, wait and close b. Increment cnt2 and display 7. Subtract cnt2 from cnt1 8. Compare result with lim a. If result = lim then step 9 b. Else go to step 2 9. Fetch sensor bit 10. Compare sensor bit a. If status = exit code then step6 b. Else raise alarm 11. Goto step 9. CONCLUSION By this system with the help of microcontroller gate project’s goal is achieved. The design can be applicable for any kind of system which needs sensor. In this system sensor plays the important part to this parking system. For effectiveness one should have the proper knowledge about the sensor, microprocessor, and assembly language. The sensor works effectively if operates in high intensity of light. This automatic gate can be used in organization; public car park etc. and this system don’t make for any security purpose.

Golf Tourism :: Environmental Sports Golfing Essays

Golf Tourism Golf tourism is spreading rapidly all over the world in places like Asia and Mexico. Although most people who play the sport of golf play because of its interaction with nature, what most golfers do not realize or consider is the damaging environmental impact on the sport. The booming golf trade throughout the world creates a haven for golfers and a nightmare for environmentalists. According to members of the Malaysia-Based Asia-Pacific People’s Environment Network, golf development is becoming one of the most unsustainable and damaging activities to people and the environment (TED Case Studies, 1997). Asia has gone from just 45 golf courses in 1970 to over 500 today (TED Case Studies, 1997). The rapid increase in development also brings a rapid increase in ecological problems. In Southwest Asia ecological apathy includes greens carved out of paddy fields and virgin forests. Development of golf courses also entails clearing vegetation, cutting forests and creating artificial landscapes. These activities lead to land erosion and block the soils ability to retain water (Klein, 1996). Golf courses also need large quantities of pesticides, fertilizers and herbicides, which cause health problems among golfers, workers, and nearby residents. Unfortunately, these numerous problems are overlooked by developers who are often supported by the Asian governments due to the economic rewards from the sport. The low green fees in Asia have increased tourism to these courses as well as increasing the temptation for further golf course development. The most notorious debate among golf course development in recent years has been the plan to create a $311 million project consisting of 592 luxury homes, hotels, restaurants, and a 7,276-yard golf course in Tepoztlan Mexico. Opponents of the golf course claim that golf-course projects use dangerous chemicals and too much water as well as induce higher property taxes and disrupt culturally intact communities. The site of development in Tepoztlan will be located on 462 acres of communal land within a national park and a biological corridor that harbors Aztec ruins and 28 endemic species of animals (Planet ENN, 1996). The high amount of water necessary for the project is estimated by developers to be approximately 800,000 gallons a day for peak irrigation (which is nearly five times that pumped daily by Tepoztlan). This brings about much debate because of the town’s ongoing problems with water shortage. Those who support the Tepoztlan golf plan (mainly developers) believe that it will create 13,000 construction jobs over seven years, and 2900 permanent jobs (Selcraig, 1996).

An Assassin of John F. Kennedy :: Roscoe White History Assassination Essays

An Assassin of John F. Kennedy In another bizarre twist to a mystery that has haunted Americans for more than a quarter century, the son of a former Dallas police officer plans to tell the world that his father was one of the assassins of President John F. Kennedy. Ricky White, a 29-year-old, unemployed oil equipment salesman in Midland, says he "had no conception of ever, ever giving this story out" but decided to do so after FBI agents began asking questions in May 1988. "I'm telling you a story that has touched me, not only others, and I feel uncomfortable just telling it to strangers," White said during a recent interview with the Austin American-Statesman. Monday in Dallas, White is scheduled to show reports material implicating his father, Roscoe Anthony White, in the 1963 assassination. It suggests that White, who died in 1971, was a member of an assassination team of three shooters, that he fired two of the three bullets that killed the president, and that he also killed Dallas police officer J. D. Tippit during the manhunt for Lee Harvey Oswald. Among the material: a rifle with telescopic sight that uses the same kind of ammunition as Oswald's gun; records showing that Oswald and White served together in the Marines; three faded messages that appear to be decoded orders to kill someone in Dallas in November 1963; and a son's recollections of his father's incriminating diary - a document that is missing. The press conference is being sponsored by two private groups - the JFK Assassination Information Centre of Dallas and the Assassination Archives and Research Centre of Washington - and some Midland Businessmen. The possibility of Ricky White's story being a hoax - a falsehood concocted either by Ricky or his father - has not been dismissed by the people urging him to publicly talk about the matter. During the last 27 years, many private researchers have claimed to have found evidence of a conspiracy, only to be proved wrong or deceitful. Bernard Fensterwald, executive director of the Assassination Archives and Research Centre, says if there was a conspiracy, Ricky White may have the key. "I think it's our best shot," he says, "and we better take it." J. Gary Shaw, co-director of the JFK Assassination Information Centre, says he hopes White's story will result in an investigation of the assassination by Texas authorities. Two Washington-based probes - the Warren Commission in 1963-64 and the House Select Committee on Assassinations in 1976-78 failed to resolve the enigma of the Kennedy shooting, Shaw maintains. As with previous conspiracy theories, White's story is tantalizing, the evidence intriguing. Yet, as with other theories, it raises more

Adaptations of Mammals to Arid Australian Environments :: Environment Australia Animals Essays

Adaptations of Mammals to Arid Australian Environments Abstract High temperatures and low rainfall characterize much of Australia. It is hard to believe that animals can survive in arid conditions, much less prosper. Yet there is a whole range of mammals, among other life forms, that do. These animals survive because they have adaptations that allow them to live in the hot, dry conditions. The function of the adaptations is to balance thermoregulation with water gain and loss. For instance, many mammals that live in the desert obtain much or all of their water from the food they consume. The reduced water intake is partially balanced through concentrated urine and dry faeces. Evaporative cooling helps to regulate temperature. To limit the water lost through evaporative cooling, mammals are nocturnal, have light coloration and other body features to help dissipate heat, and use microenvironments to reduce heat gain. This is only a short list of the many amazing adaptations Australian mammals have to survive the harsh arid conditions; howe ver, it serves to illustrate the balance between thermoregulation and water regulation. Introduction Seventy percent of Australia is considered arid or semi-arid (Climate averages, 2000). Arid regions are characterized by receiving 100-250 millimeters of rain a year, and semi-arid regions are characterized by receiving 250-500 mm of rain per year (Costa, 1995). The average rainfall in Australia is only 165 mm per year (Climate averages, 2002). Not only are these regions faced with sparse rainfall, but they are also confronted with extreme temperatures. During the summer months of January and February, temperatures regularly exceed 40Â °C in the arid regions (Climate averages, 2002). The temperatures are even more scorching for small animals that live close to the ground because the soil becomes much hotter than the air (Walsberg, 2000). Therefore, Australian mammals must have adaptations to cope with the heat and lack of available water. Additionally, they must have adaptations to balance thermoregulation with water regulation. This paper will address these adaptations and explain how they work. Homeothermy Mammals can be broadly classified as homeotherms, which means their body temperature is relatively independent of the external environmental temperature (Ricklefs, 2001). Mammals and birds keep their body temperatures between 37Â °C and 38Â °C, however there are exceptions (Walsberg, 2000). Maintaining a constant internal temperature requires animals to have mechanisms to regulate their body temperature.

Reaction Paper Leadership Essay

Leaders are made and not born. Leadership skills can be thought to anyone who is willing and given an opportunity to lead an organization. It is important have someone to continue the goals of a company. There are some qualities a great leader should have: Be strong when you are week – This is very important for developing a leader. You need to give them the opportunity to grow strong and they will learn from their own experience in leadership especially when a leader is weak, he has no choice but to become strong. Be brave when you are scared – Risks are very essential in business. You need to be brave to take risks. In developing a leader, it might be risky because they might fail their tasks but learning takes time and someone needs to experience failure in order to succeed. Be humble when you are victorious – Executive leaders don’t shout their success, instead they remain humble and silent. The more you show your achievements, the more people will env y you and will try to destroy you. A few days ago, I had this opportunity to attend a gathering with successful salesman. We played dice game and everyone is aiming for the first price. Theirs this one man beside me, he said that he didn’t want to get the first price because he didn’t want too much greedy, any price will do. I knew this guy as a successful man but he dress and live very simple. The moral lesson I learned is that you don’t need to be greedy and live elegant in life, you just need to stay humble. As a leader, you need to stay humble to your employees. The business world is very crucial place and having too much pride and envy will not earn you anything. Sometimes when the company has too much greediness, they will became impromptu in investing without thinking further and this might became the cause of their downfall. Look at the mirror and not on the window – a great leader don’t need to hear negative feedbacks form others, they look at their self and improve. Other people might tell you that you can’t achieve anything in life or other people will judge you. The important is that you know yourself that you can reach you goals and if ever they judge your capabilities, prove it to them that their wrong. You can’t  explain to everyone that why they shouldn’t judge you, instead make this as your motivation to change other’s belief on you. A great leader is honest of what he/she is capable of. You don’t need to pretend of what you have and promise to a person, you will just break people’s trust on you. Trust is your most important assent – Great companies expands and continually growing because of the people who trust them. They use this trust to get investors and stock holders. They trust this companies that they will became successful someday. Leaders need to gain trust from their employees. If your employee’s don’t trust you, they will not follow your advice and your commands.

B321 Tma 02

Question 1 (a) Simons (1999, pg 768) describes intrinsic motivation as â€Å"desire to engage in behaviours or actions in anticipation of internally- generated rewards such as personal feelings of accomplishment† and extrinsic motivation Simons describes as (1999, pg 766) â€Å"desire to engage in behaviours or actions in anticipation of tangible rewards, such as money or promotion†. Extrinsic motivation is created by financial incentives. An incentive as Simons (1999, 767) describes as being â€Å"a reward or payment that is used to motivate performance.The two types of motivation mentioned above can be used to design a rewards package for the product centre managers. First I will discuss intrinsic motivation; this type of motivation is â€Å"from within† (as Simon states (1999, pg 245)) rather than external. Managers can improve intrinsic motivation, Simon’s (1999, pg 245) states â€Å"they can make people proud of where they work† and also †Å"they can involve subordinates in the goal setting process to increase the likelihood that subordinates will see the goals as legitimate.If subordinates are included in the process of setting goals-asked to provide input and information –they are more likely to feel that the goals are legitimate and work more diligently to achieve them†. The motivation is aligned to Air Tex Aviation’s performance goals, which are, the granting of credit but managers have performance goals set by Ted, monthly charges against their departmental profits, managers are more likely to stick to the rules set by Ted because they are in control of credit.Also, the purchasing of capital equipment and operating supplies but having predetermined limits this gives the managers a sense of control and able to make decisions without having to ask permission whenever a purchase was to be made. Moreover product managers are allowed to set policies such as pricing for products or services. They al so have the power to hire, fire and administer the salary. Product centre managers can rewarded because they have the responsibility to do the above and are free to make choices within set boundaries. Other rewards can be meaningfulness managers may feel they are doing something important.Also another reward is having the competence, managers can feel satisfied. Lastly, another reward is having the sense of progress, product centre managers will feel they have gained something. I will now discuss the extrinsic incentives, Simons (1999 pg 245-246) states â€Å"financial performance awards-typically in the form of bonuses-can be linked explicitly to the achievement of goals and targets. Since incentives are to motivate performance Ted has allocated 10% bonus to managers. (b) Simon’s four levers of control can be used in the implementation of strategy for Air Tex Aviation.Simon’s states â€Å"Strategic control is not achieved through new and unique performance measureme nt and control system, but through belief systems, boundary systems, diagnostic control systems and interactive control systems working together to control both the implementation of intended strategies and the formation of emergent strategies†. Simon’s (1999, pg 763) describes belief systems as â€Å"explicit set of organisational definitions that senior managers communicate formally and reinforce systematically to provide basic values, purpose, and direction for the organisation†.Figure 14-2 Levers of control (Simon’s pg, 305) shows belief systems as â€Å"strategy as Perspective† and â€Å"Obtaining Commitment to the Grand Purpose, this in the context of Airtex Aviation are firstly Ted and Frank have taken control of the business, Ted is President and chief operating officer and Frank is chairmanship. They also have a vision to grow at a rate of 20% per year for the first five years. To implement strategy Ted and Frank decentralised authority an d made each operating activity a profit centre and grouped them by departments.Departments were given authority over his operations. This creates shared beliefs and missions within the business. Employees will be more motivated because of the more control they have and they will have the sense of belonging to the business. Simon’s (1999, pg 764) describes boundary systems as â€Å"explicit statements embedded in formal information systems that define and communicate specific risks to be avoided†. Boundary Systems in the situation of Air Tex Aviation are, Simon’s (1999, pg 297) described as â€Å"rules, limits and proscriptions†.Rules in Airtex Aviation are decentralising the business, installing a control system. Limits introduced are profit centre’s having the authority to buy operating supplies and capital equipment with purchase order limits. A reason for limits is described by Simon’s (1999, pg 297) as â€Å"to allow individual creativi ty within defined limits of freedom†. Proscriptions include removing Sarah Arthur and her accounting system as it was not working and introduce a control system that support’s the management and provides information needed in order to make decisions.The accounting system before gave employees a lack of motivation because they were not involved in the decision making process. Also Simon’s (1999, pg 279) states â€Å"communicate standards of business conduct for all employees†, that’s what the new control system does, involves all employees. My recommendations to AirTex Aviation would be use all four levers of control together as one can’t work without the others. Also I would recommend the company when financially able to perhaps train managers, as most employees have only studied up to high school.Another recommendation would be for the department managers to set out goals for their own departments, use a balance scorecard or something simila r. Moreover, I would also recommend the business owners to draw up perhaps a mission statement or a statement of purpose and distribute it to each manager, so they know the objective and purpose of the business. Overall, the owners have turned the business around and should carry on as they have done so. Question 2 (a) In the article by Jones, T. C. and Dugdale, D. (1994), most of the interviewees agreed, net present value is superior to payback.I will summarise the views of the five interviewees below. Adam a lecturer was one those that thought that NPV is better than PB. Adam does however think that payback, in Jones, T. C. and Dugdale, D. (1994) â€Å"works fine for simple, straightforward projects†, but does say how useless it is and NPV gives the right answer and considers time value for money. He also thinks that NPV has no disadvantage whatsoever. He also goes on to say that calculating NPV is easy because of the use of computers. His academic group also agree with him that NPV is superior.Frank chief accountant was one of those interviewed who was against NPV and suspicious of it, describing it as â€Å"dangerous† Jones, T. C. and Dugdale, D. (1994). He has been using PB for many years and says it is simple to use and NPV is complicated, time consuming and â€Å"conveys spurious accuracy† Jones, T. C. and Dugdale, D. (1994). He also says that NPV is hard for managers to understand they prefer PB. Simon a senior finance manager thought no appraisal method has â€Å"importance† but believes â€Å"NPV only relevant with high interest rates & long time periods†, Jones, T.C. and Dugdale, D. (1994). He believes that information given to managers should be what they want and accountants should help in making investment decisions not decide which appraisal method to use. Judy a junior finance manager prefers to use NPV rather than PB because it considers time value for money which is important in her view. She also says †Å"NPV gives ability to alter assumptions & identify different outcomes† Jones, T. C. and Dugdale, D. (1994). She has very strong views for NPV and thinks managers should use this technique only.Managers have studied MBA’s so thinks it will be easy for them to understand. But â€Å"She fears that she may be ‘a victim of my training’ which might have been academic ‘brainwashing’†, Jones, T. C. and Dugdale, D. (1994). Len a finance officer also says net present value is superior to payback. He doesn’t agree with Adam’s suggestion that â€Å"PB figures might be adjusted to reflect more clearly the results of NPV analysis† Jones, T. C. and Dugdale, D, because of ethical rules. (1994).He too like Adam finds calculating NBV easy because of the use of computers. The interviewee’s which I mostly agree with are Len, Judy and Adam this is because, they believe that NPV is superior to PB. Also NPV considers time value of money and is easy to calculate because of the use of computers. I also agree with Judy that managers should be taught NPV because PB is simple and as Adam said NPV should be used for minor projects. (b) Pure reasoning in my view would be coming up with answers which would be the norm and what most people would agree to.An example in B321 case studies would have to be that of Classic Pen Company: Developing an ABC Model. Jane Dempsey came up with information by using methods such as activity based costing used by accountants. Overall, I think pure reasoning would have the most influence on someone’s decision making process this is because most people adhere to the norm they don’t want to be seen as deviant. Also most people would be scared to do otherwise just in case the decision doesn’t turn out to be as expected, which may get them into a lot of trouble. (c)My views have changed since reading the article because, before I thought that calculating net present v alue for investment appraisal was complex and very complicated but both Adam and Len find it easy because of the use of computers. Also before reading the article I thought payback was completely useless and unreliable for investment appraisal but as Adam points out it is fine to use on simple projects. Also another benefit for NPV is that it â€Å"gives ability to alter assumptions & identify different outcomes†, Jones, T. C. and Dugdale, D. (1994) as Judy points out.Both appraisal methods have their benefits, net present value has more benefits overall. Question 3 (a) Total machine hours: 880,000 ? 44,000 = 20 Game Pies: 20 ? 4,000 = 80,000 ? 2000 = ? 40 per batch Pork Pies: 20 ? 40,000 = 800,000 ? 20,000 = ? 40 per batch (b) Set up related: 420,000 ? 200 = 2,100 Pork Pies: 2,100 ? 120 = 252,000 ? 20,000 = ? 12. 60 Game Pies: 2,100 ? 80 = 168,000 ? 2,000 = ? 84 Purchasing related: 240,000 ? 480 = 500 Pork Pies: 500 ? 320 = 160,000 ? 20,000 = ? 8 Game Pies: 500? 160 = 80,000 ? 2,000 = ? 40 Volume related: 44,000 + 88,000 = 132,000 220,000 ? 32,000 = 1. 67 Pork Pies: 1. 67 ? 120,000 = ? 200,400 ? 20,000 = ? 10. 02 Game Pies: 1. 67 ? 12,000 = ? 20,040 ? 2000 = ? 10. 02 Cost centre costs for pork pies per batch: ? 12. 60 + ? 8 + ? 10. 02 = ? 30. 62 Cost centre costs for game pies per batch: ? 84 + ? 40 + ? 10. 02 = ? 134. 02 (c) The difference with activity based costing and traditional costing is, firstly traditional costing only assigns overhead cost: machine hours or direct labour hours to products. Whereas activity based costing uses activities â€Å"for accumulating costs† as described by Atkinson (2004, pg 127).

Favorite Sport Football

CONSUMER PREFERENCE AND SATISFACTION TOWARDS VARIOUS CELLPHONE SERVICE PROVIDES CHAPTER-I INTRODUCTION CONSUMER A consumer is an individual who purchase or has the capacity to purchase goods and services offered for sale by marketing institutions in order to satisfy  personal or household needs,wants or desires. According to a statement made by Mahatma Gandhi, ‘consumer refers to the following, â€Å"A consumer is  the most important visitor on our premises. He is not dependent on us. We are dependent on him. He is not an outsider to our  Ã‚  business.He is part of it. We are not doing him a favour by serving him. He is doing us a favour by giving us an opportunity to do so†. So  consumer  is  like  the  blood  of  our  business  and  also  a satisfedcustomer is a word of mouth advertisement of a product / services. The consumer is the one who pays to consume the goods and services produced. As such, consumers play a vital role in the economic system of a nation. In the absence of effective consumer demand, producers would lack one of the key motivations to produce to sell to consumers.Typically, when  business  people and economists talk of  consumers, they are talking about  the person as consumer, an aggregated  commodity item with little  individuality  other than that expressed in the decision to buy or not to buy. However, there is a trend in  marketing  to individualize the concept. Instead of generating broad  demographic profiles  and  psycho-graphic profiles  of  market segments, marketers have started to engage in personalized marketing,  permission marketing, and  mass customization.There is increasing backlash from the public over use of the label â€Å"consumer† rather than â€Å"customer†, with many finding it offensive and derogatory. Consumer choice  is a theory of  microeconomics  that relates preferences  for consumption goods  and services to con sumption expenditures and ultimately to   consumer demand curves. The link between personal preferences, consumption, and the demand curve  is one of the most closely studied relations in economics. Consumer choice theory is a way of analyzing how consumers may achieve  Ã‚  equilibrium between preferences and expenditures by maximizing  utility  as subject to consumer   budget constraints.Preferences are the desires by each individual for the consumption of goods and services that translate into choices based on income or wealth  for purchases of goods and services to be combined with the consumer's time to define consumption activities. Consumption is separated from production, logically, because two different consumers are involved. In the first case consumption is by the primary individual; in the second case, a producer might make something that he would not consume himself. Therefore, different motivations and abilities are involved.The  Ã‚  models that make up consumer theory are used to  represent  prospectively observable demand patterns for an individual buyer on the  hypothesis  of constrained optimization. Prominent variables used to explain the rate at which the good is purchased (demanded) are the price per unit of that good, prices of related goods, and wealth of the consumer. The fundamental theorem of demand states that the rate of consumption falls as the price of the good rises. This is called the  substitution effect.Clearly if one does not have enough money to pay the price then they cannot buy any of that item. As prices rise, consumers will substitute away from higher priced goods and services, choosing less costly alternatives. Subsequently, as the wealth of the individual rises, demand increases, shifting the demand curve higher at all rates of consumption. This is called the  income effect. As wealth rises, consumers will substitute away from less costly inferior goods and services, choosing higher priced al ternatives. CONSUMER SATISFACTIONEvery human being is a consumer of different produces. If there is no consumer,  there  is  no  business. Therefore,  consumer  satisfaction  is   very important to every business person. According to Philip Kotler consumer satisfaction is defined on, â€Å"personal feeling of pleasure resulting from comparing a product’s pursued performance in relation to his /her expectations†. Consumer attitude measurements are taken on either potential buries or  existing client’s buries in order  to identify their characteristics. Why should the competent market engineer conduct consumer research?Consumer’s surverys  can provide the researcher with a wealth of information, valuable of the marketing funchion. Detailed information regarding the customer in a market will provide the  basic platform for all marketing decisions. Marketing decision maker needs descriptive information about the total potential unit an d dollar sales in each segment. Perhaps the most important one is that a seller need to be  aware of the relevant objective and need  of consumer and  how their objectives  might best reserved by the products.Customer satisfaction, a term frequently used in  marketing, is a measure of how products and services supplied by a company meet or surpass customer expectation. Customer satisfaction is defined as â€Å"the number of customers, or percentage of total customers, whose reported experience with a firm, its products, or its services (ratings) exceeds specified satisfaction goals. †Ã‚  In a survey of nearly 200 senior marketing managers, 71 percent responded that they found a customer satisfaction metric very useful in managing and monitoring their businesses.It is seen as a key performance indicator within business and is often part of a balanced scorecard. In a competitive marketplace where businesses compete for customers, customer satisfaction is seen as a key differentiator and increasingly has become a key element of business strategy. â€Å"Within organizations, customer satisfaction ratings can have powerful effects. They focus employees on the importance of fulfilling customers’ expectations. Furthermore, when these ratings dip, they warn of problems that can affect sales and profitability. . . These metrics quantify an important dynamic. When a brand has loyal customers, it gains positive word-of-mouth marketing, which is both free and highly effective. † Therefore, it is essential for businesses to effectively manage customer satisfaction. To be able do this, firms need reliable and representative measures of satisfaction. â€Å"In researching satisfaction, firms generally ask customers whether their product or service has met or exceeded expectations. Thus, expectations are a key factor behind satisfaction.When customers have high expectations and the reality falls short, they will be disappointed and will likely r ate their experience as less than satisfying. For this reason, a luxury resort, for example, might receive a lower satisfaction rating than a budget motel even though its facilities and service would be deemed superior in ‘absolute' terms. † The importance of customer satisfaction diminishes when a firm has increased  bargaining power. For example,   cell phone  plan providers, such as AT;T  and  Verizon, participate in an industry that is an  oligopoly , where only a few suppliers of a certain product or service exist.As such, many cell phone plan contracts have a lot of  fine print with provisions that they would never get away if there were, say, a hundred cell phone plan providers, because customer satisfaction would be way too low, and customers would easily have the option of leaving for a better contract offer. There is a substantial body of empirical literature that establishes the benefits of customer satisfaction for firms. PURPOSE â€Å"Customer satisfaction provides a leading indicator of consumer purchase intentions and loyalty.   Ã¢â‚¬Å"Customer satisfaction data are among the most frequently collected indicators of market perceptions. Their principal use is two fold. † 1. â€Å"Within organizations, the collection, analysis and dissemination of these data send a message about the importance of tending to customers and ensuring that they have a positive experience with the company’s goods and services. † 2. â€Å"Although sales or market share can indicate how well a firm is performing currently, satisfaction is perhaps the best indicator of how likely it is that the firm’s customers will make further purchases in the future.Much research has focused on the relationship between customer satisfaction and retention. Studies indicate that the ramifications of satisfaction are most strongly realized at the extremes. † On a five-point scale, â€Å"individuals who rate their satisfaction l evel as ‘5' are likely to become return customers and might even evangelize for the firm. (A second important metric related to satisfaction is willingness to recommend. This metric is defined as â€Å"The percentage of surveyed customers who indicate that they would recommend a brand to friends. When a customer is satisfied with a product, he or she might recommend it to friends, relatives and colleagues. This can be a powerful marketing advantage. ) â€Å"Individuals who rate their satisfaction level as ‘1,' by contrast, are unlikely to return. Further, they can hurt the firm by making negative comments about it to prospective customers. Willingness to recommend is a key metric relating to customer satisfaction. † MARKET The term market is derived from Latin Word ‘Mercatus’, which means ‘totrade’ that is purchasing and selling of goods.It also means merchandise truthic   place of business. According to Pyle, â€Å"Market includes bo th place and region in which  buyers and sellers or in free competition with one another†. A  market  is one of many varieties of  systems,  institutions,  procedures,  social relations  and  infrastructures whereby parties engage in exchange. While parties may exchange goods and services by  barter, most markets rely on sellers offering their goods or services (including labor) in exchange for  money  from buyers. It can be said that a market is the process by which the prices of goods and services are established.For a market to be competitive, there must be more than a single buyer or seller. It has been suggested that two people may trade, but it takes at least three persons to have a market, so that there is competition on at least one of its two sides. However,competitive  markets, as understood in formal economic theory, rely on much larger numbers of both buyers and sellers. A market with single seller and multiple buyers is amonopoly. A marke t with a single buyer and multiple sellers is a  monopsony. These are the extremes of imperfect competition.MARKETING Marketing includes all the impacts involved in the exchange process of   transferring  the  possession  and  ownership  of  goods  or  services  from   the  producer to the ultimate consumer’s. Marketing  is the process of  communicating  the value of a product or service to  customers. Marketing might sometimes be interpreted as the art of selling products, but selling is only a small fraction of marketing. As the term â€Å"Marketing† may replace â€Å"Advertising† it is the overall strategy and function of promoting a product or service to the customer.The American Marketing Association defines marketing as â€Å"the activity ,set of institutions,and processes for creating, communication, delivering,and exchanging offerings that have value for customers,clients,partners,and society at large. † From a so cietal point of view, marketing is the link between a society’s material requirements and its economic  patterns of response. Marketing satisfies these needs and wants through exchange processes and building long term relationships. The process of communicating the value of a product or service through positioning to customers.Marketing can be looked at as an organizational function and a set of processes for creating, delivering and communicating value to customers, and managing customer relationships in ways that benefit the organization and its  shareholders. Marketing is the science of choosing  target markets  through market analysis and  market segmentation, as well as understanding consumer buying behavior and providing superior customer value. MARKETING FORMULA A)The foremost step is business aims at profit. B)For profit making he can sell the products. C)For selling the product he should create customers.D)For  creating the  customer’s,  custom er’s needs  of  preferences  to  beidentified and satisfied. E). To satisfy the customer’s new product to be produced. Marketing is trying to learn, * Who buy the products or services? * How do they buy? * When do they buy? * Where do they buy? * Why do they buy? * How often they buy? It  is  otherwise  called  understand  and  predict  human  actions  in  their  Ã‚   buying role. A marketer is act as consumers while them purchasing any goods/services, and try to market that product to an ultimate consumer. So, marketingis starts with consumer and ends with consumer. So, today’s market is called on consumer market.It can be defined on,â€Å"All the individuals and households who buy goods and services for personal consumption. SKILLS OF MARKETERS Marketers have 4 main skill sets that they bring to an enterprise: 1)Opportunity Identification: Marketing begins before there is a product to sell. Many people think marketing is just sel ling whatever comes out of the manufacturing  plant. It's the job of marketing to decide WHAT comes out of the manufacturing  plant in the first place. Before a business can make money there must be opportunities for money to be made and it's marketing's job to define what those opportunities are.Marketers analyze markets, market gaps, trends, products,competition, and distribution channels to come  up with opportunities to make money. 2)  Competitive strategy/positioning: Markets consist of groups of competitors  competing for a customer's business. The job of  marketing is to decide how to create a defensible sustainable competitive advantage against competitors. Marketers conceive strategies, tactics, and business models to make it hard if not impossible for competition to take away customers from their business. 3)  Demand generation/management It's the job of marketing to create and sustain demand for a company's products.Marketers manage demand for a company's pr oducts by influencing the probability and frequency of their customer's purchase behavior. 4)Sales: The ultimate goal of marketing is to make money for a business. In most company’s sales is a different discipline and department from marketing. But in order for  sales people to have any long term success in a company they must be led by marketing. The better job a company does of identifying opportunities, creating a differential sustainable competitive advantage, and generating demand for their products the easier it will be for sales people to make sales.MARKET SHARE OF PUBLIC AND PRIVATE INDUSTRY The fixed line and mobile segments serve the basic needs of local calls, long distance callsand the international calls, with the provision of broadband services in the fixed line segment and GPRS in the mobile arena. Traditional telephones have been replaced by the codeless and the wireless instruments. Mobile phone providers have also come up with GPRS-enabled multimedia messa ging, Internet surfing, and mobile-commerce. The much-awaited 3G mobile technology is soon going to enter the Indian telecom market. TheGSM,CDMA,WLLservice  providers  are  all  upgrading  them  to  provide  3G  mobile  services.Along  with improvement in telecom services, there is also an improvement in manufacturing. In the  beginning, there were only the Siemens handsets in India but now a whole series of newhandsets, such as Nokia's latest N-series, Sony Ericsson's W-series, Motorola's PDA phones,etc. have come up. Touch screen and advanced technological handsets are gaining popularity. Radio services have also been incorporated in the mobile handsets, along with other applications like high storage memory, multimedia applications, multimedia games, MP3 Players, video generators,Camera's, etc.The value added services provided by the mobile service operators contribute more than 10% of the total revenue. THE GLOBAL CELLULAR MOBILE INDUSTRY Global telecom s ector Earnings visibility Earnings  growth  is  being  driven  by  improving  pricing  conditions, stabilizing  operating trends, aggressive cost cutting initiatives, a positive regulatory environment, strong wireless growth, and  new market  opportunities. This has  translated into  greater visibility  of  forward earnings as evidenced by recent increased analyst upgrades within the sector. Merger synergiesGiven the substantial amount of excess capital available in the sector and in private equity we expect to see additional merger and acquisition activity, albeit at a slower pace than recently witnessed. Global  telecom  M;A deals  over  the  past  two years  have  reflected  market expansion but have also had a positive effect on the buyers’ balance sheets. Partnering companies have  begun  realizing their  synergies through cost reductions and  economies of  scale. In the US, the largest three companies now account for over 70% of the sector market cap; this compares to 34% in 1990.Trends in bundled services are also paving the way for  additional M;A  activity. Sector  consolidation will  further  increase  the importance  of stock  selection. METHODS TO CUSTOMER SATISFACTION Companies use the following methods to measure  customer satisfaction. 1 ) Complaints and suggestion system: Companies obtaining complaints through their  customer service centres, and further suggestions were given by customers to satisfy their  desires. 2) Customer satisfaction surveys: Responsive  companies  obtain  a  direct  measure  of  customer  satisfaction  by  periodic surveys.They send questionnaires to random sample of their customers to find out how they feel  about  various  aspects of  the company’s performance and also  solicit views  on their competitor’s performance. It is useful to measure the customer’s willingness to recommen d the company and brand to other persons. 3 )Lost Customer Analysis: Companies should contact customers who have stopped buying or who have switched to another supplier to learn why this happened. 4 )Consumer Behavior Vs  Consumption Behavior:Consumer behavior refers to the manner in which an individual reaches decision related to the selection, purchases and use of goods and services. Walters and Paul says that,consumer behavior is the process where by the individuals decides what, when, how and from whom to purchase goods ; services. Consumer  behavior  relates  to  an  individual  person  (Micro  behavior)  where  asconsumption behavior relates to and to the mass or aggregate of individuals. (Macro  behaviour) consumers   behavior   as  a  study  focuses  on  the  decision  process  of  the individual consumer or consuming unit such as the  family.In contrast the consumption behavior as a study is to do with the explanation of the  behavior of the aggregate of consumers or the consuming unit. Consumer is a pivot,around which the entire system of marketing revolves. The study of buyer behavior is one of the most important keys to successful mark. 1. 2. IMPORTANCE OF CONSUMER SATISFACTION The needs to satisfy customer for success in any commercial enterprise is very obvious. The income of all commercial enterprise is derived from the  payments received for the products and services supplied to its customers.If  there is no customer there is no income and there is no business. Then the coreactivity of any company is to attract and retain customers. It is therefore no surprise that Peter Drucker the renowned management Guru, has said â€Å"to satisfy the customers is the mission and purpose of every business†. Satisfaction of customer is essential for retention of customer’s and for  continuous sales of the products and services of the company to customers. This  establishes  the needa fo r and the importance of customer satisfaction. The  satisfaction  of  consumers  is  different  from  onto another.Became,  each consumer has the different behaviour in their life. So, the marketer satisfy the consumer, he must very well know the behaviour of consumer. 1. 4. CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR The  term  consumer  behaviour  may  be  defined  as  the  behaviour   that consumer displays in searching for purchasing, using, evaluating, producing,services and ideas which they expect will satisfy their needs. In other words, â€Å"It is a study of physiological, social, physical, behaviours of all potential customer  as they become aware of evaluation, purchase and consumption and ell other  about products and services† 1. 5. OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY: * To study the evaluation of cell phones with particular reference to India. * To ascertain the attributer which influenced the customer’s in selecting a  particular cell phone services provider. * To study  the consumer’s satisfaction towards different cell  phone service  providers. * To assess the problems faced by the cell phone users in services. * To offer valuable suggestions to improve the services of cell phones in each companies. INRODUCTION TO TELECOM INDUSTRY The Indian Telecommunications network with 110. 1 million connections is the fifth largest in the world and the second largest among the emerging economies of Asia. Today, it is the fastest growing market in the world and represents unique opportunities for U. S. companies in the stagnant global scenario. The total subscriber base, which has grown by 40% in 2005,is expected to reach 250 million in 2007. According to Broadband Policy 2004, Government of India aims at 9 million broadband connections and 18 million internet connections by2007. The wireless subscriber base has jumped from 33. 69 million in 2004 to 62. 57 million in FY2004- 2005.In the last 3 years, two out of every three new telephone subscribers were wireless  subscribers. Consequently, wireless  now accounts for  54. 6% of  the total  telephone subscriber base, as compared to only 40% in 2003. Wireless subscriber growth is expected to  bypass 2. 5 million new subscribers per month by 2007. The wireless technologies currently in use are Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) and Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA). There are primarily 9 GSM and 5 CDMA operators providing mobile services in 19 telecom circles and 4 metro cities, covering 2000 towns across the country. . 6. NEED OF THE STUDY Exchange of information becomes the necessity of life to a common man. In the modern world an individual tends to communicate anything to everything right from the place where he/she stands. Even while riding vehicle he / she wants communicate within a  fraction of second at quick speed with clear  voice,without any disturbance. Like line crossing, out of order, etc. most of which lack in the connection given by the department of tele-communictions. Cell  phones emerges as a boon quench such a thirst, the by providing facilities,which a common man cannot imagine.Though cell phone industry has its originin the recent past and the growth has been excellent Day by day many new competitors enter the market with new attractive schemes,  provide additional facilities, add new  features to existing ones, reduce the charges her incoming and outgoing calls, introduce varieties of handsets,models  a  healthy  competition  that  benefits  the  subscribers. Hence  in  this context, it is important to study the functioning of cellular phone services and the utilization of their services by the telephonesation. 1. 8. STATEMENT OF PROBLEMIn our country the growth of service marketing especially mobile phone industry is still in its infancy stage, as compared to the industrially advanced countries. It is for the fact that the economy of our country has been i n the developing stage. There are various mobile phones services provider’s in our  country and they are playing an essential role in fulfilling the needs of the customers. Now-a-days, the customers are more dynamic. Their taste, needs and  preference can the changing as per current scenario. Hence the development of  cellular industry mainly depends on the customer satisfaction.However the following questions may arise regarding customer satisfaction. CHAPTER II REVIEW OF LITERATURE India is the world’s fastest growing industry in the world in terms of number of wireless connections after China, with 811. 59 million mobile phone subscribers. According to the world telecommunications industry, India will have 1. 200 billion mobile subscribers by 2013. Furthermore, projections by several leading global consultancies indicate that the total number of subscribers in India will exceed the total subscriber count in the China by 2013.In 1850 experimental electric teleg raph started for first time in India between  Calcutta (Kolkata) and Diamond Harbor (southern suburbs of Kolkata, on the banks of the Hooghly River). In 1851, it was opened for the use of the British East India Company. Subsequently construction of telegraph started through out India. A separate department was opened to the public in 1854. Dr. William O’Shaughnessy, who pioneered the telegraph and telephone in India, belonged to the Public Works Department, and worked towards the development of telecom.Calcutta or the-then Kolkata was chosen as it was the capital of British India. In early1881, Oriental Telephone Company Limited of England opened telephone exchanges at Calcutta (Kolkata), Bombay (Mumbai), Madras (Chennai) and Ahmedabad. On the 28th January 1882 the first formal telephone service was established with a total of 93 subscribers. From the year 1902 India drastically changes from cable telegraph to wireless telegraph, radio telegraph, radio telephone, trunk dial ing. Trunk dialing used in India for more than a decade, were system allowed subscribers to dial calls with operator assistance.Later moved to digital microwave, optical fiber, satellite earth station. During British period all major cities and towns in India were linked with telephones. In the year 1975 Department of Telecom (DoT) was responsible for telecom services in entire country after separation from Indian Post ; Telecommunication. Decade later Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited (MTNL) was chipped out of DoT to run the telecom services of Delhi and Mumbai. In 1990s the telecom sector was opened up by the Government for private investment.In1995 TRAI (Telecom Regulatory Authority of India) was setup. This reduced the interference of Government in deciding tariffs and policy making. The Government of India corporatized the operations wing of DoT in 2000 and renamed Department of Telecom as Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL). In last 10 years many private operator’s espe cially foreign investors successfully entered the high potential Indian telecom market. Globally acclaimed operators like Telenor, NTT Docomo, Vodafone, Sistema, SingTel, Maxis, Etisalat invested in India mobile operators. Wireless CommunicationPager Services Pager communication successful launched in India in the year 1995. Pagers were looked upon as devices that offered the much needed mobility in communication, especially for businesses. Motorola was a major player with nearly 80 per cent of the market share. The other companies included Mobilink, Pagelink, BPL, Usha Martin telecom and Easy call. Pagers were generally worn on the belt or carried in the pocket. The business peaked in 1998 with the subscriber base reaching nearly 2 million. However, the number dropped to less than 500,000 in 2002.The pager companies in India were soon struggling to maintain their business. While 2-way pagers could have buffered the fall, the pager companies were not in a position to upgrade their i nfrastructure to improve the ailing market. The Indian Paging Services Association was unable to support the industry. Pager companies in India also offered their services in regional languages also. However, the end had begun already. By 2002, Motorola stops making or servicing pagers. When mobile phones were commercially launched in India, the pager had many advantages to boast.Pagers were smaller, had a longer battery life and were considerably cheaper. However, the mobile phones got better with time and continuously upgraded themselves. Mobile Communication First mobile telephone service on non-commercial basis started in India on 48th Independence Day at country’s capital Delhi. The first cellular call was made in India on July 31st, 1995 over  Modi Telstra’s MobileNet GSM network of Kolkata. Later mobile telephone services are divided into multiple zones known as circles. Competition has caused prices to drop and calls across India are one of the cheapest in th e world.Most of operator follows GSM mobile system operate under 900MHz bandwidth few recent players started operating under 1800MHz bandwidth. CDMA operators operate under 800Mhz band, they are first to introduce EVDO based high speed wireless data services via USB dongle. In spite of this huge growth Indian telecom sector is hit by severe spectrum crunch, corruption by India Govt. officials and financial troubles. In 2008, India entered the 3G arena with the launch of 3G enabled Mobile and Data services by Government owned MTNL and BSNL. Later from November 2010 private operator’s started to launch their services.Broadband communication After US, Japan, India stands in third largest Internet users of which 40% of Internet used via mobile phones. India ranks one of the lowest provider of broadband speed as compared countries such as Japan, India and Norway. Minimum broadband speed of 256kbit/s but speed above 2Mbits is still in a nascent stage. Year 2007 had been declared as â€Å"Year of Broadband† in India. Telco’s based on ADSL/VDSL in India generally have speeds up to 24Mbit max while those based on newer Optical Fiber technology offer up to 100Mbits in some plans Fiber-optic communication (FTTx).Broadband growth has been plagued by many problems. Complicated tariff structure, metered billing, High charges for right of way, Lack of domestic content, non implementation of Local-loop unbundling have all resulted in hindrance to the growth of broadband. Many experts think future of broadband is on the hands of   wireless factor. BWA auction winners are expected to roll out LTE and WiMAX in India in 2012. Next Generation Network (NGN) Next Generation Networks, multiple access networks can connect customers to a core network based on IP technology. These access