Exam practice question and answer Essay

Marketing can be defined as an organization function and a set of process foe creating, communicating and delivering value to the customer and for managing customer relationship in a way that it benefits the organization and its stakeholders. In order to understand the marketplace and customer needs and wants, marketers need to identify the needs of the consumer, which is defined as the state of felt deprivation, such as hunger and self-actualization needs. Next, it advanced into wants, which is defined as the form of human need that is shaped by culture and individual personality. To satisfy ones hunger, they may opt to eat either rice or noodles depending on their preference. Demand, the human wants that are backed by buying power indicates a person’s financial ability to buy their wants. Organizations need to identify its microenvironment and macroenvironment to identify forces or actors in the business environment that can have effect on the organization’s marketing and business activities. Microenvironment of a company is made up of the company itself, its competitors, the suppliers, customers, marketing intermediaries and the publics. The publics are those people or organization that affect the operations of the organization. There are seven publics in total, which is made up of financial publics, media publics, citizen-action publics, government publics, local publics, general publics and internal publics that affects the marketing operation of an organization. Financial publics are banks and insurance companies that affect the company success in obtaining loan. Macroenvironment is the larger societal force that affects the whole environment. In an organizations macroenvironment, it consist of demographic environment, economic environment, natural environment, technological environment, political environment and cultural environment. Demographic environment is mainly made up of the changing age structure in the population, the changing family, geographical shift in population, better educated and white collar population and increased in ethnic diversity. A changing age structure means that as a person’s age grows, their needs and wants for a certain product will change according to their life cycle. After identifying the environment, marketers will undergo marketing research process. The first step of marketing research process is to define the problem and research objectives, which contains of exploratory, descriptive and causal research objectives. Next, the process will be continued by the development of the research plan from secondary source and primary source. Then it will decide on the research approaches it will utilize whether it is observational, experimental, ethnographic or survey type of research. Then, it researcher will decide on the contact method through mail, telephone, personal and group interviews or online marketing research. Then it will proceed to sampling plan and research instruments like mechanical devices and questionnaire. The processes are completed by implementing the plan and report it to the management. After research, marketers need to identify the factors that influence a consumers purchasing behavior. The factors that determine the buyer decision are personal factors, social factors, psychological factors and cultural factors. Social factors consist of age and life cycle, reference groups and roles and status in the society. For example, according to the age and life cycle of everyone, the needs and wants of an individual differs as their age grows, an old man require a walking stick. In buying a product, consumer may display one of the four buying behavior, which consist of complex buying behavior, dissonance-reducing buying behavior, habitual buying behavior and variety-seeking buying behavior depending on the involvement and the perceived brand difference from the consumers. In buying an item, consumers may go through stages such as problem recognition, information search, evaluation of alternatives, purchase decision and post-purchase behavior. Then, marketers will move on to the next step of the marketing process of designing customer-driven marketing strategy. To create a marketing strategy, marketers need to identify the segments in a particular market. A market is a set of potential and actual buyers of a product. Market segmentation can be divided into four variables, which consist of geographical, demographic, psychographic and behaviorial. But then, there are some criteria in assessing the effectiveness of the segmentation by looking into the measurable, accessible, substantial, differentiable and actionable in the segmented groups. After segmentation, marketers will proceed to market targeting, defined by evaluating segment attractiveness and selecting one or more segments to enter. In evaluating market segments, marketers need to look into the segment size and growth, the structural attractiveness of the segment and the company’s objectives and resources. The companies can decide to use a range of market-coverage strategies such as differentiated marketing, undifferentiated marketing, concentrated marketing or micromarketing depending on the product they offers. After targeting, the company can differentiate their offering by giving superior value from several aspects, product, service, image or personnel differentiation. Customer value is the difference between the benefits gain from using and owning a product and cost of obtaining it. Thus consumer tend to purchase what they perceived as the highest value. Marketer will make their offering superior than of competitors by offer more value in its current offering to justify high price or lower price to compensate for low perceived value. Organizations need to have its own marketing offering in order to deliver value to customers. Marketing offering is a combination of product, service, information and experience that is offered to a market to satisfy a need or wants. Product is anything that can be offered into a market for attention, acquisition, use or consumption that might satisfy a need of wants. Products are classified into three different levels, which consist of core products, actual product and augmented products. Next, marketer will determine whether the product falls into the different categories of the consumer markets such as convenience goods, shopping goods, specialty goods and unsought goods. Or if it is industrial goods, the category of materials and parts, capital items and supplies and services. In service, its characteristic is intangible, inseparable, perishable and variable. Price is sum of value that the customer exchanges for the benefits from using or having a product or services. The internal factors that affect pricing are the marketing objectives, the marketing mix strategy, cost and organizational consideration while the external factors are market and demand, competitors price and offer and other factors such as economic conditions and government regulations. Some of the approaches in pricing are cost-based pricing, value-based pricing and competition-based pricing and price skimming and penetration for new innovative products. Promotion is an act that persuades the publics about the products or brands merits. In influencing the consumers to buy its products, marketers can utilize integrated marketing communication tools such as advertising, direct marketing, personal selling, sales promotion and public relation. For example, marketer can use sales promotion in the form of tools such as coupons, rebates and discounts that act as sort-term incentives to build add-in value to encourage people to buy it products. The next tool is place where it describes how the product is made available to customer. Marketer can examine the number of marketing intermediaries where it consists of intensive distribution, exclusive distribution and selective distribution. For example, the goods that run on intensive distributions are normally fast moving consumer goods that are stocked in as many outlets as possible. It is available anywhere and anytime. Process involves the process that is part of the service. For example, if a car owner who experience poor customer service during one of his regular service, then he or she will not recommend the company to others and is less likely to rebuy the brand. People in an organization determine the success of the organization’s process in delivering superior value and satisfaction. Example, a lack-trained employee may mislead a customer into buying the wrong needs. Physical evidence is the quality of services in physical feature the customer can see, such as brochures and facilities. Without the presence of lecture halls, one could doubt the presence of the university whether it is a place for academic learning. In building profitable customer relationship, one must look into the customer satisfaction, which is defined as customer evaluation of the product or service feature, or the product or service itself. Customer satisfaction prompt repeat purchase thus is important. Satisfaction is influenced by the customer’s past buying experience from the company or its competitors, the information given and promises by the company or its competitors and what the customer thinks of a fair value in the price they paid. Feedbacks, mystery shoppers and exit interviews set a platform to improve the customer satisfaction which then strengthens the bond between the company and the customer thus leading to higher customer loyalty. After accessing satisfaction, marketers need to concern by building and maintaining profitable customer relationship by delivering superior customer value and satisfaction. Retaining current customer relationship is cheaper than to attract new customer. In retaining customers, marketers can implement club and frequency marketing program to strengthen bonds with the customers. By building strong customer relationship, a company can capture value from customer in the form of loyalty, profits and the spread of word of mouth from them. When the company produces superior value to the customers, most likely it will generate high customer satisfaction. High satisfaction lead building long lasting relationship with the customer gaining the loyalty of these customers in a long period, profits will eventually grow. Companies aim to achieve lifetime customer value, share of customer and customer equity from the customers.. All in all, by creating, delivering superior value and developing a strong customer profitable relationship, one can achieve returns like profits and sales, a monetary return and brand loyalty from the loyal customers. Q3. The six forces in an organization’s macroenvironment is cultural environment, political environment, economic environment, technological environment, demographic environment and natural environment. Demographic environment is based on the utility of demography, which is defined as the study of human population in terms of size, religion, occupation, age, sex and education. The changing age structure of the population is one of the factors that affect the macroenvironment. People of different age have different wants and needs and will continue to change as their age varies. The increase in aging population because of low birth rates and higher life expectancy has change the demand for certain products in the market. For example, youths wants products that match their lifestyle of cool and adventurous like game consoles, skateboards and smartphones while those baby boomers typically in their 50s now wants products like vacation, massage chair and antique vase. Geographical shift in population is also one of the factors. It can be categorized into movement between states, movement from rural to urban areas and movement from city to suburbs and back again. For example, the need for air-conditioning is more likely to be in demand in the Northern Territory, which is very hot than the demand in Sydney, which is cooling. A better-educated and more white-collar population has trigger the demand for formal attires such as a suit and corporate skirt. Next, an increasing of ethnic diversity in Malaysia has trigger the rising demand for wasabi and rice from the Japanese population that migrated to Malaysia. Every group of people has their specific wants depending on their attitude, behavior and buying habits too. Q6. Consumer product is made up of convenience products, shopping products, specialty products and unsought products. Convenience products are consumer products and services that the customer usually buys frequently, immediately and with minimum comparison and buying effort. It can be relate to habitual buying behavior too when the purchase of a product is made without much consideration and it is cheap despite widely available. Examples are washing powder and broom. Shopping products are less frequently purchased consumer products and services that customers compare carefully on suitability, price, quality and style. Consumers spend considerable amount of time and effort to access information about the products. It is classified as in complex buying behavior. Examples are television and laptops. Specialty products are consumer products and services with unique characteristics or brand identification for which a significant group of buyers is willing to make a special purchase purpose. It is classified under the buying behavior of complex buying behavior and dissonance reducing buying behavior. This kind of product is purchase without much comparison with other brands. Examples are a Gucci handbag and a luxury car. Unsought goods are consumer products and services that the consumers either doesn’t know about it or knows but do not consider buying it. These products need intensive marketing such as promotions and advertising. Examples are funeral services and life insurance.

Groups vs Individuals Essay

‘Individuals will complete a task more efficiently and effectively than a group. And training in group dynamics, whilst interesting, has no practical value as a means of increasing the standard of group performance’ (Mullins, 2007, p296). Essay This essay is going to examine the main differences between the work of individuals and the work of a group. The perception of the author of the essay title basically states that there are more benefits than drawbacks in the individual work when comparing to the group work as well as that a given task can be completed more efficiently and effectively by an individual. The other part of the title discusses that there is no increase in group performance even though training in group is more interesting and appealing. In order to examine these two statements it is essential to consider every effect that might have an impact on the work of both individuals and groups. What often comes to people’s mind when discussing the advantages and disadvantages of working in a group is that the more people you have the more ideas you have and that the more people you have the faster the given task is completed. This essay will reveal that it is not as simple as many of us might think and that there are many complex elements of people’s behaviour that might have both positive and negative effect on the final task result. In what follows, we’ll have a look at these factors and give reasons why should the work of individual be more effective than group work or why not. In this part of the essay we are going to have a look at how various individual differences affect individual behaviour in the workplace. Individuals in the organization explore five topics which are personality, perception, learning and motivation at work. All these five psychological aspects are very closely related to each other and they help us to understand behaviour in general as well as in particular but also to analyze the performance of work and the quality of working life. We have chosen to focus on one of these five topics – Personality. Firstly, it is required to comprehend what actually personality is. Despite of the fact, (Bratton, 2007) that any universal definition of personality has not been accepted yet, we define personality as a relatively resistant way of thinking, feeling and acting which characterizes a person’s response to his or her environment. However, (Buchanan & Huczynski, 2004) there are some properties, which restrict our definition of personality, that are both stable and distinctive, depending on different situations and over time. In the case of stability, we are not interested in properties that are occasional and transient. For example, changes in person’s behaviour caused by the consumption of drugs or caused by some kind of illness are not considered as personality characteristics, unless they become permanent. However, there is one serious issue and that is the fact that personalities appear to be flexible. For example, a manager who appears to be very loud and emotionless in the office could be a caring and supportive parent in family life. In the case of distinctiveness, we must know that personality theory is related to properties that are unique to the individual and not to those that all or most other people share. For example, a man may be aggressive towards taxi drivers, friendly with waiters, loud at concerts and terrified of spiders. But the thing is that he may share some of these dispositions with a friend who breeds spiders. We also must know that, (Buchanan & Huczynski, 2004) the theory of personality relies on two main propositions. One of them is that behaviour does not change frequently even though is has both stable and distinctive features. The other one is that it must be accepted they only way how to compare the distinctive properties is by comparing them to the properties of others. One of the many theories of personality is Eysenck’s three-factor model of personality. Hans J. Eysenck (1916-1997), a well-known British psychologist born in Berlin, Germany, used factor analysis to originate his theory of personality. His theory declares, (Bratton, 2007) that a normal personality can be understood in terms of three basic factors : introversion ( a personality dimension that characterizes people who are territorial and solitary ) – extroversion ( a personality dimension that characterizes people who are outgoing, sociable and talkative ), stability – instability and self-control – psychoticism. Introversion is the opposite of extroversion, stability is the opposite of instability and self-control is the opposite of psychoticism. Eysenck created a two dimensional model which he believed captured the most important aspects of person’s personality ( see Figure 1. 0 ). [pic] Figure 1. 0 points out the effects of various combinations of the three dimensions and relates them to the four personality types (Bratton, 2007) originated by the Greek physician Galen in the second century AD. The fact that the two basic dimensions intersect at right angles ( in the sense that they are independent ) should be noted. Therefore, when we know what level of extroversion personality has it does not show us how emotionally stable the personality is. The level of person’s stability could be anywhere along the stability dimension. The other thing which the diagram reveals is that various combinations of the two primary basic dimensions make different personalities. For example, as we can see, an extroverted unstable person is touchy, restless and aggressive an extroverted stable person is sociable, outgoing and talkative. Eysenck’s theory puts in our mind that the type of personality might have a vast effect on an individual completing a given task. Therefore, a company should be very careful when hiring new employees. But on the other hand, hiring a suitable type of personality would bring a great effectiveness and efficiency into the company’s performance. In this part of the essay we are going to examine some problems that might occur in the work group. When speaking of groups we must understand what actually a group is. A group could be people waiting at a bus stop for a bus, audience in a theatre, people sheltering in a shop doorway from the rain or members of a football team. However, only one of the mentioned groups can be regarded as a work group and that is the football team. It is very significant to recognize a distinction between mere aggregates of individuals and psychological group. Consequently, we must know what characteristics a group must meet to become one. Firstly, (Buchanan & Huczynski, 2004) it is a minimum membership of two people. No ‘official’ size has been accepted, and different authors describe groups that range from two to thirty individuals. However, the more members a group has the more relations within the group there are. This fact might have a huge effect on the group performance whereas the bigger the group is the better level of communication is required and the more complex it is to operate the group effectively and successfully. Secondly, (Buchanan & Huczynski, 2004) every single member of the group must be able to communicate with every other member. In case of not meeting this criterion there might be some very serious problems in completing a given task. For example, if there was a group of three members and one member would not communicate with one of the other two members, the efficiency of the group performance would be hardly decreased. Thirdly, (Buchanan & Huczynski, 2004) members must have a shared sense of collective identity. Each member must be associated with the other members, not see him or herself as a individual working independently and at the same time all members must believe themselves in order to distinct the group from other groups. Failing to meet this criterion might cause a very negative impact on completing a task. For example, if one group member do not believe in some of the other member it might cause a tension between the members or it might make the disbelieving member work independently and again decrease the efficiency of the group performance. Fourthly, (Buchanan & Huczynski, 2004) members must have complementary goals. Each member of a group may have different goals which can be achieved only by membership of and participation in the group. Fifthly, (Buchanan & Huczynski, 2004) a group must have a structure. Every member of the group will have a different role, for example initiator, suggestion-provider, compromiser and etc. These roles tend to become fixed and indicate what members expect from each other. This criterion can be met only by following certain norms or rules. We believe that this is the most fragile part of work groups. Some people believe that rules are made to be broken and tend not to follow them. This can as well as the other criteria have a vast impact on the group performance. This part of the essay is going to be related to the statement that training in group dynamics, whilst interesting, has no practical value as a means of increasing the standard of group performance. First of all, we must gain knowledge of the term group dynamics. Group dynamics (Bratton, 2007) is the study of human behaviour in groups. The nature of groups, group development and the interrelations between individuals and group, other groups and other elements of formal organizations are included in this study. We have four major factors (Bratton, 2007) that influence group dynamics, but be aware that these factors does not attempt to create a theory of group dynamics, nor these factors can be applied to every type of group. These four elements are group context, group structure, group processes and group outcomes. We will have a closer look at the group structure. The group structure has a crucial role in group dynamics. It influences the way members relate and interact with each other and it also enable us to explain individual behaviour within the group. Without any doubt all of us have at least once found ourselves in a group. We know that group members within a group are not equal, do not have the same knowledge, have different perceptions and have different skills and abilities. This is where the differentiation takes place and where social relations are formed. According to Bratton (2007, p. 303) the group structure is the stable pattern of relationships among the differentiated elements in the group. Size of the group along other factors such as roles, status and leadership plays very important role in differentiation of a group. As we have mentioned earlier the more people you have in a group the more relationships there are and the more relationships there are the more likely a conflict might occur. For example, a group of three has three relationships, a group of four has six relationships and a group of seven has however 21 relationships. A big problem that might occur in a group is when a group has numerous members coalitions might intervene which means that some members align themselves against other group members.

The Beatle Side of Rock Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

The Beatle Side of Rock - Research Paper Example Scott, and Andy Schwartz) The Beatles’ music and lyrics as compared to that of the Rolling Stones, has a certain amount of difference along with being linked to each other as well. By 1965, British pop music had reached its peak with the Beatles and the Rolling Stones on top of the charts, adorning the hits and making people aware of them. Both these groups helped to define music during that era and set the bar for other bands and singers and musical groups that were coming up. However, with time the Beatles grew apart and broke up within ten years of being together and making music with one another whereas the Stones remained tight and still worked together as a band creating music for people all around the world. (Lewisohn, M) The Stones were all about non conformity and thus did not give in to the sounds that bands around them were into producing. This is what set them apart from the Beatles and helped them to stay with each other unlike the Beatles that broke apart because of their differences with each other. However, during their stay as a band together, Lennon and McCartney produced some of the most amazing music the world has ever heard; intense lyrics with words that flowed like rhyme and rhythm along with in depth thinking gone into the making and stringing of each and every word together. The lyrics were mature and a product of the unconscious and daring mind of John Lennon mostly as he put together his artistic sense of profoundness and gave the world something new to utter on their lips. Paul McCartney has been termed to be a natural melodist who is able to create tunes with the most perfect harmonies ever heard by people. He has been constantly developing himself as he has gone ahead in his career, both with the band and otherwise, and has been able to... The Beatle Side of Rock The various members of the band, John Lennon, Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr and George Harrison have become recognised as icons of music and peace by people as well. However, during the time the Beatles were active, so were a number of other bands and singers, trying to shoot to fame as well, with the help of their music and lyrics. Bands like Pink Floyd and the Rolling Stones, as well as singer Bob Dylan were the contemporaries of the Beatles at the time. The Beatles rose to fame for a period of a decade between which they were able to produce a number of hit singles and top the charts almost all the time. They have been regarded as icons of rock that have changed the world as well as the face of music. â€Å"In their initial incarnation as cheerful, wisecracking moptops, the Fab Four revolutionized the sound, style, and attitude of popular music and opened rock and roll's doors to a tidal wave of British rock acts. Their initial impact would have been enough to establish the Beatles as one of their era's most influential cultural forces, but they didn't stop there. The Beatles have been able to establish themselves all over the world in the name of rock music and peace. They have been portrayed a number of times in films, art work as well as music composed by other singers and bands and have been greatly perceived by most of the world. There are several differences that lie between them and bands like the Rolling Stones and Led Zeppelin as discussed within the purview of this paper.

Field trip report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Field trip report - Essay Example The report applies Butler’s destination life-cycle model to the Piney Lake. The site has undergone the first two stages in the life-cycle- exploration and involvement. The tourist destination is heading towards its third stage-that of development. It seems that the Noongar community may take a long time to go through the other stages of tourism life cycle as the inhabitants are so much involved and tied to their indigenous culture and traditions. The current report emphasises the need to formulate comprehensive strategies to keep the Aboriginal culture and traditions of Noongar community intact. Researchers, students and scholars on indigenous tourism need to undertake detailed in-depth studies on the tourist destination to identify the factors that preserve its authenticity and cultural diversity. Governmental policies and interventions on indigenous tourism need to perceive tourism as a cultural phenomenon rather than an economic enterprise. It is imperative for all the stakeholders to identify the dangers of commoditization and commercialization. Above all, measures are to be undertaken to facilitate sustainable models of tourism development on the tourist site. Indigenous tourism in Australia is flourishing day by day as aboriginal owned and operated enterprises have been attracting the attention of tourists. Indigenous tourism paves way for cultural rejuvenation of aboriginals while it also contributes immensely to the economy of the nation. Authenticity lies at the core of indigenous tourism and therefore loss of authenticity due to commoditization and commercialization of indigenous culture deserve primary attention. Contrived cultural products, tourist oriented commercial craftworks, and commercialized tourist services may adversely affect tourists’ quest for authenticity and will negate them of genuine indigenous tourism experiences. Similarly, sustainable models of tourism development are an essential prerequisite for

Statement of Purpose for pursuing graduate study Essay

Statement of Purpose for pursuing graduate study - Essay Example I have always yearned to listen, speak, read, write, and understand the Chinese language. Although it has been more than 20 years, I still remember a couple of my Chinese teachers’ names from the elementary school that I attended at the time. My major was Chinese Literature, and my test scores in Chinese have been relatively higher than my other subjects in high school. My feelings towards furthering my graduate studies in Chinese became stronger after studying in an art school for a couple of semesters. I have realized that Art has been an interest to me as well as a hobby. I have found that my passion is in the study of Chinese. I studied at the San Francisco State University where I obtained my baccalaureate degree in Criminal Justice. My experiences as a student were very positive, therefore, I wish to pursue my graduate Chinese studies at the same institution of higher education. I would like to engage in Chinese performance arts with a modern Chinese literature focus. Being bilingual in Chinese and English will give me the opportunity to perform research using primary sources and translating those research documents taking into account the differences and similarities of the western and eastern worlds: languages, cultures, traditions, customs, idiomatic terms, and non-verbal communication. This will be an asset for professors that are performing research given the Chinese language and any other dialects I may know for translation purposes given the above mentioned elements that need to be taken into consideration. I have faith and trust that a good college education will be the embodiment of one’s academic hopes and dreams for a better life. It will not only prepare me for my chosen profession, but it will also provide me with the social and individual interactive skills that are necessary for my personal and professional life. I hope that the Chinese Program at the San Francisco State University gives me the opportunity to become part of its

Ernst and Young Tax Guide Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Ernst and Young Tax Guide - Essay Example It was also expected that the new institutions provided a better environment for integrity in revenue administration. Tax reform can therefore be seen as an attempt to achieve the larger goals of an accountable and transparent government through improved revenue collection and tax policies. Mr. Waweru said that the adoption of the revenue agency model has generally been successful in improving tax administration. Under the general direction of the East African Revenue Authorities Commissioners General Forum and the East African Revenue Authorities Technical Committee, the revenue authorities have managed to keep the regional tax administration reform agenda on track. The reforms focused on building integrated institutions for better synergies between the legacy revenue departments, rationalizing and lowering tax rates, introduction of VAT as a replacement of Sales Tax, automation of functions, meeting targets by enhancing revenue mainly from existing taxpayers, and adoption of a corporate planning approach to revenue administration. ACCA is the largest and fastest growing international accountancy body with over 345,000 students and members in 160 countries. ACCA has been active in East Africa for many years, and has offices in Nairobi, Kampala and Addis Ababa, and active student branches in Dar es Salaam, Kigali and Khartoum. The first ever ACCA East African Accountants Convention brought together members and other accountants from the Eastern, Central and Horn of Africa region. (Cheryl D. Block, Pub. Date: October2004) "The Convention is also part of ACCA East Africa's overall strategy to provide appropriate platforms for ACCA members to share professional knowledge and best practice, as well as to engage business, political and civil society leaders, as part of the wider community in which they live and work," says John Nyakahuma, the Head of Corporate Development, and ACCA East Africa. Mr. Chas Roy-Chowdhury, the Secretary of the ACCA Taxation Committee at the organization's London Headquarters spoke on the European perspective on tax reform, while Mr. Francis Kamulegeya, Tax Partner in the Kenya branch of international accounting firm PriceWaterhouseCoopers (PWC), spoke on Tax Reform: Issues and Challenges in East Africa. Mr. Kamulegeya works primarily with PWC Kenya's multinational and regional clients in the manufacturing and services sector, some of whom are the largest taxpayers in East Africa. In addition to his current role as the leader of the PWC indirect tax services group in East Africa, he helps clients in the areas of tax planning and compliance, and in particular advising companies wishing to invest in East Africa on aspects such as corporate structuring and financing in order to take advantage of the available investment incentives in the region. Lord Marshall concluded that a number of options should be considered. He stated that it was unclear

Reading report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Reading report - Essay Example This was already becoming normal at that time† (Orwell 1984 Book 2, Chapter 7). Private loyalties are cut because it is one of the best ways to ensure loyalty to the state. In connection to the loss of privacy, the Party can make it easy to undermine their enemy by connecting rebellion to the idea of perpetual war. The Party calls it a distant war that happens all the time to stress that the war has no essence and direction. By focusing on the individual and the perpetual timeframe of war, the Party shows the people that it is senseless to support a war that has no specific meaning and outcomes. 1984 further notes that doublespeak propaganda slogans such as â€Å"War is Peace,† â€Å"Freedom is Slavery,† and â€Å"Ignorance is Strength† is meant to clutter the language and make it less effective in attaining its impact of changing people’s mindsets and behaviors. In â€Å"Politics and the English Language,† Orwell argues that the fall of the E nglish language roots from economic and political causes, and not literary causes (1). He shows that people use vague and imprecise language with purposes of deceiving people. In 1984, doublespeak propaganda is meant to deceive people. ... .† (Orwell â€Å"Politics† 3) because they do not stand for anything clear and specific. He adds the example of â€Å"democracy,† which is automatically seen as something positive, when its usage has potentially misleading purposes (Orwell â€Å"Politics† 4). The same goes for doublespeak- they sound nice and rebellious, but they are vague enough to be unreliable and meaningless. Doublespeak propaganda is propaganda, the propaganda of using language to lie to people and to shape their minds into thinking that these lies are truths. â€Å"The Two-Minute Hate† broadcast and its reliance on images of Goldstein and foreign-looking individuals running around guns has something to do with language manipulation once more. Politicians manipulate language for its own selfish purposes, and not for the good of the people. â€Å"The Two-Minute Hate† encourages people to see Goldstein in a bad light, bad enough to be hated. It is an example of subverting l anguage through using images and words that pollute people’s capacity to think about what is being said to them. â€Å"The Two-Minute Hate† helps the Party in conditioning the minds of the people through controlling their emotions. The Party knows the right language to use to evoke the right emotions, which can lead to better control of their thoughts and actions. As for the idea of idea of all-knowing Big Brother (government) and a total lack of privacy in a technologically advanced society, the government does Newspeak, Doublespeak, and Thoughtcrimes to decrease people’s thinking practices and content. Newspeak decreases people’s thinking process. Syme says: â€Å"Don't you see that the whole aim of Newspeak is to narrow the range of thought? In the end we shall make

Middterm essY Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Middterm essY - Essay Example With regards to the exemplification of the first economic principle, consumer choice, this can relatively be defined in terms of the fact that the consumer continually wants more than he/she can provide. In essence, a desire exist within the current market for French fries; even though it is true that this food is very harmful to the health and weight of the individual in question. Yet as a clear and evident outgrowth of the fact that consumer demands know no bounds, the article references the fact that a clear and unmet demand exists for â€Å"low fat† French fries; something that none of the main fast food chains have moved towards supplying to the market. In this way, the article goes on to explain how Burger King seeks to lead the market by providing what consumers have been demanding. It is likely to assume that the move by Burger King to fill this shortage in supply of a commodity that consumers have actively been seeking will provide a level of profitability that other firms operating within the same markets have not had the presence of mind to fulfill (O’Connor 1). An additional economic principle that is referenced within the article in question is with regards to the fact that the consequences of consumer choice of live in the future. Whereas it is unfair to state that this economic principle has not been appreciated within the past, it can necessarily be seen could be more relevant with regards to the current situation and the way in which consumers are unequivocally more concerned with regards to the health and safety of the food products that they consume. Recent levels of environmentalism and the focus upon organic foods has led consumers to demand high-quality with regards to products they regularly integrate with. Likewise, seeking to tie this back in with the economic principle of the consequences lying in the future, the reader can easily discern the fact that continuing to assume French fries that are high in fat ultimately has a detrimental impact with regards to the future health and longevity of the individual in question. Within such a way, Burger King has leverage this understanding and seeks to utilize this level of forethought and planning as a means of selling an entirely new product; likely at a slightly higher rate than be alternatively less healthful traditional fries. Although the examples that have thus far been pointed out may seem as somewhat trite, the fact of the matter is that firms such as Burger King are intimately aware of the decision making structure and impetus that encourages the consumer to integrate with their product. In this way, seeking to understand these environmental factors and the recent push towards engaging anymore healthful lifestyle, firms are ultimately faced with two decisions. They can either continue to offer the product that they have offered in the past, to a great deal of commercial success, or they

Case Study of McDonalds Essay Example for Free

Case Study of McDonalds Essay In the early 1940s, two brothers opened a burger restaurant that was based on standardized preparation called the Speedee Service System. This burger restaurant is now globally known as McDonalds. In 1976, McDonalds introduced the breakfast menu as a way to diversify sales and product selection. Today this multinational corporation serves nearly 54 million customers every day in 120 countries around the world. McDonalds first international venture was in Richmond, British Columbia, during 1967. Two of McDonalds main products were introduced in 1968, the Big Mac and the Egg McMuffin Sandwich. When the first McDonalds opened in Hong Kong in 1975, they were the first restaurants to consistently offer clean bathrooms, which drove customers to demand the same standards of other restaurants and institutions. McDonalds continually builds its brand by receiving customer input. This is why McDonalds is known as one of the most recognizable brands in the world. This case study illustrates how McDonalds marketing process works and how they overcome problems in the process. This case analysis will include a SWOT analysis of McDonalds, which looks at the internal environment of strengths and weaknesses and the external environment of opportunities and threats. It then examines alternative solutions to correct weaknesses, threats, and opportunities and concludes with recommendations with exact steps and a brief conclusion. S.W.O.T. AnalysisThis analysis was developed from the McDonalds website and various other online sources. Other information was provided by the textbook, Organization Behavior by Robert Kreitner and Angelo Kinicki. SWOT stands for internal Strengths and Weaknesses and external Opportunities and Threats. It will illustrate the opportunities and threats in McDonalds current environment, and compare it to their internal strengths and weaknesses. We will then discuss creative strategies to align their internal environment with their external environment and provide multiple alternatives and a recommendation. Internal AnalysisMcDonalds Corporation is a multimillion dollar global business because of the fact their strengths greatly outweigh their weaknesses. McDonalds is known globally because it is dedicated to the unparallel levels of quality service, cleanliness and values. McDonalds is also globally known because it is financially sound and recognized by the Fortune 500 and the Hoovers 500. We will provide the strengths and weakness of the McDonalds Corporation. We will also show the effect they have on their expansion throughout the globe and the direct impact it has on their financial records. This will be presented in descending order of importance throughout the strengths and weaknesses. McDonalds SWOT AnalysisStrengths1.The Companys developed global strategya.60% of McDonalds sales and all of its top 10 restaurants, (in terms of sales profits) are now overseas. b.McDonalds adapts to each countrys specific needs cultural differencesi. For example: In Japan, McDonalds had to substantially adapt its original U.S. style menu to include a McChao(a Chinese fried rice dish). When McDonalds introduced rice meals in Japan, sales jumped 30% in one year, and it continues to innovate in Japan with Teriyaki McBurger and Chicken Tatsuta. ii.The menu price has been adapted for each country. iii.The average Big Mac price for the U.S. is $3.00; China $1.26; Switzerland $5.64c.In 2005 McDonalds was ranked 8th out of the top 30 global brands. 2.Adaptation to cultural preferences and trendsa.Within the past 3 years, McDonalds has made several adaptations to their strategy by adding a more appealing breakfast menu, specialty coffees, and healthier menu options. b. McDonalds has also managed to adapt their individual franchises to the current trends and concerns in their individual geographical locations, simultaneously cutting costs. i.For example: In Europe, McDonalds discovered that children were content  with a simple word puzzle on a menu tray or a small stuffed animal and did not require more expensive Happy meal promotions that they used in the U.S. c.This year the worlds largest restaurant chain, with 31,000 locations, will spend $1.9 billion to open 800 restaurants and reinvest in existing locations. 3.The companys attention to global health concernsa.McDonalds menus offer a variety of food products that can fit into balanced, active lifestyles. Restaurants typically serve several types of hamburgers, grilled and fried chicken products, and fish and, in many cases, salads, fruits, and additional sandwich options. i.Many European countries have launched Salads Plus menus, including meal-size salad choices, a side salad, fresh fruit bag, and other options. ii.McDonalds Canada offers Toasted Deli Sandwiches. iii.McDonalds Hong Kong has a Fresh Choices Menu, with two salads and fruit yogurt. iv.McDonalds Australia offers a QuickStart breakfast menu, including a choice of cereals, juices, reduced fat or nonfat milk, and yogurt. v.McDonalds Taiwan serves a Toasted Rice Burger. vi.Apples are served whole or with other foods in more than 20 countries around the world. b.Many local business units are adding new salad, fruit, and vegetable offerings. c.Local business units are also expanding Happy Meal choices to include new sandwich, side, and beverage alternatives. These reflect a System-wide goal of ensuring that Happy Meals remain a choice moms feel good about and  children enjoy. 4.The Company has high environmental standards:a.Delivery Vehicles which can carry fresh, frozen and chilled food have resulted in fewer deliveries, enabling them to reduce diesel costs and fuel emissions. Also, fixed delivery schedules reduced the distance traveled in 1993 by 310,000 miles. b.Each McDonalds restaurant is carefully designed individually to fit into its local environment. This means listening to local concerns, fitting in with local scenery and landscaping drive-thru restaurants. Over 120 McDonalds restaurants are in conservation areas and over 30 are in Grade II listed buildings. c. McDonalds uses a minimum of 50% recycled content in corrugated cardboard boxes and ask that their suppliers do the same. All McDonalds food boxes and cartons are made from 72% recycled material, carry out bags are unbleached and made from 60-80% recycled material, while napkins and tray liners are 100% recycled paper. Additionally, all their picnic benches, drive=thru lane traffic bollards and most of the fencing panels are new restaurants are made from recycled polystyrene. d. McDonalds have made a commitment that, by 1995, they had reduced the volume of solid waste by 50%. They achieved this by using the three Rs: Reduce, Recycle and Reuse. 5.High percentage of minority employmenta.McDonalds has the largest number of minority and female franchisees in the quick service industry. b.More than 40.7% of all McDonalds US Owner/Operators are women and minorities. Weaknesses1.Worker shortagea.In all employment areas, there is a high demand for qualified workers. b.A new development that is creating even more employee demand is the new  immigration laws for the country and state. 2.Employee turn-overa.It is difficult to keep the employees already employed with McDonalds. i. McDonalds has a turnover rate of about 35 to 40 percent. b.People consider working at McDonalds embarrassing and look for employment elsewhere. c.Minimum wage doesnt keep good workers around. i. $5.85 per hour beginning July 24, 2007ii.$6.55 per hour beginning July 24, 2008iii.$7.25 per hour beginning July 24, 20093.Customer trends change and so do their choicesa.Quality and taste of products is declining. b.People are generally tired of the same brands that they had been using over the years, so when they do not see the expected innovation they migrate to new brands. c.People see McDonalds every where and this over exposure might also be a reason for abstinence. Moreover maintaining the standards of such a huge chain becomes feasible and when there is lack of quality service in one store it effects the whole brand. External Analysis The constant improvements in technology and the competitive marketplace challenge McDonalds with many opportunities and threats. McDonalds has a great management team that constantly looks for new opportunities because McDonalds is the industry standard on technology. Other opportunities for McDonalds would be to expand to all developing and developed countries around the world. Among the current and future threats, there are thousands of fast-food chains in the world, most of the new fast-food franchises are concentrating on having a healthy image, so therefore McDonalds needs to continue to improve  their healthy choice menu. This will be presented in descending order of importance throughout the opportunities and threats. Opportunities1.New Technologiesa.Computers that are also tablesi.These computers that are also tables will be very handy because people do not like standing in lines and having to wait to order. Now all customers have to do is find a table and sit down and start ordering. This will pay off even more because customers will be able to special order their food easier which will in-turn reduce the mess up orders because customers will do it themselves. ii.These computer tables will also make it very easy for customers to pay for their food or even split the bill if they want to. All customers will have to do is lay their credit card or debit card down on the table and then pick what food you want to pay for and drag it over to where your card is laying and then click ok that is correct then use your finger to sign for the bill. 2.International Expansion and Franchisinga.There are only 17,000 McDonalds around the world and only located in 119 different countries. i.There are 194 countries in the world and McDonalds has lost of room to expand there restaurants to new countries. ii.McDonalds main concentration of expanding is in the ever growing in population of China. McDonalds wants to build as many drive thrus there as possible for the fast passed living. They have done research that there are 30,000 filling stations to put them in. b.Selling corporate owned McDonalds and turning them into franchises at home and abroad. i.Sold 18 businesses in Latin America and the Caribbeans. As a result these two countries will in turn franchise 1,600 restaurants. 3.New Food Items and New Programsa.Here in America we are accustomed to one of the programs that they are trying to add all over the world. This would  be known as the dollar menu. In Europe they are calling it the Eurosaver, China has the RMB 5, and Latin America features the McMenu. b.In Latin America they are experimenting with something called McAhorro. This is a program of special pricing of certain products during certain times of the day or on carious days of the week. c.In Egypt their McDonalds are trying something completely new to McDonalds and this is having a carryout. Other countries also doing this now are Turkey, Hong Kong, and Southeast Asia. d.New food items that became popular in Latin America are the McCafe coffee and dessert concepts. Which are Expanding to other McDonalds in other countries to see how they fair. e.New Healthy Foodsi.Toasted deli sandwiches have now been put on a couple of McDonalds menus in Canadaii.McDonalds are starting to cook their French Fries in healthier oils and finding ways to cook their hamburgers to have less grease in them. iii.Mediterranean inspired Pitamac, a square pita bread sandwich that is open at the top and filled with spiced beef, grilled vegetables or chicken. iv.Introducing veggie burgers to more of their restaurants. v.Introducing water-based instead of oil-based salad dressings for their new premium salads. vi.Introducing healthier option with their meal instead of fries such as: salads, baked potatoes, yogurt, fruit, ect. Threats1.The biggest threat for McDonalds domestically is the lack of growth opportunitiesa.The market in the United States is well saturated and there is not a whole lot of room for growth. 2.Healthier eating habits. a.People are more worried about their health in todays society than they have ever been. McDonalds has introduced salads and other low fat items but it is hard for people to make the switch because the other food that McDonalds offers tastes great. 3.Fast food restaurant franchises as upcoming competition. a.The biggest competition would be taco and burrito franchises. This would be a threat because individuals get tired of eating hamburgers and fries and they want something different. b.McDonalds has the upper hand on most fast food restaurants because they serve breakfast. Recently Taco Bueno has added a breakfast menu and that could also be a threat for McDonalds. 4.Terrorisma.With McDonalds being a big retail food store with a lot of customers in the store daily. b.This could be a major threat not only to the store itself but to its customers also. 5.Global Competitiona.Through out the globe McDonalds is facing more and more competition because of other fast food chains entering the global markets. i.Burger King is the number two burger chain. It is located in over 65 countries now. In the US alone it has more then 11,200 locations. ii.Subway is the second largest quick serving restaurant. It has an astonishing 27,700 location abroad spanning over 85 countries. Another huge threat that this makes is that it now has more locations in the US than McDonalds. b.With global expansion McDonalds not only has to deal with other abroad competitors but the own countries fast food chains. McDonalds also has to get accustomed to the local eating habbits and taste so they will be able to satisfy their wants and needs. This means McDonalds will have to come up with new menu items for each country to fit their customs. i.Items that they have came up with to fit the taste and customs of consumers in Japan was to introduce the Mega Teriyaki Burger and the Triangle-shaped Mango Custard Pie. AlternativesAlternative 1- Technology UpdateImproving and Buying New Technology McDonalds has been improving many things at their restaurants in the past couple of years such as: remodeling, new menu items, and a drive-thru order speaker that shows you what you have ordered. McDonalds needs to make sure that they deep up with todays society and the new technology. One of the newest technology that McDonalds needs to consider purchasing is called Microsoft surface. This new technology well not only cut down on employee cost but it will help them keep up with the new way of life that time is money. ProsA. With Microsoft Surface computer tables in place it will make business quicker. i. People can sit down and order their food at the tablesii. There will be no waiting in lines which in turns saves people time. iii. Customers can pay at the end of their meals incase they want more food after their first order instead of going and standing in line again. B. Offer more things to do while waiting on your food and after you are done eating. i. Microsoft Surface also offers things to entertain your kids such as playing music to painting with their fingers. ii. Business people will find it handy because they can get on the internet and find thing they need or to get directions to their next destination and then can transfer it to their phones of PDAs. iii. Will older people like the new technology because it will be something new to them and will have to learn how to use it properly. ConsA. Microsoft Surface will be brand new technologyi. The cost of Microsoft Surface will have a very expensive price tag along with it. ii. Since it is a new product this means it will still have a few bugs in it that have not been found or worked out. B. How reliable with this new technology bei. Seeing how this is going to be used not only to order off of it will as be used as a table to eat and drink off of. Will the Surface be durable enough to handle messy food and drinks that will be spilled on it?Alternative 2- Improve Healthy menu OptionsMore Attention for Americas Healthy Menu Options- McDonalds has been successful in adding healthy menu options around the globe. However, throughout our study we have found that the healthy menu options for Americans are quite limited, and even more limited for the children in the United States. The PlanA.We feel that adding some healthy menu combination meals would really improve McDonalds sales. Americans dont want just a salad or chicken wrap as a meal, so why not add a combination meal that includes a salad, wrap, grilled chicken breast, or toasted deli sandwich with their choice of a healthy side, such as a fruit salad, yogurt, vegetables, or baked potato. B.Dont forget about our children. Moms arent just concerned about what they are putting in their mouths, their childrens health is just as important. If a mom can go to McDonalds and get a healthy meal, but there isnt anything healthy to feed her children, most likely shes going to choose a competing fast food franchise. Happy meals need to have options such as, a beef pot pie, turkey sandwich, or grilled chicken fingers.  Choices of sides could include a healthy macaroni and cheese, vegetables, fruit marshmallows, or even cottage cheese and strawberries. McDonalds could also really score some big points with parents if they added healthy lifestyle tips for kids on the happy meal sacks, or provided toys that promote exercise. ProsA.Americans love variety and choices. Thats exactly what this plan is giving McDonalds customers. Variety and healthy choices will not only satisfy current customers, but it will attract more business. B.One of McDonalds biggest customer bases is America. Providing these options for this customer base will also increase their profit intake. C.This plan also shows the people in the U.S. that McDonalds cares about their customers concerns. This is just one more way to attract business. D.Since the release of the movie Super Size Me McDonalds has been known as the fast food restaurant that makes Americans fat. The best way to improve this bad image is to implement the healthy menu options in America. ConsA.Adding more options to a menu also means adding costs for the business. It is more expensive to keep vegetables and fruits fresh than it is to keep the food they currently serve fresh. B.Even though Americans are very concerned about their health, there is a large number of people who dont want to do anything about it. People arent looking to be healthy when they go out to eat at McDonalds, and because of that, the new healthy food options may not sell as well as other well established items on the McDonalds menu. Alternative 3 Increasing WagesIncrease starting wages and implement frequent raises McDonalds has always been considered one of the worst paying jobs with the lowest skill level. Even though the working conditions are favorable, qualified workers do not want to work at McDonalds because it is embarrassing, but mainly because McDonalds does not pay their  employees enough. We think starting salaries should be increased as an incentive to want to work for McDonalds and turn the job into a career. ProsA. More dependable employees as applicants. i. The country is experiencing a huge worker shortage, but not only a worker shortage, but qualified, dependable workers. This alternative should help remedy that situation. ii. With higher starting wages and frequent raises for the employees, there should be a less percentage turn-over rate. If the employees are happy, they wont be looking for other positions elsewhere. ConsA. This increase will cost the corporation more financially. ii. This could limit the amount available in dividends to stockholders hurting future investments. RecommendationsTechnology updateIn order to remain in competition with not only fast food restaurants, but other restaurants as well, McDonalds will have to keep up with the growing technological society. This means taking advantage of any fast food advances that pertain to their area of service. The new technology will have to keep the pace of todays fast moving society, in which time is money. A specific technology that we recommend McDonalds take advantage of is the Microsoft Surface computer tables. This technology will be costly, if implemented in metropolitan areas it will be beneficial to not only the corporation, but also to McDonalds customers. Microsoft Surface computer tables will increase the contribution margin of the corporation by saving time, money, and order errors. McDonalds should gradually begin the implementation of the Microsoft Office table in major cities throughout the globe. As McDonalds begins to reap the benefits, and work out the kinks of the tables, the corporation should  gradually apply this product throughout smaller restaurants. This process will be very slow moving and costly, but it is key in ensuring McDonalds continued domination in global fast food service. ConclusionsIn todays fast paces, highly technological society McDonalds has been able to stay on top of the fast food service industry, while providing quality service, and timely deliverance of food. It is not an easy task to stay on top of technologies and changing tastes of customers. McDonalds will need to continue to research the changing eating habits and styles to attract new customers and keep the business of current customers. McDonalds has proven its concerns for customers and employees by experimenting with new facilities and foods they are proving to society that they are concerned with not only their health but their prosperity. McDonalds has a very promising future ahead of them and if they continue to adapt to society and new technologies. Refrences www.mcDonalds.com

The effects of block scheduling Essay Example for Free

The effects of block scheduling Essay Summary of Current Knowledge and Theory Relevant to Block Scheduling Overview of Perceived Advantages to Block Scheduling Several researchers (Dobbs, W. , 1998; Hurley, 1997; Zepeda, 1999; Staunton, 1997; Staunton and Adams, 1997; Pisapia, and Westfall, 1997; and Eineder and Bishop, 1997) reported the following perceived strengths and advantages by both students and teachers to block scheduling:   Increased teacher preparation time (in both teams and as individuals).   Double the class time for certain core subjects such as language arts and math.   Half as many students for teachers per semester. Additional elective class choice for 9th grade students; more choices for upperclassmen, including options of Advanced Placement and other higher level coursework   More time for completion of labs, incorporating technology, class trips, and other various applications of learned material   Improved school climate and decreased disciplinary referrals   More time to do homework and for guided practice under the direction of the teacherImproved academic achievement by students Ability of students to accumulate enough credits to graduate early. More one-on-one time between teachers and students. In general, surveyed students liked the block scheduling. They claimed to be getting better grades, to have time for more in-depth study, and got more attention from the teachers. They said their lives were less stressed and they liked having a fresh start each semester. Nearly all students asked said they would not want to return to the traditional schedule. One of the greatest effects of the 4 x 4 schedule is that students report having less homework. Of the 37 students interviewed, 20 said they had less homework, 7 said they had more, and 6 said they had about the same. If you dont like the teacher, you dont have to deal with him all year, or if you dont like the subject. When the semester ends, its like a new school year. Youre not bogged down. Clearly, these students reaped academic benefits from the change to the 4 x 4 schedule. Both college preparatory and general students reported they were learning more and receiving more individual attention (Hurley, 1997). Surveyed teachers indicated that they enjoyed lecturing less and spending more time one-on-one with students. Teachers teaching in block scheduling used more of a team approach and allowed them to experiment more in the classroom (Staunton, 1997; Staunton and Adams, 1997). Teachers also reported that their teaching methods and practices changed as block scheduling was implemented. They used a wider array of strategies and activities. In one Florida study of over forty high schools on block scheduling, â€Å"forty percent of the teachers reported less stress at school, one-third reported increased common planning time, and 80 percent noted that they preferred the block schedule to their previous schedule† (Deuel, 1999). There seem to be several perceived advantages associated with block scheduling. Overview of Perceived Disadvantages to Block Scheduling Several researchers (Dobbs, W. , 1998; Hurley, 1997; Zepeda, 1999; Staunton, 1997; Staunton and Adams, 1997; Pisapia, and Westfall, 1997; and Eineder and Bishop, 1997) reported the following perceived weaknesses and disadvantages by both students and teachers to block scheduling: Additional costs in hiring teachers.   Additional costs in adding space for teachers or the need for teachers to ‘travel’ which means he has no permanent classroom. Difficulty in making up work from absences because missing one day equivalent to missing two classes   Some classes clearly benefit from meeting every day (i. e. performing arts classes)   Need for teachers to commit to using new teaching methods   Ninety minutes is a long time to hold the attention of students   Uneven schedules in which the harder classes all end up lumped into one semester making it too difficult and the next semester too easy. The possibility that there will be a long gap in between sequential courses if they are not taken in back-to-back semesters. The primary disadvantage given by surveyed students is that the classes are too long. Students particularly gave this as a weakness when their teachers lectured for nearly all of the time period. Others noted that â€Å"bad classes are really bad when they are held for 90 minutes† (Hurley, 1997). Surveyed teachers voiced concerns about interruptions of sequential material from one semester to the next and consistency issues with students. However, teacher opinion seemed to be mixed about this issue. Some foreign language teachers feared a sequential break between levels (Scheduling Foreign Languages on the Block, 1998). Other researchers found that some schools actually showed an increase in foreign language test scores because students could take level I and level II courses in back-to-back semesters (Schoenstein, 1996). Some teachers felt more comfortable with the lecture approach and had little comfort with experimentation of teaching methods (Staunton, 1997; Staunton and Adams, 1997).

Tmj Closed Lock Syndrome Management Health And Social Care Essay

Tmj Closed Lock Syndrome Management Health And Social Care Essay Temporomandibular disorders (TMD) is a collective term has been defined as a group of conditions that affect the temporomandibular joint (TMJ), muscle of mastication and associated structures. These disorders are common, affecting at least 30% of the population.1 TMD can severely affect individuals daily activities and produce varying symptoms ranging from mild discomfort to severe function disability. Patients with TMD often presents with reduced mandibular function secondary to increased pain levels, reduced ability in chewing, limited mouth opening and during excursive movement of the joint. There are many causes of limited mandibular movement, closed lock is the most common presentation in the clinic. Closed lock is a well recognised condition. An estimated 2% of people with TMD suffer from a closed lock. 2 It has been suggested that condylar translation is limited by the failure of the disc to reduce, with the posterior band being trapped anterior to the condylar head. It was also proposed this condition was a result of reversible restriction in gliding movements of the disc caused by its adherence to the fossa. 3 These group of patients often complaints of jaw-opening difficulties such as pain, restriction and TMJ tightness. Macrotrauma to the structures of the joint through impact or extension injuries, and microtrauma either in the form of clenching or occlusal abnormalities may contributes in the aetiology of internal derangement with closed lock. A various treatment options have been considered to improve the symptoms of closed lock. Non-surgical approaches may consist of anti-inflammatory medications, muscle relaxants, splint therapy, physiotherapy, exercise, moist heat, stress management and soft diet or combination of thereof. In patients whom the symptoms proved refractory to non-invasive therapy, surgical management on the TMJ is generally considered. The aim of this dissertation is to discuss and analyse the published data to support the current management of TMJ closed lock syndrome. Literature Review There are many treatment modalities in management of TMJ closed lock. The two main approaches used are non-surgical and surgical treatment. Treatment efforts are directed toward: Reduction of pain using Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) Improvement in mouth opening and lateral movement Improvement in joint function. For most TMD, clinicians generally agree that non-surgical and non invasive care should precede surgery. However, for TMJ closed lock, surgery has been described as preferable. 4 Non Surgical Treatment A range of conservative treatments including physiotherapy, occlusal bite splints, NSAIDS, muscle relaxants, stress management and soft diet are available. Minakuchi et al5 conducted a randomized controlled evaluation of non-surgical treatments for closed lock. 232 patients were randomly allocated to one of three group control, self-care plus NSAIDs, or occlusal appliance jaw mobilization plus self-care/NSAIDs. The subjects were observed over 2 months period. All three experimental groups had significant improvement in their signs and symptoms with time. The self-care/ NSAIDs group showed more improvements in the daily activities limitation compared with the other two groups. However, this difference was present only for two review appointment, and during the last review at 8 weeks, there were no significant group difference. These data suggests the gradual improvement in signs and symptoms was non-specific and was not related to the type of treatment, but more to the passage of time. Lundh et al 6 carried out a randomized controlled study on 51 patients. These patients are treated with a flat occlusal splint or to serve as an untreated control group. It is noted that at the end of 12 months period, 16% of patients in control group and 40% of patients treated with splints, the symptoms were worse than at the beginning at the study. In addition, 36% of patients in the control group improved after 1 year without treatment. This study indicates that aggressive treatment modalities should not be used in the initial phase of closed lock. Instead, counselling and adequate pain medication seems to be a reasonable treatment approach. Surgical Treatment Surgery on the temporomandibular joint is generally only considered when non-invasive therapy proved unsuccessful. Closed lock is usually associated with permanent disc displacement, and this condition is frequently resistant to conservative treatment. The primary role of surgery is physical debridement, repair and removal of diseased tissue that cause pain and dysfunction within the TMJ. The primary aim of surgery is to reduce the symptoms of pain and to improve joint function of individuals. The historical perspective on temporomandibular surgery dates back to 1887 when Annadale7 reported two successful operations to reposition and secure the disc in two patients. Condylectomy In 1957 Henry and Baldrige8 described the condylectomy operation. They emphasized the preservation of the disc, and limited bone reduction to increase joint space, and relieve irritation to nerve-bearing tissues. Condylectomy was formerly extensive used, but has many disadvantages 9. It often leads to ramus shortening with resultant of malocclusion and mandibular deviation to the side of the surgery. Ward 10 in a review of 21 patients, who he followed for periods of up to three years, reported a high success rate. Banks and MacKenzie 11 in a much larger series of 211 patients reported 91% of them to be cured or improved by surgery. However, in a follow-up of patients by Lindahl 12, a high prevalence of persistent pain and dysfunction was still evident. Arthroscopy Temporomandibular joint arthroscopy is a new method for the management of acute, subacute, and sometimes chronic limitation of movement of the TMJ. The miniaturised arthroscopy to the TMJ first appeared by Ohnishi 13 in the Japanese literature in 1975. It is used as diagnostic and therapeutic procedure. It has been postulated that it improves limited joint movement by lysis and lavage of fibrotic adhesions, and reductions of surface adherence on articulating joint spaces. Sanders et al 14 conducted 40 arthroscopic procedures on 25 patients during the mid 1980s in management of closed lock. All patients showed improvement and eventually asymptomatic after the procedures. They have good range of opening and have little preauricular pain after. Moses et al 15 did a retrospective studies on 237 patient with 419 TMJ joints. 63% of patients reported to have an increase in opening and in these 73% having an interincisal opening of 40mm or greater after 1 year post treatment. 97% of these patients thought their surgery was successful and 82% stated that would undergo the procedure again. The results of this study appear that the arthroscopic procedure has a definite value in the treatment of TMJ internal derangement. White et al 16 undertook a similar study on 66 patients with 100 TMJ joints. The overall postoperative increase in maximal incisor opening was 38.4%. 85.7% of the patients rated their postoperative pain and function greatly and moderately improved and 100% of the patients stated they would have the arthroscopic surgery again. However, a failure rate of 7.5% was noted by the objective criteria. Clark et al 17 also reported decreased in mean pain score value by 57%, also an improvement of 67% jaw function in 18 patients after 2 years postarthroscopic surgical treatment. Davis at al 3 evaluated 51 patients, with 80 joints with closed lock that were treated with arthroscopic surgery. Results showed that an immediate improvement after the treatment and followed by a more gradual improvement during the next 6 months, with a plateau in improvement thereafter. Kurita et al 18 also evaluated the correlation between preoperative mouth opening and surgical outcome after arthroscopic surgery. 12 of the 14 patients (86%) showed good reduction in pain and improved range of jaw movement. However, 2 patients showed no improvement after the treatment and require open surgical procedures. The 2 failed cases had 10 and 19mm opening respectively before the treatment. The author concluded that limitation of mouth opening less than 22mm may be a relative contraindication to arthroscopic treatment. The main disadvantage of this study is that the number of patients in this study is very small. Abd-Ul-Salam et al 19 conducted a retrospective study to investigate the incidence of reoperation after TMJ arthroscopic surgery in 315 consecutive patients (488 patients). He documented a 22% incidence of further surgery arthroscopy or open surgery after TMJ arthroscopic surgery. Arthrocentesis TMJ arthrocentesis was first described by Nitzan et al 20 in 1991 for the treatment of temporomandibular joint pain and movement restriction. Nitzan et al 20 described this technique as irrigation on the upper joint compartment with Ringers solution. The injected fluid enables the disc to slide and thereby re-establishes normal maximal opening in closed lock. The treatment was shown to be effective, providing significant improvement in maximal mouth opening and lateral movement, and decreased in pain level and disturbance in jaw function involved 17 joints in 17 patients. The overall success rate is 91%. Nitzan et al 21 conducted another study in 1997 on 39 patients with 40 joints with severe closed lock. The overall improvement, as expressed in pain and dysfunction levels, was about 95%, with no recurrence of severe closed lock. A prospective study done by Dimitroulis 22 using the same technique on 46 patients with acute limitation of mouth opening, showed significant improved in pain, jaw opening and function. Hosaka et al 23 evaluated the outcome of arthrocentesis for TMJ with closed lock at a 3 years follow-up in 20 patients. The success rate was 70% at 6 months follow-up and increase to 78.9% over the 3 years of follow-up. The literature showed stable good outcome at 3 years follow-up as compared to 6 months. Alpaslan et al 24 conducted a 5 year retrospective to evaluate the long-term outcome of TMJ arthrocentesis on 34 patients with 48 joints. There was a significant (P < 0.001) increase in the maximal mouth opening. Pain and dysfunction levels were significantly (P < 0.001) lower than pre-operative values. 26% of patients were pain free and 88% of patients had less pain than before. Eminectomy An alternative surgical approach to the treatment of closed lock of the temporomandibular joint is eminectomy. The surgery involves reduction of the articular eminence of the TMJ, provides greater freedom of movement between the condyle disc and the reduced articular eminence. Stassen et al 25 conducted a pilot study of the use of eminectomy in the treatment of closed lock in 18 patients. Results show significant increase in mouth opening and a decrease in pain. Both the improvement in inter incisal distance and reduction of symptoms were found to be statistically significant (P

Analyzing the poem First Love. Essay -- English Literature

Analyzing the poem First Love. First Love I will be analyzing a poem called First Love, the poem was written by John Clare, who was born on July 13, 1793 and died on May 20, 1864. The poem is about the poets first love. The poem has three stanzas and eight lines in each stanza, there is twenty-four lines altogether. The poem rhythms, it goes in A,B A,B form, for example Hour rhythms with flower and sweet rhythms with complete. It is in first person, because it uses a lot of I, for example †I could not see a single thing† or â€Å"I never saw so sweet a face†. From the title we can see that the poet was never in love before. In the first line of the first stanza it says, â€Å"I ne’er was struck before that hour†, this line tells us that the poet was never struck with so much love for a person ever in his life. In the second line it says ,†With love so sudden and so sweet†, this line tells us that the poet fell in love so suddenly, this line has aliteration, e.g â€Å"so sudden and so sweet†. In the third line it says, â€Å"Her face it bloomed like a sweet flower†, this line tells us that the poet was shooked and dazzeled by the girls face, and he compares it with a flower. In the forth line it says, â€Å"And stole my heart away complete†, this line tells us that the girls face was so enlightening for the poet, that his heart was taken away by the girls face. This line also has personification,†And stole my heart†, the poet is taking about the face of the girl, and a face can’t steal a heart. In the fifth line it says, â€Å"My face turned pale as deadly pale†, this line tells us that the poets face turned as pale as it can get. This line also has a simile, for example â€Å"pale as deadly pale†. In the sixth line it ... ...nd he wants the reader to tell him. In the third line it says, â€Å"She seemed to hear my silent voice†, this line tells us that he thinks she can hear his thoughts. In the forth, fifth and sixth line it says, â€Å"And love’s appeal to know, I never saw so sweet a face As that I stood before:†, this line tells us that, never in his life did he saw a face so sweet, and that they were standing face to face. In the seventh and eighth line it says, â€Å"My heart has left its dwelling place And can return no more†, this line tells us that his heart has been broken, and it will not return to its rightful place. This stanza tells us that he has become confused and he dies. My conclusion is that it is a good poem, where the poet uses simple english, so anyone can understand it. I think people who are into love and romance will get pleasure from this poem very much.

Essay on Faith in Hawthornes Young Goodman Brown -- Young Goodman Bro

Faith in Young Goodman Brown  Ã‚        Ã‚   For those who have not studied the Puritans or their beliefs, Nathaniel Hawthorne's "Young Goodman Brown" is not much more than a story of lost (or maybe just confused) faith. Hawthone, a man of puritan descent, had some oppositions to the ideals that Puritans followed. Some of these ideals are discussed in his "Young Goodman Brown".   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The basic impression that most people have of Puritans "describes them as dour, irascible, self-righteous, hypocritical people who hated sex, joy, and life. They dressed in black, they hated nature, they burned witches, and they repressed all natural desires,". This is the view that influences most people when Puritans appear in literature. We see the stereotypical hatred of the forest (the Devil's playground), the fear of Indians (the Devil's spawn) and the extreme fear of the Devil himself run rampant in "Young Goodman Brown". Hawthorne's description of the forest is very disheartening. "He had taken a dreary road, darkened by all the gloomiest trees of the forest..." (p 375) This is a rather depressing and f... ... not be so blindly relied upon. However, after a bit more delving, that the story speaks not only of faith and it's hazards, but of the flaws in the puritan system.    1.) Roberts, Trish. Background to the American Puritans.  Ã‚  http://www.missouri.edu/~engpat/purs.html. (accessed 2-1-02) 2.) Hawthorne, Nathaniel. "Young Goodman Brown". printed in: A Handbook of Critical  Approaches to Literature: Fourth Edition. Editors Wilfred L. Guerin, Earle Labor, Lee Morgan, Jeanne C. Reesman, John R. Willingham. Oxford University Press, Oxford. 1999.

King Lear †Denial, Rage, and Isolation

Throughout Shakespeare’s play, King Lear, the audience is subject to differing emotions and sentiments for the main character. The changes in King Lear’s demeanor, state of mind and even beliefs throughout the play are constantly changing and subject to so many different factors that the audience cannot help but be swept up in the transformations. The contradictions and inconsistencies in the play have frustrated some and intrigued others. (Lynch, 2007) Despite this, King Lear continues to stand as one of the greatest literary pieces to have been written up to this very day.The aim of this essay is to examine the transformation in King Lear’s demeanor and person throughout the course of the second act. It is here where the audience can find a seemingly assorted array of emotions as caused by the unexpected circumstances faced by the king. It is this essay’s purpose to define and discuss the transition of the king from denial to rage and then to complete is olation all of which occurred within the span of a single act. The events, characters and development that transpires in the said act will be used as instruments to analyze the king’s steady transition in character.In Lear’s first appearance during the second act, he finds one of his servants in the stocks. His disbelief at discovering that someone could treat one of his own so badly is compounded by his discovery   that it was in fact Regan, his daughter, who ordered it done. This is the onset of Lear’s phase of denial. It is unbelievable to him that his own daughter would show disrespect for him in such a manner as evidenced by the following lines:King Lear:What's he that hath so much thy place mistook to set thee here?Kent: It is both he and she; Your son and daughter.King Lear: No.Kent: Yes.King Lear: No, I say.Kent: I say, yea.: No, no, they would not.Kent: Yes, they have.King Lear: By Jupiter, I swear, no. (Shakespeare, 1986)The king’s continuous refusal to Kent’s assertions is a clear indicator of his denial of the truth.King Lear’s denial is stressed even more with the news that his daughter and son-in law refuse to talk to him even upon his request. This was unheard of to the king and despite the obvious, he denies himself the realization that his daughter has betrayed him. His words show this denial clearly when he exclaims, â€Å"Deny to speak with me? They are sick? They are weary? They have travell'd all the night? Mere fetches; The images of revolt and flying off. Fetch me a better answer.† (Shakespeare, 1986)The king’s phase of denial turns to anger, however, when Regan comes to talk to him. She stresses Lear’s impotence as a leader and father with her continuous repetition of his being old as seen in Regan’s comment, â€Å"O, sir, you are old. Nature in you stands on the very verge Of her confine: you should be ruled and led.† (Shakespeare, 1986) She also says he is weak and tries to convince him to return to Goneril and stay there.This reaction to the king’s arrival as well as the earlier incident of finding his servant in the stocks fuels King Lear’s rage. This is seen with his exclamation of curses on Goneril, who maltreated him during the first act of the play.King Lear: Never, Regan: She hath abated me of half my train; Look'd black upon me; struck me with her tongue, Most serpent-like, upon the very heart: All the stored vengeances of heaven fall On her ingrateful top! Strike her young bones, You taking airs, with lameness!Cornwall: Fie, sir, fie!King Lear: You nimble lightnings, dart your blinding flames Into her scornful eyes! Infect her beauty, You fen-suck'd fogs, drawn by the powerful sun, To fall and blast her pride! (Shakespeare, 1986)Despite the many words of protest from Regan, the king continues to pour out his anger for his other daughter not knowing that Regan is in fact of like mind as Goneril and is already awa iting the latter’s arrival.Anger turns to isolation, however, when King Lear is confronted by both Regan and Goneril, who has just arrived. It is now clear to Lear that the two have betrayed him. They abuse their newfound power by requiring him to give up half of his knights, which was then lessened until it was required that he give up all of his knights. (Dominic, 1997) Unless he agreed, he would not be allowed to stay with them. This indicated Lear’s complete loss of authority as king and also as father to both his daughters.When the two daughters become of one mind in their demands from their father, King Lear is isolated emotionally and in power. He can no longer fight the demands of his daughters as he has bequeathed all he had to them and as such is empty-handed by himself. Also, the demand of withdrawal of all his knights indicates a future isolation even if the king does agree to the conditions of his daughters. He is isolated from them because of their betray al and agreeing to their demands will yield only a life of another kind of isolation, isolation from those loyal to him.The phase of isolation is final when the king runs out into the storm. Instead of looking for him, the two daughters order the door to be shut, leaving their father to fend for himself in the dark rainy night. Thus the transition from denial to rage and finally to isolation is made complete in the setting of the second act.ReferencesDominic, C. C. (1997). Shakespeare's characters for students. Detroit: Gale PublishersLynch, J. (2007). Classics revisited; the brutal power of ‘King Lear'; difficult and sadistic, the play still fascinates, especially in dark days.  Los Angeles Times, p.  E.1.   Retrieved 14 January 2008 from Los Angeles Times  databaseShakespeare, W. (1986). King Lear. William Shakespeare: the Tragedies, the Poems. Ed. John D. Wilson. Cambridge: Cambridge UP

Effective Memorization Strategies

EFFECTIVE MEMORIZATION STRATEGIES Memorization, as defined by Wikipedia, is the process of committing something to memory. It is a process that everyone undertakes to store in memory for recalling later. Memorization is an ongoing, lifelong process. Examples of some of the items that we strive to memorize on a daily basis are telephone numbers, addresses, music, lists and maps. The memory demands for students in college are much greater than they are for adults due to the amount of information they are bombarded with on a daily basis. Being able to memorize information efficiently and accurately is very important to all college students. Adults generally have acquired much of the skills and knowledge that are required on a daily basis. It can be very challenging in a college setting to study whether it be in a dormitory or apartment. Constant commotion of people coming and going is not very conducive to memorizing text. It is recommended that students find a work-space where they are able to concentrate. The ideal location is one free of distractions such as a library. In 1996 Brown and Miller categorized memorization techniques. Their categories were: memorizing through repetition (rote), memorizing through mnemonic techniques, memorization through grouping, memorizing through association, and memorizing through visual, auditory and konesthetic systems. * There are several different techniques that can be used to improve memorization. Rote memorization is a technique that focuses on remembering facts by a means of repetitition. Everyone can remember back in grade school when we were introduced to the times tables. Multiplication facts such as two times two equals four are examples of learning by using rote memorization. Other examples are learning the states and their capitals and sight words which are taught in elementary school. An article written by Grace Fleming states â€Å"Rote learning is often viewed as bad practice, although some would argue that rote memorization is a necessary first step in learning basics. † Opponents of Rote memorization use the argument that this process involves learning facts without developing a deep understanding. In earlier days rote memorization was sometimes referred to as â€Å"drilling† E. D. Hirsch Jr. , a education reformer, does feel that drilling is essential. In circumstances where recall of information must be automatic such as mulitplication tables, â€Å"you need something like drilling. † He warns though that teachers need to strive to make sure the drilling isn't boring. Mnemonics is another memorization strategy. It is a very powerful tool that works extremely well for memorizing lists. The word Mnemonics is derived from the name of the Greek goddess of memory who was called Mnemosyne. It is based on the fact that it is much more easier for the human mind to remember personal, humorous or otherwise meaningful information than arbitrary sequences In Biology class students are required to learn to learn the biological classification system which is kingdom, phylum, class, order, family, genus and species. A student might commit to memory the phrase â€Å"Keep Pond Clean Or Frogs Get Sick. † Using the first letter of each word in this phrase would prompt a student into remembering the list. This is known as the sentence technique. An example of the word technique would be using the word HOMES to memorize the Great Lakes: Huron, Ontario Michigan, Erie, Superior. This can be referred to as word play. Mnemonics works best when there are strong association between the mnemonic and the what they stand for. Mnemonics link strategy is a system of remembering items by creating an association with these unrelated items. For example, a person might have to go to the grocery store to buy potatoes, chicken and a broom. In their mind they could picture a chicken sweeping up potatoes with a broom. When they reached the store and visualized this it would be easy to complete their shopping. This method is sometimes referred to as imaging. Some people find it easier to memorize using associations. Memorizing a new subject by associating it with a process you are very familiar with can help some students. Using Biology again as an example, you can relate cell structure to a factory. The cell body could be the boss in a factory. You could think of the ribosomes asmessengers in this factory. Grouping is another effective memorization technique. Students can be required to learn hundreds of facts. Trying to memorize a list this long would be impossible. To simplify memorization of this list the student can divide the subject into groups. Memorizing through visual, auditory and kinesthetic systems can be a very useful tool for some students. Research has shown that each sense is processed in a different part of your brain. Using these systems can enhance learning by using more of your brain. Some students have very good retention when they make flashcards to study for a test.

Business in China Essay

There are many cross cultural differences that would need to be taken into consideration if a US company were to expand into China. Language is an important cultural difference that has to be taken into consideration. It would be wise to consult a native speaker. Due to various dialects and local slang a translation of something would have to be understood by all and to not offend a particular market. An American advertisement in English would be understood by all of the US but a Chinese advertisement in one of the seven Chinese dialects would not be understood by everyone in China. An American advertisement or product info that is mistranslated could make it off putting to consumers or investors. The legal system in China is vastly different than in the US. Corruption is rampant in China when doing business and often times bribes are necessary in order to ensure that your operation runs according to plan. The legal system in China is more difficult to navigate and lacks neutrality as the China Communist Party is in complete control of it. The US legal system has more neutrality, transparency and it is easier to file court cases. Bribes in the US would be completely illegal and never permissible. Gender is another cultural difference between the US and China. Gender inequality in China has existed throughout history and just recently laws are being passed in order to ensure equality but discrimination is still experienced. Women are still expected to do all housework even if they have a job and they normally make less than their male counterparts. Although the situation is improving, males are more favored in business dealings. A US company would need to be hesitant in sending a female executive to China to do any new dealings as Chinese companies might not be as comfortable compared to if they were dealing with a male. B The safety of products in the US is very different as compared to China. China is known for their cheap goods but they come at a health cost as low quality standards often lead to toxic or unsafe products. Many US companies outsource their production in order to lower costs and US products are often  recalled due to lead or other chemicals being found in the products after they have been purchased by the consumer. In the US this would not happen due to high industry quality standards and regulations. In China companies must strictly implement their own safety standards and monitor that they are being followed in order to ensure quality products up to standards. In the US, food and medical related products would need to follow the strict guidelines of the FDA in order to be able to sell the product on the market. In China, a food or medical product by the same company would not have as strict guildelines as compared to the US, but the FDA has been training Chinese companies on how to produce safer products. Products are often cheaper in price in China due to cheaper labor and production. China is able to produce products on such a large scale that it further decreases the price of each individual product. Workers are paid significantly lower wages as compared to the US. Chinese companies often receive the taxes they paid on products back if it is exported and this also keeps prices low. In the US products are not commonly advertised with a price ending in zero such as $10 or $20. Instead the product would be advertised one cent less at $9.99 or $19.99 because having the product price at the lower dollar amount makes the product seem more att ractive. In China there is much emphasis on the luck of certain numbers and 8 is one of the luckiest number in Chinese culture and many companies use this to their advantage by advertising products with prices ending in 8. Products are often promoted very differently between the US and China. Advertisements in the US often make it seem as though a particular product such as vodka will give you the adventurous life of the model in the advertisement. In China, advertisements for luxury products are banned as it doesn’t fit with the China Communist Party’s want to promote thrifty values and not promote extravagance. In China, a company new to the market must advertise its product with an emphasis on affirming its products safety due to the rampant counterfeiting and low product safety in China. In the US, a new company to the market would advertise its product with an emphasis on its distinguishing features or cheaper price as product safety is not an issue in the US. There is a large portion of China’s population that lives in rural areas and products have not normally marketed towards them due to the lack of infrastructure to effectively reach them. Recently, companies are marketing outside of major cities as  infrastructure is improving. This is compared to the US where the USPS can send a package to any address in the country in a few days. In the US businesses utilize large semi trailers to effectively distribute large batches products across the country as all city streets are able to accommodate the large trucks and the US highway system reaches to every part of the country. In China, businesses send out smaller batches to each store as space is often more limited but most major cities limit the use of trucks. Shipments must then be sent by vans or cars which is less efficient. Although the situation is improving, bribes are very common when doing business in China. Bribes are expected in order to cut through bureaucratic red tape. Not giving bribes would put a company at a disadvantage to their competitors. Any sort of bribery or corruption is highly illegal in the US and illegal for all US companies. In the US, workers must normally be at least 16 with permission or 18 to hold a job in order to not exploit children in the workforce. Child labor is a huge problem in China due to lack of enforcement of policies. Due to poverty, families are letting their children which can be as young as 5 years old be exploited by working in extreme conditions and long hours. If a US company was caught hiring child workers not only would it be ethically wrong but it would be a major hit to the companies reputation.