Dubstep Case Essay

The name â€Å"dubstep† was first coined to apply to bass-driven electronic music in 2002 in a town called Croydon (South London), England. The actual roots of dubstep are a bit tough to pinpoint because it is a merge of dozens of types of electronic music, and even after it began to achieve popularity it has continued to evolve and grow. Still, here we bring you this article to offer a general history of events that went into the formation & growth of a new genre. EARLY FORMATIONS (PRE-1999) Dubstep is thought to have evolved out of â€Å"Jamaican dub music† and other soundsystem cultures. The Jamaican soundsystems emphasized disco-type sounds with reproduced bass frequencies underlying. This eventually gave rise to the dub variety of reggae music that had features like sub-bass (bass where the frequency is less than 90Hz, a.k.a. really really deep), 2-step drums and distortion effects. All of this development eventually churned out the more modern British sounds of â€Å"jungle,† â€Å"garage† and now â€Å"dubstep.† It is important to note that many of these features existed individually prior to dubstep, but were only brought together under one roof in the early 2000s. Here is a sample of sub-bass being used in 1992, â€Å"Some Justice† by Urban Shakedown: THE ORIGINS OF DUBSTEP (1999-2002) Ammunition Promotions, who run the club â€Å"Forward>>† are thought to be the first to use the term â€Å"dubstep† to describe this style of music. The club, located in Soho London, was instrumental in the formation of dubstep music because it was really the first venue that was dedicated to playing the genre. Additionally, Forward>> ran a radio show on â€Å"Rinse FM† that was hosted by Kode9 to premier new music. The electronic style gained traction as the term â€Å"dubstep† was used to refer to the genre in a 2002 XLR8R cover story. Finally, under the Tempa record label (managed by Ammunition Promotions) we saw â€Å"Dubstep Allstars Vol 1 CD† released by DJ Hatcha that solidified the movement and established the dubstep name. Ammunition Records was certainly one of the big reasons that dubstep was able to gain momentum, particularly because of the many dubstep record labels that they promoted, Club Forward>> and Kode9†²s radio show. One other piece of the puzzle that really allowed the music style to spring roots was Big Apple Records in Croydon, South London. A lot of influential artists, particularly Skream and DJ Hatcha actually worked in the shop†¦ and many more were frequent visitors. The store has since shut down, but the influence is undoubted. GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT (2002+) In 2003, DJ Hatcha began to give a new direction for dubstep on Rinse FM†¦ using 10†³ dubplates (reggae-style) to form a dark, clipped & minimal sound that is largely used in dubstep today. An event in 2003 called â€Å"Filthy Dub† started happening regularly, and was where quite a few popular DJs like Skream, Benga, N Type and Cyrus made their debuts. It was around this time that Mala and Coki (together Digital Mystikz) started combining reggae to form yet another extension of dubstep that had orchestral and jungle sounds. Digital Mystikz, along with Loefah and Sgt. Pokes, began to manage the club DMZ in 2005 — along with it’s predecessor FWD>>, this is one of the most influential clubs. One of the landmark moments in dubstep history was the night of DMZ’s anniversary, where a line of over 600 people forced the club to move dubstep into the main room. The music has continued to accelerate, and after BBC Radio DJ Mary Anne Hobbs gave it attention on a national circuit across the U.K., we started to see regular dubstep night clubs popping up in New York, San Francisco, Tokyo and Barcelona. Still, it is worthwhile to note that THE PROGRESSIVE ERA OF DUBSTEP (2007+) More recently, the influence has spread to the commercial market with artists such as Britney Spears adopting the sound in newer tracks. In 2010, dubstep songs like â€Å"I Need Air† by Magnetic Man started hitting the pop charts in the UK. Undoubtedly, the 2010-2011 period was one of the most notably on the dubstep music scene, where progressive artists like Flux Pavilion, Noisia, Bassnectar and Zeds Dead began to redefine the traditional dub sound with increasing portions of mid-range bass and vocals. In a nod to more universally-accepted club music, these new artists have begun to bridge gaps between progressive house and traditional UK Bass to form more high-powered mixes that hinge on the increasingly-used â€Å"drop† of a track. With the ongoing â€Å"sound wars† in modern music making, traditionalists like Burial point to the sonic superiority of classic dubstep, with dynamic bass lines and complex arrangement patterns that focus on heart-stopping sub bass more than anything else. However, there is certainly room in the genre for artists like Grammy-award winning Skrillex, who choose to focus on progressive basslines, heavy distortion and gut-wrenching drop sections that maintain sub bass while covering more ends of the frequency spectrum. The age of social media has allowed almost anyone to have access to at-home production studios. More independent artists join the arena every single day, and so dubstep has never been as far reaching with many artists searching for their first big hit. We’re here to cover all the madness for you here at uDubstep.com! -JR Some people might think dubstep is a new phenomenon, but it actually grew out of garage and grime about a decade ago. In Croydon, south London, there was a shop called Big Apple Records that acted as a hub for people into all sorts of bass-led music (sadly, it closed five years ago). I had a recording studio above the shop and started the Big Apple record label with John Kennedy and DJ Hatcha. We were the first label to sign Skream and Benga when they were just 15 years old alongside Digital Mystikz (DMZ), Mala, Coki and Loefah. These artists made some of the first dubstep records. Around this time Hatcha, who also worked at Big Apple, was championing this sound at a London club night called FWD. We were all making records for Hatcha to spin and meeting in the record shop to discuss the sound we were making. It was a bit like a bass university. And through Benga, Skream, Oris Jay, Plastician, Chef, LB, Kode 9, N Type and Benny Ill, the dubstep sound was brought to life. We have just finished the festival season with Reading and Leeds. This is unbelievable for us, considering a few years ago you wouldn’t get to play those festivals unless you had a guitar in your hand or a set of drums in front of you. It shows how much this music has grown in the past few years that a non â€Å"rock’n’roll† band can be accepted at a major rock festival (although it should be pointed out that we continue some of the old rock’n’roll traditions after the shows). I was speaking to Skream this weekend about how dubstep has gone so far in the past three years – we were wondering if a new style of music has ever spread around the world so rapidly. If you think about drum’n’bass taking off in the 90s, a scene would blow up in one country in one year, then another a year or so later. The internet has changed all that and helped spread dubstep across the world almost instantly. At the same time, dubstep is constantly changing, incorporating different sounds and styles all the time. The Outlook festival was held in Coatia last weekend, a dubstep event hosting some of the biggest names in the genre from around the world. If you thought you would hear only straight-up dubstep you were in for a surprise. Loefah played Detroit techno, Skream played metal, and Joker mixed it up with some UK funky and house. I think the fact dubstep artists embrace other genres is a big part of why it’s so difficult to define the music. The borders are becoming increasingly blurred between dubstep, grime, drum’n’bass, techno, house, funky †¦ everything. However, there is one element that links all of these genres together and that is †¦ BASS. The music industry has been in the doldrums for a long time with few A&R people willing to take a risk. You get the feeling they are all being told by bosses to â€Å"sign us a hit or you’re out†. This is very short-sighted, and has done a lot of damage to the music on the majors. Luckily, we found a label (Columbia) that didn’t ask us to water down our sound. Hopefully, other majors will follow suit and let their A&R teams make choices based on the music they believe in. There are so many great acts out there, with fresh music deserving the same exposure we are getting at the moment (see below). With the support of more labels like ours, and Radio 1 willing to take risks as they have in supporting us, the remainder of 2010 and 2011 will hopefully be the start of another revolutionary and exciting time in UK music.

Causes Of Global Financial Crisis Economics Essay

About every corporate, company and person in this universe is good cognizant with the term Global Financial Crisis. However, there are several grounds for the causes of current fiscal causes and Global economic downswing. This assignment will be concentrating on few cardinal causes that led to the downswing of planetary economic system and brought a ne'er seen fiscal crisis state of affairs across the universe. Banks, companies, corporate, Multinational companies all felt quarries to it. United States and U.K and other few developed states majorly, witnessed the worst of the crisis and are still seeking difficult to retrieve from it. The 1990s and 2000s saw a planetary moving ridge of bad investing in fiscal assets and land, and the rise of the belongings developer as the key participant in urban development. US economic system went into problem in late 2007 when lifting trade good monetary values combined with the subprime mortgage crisis and finally triggered recession. In the background of fiscal crisis in US which started in 2007, the existent estate sector continued to bloom and give good returns to the investors. Banks and fiscal establishments seeing this as an chance reduced involvement rates and made mortgages easy available to common people. As a consequence many people bought houses for investing and made usage of easy recognition installations and mortgages. Fall of lodging monetary values and lifting involvement rates triggered mortgages refinancing jobs as investors found trouble in returning the involvement every bit good chief. This caused monolithic losingss for loaners and prostration of some Ba nkss and broader liquidness jobs in fiscal sector. ( Bunkley, N. , 2008 ) . Hamilton and Kim ( 2002 ) province that today the passage to post industrialism is about complete in the United States, as agribusiness and fabrication history for less than 10 % of the entire labour force ( and that per centum continues to fall ) . The twenty-first century has seen acceleration in this tendency: Between December 2000 and May 2009, the United States lost 5.25 million fabrication occupations, or more than 30 % . Securitization turned broad during the 1990s, driven by demand from institutional investors seeking mercantile establishments for their money, bringings from Bankss that got paid by the dealing and information engineering that enabled the rating of cryptic instruments. From place mortgages to car loans to recognition card receivables and concern loans, about everything with an income watercourse seemed to stop up as a bond, and the bond market enormously outstripped the stock market in value ( Pleven & A ; Silverman, 2007 ) . Large graduated table employers that provided occupation security, calling mobility through occupation ladders, and generous wellness and retirement benefits seem to hold been artifacts of the corporate industrial age in the United States and the United Kingdom. Many of the so called academy employers have explicitly renounced the former patterns that tied employees to their houses, through stop deading company pensions and phasing out retiree wellness benefits. General Motors, for case, notified its white-collar retired persons in July 2008 that in the New Year they and their dependants would no longer be covered by GM-financed private wellness insurance because it had become excessively dearly-won. Alternatively, they would be compensated with a $ 300 addition in their monthly pension cheques ( Bunkley, 2008 ) . Harmonizing to Ahrens ( 2002 ) , the crisis which proceeded this recession was by historical criterions barely a roar at all. The net growing in planetary employment in the 1990s and 2000s came near to zero, while mean GDP per capita really fell. Underemployment and concealed unemployment became common. Almost half of the universe ‘s occupations were classified by the International Labour Organisation as insecure. Defined-benefit programs provided employees strong inducements to pass their callings with peculiar employers. With the coming of the 401 ( K ) in the early 1980s, nevertheless, the big bulk of employers that still provided pensions began a displacement toward funding comparatively portable programs in which employees and houses both contribute to an separately owned pension that can be rolled over if the employee alterations occupations. These â€Å" defined-contribution † programs efficaciously transferred hazard from employers to workers, who were now respon sible for doing reasonable investing picks on their ain behalf from among the options offered by their employer ( Cobb, 2008 ; Hacker, 2006 ) . Although employers were motivated in portion by cost considerations, the consequence was to loosen the ties that bound employees to houses, farther reenforcing the tendencies described in the old subdivision. While the planetary economic system is demoing cautious marks of healing, hapless states are still enduring the effects of the world-wide depression and the nutrient, fuel and fiscal crises, which hit over the last two old ages. The poorest states will necessitate extra aid to travel in front of the planetary depression. states like UK, US can play a cardinal function in assisting to heighten international demand to bear planetary resurgence, but they will necessitate entryway to funding for old ages to come. The World Bank is working for a Crisis Response Facility to guarantee that rapid and helpful support can be provided to most incapacitated hapless states following dazes. Failure to cover with this demand could endanger the development achieved in many hapless states based on recent strong development attempts, and alternatively take to dearly-won reversals. ( Kotlan, V. , 2002 ) The positive side of recession is that it will convey new demands for be aftering to make what it has ever presented itself as making protecting the demands of ordinary people instead than privileged minorities, the populace instead than the private involvement, the hereafter instead than the present. New societal forces will impact on the behavior of contrivers and on be aftering results. And the recession will supply plentifulness of chances for these new forces to concentrate around and capitalize on ( Peel and Ioannidis, 2003 ) . No surprises so that some are already take a firm standing that the solution to the crisis is to work even harder at ‘Competitiveness ‘ than earlier. The old order, rational and institutional, will hang on every bit long as there are no possible options ( Andreou, et. Al, 2000 ) . For illustration, there will be no deficit of potentially utile infinite in the center of metropoliss everyplace. Already many authoritiess have targeted societal lodging and green substructure as the urban avenues through which to supply the necessary Keynesian injection to reconstruct macroeconomic stableness. The Obama disposal ‘s accent on environmental utilizations of the new public support raises the possibility of a turning consensus in favor of a Green New Deal within which the urban will be the cardinal graduated table in the United States. All of these will hold profound deductions for Planning ( Peel and Ioannidis, 2003 ) . Encourage nest eggs among the consumer base by increasing involvement rates so that consumers do non impart to a great extent on borrowing for their nutriment and stop up losing their net incomes on involvement or in the procedure of repossession of belongings and earning by Bankss which have lent them money earlier ( Davis, 2009 ) . To make this in a hazard free mode, recognition cheques should be made rigorous and incentive options should be given to people who maintain their evaluations therefore doing it a reciprocally organized attempt and non a exclusive run by the Government to cut down debitors in their state. In the capitalist universe in which we live the most of import influence on wellness and felicity at both the person and corporate degree is the handiness of occupations. In the new context of planetary recession, Kotlan ( 2002 ) argues the ILO has hence proposed that public policy should be readjusted to concentrate on low C employment intensive poorness cut downing growing. If planning is to repossess any credibleness as a concern devoted to societal betterment and environmental endurance it must set consequently. This implies a really different sort of planning, and contriver, from that of the recent yesteryear. In the immediate hereafter this would look to necessitate two new accents. First, cardinal strategic topographic point must be given to the end of maximizing local economic public assistance. Improved employment chances and a fairer distribution of incomes should go the premier mark of planning at all spacial graduated tables. Without this none of the other benign possibilities of be aftering base much opportunity of being realised. To be programmatic about it, the nucleus of planning at the urban and regional degree should be an expressed foundational Labour Market scheme to reconstruct and prolong an inclusive local labor market, as the UK All Party Urban Development Group has acknowledged, even if in mode that is already out of day of the month. The implicit in rule should be to maximize the sustainable employment impact of public disbursement and land usage ( Andreou, et. Al, 2000 ) . But this will merely impact those who get occupations. So, secondly, schemes should be developed to understate the negative effects of unemployment and low or insecure incomes by beef uping community resources and non-market chances. Bettering societal protection is an pressing precedence. There are many lessons of local authorities responses to earlier recessions and experiences around the universe that should be re-examined. Planners will hold to take on board a whole new universe of demands and responses.

The Case Study of Soren

1. Define the problem (from student’s perspective) 2. Ensure safety (including assessing potential for self-harm) 3. Provide support 4. Examine alternatives 5. Make a plan 6. Obtain a commitment (including no-harm agreement where applicable) Tragedy struck a small west Texas town Saturday when beloved Lubbock Christian School (LCU) superintendent, Peter Dahlstrom, accidentally shot and killed his nine year old granddaughter, Soren, while rabbit hunting on the family farm. The entire community has been shocked by this tragedy and the effects of the incident will be felt in the community for some time.Many people in the community will benefit from crisis intervention techniques during this time. I have applied Robinson’s Crisis Response Model for successful crisis intervention to develop a plan of action to help teachers, students, and faculty through this difficult time. The model suggests the following six steps: 1) Define the problem; 2) Ensure safety, including assess ing potential for self-harm; 3) Provide support; 4) Examine alternatives; 5) Make a plan; and 6) Obtain a commitment, including a no-harm agreement where applicable.The first phase of the crisis intervention plan is to inform as many people of the issue as quickly as possible. To quickly reach as many people as possible, the crisis team sent out an email to inform parents as immediately after the accident occurred. It would be best if the children are not blind-sided by the information at school on Monday morning. I expect several of the students and faculty members to go through the 5 classic stages of grief identified by Elisabeth Kubler-Ross (1969), which are: denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance.Sometimes this can be a slow process, so I think some students and teachers will require on-going help to process this tragic loss of life. My plan involves the following crisis intervention steps: 1. Have a Staff Pre-meeting first thing Monday morning: a. Invite all the staff who feels affected by the crisis. I feel it is important to include part-time teachers, bus drivers, playground supervisors, janitors, secretaries, and any other workers who would like to join. b. Keep communications open and give facts on the situation, as appropriate within the bounds of confidentiality.Prepare a handout for staff not in attendance. c. Share reactions and feelings with one another, taking time for mutual support. The school crisis team shares information on grief, and answers the questions and concerns of the staff. d. Give a plan for the day that has been prepared by the crisis team. 2. Prior to the first active school day How to tell Students e. Decide which students are to be told. f. Confirm what information they will be told. g. Decide who will tell the students. h. Outline the procedures for how they will be told. i.Discuss how they may react and what to do. 3. The Debriefing Meeting: A meeting with staff at the end of the day to discuss how the day w ent for both students and staff. 4. Activities to Discourage: Large assemblies or public address announcements – these make it difficult to provide support to students on an individual basis. When he Lubbock Christian School community mourned the loss of a student and the pain of their leader. â€Å"This is a great tragedy for our school,† said Brian Pitaniello, chairman of the Lubbock Christian School's Board of Trustees.Pitaniello said Peter Dahlstrom has worked as superintendent of the school for 17 years. â€Å"He is a spiritual leader for our school; he loves our kids,† he said. Hundreds of students, teachers parents and friends of the Dahlstroms gathered for a student-organized prayer vigil in honor of the family Saturday morning in the school's auditorium. â€Å"That just shows the impact this family had on our school,† Pitaniello said. â€Å"This school and this community loves this were answered by a family friend who said the family did not wis h to speak with the media. family. and our heart breaks for this family.We hurt for her family for a loss of a child as well as for the loss of a classmate and the loss of a student. † School administrators sent an email to parents early Saturday informing them of the incident. Parents were told grief counselors would be available for students. Parents of third-graders were urged to meet with a children's grief counselor at 8 a. m. Monday morning at the school to help mothers and fathers feel more confident in talking with their children about the tragedy. Classes were expected to go on as scheduled Monday. Phone calls to the Dahlstrom house in Anton . k. Student and staff contact with the media while at school – media contacts can be disruptive and sometimes insensitive. Direct all media to the public information officer or representative. l. Removing belongings of the deceased- this is best done gradually and can include family members and friends. Having concrete rem inders in the classroom can help teachers and students let go gradually. m. Staying rigid with regard to curriculum and scheduling – reactions will vary, from needing flexibility to needing structure. Decisions must be made on an individual basis. n.Not communicating with students, staff, parents and community on unfolding events. o. Treating the death of students differently because of status or community position, etc. 5. Safety Valves p. Make sure there are enough staff and school crisis team members to support all who may need it. It's much better to have more than you need, than to need, more than you have. q. Designate a safe room for anyone wanting a place to go to, if needed. Make sure everyone knows its purpose and location. r. Hold a debriefing meeting at the end of the day to give people a place to process the day and receive support and validation. bnnhb

Media Globalisation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Media Globalisation - Essay Example The usage of facts and figures has been excellent here and the writer has not stepped back in accepting the fact that the Japanese television industry is highly influenced by the American industry. Then the trend of the Japanese television industry has been explained. The trend shifted towards more television shows from movies due to the huge boom in the popularity of television serials (Chun, 2006, p.368). Though American influence was present but since 1980s except some television serials imported from America others haven't fare well in Japan. American movie culture is still quite famous and people enjoy watching movies produced in Hollywood. The fame of television series' led to a decline in the movie audience and this lead to more filmmakers turning towards television industry, which only led to an increase in the popularity of television serials (Blumenthal et al, 2006, p.592). The importance given to a television serial is on the basis of its local touch that is the viewers do n't really care if the serial is a copy from some other television industry what they really care about is the 'Japanese odor' in the serial. The solution to this situation was to import television shows from different industries and run them in Japan adding a local touch, which proved to be quite successful in the end. One of the example of such television show mentioned by the writer here is 'Who wants to be a millionaire'. The success rate of this show in Japan was huge though it was an imported show but the cultural touch relevant to Japan that was given to it proved outstanding. The Japanese version is mostly the same as of the version running in Britain but with some amendments like the appearance of celebrities as challengers. The draw back that this article has here is the mentioning of an international television show being popular when the writer himself mentioned that locally produced television serials are more liked by Japanese people. To level out this effect the write r than discusses a show that was imported from America but failed to make its mark in the Japanese television industry, the name of the program is 'Survivor'. The cultural products that Japan exports are called culturally odorless as they do not depict any cultural theme of the country. It is in this context that the Japanese is called Mukokuseki which means something or someone lacking any nationality. Now the writer directs his attention towards the television serials that are being exported from Japan. The interesting fact here that the writer mentions is the number of programs being exported by Japan is far more than imported. The writer also discusses the point raised by many critics who say that the largest shareholder of Japanese exported programs is animation and cartoons. This point is further supported by the fact that the writer presents, the fact is that animated programs produced in Japanese only consist of 1 percent of the total animated programs being produced by Japan confirming that they are being produced to export. The animation producers do not portray Japanese culture in the cartoons and games because they think that this is better for these programs as they are for export. (Gomery & Hockley, 2006, p.142) By glocalizing, the Japanese are buying highly prominent program formats in the West and then localizing them according to the tastes of the Japanese. The author points that the format business is considered as a highly effective and

Group Thinking Action Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 3

Group Thinking Action - Essay Example I have a friend who is an American, born and raised there. I remember after the planes crashed on 9/11 then the new word to figure out for word was, â€Å"Muslim† and â€Å"terrorist.† In America and in most parts of the world the word terrorist is negative and doesn’t mean that the person is part of a particular country’s armed services. I remember a few months ago when I was talking to my friend who believes in the Koran and thus in America and around the world labeled as a â€Å"Muslim†. We were writing back and forth about the Islamic faith and he replied in one mail not to send the mail to every one of my lists. He did not the government to be reading his mail. Now, why would my friend be terrified by the fact that he is American who happens to believe in the Islam faith? â€Å"Group Think† comes into play here. This type of thinking is dangerous and can only lead people and societies down dangerous paths. If all of Americans come to believe that Islam is some crazy cult and creates â€Å"terrorists† then my friends could become a threat in thinking and in the minds of many Americans. This thinking creates negative stereotypes of outsiders. These stereotypes may be totally false. This type of think places me versus you which can create divisions and ignorance in a particular society. If you add anger and vengeance as feelings that are attached to a type of thinking, then this becomes very dangerous.   This may sound silly to you but â€Å"Group Think† gets at the idea of delusions and illusions. If someone is severely delusional and illusional than psychologists might be called in to start treatment.

Business Economics (Principal Agent Theory) Essay

Business Economics (Principal Agent Theory) - Essay Example In fact analysts and the common people were surprised at the high risk undertaken by such big companies as Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. In fact Bear Stearns Cos. was acquired by JP Morgan Chase & Co despite being the for the largest investment bank at one point of time. Experts have long criticized such lack of foresight in risk taking. However one important factor which are not often brought up in the analyses of this problem is the compensation of executives especially those which are incentive based. As analyzed by the experts, years before this crisis took place, the executives undertook the long-term economic stability as a gamble to play with and focused more on short-term financial gains. (Keller & Stocker, 2008) Understanding this issue might prevent future dangers and thus address the problem of bankruptcy by designing better compensation arrangements. The problem of compensation can be analyzed with the help of illustrating the case of Lehman Brothers and Bear Stearns as d epicted in the work â€Å"The Wages of Failure: Executive Compensation at Bear Stearns and Lehman 2000-2008† by Lucian A. Bebchuk, Alma Cohen and Holger Spamann in 2010. A panel of business and policy experts resented this lack of focus on long term worth and steadiness and the stress on short-term benefits. The National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD) suggested that the focus should lie on performance-oriented compensation rather than measuring the performance of the firm based upon stock prices. However the gap between such compensation and the value added to the American companies began to increase. In 2007 even when the mortgage crisis progressed further, the bonuses of Wall Street was at $33.2 billion, merely 2 percent below the high levels of 2006. The fall of Bear Stearns shows the problems brought about by the inclination towards short-term success. (Keller &

Nursing ethics Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Nursing ethics - Term Paper Example However, the nurses cannot act in accordance with the demands made by the patients; on the contrary, they have to act according to their professional and ethical code for the complete and fast convalescence of the patients. The Paper The patients suffering from different diseases require urgent and intensive care in order to get relieved from the pain they are undergoing. However, sometimes it so happens that the treatment procedure is quite painful and somewhat awkward for the patient, where he is not ready to act upon the advice of the medical advisor. At such precarious state of affairs the nurses have to keep their professional obligation in mind in order to tackle the patient without creating too much annoyance for him. The same situation was created with an old patient, who was admitted at the hospital for the surgery of his leg. Being a pensioner, and the only source of income for the entire family as well, the patient maintained serious reservations regarding the expenditures being made on him. He requested repeatedly to the hospital staff to operate him as soon as possible so that he could escape from the extra expenditures and daily rent of the room he had hired at the hospital. However, being a chronic diabetic and heart patient as well, the doctors spent many days in controlling his sugar level in the blood. It seriously told upon the weak nerves of the patient, and he grew very weak and feeble by the time the operation was due. The nurses did not inform him regarding the room charges and service charges, as well as the fee being deducted from the patient’s deposit on every visit of the diabetes and heart specialists. The medical staff inserted artificial hip joint in the left leg of the patient, amount of which was really shocking for the patient. The doctors presented the charges bill the next day after the operation, and the patient was startled to look at the bill he had to pay for his two weeks long admission at the hospital. Consequentl y, he got a serious heart attack, and thus lost his life at the hospital. Had doctors not wasted two weeks in sugar control procedure, the life of the patient could have been saved. Though the medical staff does not escape its duties; rather, since the sugar control process is made keeping in view the health condition of the patient, the doctors took a fortnight time in the process, which was strictly beyond the capacity of the patient. Here appear the following ethical issues: Whether or not the serious diabetic should be recommended surgery at the age of seventy years Whether or not should the doctors have wasted fourteen days for controlling the blood sugar level Whether or not the bill should be presented to the patient on the very next day of the operation was conducted Should the doctors not have discounted the bill looking at the poor financial condition of the patient? It is true that the patient had been suffering from severe pain in his leg, and sought the help of the medi cal and nursing staff for the same. Somehow, the medical staff must have looked into his financial and physical position in order to save his life. Ethical values do not allow the professionals to give any harm to the patients, and thus escaping every possibility that may pave the way towards the increase in the severity of his ailment. Thus, the nurses have to take some unpleasant decisions for the best interest of the patient and his family. Ethical

How Aircraft and Aircraft Carriers helped the U.S in WWII Research Paper

How Aircraft and Aircraft Carriers helped the U.S in WWII - Research Paper Example Air power facilitated the surveillance of the U.S land. The use of aircraft in the World War II was part of a national grand strategy. Higham observes that the use of aircraft in the war during the 20th century consisted of strategic planning by the government and tactical operations, which follows the, principles of war and commerce (2002, 1). In this paper, we focus the discussion on how aircraft and the aircraft carriers were of help to the U.S army during the World War II. Air power consists of the air forces, airlines, aircraft and the ancillary industry. For the operation of this industry, it requires management that entails command control communications and intelligence. All this things were a vital part for any U.S air force soldier to be familiar with before taking command of any U.S air force airline. During World War II, Higham points out that the air power was still a not an area familiar to the American army. However, over the years the airpower became a force to reckon with, the air force was vital to the ground power in the World War II. ... At the pacific, see the land, based air forces and the carrier task forces were in use. The U.S utilized the air force to patrol the sea-lanes in the north Atlantic; photoreconnaissance was also a part of the role done by the air force in the wars. The British and Americans used the air power for guerrilla warfare. In his book, the rise of American Air power, Sherry examines the American bombing strategy of specific interest is the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombing. The author approaches this from the cultural point of history. Sherry points out that the U.S utilized the dropping of the atom bombs as a defence and due to its terror potential. Culturally speaking the use of air power was not because of the technological advancement of the weapons used in war but it was a continuation of the fantasy of scientific warfare and the evolving of political social and military views (1987,239). With the technological advancement in the air power, the dropping of the atom bombs was an easy way fo r the U.S to block the enemy’s ability to wage war. The Japanese according to sherry’s observation gave in to an unconditional surrender. Sherry does point out that in the use of aircraft; the aerial bombing was a chaotic and haphazard affair that yielded unintended consequences that included massive civilian casualties. This to sherry was a failure because it did not in any way address the necessity to defeat the main body of the enemy military forces (1987, 145). Sherry observed that the use of aircraft as an offensive strategy in the warfare did achieve its target because it did fuel for revenge between combatants. This was because of the inhumane pain inflicted upon the civilian population. The whole idea of developing technology related to aircraft warfare

Topic ( Religion in tower hamlet) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Topic ( Religion in tower hamlet) - Essay Example Now I will move on to how religion affects people’s life and their health. I will investigate the impact of religion on health in the chosen Tower Hamlet. The information gathered in this essay in mainly from books and internet sources. Both health and religion in a way is a manner of coping and re-framing one’s life, bringing into it a sense of meaning and purpose. This is even more powerful when one’s life is threatened by a still uncurable disease such as HIV, in the taken case study in Tower Hamlet. The main body of my essay I will focus on Christian and Muslim modernizations in Tower Hamlet. Later, I will concentrate on religious beliefs and how they can affect health. I will also include some pictures and statistical tables reflecting some of the points that have been made. In conclusion, I will summarize the main issues addressed and provide some suggestions. The followers of a given religion are often united into a community. That is why we need to clarify the meaning of Community in Tower Hamlet. Christianity followers are referred to as Christian communities. There are various definitions of community. For the purpose of this essay I have examined the exact definition: social network of interacting individuals, usually concentrated into a defined territory’ (Stacey, 1969). This definition is most relevant in the way that it displays interest between the individuals and includes them within the same territory. On the other hand, being in the same social network does not necessarily mean that they will share the same opinion. In Christian communities, however, people follow the same religious opinion, as well as the same belief in God. Their particular social network may connect them more powerfully with people in other parts of the world. The Christian community in Tower Hamlets shares the same geographical area, but not all of them have the same

Trends in terrorism Essay Example for Free

Trends in terrorism Essay Trends in terrorism can be defined as changes in the type, number and leathality of terrorist attacks, attitudes of terrorist groups plus other factgors over time. Terrorism has exacted some steep costs, Airlines and tourism suffered after September 11; that could happen again. Spending for the war in Iraq was vastly underestimated. But the damage has paled before the larger effect, which is not much. Terrorism hasnt destroyed prosperity or cross-border flows of goods, money and people. People regard attacks around the world (in London, Madrid, Bali) as isolated tragedies and not a cause to alter their buying habits. The smaller size of terrorist cells means they are more difficult to detect and engage,  they are less capable, but also less predictable and possibly more dangerous. Terrorists’ growing sophistication is exemplified in their use of the Internet.   Their increasing criminal activity is reflected their use of the same networks as transnational criminal groups.   The terrorists’ focus on Iraq is being aided by networks uncovered in several regions that supply a flow of foreign terrorists there. An early and ongoing victim of terrorism, the commercial airlines industry has been a focus of domestic and international incidents. Initially, attacks against aircraft demonstrated publicity value, often achieved their aim, and proved attractive to state sponsors. The industry responded in a positive and responsible manner by implementing security improvements and fostering international protective cooperation. Hijacking and armed attacks occur less frequently in today’s world—a measure of improved defensive awareness—although still posing a risk in locations where preventive measures are not stringently observed. A greater danger today lies in the sabotage or bombing of commercial aircraft, a menace which will only diminish in the face of constantly improving security precautions. The changing threat to the airlines industry underscores the dynamic nature of terrorism. Motivations, targeting, strategy, tactics—even logistics—continue to evolve, in keeping with efforts on the part of security agencies to meet the challenges and to stay ahead of the dangers. Terrorist atrocities in Algeria, characterized by the horrific slaughter of women and children; bombs hidden aboard a train in Pakistan which claimed 23 lives and injured 75 others; and the deaths of more than 260 persons as the result of truck-bomb explosions at the US Embassies in Nairobi, Kenya, and Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania, are reminders that terrorists retain the determination and ability to strike ruthlessly at a broad range of targets in many locations. Motivation. Originally reflecting a largely left-wing ideological foundation, today’s terrorists are increasingly likely to be motivated by campaigns of ethnic nationalism or religious extremism. Often the two go hand in hand, such as the aspirations of Sikh militants for an independent state of Khalistan or the fundamentalist Egyptian Islamic Jihad (EIJ), which seeks to establish an Islamic state in Egypt. Religious Extremism. Islamic extremists literally pose the largest danger in terms of religious terrorism. In part an outcome of magnitude of numbers and Islam’s global reach, it is also because, unlike the cohesive grouping of the past, many militant Islamists are individuals who do not owe allegiance to any particular organization, making identification and trace checks very difficult. Sunni terrorists, such as Ramzi Yousef, convicted in the New York Trade Center bombing, tend to be representative of this trend, whereas Shi’a terrorists continue to pursue their goals in a more collective fashion, obtaining direction and support from Iran. Although the Sunni-Shi’a schism remains, some cooperation between members of the two branches of Islam has been evident.   Extremist militants of other faiths also have an involvement in terrorist violence and must not be ignored. Christian religious groups, such as the Aryan Nations, are active in North America, and are becoming more closely associated with the Militia Movement. The Jewish Defence League maintains a presence in North America as well, but it is in Israel and the Occupied Territories where the combination of nationalism and religious fervor manifests itself in acts of Jewish terrorism. Nationalism. Ethnic nationalism continues to be a significant motivational factor in a number of terrorism campaigns, some of which are long-standing (Northern Ireland, Basques, Palestinians, Kurds) and others which are relatively recent (Uighers, Timorese, Achenese). Individually or in combinations, nationalism-separatism-irridentism have demonstrated a notable resurgence since the collapse of the former Soviet Union (FSU); several states currently experiencing politically motivated violence were previously members of the FSU or communist entities. Ideology does play a role in some nationalist movements, but the more usual accompaniment is religious fundamentalism. Strong religious beliefs and nationalist-separatist goals represent a particularly effective motivational combination. The role of ideology has not been completely overtaken by the influence of religion. A number of left-wing movements continue to exist, such as the Turkish Revolutionary People’s Liberation Party Front (DHKP-C), the Peruvian Sendero Luminoso (Shining Path), and the Naxalites of India. Animal-Rights supporters and Environmentalists—the Issue Groups—tend to be found on the left of the political spectrum, as well. Right-wing motivation is much more prevalent, however. Targeting and Methodology. Improved international cooperation against terrorism and strengthened security for diplomatic and military facilities have prompted a shift in terrorist targeting and methodology: Random attacks on tourists and the deliberate killing of foreign-aid and NGO workers are disturbing trends; Incidents of kidnapping and hostage-taking have become frequent occurrences in South America and the former Soviet Union; Terrorist attacks focused on economic infrastructures can be expected to continue, including those related to energy distribution, transportation, banking and tourism; Hoaxes, particularly bomb threats, have been employed on occasion to seriously disrupt transportation and tourism, causing significant local impact; The Internet is becoming a resource more frequently used by terrorists as a means to access information, spread propaganda, raise funds, communicate, and plan operations. The gun and the bomb retain the lead as favored methods of terrorist assault, as witnessed by the shooting death of former provincial governor Hakim Said in Pakistan and the grenade attack against an Israeli bus stop in Beersheba. Vehicle bombs have proven a particularly attractive medium for terrorists, in part because the trend in recent years has been toward high casualty, indiscriminate targeting, and in part because of ease of manufacture, delivery, capacity, and lethality, with instructions on the Internet and components widely available. Threats and incidents of suicide attacks have increased in some regions, such as the Middle East and Sri Lanka, and are likely to be repeated. The approach of the Millennium is considered to raise the potential for independent action by individuals with extreme beliefs, especially those associated with cults, increasing the possible resort to a chemical, biological or nuclear radiation device. The use of a nuclear weapon remains the least likely scenario, given current levels of security surrounding nuclear weapons and the undoubted reluctance of any state to support the use of such a weapon for terrorist purposes. The dispersal of a radioactive substance in a terrorist incident does remain a possibility. Nonetheless, despite the seemingly advantageous potential of nuclear, chemical or biological methodology, conventional weapons are still considered to be favored by terrorists, principally because of familiarity and ease of use. Generally more frequent, domestic incidents are usually the result of a shooting or bombing attack directed against security forces or specific civilian opponents; such incidents produce smaller numbers of casualties. Occasionally the numbers of casualties are higher, such as an incident aboard commercial transportation, or one involving a car-bomb or an explosive device placed in a crowded area, as was the case in the bombing of the Murrah Building in Oklahoma City. International incidents are characterized by large-scale casualties because the incidents, although less frequent, are designed to achieve maximum publicity and shock effect. Reference: http://www.csis-scrs.gc.ca Global trends of terror by International institute of strategic studies Islamabad, Pakistan. Fighting terror by Dr.Arif Ahmed

Without Her by Dante Gabriel Rossetti

Without Her by Dante Gabriel Rossetti ‘Without Her’ Dante Gabriel Rossetti Formed in 1848, the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood consisted of a group of young artists who wished to throw off the conventions of the art establishment and found a new movement that took its inspiration from the more ‘primitive‘ art of the medieval and early Renaissance period. Dante Gabriel Rossetti was one of the founding members of the group and acted as an energising force to the other artists. Rossetti himself, though, was never exclusively devoted to painting. Dividing his time between painting and poetry, he was in part responsible for the group’s use of literary subjects and symbols in their work as well as for the printing of the group‘s short-lived literary journal, The Germ. A significant number of his poems were written to supplement painted subjects and his philosophical ideas about painting were also argued in his poems. Following the death of his wife, Elizabeth Siddal, many of his poems were preoccupied with love and death. It is believed that h is marital infidelities, together with his experience of falling in love with the wife of his friend, William Morris, led to feelings of guilt and remorse and influenced the pessimistic tone of his later poems (Wilmer, 1991, 7-21). Walter Pater (1889, 230) comments upon the ‘definiteness of sensible imagery’ and the ‘minute and definite’ attention to visual detail in Rossetti’s work and it is certainly the case that the symbolism of ‘Without Her’ is grounded in particular physical objects which are described with a painterly eye and with the typical Pre-Raphaelite attention to the detail of nature. Yet Rossetti is also concerned with the sound and rhythms of poetry. He translated Italian verse into English and his sonnet sequence, The House of Life, shows that influence, particularly in his use of Petrarch‘s model of the sonnet cycle. The sonnet ‘Without Her’ is written in the Petrarchan form, its fourteen lines of iambic pentameter arranged as an octet followed by a sestet. The rhyme scheme, abbaabba cddccd also follows this convention. However, within this framework, Rossetti frequently subverts the form, especially in irregular patterns of rhyt hm and stress, in order to convey the pressure of emotion. This irregularity of rhythm is present in the opening line, which breaks in the middle and then runs on to the second line. Rossetti rejects the normal iambic rhythm, beginning the line with the stressed word ‘What’ and ending with two stressed words ‘blank grey’. The second line has a similar pattern, varied in the middle, but again beginning with a stressed word, ‘There’ and ending with the double stress of ‘moon’s face’. To add greater emphasis, he makes use of alliteration in the hard g of ‘glass’ and ‘grey’ in the fist line and the assonance of ‘pool’ and ‘moon’, ‘there’ and ‘where‘ in the second. Straddling these two lines, the alliteration of ‘blank‘ and ‘blind‘ also echoes the consonant ‘l’ from ‘glass’ and ‘pool‘. The diction of these lines is deceptively simple, made up as it is of single-syllable words. However, these images work in a symbolic way, repeating images such as the mirror, the pool and the moon that have occurred elsewhere in The House of Life (for example, in XLI, ’Through Death to Love’ and in the ’Willowwood’ sequence, XLIX-LII). His lost lover is linked with the moon a conventional symbol of femininity and the mirror that had previously reflected her presence is now empty. In the second pair of lines, Rossetti continues this pattern of irregular stresses. Just as the despair of the first lines is emphasised by the double stress of ‘blank grey’, so the third line contains the phrase ‘tossed empty space’. The ‘s’ sound in ‘dress’ in taken up by ‘tossed’, ‘space’, ‘whence’ and ‘passed’ and the absence of the moon is reiterated. In the second quatrain, Rossetti subverts the expectation that he will create pairs of lines that break in the middle of the first and run on to the end of the second; instead, three consecutive lines are broken in the middle and run on to the next. Only the final line of this quatrain is a completed. In this greater metric irregularity, Rossetti shows a greater emotional agitation, especially in the exclamation ’Tears, ah me!’, followed by the triple stress of ’love’s good grace’, with its alliterative ‘g’ sounds adding weight to the feeling. Again, he uses alliteration for emphasis, especially when referring to the bed from which she is absent as ‘her pillowed place’, which picks up the ‘p’ sound from ‘paths’ and ‘appointed’ in the previous line. Whilst the octet uses four concrete instances from the outward physical world to represent the absence of the beloved, the sestet turns inward to the heart of the poet. With the question ’What of the heart without her?’, the poem becomes self-reflexive in its tone and these six lines also begin to have a more regular metrical rhythm. The overriding image is of the ’wayfarer’ who is ’weary’ and ’labouring’. The emptiness of his existence is thus emphasised by a more settled rhythm, which represents the dull despair of a lonely journey through life. Particularly effective are the final four lines, in which the diction is dominated by words such as ’barren’, ’chill’, ’steep’, ’weary’, ’darkness’ and ’labouring’. The repetition of the pair of words ’the long’ in the penultimate line shows that the poet regards his life as a series of te dious repetitions without his love. Furthermore, this repetition is taken up in the final line with the alliterative phrase ’doubled darkness’, where the cloud and the wood become oppressive to the poet, feeling as he does that his life consists of ’labouring’ up a steep hill. Throughout the sonnet, the phrase ’without her’ has recurred six times and so the final images of ’doubled darkness’ takes up this sense that the poet feels grief as a kind of constant repetition of emptiness and darkness which is reflected in the repetitions that he sees in the natural world around him. In the use of such visual imagery, Rossetti has thus written a sonnet where his painterly eye complements his poet’s ear to create a fusion of the two art forms to which he devoted his life. BIBLIOGRAPHY Primary sources Rossetti, Dante Gabriel, 1928. The House of Life: A Sonnet-Sequence, Paul Franklin Baum, ed., Cambridge: Harvard University Press. Rossetti, Dante Gabriel, ‘Without Her’ (with textual notes) accessed at http://www.rossettiarchive.org/docs/26-1871.raw.html Secondary Sources Pater, Walter, 1889. ‘Dante Gabriel Rossetti’, in Appreciations, with an Essay on Style, accessed at  http://www.rossettiarchive.org/docs/pr99.p32.rad.html Wilmer, Clive, 1991 ‘Introduction’, in Rossetti, Dante Gabriel, Selected Poems and Translations, Manchester: Carcanet.

Analysing Critiques of globalisation

Analysing Critiques of globalisation Critiques of globalisation argue that as a result of failures to deal with risks to international stability, the basis of global order has been at risk and political and economic disorder like that that followed the collapse of 19th century globalisation may not look impossible. Do you agree? Globalization is the background of the present world. Our economic, political and the social status in the second decade of the twenty first century would not have been possible without considering the global context of free markets and the information technology. Many scholars have defined globalization viewed through lens of different perspectives towards the world. Blackmore (2000) defines globalization as, increased economic, cultural, environmental, and social interdependencies and new transnational financial and political formations arising out of the mobility of capital, labour, and information, with both homogenizing and differentiating tendencies, (Blackmore, 2000, p.133); while Hill (2009), puts more emphasis on the economic, asserts, globalization refers to the shift toward a more integrated and interdependent world economy, (Hill, 2009, p.6). This paper will briefly describe the history of glabalization followed with a review of the two phases of globalization in the nineteenth and the twentieth century where in one phase was seen prosperous while the other was the end of globalization. Subsequently, laying out the current situation whether or not it is parallel to the failures of globalization. Drawing upon an opinion thereby, on the same, alongwith rational elucidations. Critiques have argued that globalization is not something that happened 200 years ago, it can be traced back to the 16th century during the emergence of the pinnacle of capitalism (Robertson, 1997). According to Friedman (2005), globalization can be viewed in three phases: globalization phase one (1492- 1800) was the globalization of countries, globalization 2 (1800-2000) was the globalization of companies and globalization 3 (2000 till now) is the globalization of people. However, Broadberry and ORourke (2010) state that the period between 1870 to 1914 reflected as the high water mark of the nineteenth century globalization. Globalization in the nineteenth century encompasses interregional transfers of goods, people and capital. The preeminent way to measure the levels of integration is the rising amounts of international flows of economic activity for e.g. the ratio of comodity trade to Gross Domestic Product (GDP), number of people migrated to total population and the cost of movi ng goods across continents. European international trade was growing at a 4.1% a year between this period (Bordo et al., 1999) while the global output rising from 10% in 1870 to about 20% in 1914. This was the first phase of globalization which was accompanied with extraordinary prosperity. Countries who were involved in the global markets during this phase had narrowed the gap between wealthy and poor nations. Japan, for e.g., in the seventeenth century had completely cut off itself from the world permitting only one Dutch ship a year to land and involved in small amount of trade. In 1870, Japan was a a backward country where the average income of a person was less than a quarter of that in the United Kingdom (U.K.). However, as a result of fully involving in the global market in 1868, Japans income was able to increase at 1.5% compared to 1% of growth rate for U.K. (Mishkin, 2006). Countries like China and India were deprived of the industrial capability as they were not able to enter the global economic system. Desolately, between 1914 and 1918, a atrocious war stopped all this and globalization descended and international trade, investment and migration all collapsed. Furthermore, all the attempts to resuscitate the worlds economy was unsuccessful due to series of collapses. Global markets were disturbed and disengaged. The technological developments of the 1900s and innovations were at a standstill while the declining consumption dejected the developments of even the existing technologies such as the automobiles (Ferguson, 2005). The great depression in 1929 in the United States (US) had rapidly spread throughout the world. This was the worst recession that the nation suffered after the world war one causing immense economic devastation and with unemployment at a peat of 25% in the US. The economic collapse in Germany and Italy introduced the fascists and Nazis into power (Mishkin, 2006). China capitulated to civil war and foreign invasion and similarly Russia also underwent dictatorship as well as foreign invasion. The scenario even deteriorated further with the world entering the worst nightmare imaginable, a second world war. From 1939 to 1945 more than fifty million people died of which half of them were innocent civillians (Mishkin, 2006). Towards the 1940s most of the states in the world including the ones who retained political freedoms, had forced borders on trade, migration and investment. Some states assumed autocracy, a perfect scenario of a deglobalized world. Schloars till date argue about the causes of world war one and have explored various factors for the outbreak yet there seems to be no uniformity between these suppositions. International instability was one of the prime reasons for the occurrence and as Ferguson (2005) states that there are five factors which triggered the global explosion between 1914 and 1918. The first cause was the imperial outstretch. The british empire lacked the will of building an army which would be capable of discouraging Germany from posing as a threat to the European hegemony. Great-power rivalry was the second cause of the disaster. The distress of the Russion army buildup influenced Germany to fight in 1914 rather than risk waiting any longer. Unstable alliance system was the third dreadful factor. Although there were alliances in profusion however, these were precarious. The Germans did not trust the Austrains to help them in a crisis situation and the Russians were apprehensive about getting agitated by French. The U.K. was unpredictable as there were no provisions for the possibility of war in Europe. Such insecurities fortified the risk taking diplomacy. The fouth factor was the presence of the rogue reigm sponsoring terror which further influenced the instability. The assassination of the Austrian Archduke Franz Ferdinand in 1914 was the most apparent cause for the break out. His assasination triggered in Austria-Hungarys declaration of war against Serbia which further caused Germany and other allies with Serbia to declare war with each other. The last factor is the rise of a revolutionary terrorist organization antagonistic to capitalism resulted in a counterattack against the free global market. The bolsheviks was committed to use voilence to bring about world revolution. The war gave Lenin and his allies the opportunity and they used the most brutal terrorist strategies to win the subsequent civil war (Ferguson, 2005). As a result to deal with risks of failures of interna tional stability, globalization failed after the first world war. Globalization is a multifaceted process that involves different people to percieve it differently, depending on whether we belong to a poor country or we belong to a rich country. Parallely, in the nineteenth century, globalization was a contradictory force with benign and malignant features. Bordo et al (1999) states that, globalization has acceralated post crises recovery faster and the trade tensions and financial instability has not been worse comparitively. Frankel (1999) highlights that there are three key reasons for the growth and development in trade in the twentieth century: lower government trade barriers, growth of emerging markets and lower transportation costs. Also, there are no figures to compare the trade in services for the period before the first world war as trade then was significantly smaller than now. While Krugman (1995) asserts that, The general picture of world integration that did not exceed early-twentieth century levels until sometime well into the 1970s is thus broadly confirmed. In the last decade or so, the share of trade in world output has finally reached a level that is noticeably above its former peak. Nonetheless, it would be hard to argue that the sheer volume of trade is now at a level that marks a qualitative difference from previous experience, (Krugman, 1995, p.133). The rise in the multinational organizations have also contributed to the global economy, well, there were multinational organizations in the nineteenth century also however, the development has been only in the last few decades. Multinational organizations mitigate the informational obstacles to exchange hence serve to expand international trade. As pointed earlier, the second phase of globalization was the globalization of companies (Friedman, 2005). Krugman (1995) also asserts the development of small states with distinctively high GDP ratios, for e.g., Hongkong, the World Trade Organization listed it as the worlds largest exporter in 1997. Another significant factor for integrating world markets is the continual cut down on the transportation costs. Technological innovations like bulk shipping, containerization and delivery mechanisms have reduced the loading time thereby proving efficient driving the cost reductions (Lundgren, 1996). Air transport has also contributed to the shipping of goods and commodities in international trade. Hummels (1999) articulates that the transport costs on air cargo have dipped by about 15 percent around the 1975-93 period. Multilateral trade negotiations concluded with the foundation of General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) which helped to reduce the avergae tariffs to about 5 percent (Bordo et al., 1999). There are noticable similarities between the first phase of globalization that is before the first world war began and now. The economic and the social history of international relationships seems to be a optimal approach of comparing the then and now phase of globalization to be able to conclude. The following section deals with some of the economic and the social resemblences of the past and the present. Today the free trade orthodoxy is the same as in the period before 1914. The major economies are extremely protectionist about agriculture. Then, U.K. had enforced no tarrifs on imported agricultural commodities whereas now, the US, the European Union and Japan practice tariffs to protect their farmers from international competition. Previously the monetary system was based on gold while currently there is a flat currency system. The techonolocal innovations of today are acceralating given the sufficient research and development however, these innovations are also helping enemies of globalization. Earlier, terrorists would borrow revolvers and primitive bombs but now an entire city can be demolished with a single nuclear device (Ferguson, 2005). Currently U.S. has the worlds biggest economy which is an important factor for the rest of the world. While that fact remains, the personal savings rate at 0.2% of their disposable personal income in 2004 which is 7.7% less than what it was fifteen years ago. The U.S. depends heavily on foreign lending as the net overseas debt has risen steeply to 25% of GDP. On the contrary, previously U.K. was the net exporter of capital, controlling high proportions of its savings internationally to finance the construction of infrastructure where as today, U.K. is the worlds debtor gripping three quarters of the worlds surplus savings (Bordo et al., 1999). As per the HSBC group state that the current U.S. deficit is 3.2% of the GDP (Palmer, 2010) which could push the external liabilities to as high as 94.3% of GDP (Toscano, 2011). During the second world war U.K. accumulated external liabilities which was half of this percentage, which was one of the reasons the pound declined and lost its reserv e currency status. Economists suggest that lowering the U.S. deficit to 2% GDP would require a 20% decline in the dollar. Obviously, there would be huge repercussions of such a dollar crash and this briefly states how the international flat-money system is dangerously disposed to a catastrophe. On the political front, Ferguson (2005) states that the same five factors, mentioned earlier, are present in todays international order: Imperial overstretch The U.S. is strikingly overstretched. Apart from the economic front, the U.S. empire also has a personnel deficit, only about 500,000 troops can be deployed overseas which is not even adequate to triumph over the small wars that U.S. currenlty has or will have. 43 percent of the troops currently in Iraq are from the reserves. Great-power rivalry China doesnt have any obvious reason to start a war with U.S. however, Chinas objective with regards to Taiwan will not fade away only for a reason that Beijing owns a stack in U.S. Treasury bonds. Nevertheless, China might want to take over its errant province in the event of an economic crises. Going back to the past, Taiwan and Belgium somewhat are in the same position as a country where empires ended up fighting as well as North Korea which resembles to Serbia during the nineteenth century with neuclear weapons. Unstable alliance system Based on the economic condition in Europe, it is bound to deteriorate. Europe has been altered based on the migration of Muslims and the prospect of Turkeys agreement to the European Union which also has consequences on the gap between Americans and Europeans getting wider. Presence of the rogue reigm sponsoring terror A rogue reigm constitues of large conservative militry power and the one that supports international terrorism and / or seeks weapons of mass destruction (Tanter, 1999). Iran, Iraq, Syria are considered as the rogue states also involving in revolutionary terrorist organizations. Revolutionary terrorist organization Al Qaedas members perhaps can be refered to as Islamo Bolshevists instead of Islamo facist based on their commitment of reordering the world and who oppose capitalism. Hypothetically, if the these Islamic extremists get control of a wealthy country like Saudi Arabia, it would result in the same scenario that Lenin was in, in 1917. On the contrary, Osama Bin Laden declared that his prime focus is to see the U.S. go bankrupt, consequently making him the present day Lenin. While considering the above suppositions, we can propose that an armageddon is likely. The crisis over Taiwan would result in huge shockwaves throughout the international system which could also lead to a great power war or the revolutionary regime change in Saudi Arabia would disturb the world order even more than during the first world war or even the stated mission of Osama Bin Laden to destroy America would disrupt the economic activities entirely. During the phase of the first world war, investors knew that there could be a world war however, did not when exactly would it happen. We are currently at the same junction where we all know that a catastrophe is possible however do not know when would it happen, similar to the recent disaster in Japan. Based on the above stated factors, I agree that as a result of failures to deal with risks to international stability, the basis of global order has been at risk and political and economic disorder like that that followed the collapse of 19th century globalisation may not look impossible.

Tiresias, Oedipus, and Self Essay -- Oedipus the King Oedipus Rex

Tiresias, Oedipus Rex, and Self  Ã‚   The play Oedipus Rex, written by Sophocles, tells a horrendous tale about one man's quest for the truth. In the play, King Oedipus was burdened with the task of finding his predecessor's murderer so that order may be restored to his kingdom. While his conscious mind was seeking the murderer, his unconscious mind was retarding his progress in order to conceal the truth. Tiresias, prophesies the truth to Oedipus, but Oedipus's unconscious mind would not hear it. Thus, when the awful truth is finally revealed, Oedipus is overwhelmed by it. This causes the physical and emotional wounds that would last him a lifetime. A supplementary piece of literature, Tiresias by Tennyson, was written to complement this play. In Tennyson's poem, he told about a man who was touched by the Gods, when he reached the point of enlightenment in his life; this man is Tiresias. Through the study of Tennyson's Tiresias, one can better understand the play Oedipus Rex, Oedipus the character and one's self. In Tiresias, the narrator speaks about his desire to be like his friend Fitz. The perception of Fitz given by Tennyson is that he was a very spiritual man touched by the Gods. Tennyson's first attempt to be like Fitz was to become a vegetarian: And once for ten long weeks I tried Your table of Pythagoras, And seem'd at first "a thing enskied," As Shakespeare has it, airy-light To float above the ways of men, Then fell from that half-spiritual height Chill'd, till I tasted flesh again One night when the earth was winter-black, And all the heavens flash'd in frost; And on me, half-asleep, came back That wholesome heat the blood had lost, And set me climbing icy capes . . . (Tennyson, 14-... ...ind's frailty consider his last day; and let none presume on his good fortune until he find life, at his death, a memory without pain." (Sophocles, 757) This imagery of peace and serenity causes one to strive for such enlightenment. After an extensive examination of both works, one's understanding of Oedipus Rex the play, Oedipus the character, and one's self is heightened. One can better understand how Tiresias, Oedipus, and one's self are bound to the ways of the flesh. One also understands that in order to break free from the ways of man, one must reach enlightenment which is done when one is touched by the Gods.    Works Cited Sophocles. "Oedipus Rex." Elements of Literature. Ed. Robert Scholes, Nancy R. Comley, Carl H. Klaus, and David Staines. Toronto: Oxford University Press, 1990. 714-757. Tennyson. "Tiresias." ENGOA1 Handout.      

Gender Relations and Inequality in India Essay -- female feticide, unf

Gender relations and inequality is experienced through lack of educational matters and unfair treatment of women and children, thus in many cases forcing women to run households, while the men are away at work in various seasonal migration jobs at unviable wages. As defined in a classic article, income inequality is â€Å"the distribution of total income amongst the represented population† (Gehring13). In outlined studies; evidence can conclude that poor gender relations in fact can be convoluted into other issues such as overpopulation, child malnourishment, low levels of GDP, and GNI. This in fact sounds to be true for what India is experiencing today. The predominant issue of gender inequality has led many down the pathway to poverty and what may be considered to many as the â€Å"Exploited Sector†. The exploited and primary sector in modern day India, which most are subject to, is facing many challenging issues such as long working hours, low wages, and no benefits which contributes to the inequality standards. The National Commission for Enterprises in the Unorganized Sector (NCEUS), reports that the â€Å"exploited sector† Is the very lowest earning in all countries which in fact is found more often than not in India, as many workers have trekked to the Southern region of India. The workers make under minimum wage daily contributing to the lower standards of growth and overpopulation numbers. Workers are also subject to work extremely long hours outside for next to nothing where they are, what Dejanvry may term the â€Å"Traditional Sector†. India’s temperature is accurate for it’s often at times above 100 degrees during the day and cooler at night making this a great deal of hardship. The workers at time often are subject to work extrem... ...ube, R., & Bhatnagar, R. (1999). Women without Choice: Female Infanticide and the Rhetoric of Overpopulation in Postcolonial India. Women's Studies Quarterly, 27(1), 2nd ser., 73-86. Gehring, Keith. "Economic Growth and Income Inequality in India." N.p., June 2006. Web. Jacobs, S. (2010). Structures and processes: Land, families, and gender relations. Gender and Development, 35-42. Kingdon, G. G. (2007). The progress of school education in India. Oxford Review of Economic Policy, 23(2), 168-195. doi: 10.1093/oxrep/grm015 Mark R. Rosenzweig, M., & Stark, O. (1989). Consumption Smoothing, Migration, and Marriage: Evidence from Rural India. Chicago Journals, 97(4), 905-926. Raj, Anita. "Gender Equity and Universal Health Coverage in India." The Lancet 377.9766 (2011): 618-19. Print. "The World Bank." India. N.p., n.d. Web. 19 April. 2014.

Effect of Temperature on Enzyme Catalase Activity in a Potato

Effect of Temperature ( C ? ) on Enzyme Catalase Activity in potato Aim: To investigate the Effect of temperature (10, 37, 60) Celsius (C ? ) on enzyme catalase activity in potato using 2% of hydrogen peroxide (H202) as the substrate measuring the height (cm) of oxygen gas (bubbles) and calculating the volume of oxygen bubbles produced (cm3) Introduction: Enzymes are biological catalysts that speed up metabolic reactions without being affected. They lower the activation energy needed to start a reaction. Enzymes are affected by several factors including PH, Substrate concentration; Temperature & other factors.Each enzyme has an optimum temperature at which its activity is the highest, below this optimum temp, the kinetic energy of molecules decrease , therefore the collisions between the active site of the enzyme and substrate decreases , as a result the enzyme activity will decrease , so decreasing the rate of the reaction If the temp. Exceeds the optimum temp. The kinetic energy be tween molecules increase therefore collisions increase leading to the change in the tertiary structure of the enzyme and in this case active site is lost and the enzymes will be denatured so the reaction will slow down &stops.Catalase is an enzyme, found basically in all living cells. It breaks down hydrogen peroxide (waste product) into water and oxygen. 2H? O? 2H2O+O2 As predicted, the enzyme catalase activity would be the highest at 37c ? (Optimum temp. )if increased to 60c ? then the enzyme would be denatured and if decreased to 10c ? (very low temp. ) then the reaction would be slow. Variables: Dependent: Height of oxygen bubbles (cm) using a ruler. Independent: Temperature (10c ? , 37c ? , 60c ? ) using three different water baths each adjusted to a specific temp . Controlled: 1.Number of potato cubes: 3 cubes of potatoes were used in each trial at each different temp. If changed, whether decrease or increase, then the number of enzymes (active site) available would change, th erefore affecting the rate of the reaction. 2. Size of potato cubes with dimensions 1cmx1cmx1. 5cm . This is controlled by cutting all potato cubes with same dimensions using a ruler & a cutter. If changed, then this would affect the rate of enzyme activity, therefore affecting the results. 3. Volume of hydrogen peroxide: 15cm3 of hydrogen peroxide was measured using graduated cylinder for each trial at different temp.If changed then the rate of enzyme activity would change, therefore results won’t be accurate. 4. Concentration of hydrogen peroxide: 2% of hydrogen peroxide was used through all trials this is prepared by adding 20cm3 of H2o2 to 1000cm3 of water. If changed it would affect the rate of enzyme activity since substrate concentration is one of the factors that affect enzyme activity. 5. Volume of liquid detergent: 2drops of liquid detergent were added to each test tube throughout the experiment. If changed, then this will affect the height of oxygen bubbles measure d cm3 therefore the results won’t be accurate. . Time: time was recorded for 2 minutes; if changed this will affect the results. Materials: * 27 cubes of potato each with dimensions 1cmx1cmx1. 5cm. * 15cm3 of 2% hydrogen peroxide for each trial. * 9 test tubes * Water adjusted to (60c ? ,37c ? &10c ? adding ice) * 2drops of liquid detergent in each test tube * Cutter * Ruler * 100cm3 graduated cylinder * Stopwatch * 1000cm3 volumetric flask * 50cm3 beaker Procedure: 1. Use the cutter, and ruler to cut 27 cubes of potato with dimensions 1cmx1cmx1. 5cm 2. Adjust the water bath temp one at 60c ? , the other one at 37c ? amp; last one at 10c ? adding ice. 3. Place 3 potato cubes in each of the three test tubes placed at 10c ?. 4. Leave the test tubes at 10c ? for 10min. 5. Add 2 drops of detergent for each test tube. 6. Measure 15cm3 of 2% hydrogen peroxide for each test tube using graduated cylinder. 7. Add 15cm3 of 2% H2o2 to each test tube, and immediately start the stop watch recording time for 2 min. 8. After 2 min exactly, use the ruler to measure the height of oxygen bubbles (cm). 9. Repeat steps 3 to 8 at a different temp (60c ? ,70c ? ). 10. Record all data in an organized table. Processing and Presenting Data: Table (1): Shows the height of oxygen bubbles produced (cm) at different temp. (C ? ) TemperatureC ?  ± 0. 05| Height of oxygen bubbles produced after 2 minutes (cm)| | Trial 1| Trial 2| Trial 3| 10. 00| 2. 00| 6. 00| 2. 00| 37. 00| 3. 00| 4. 50| 1. 50| 60. 00| 3. 00| 2. 00| 2. 00| Table (2): Shows mean height in (cm) for oxygen bubbles  ± 0. 05 and volume of oxygen bubbles (cm3) ±0. 05 at different temp (C ? ) Temperature C ?  ± 0. 05| Mean height (cm) for oxygen bubbles  ± 0. 05| Volume of mean height of oxygen bubbles cm3 0. 05| 10. 0| 3. 33| 16. 34| 37. 00| 4. 86| 23. 84| 60. 00| 2. 06| 10. 11| * Sample calculations 10c ? 1. Mean height of oxygen bubbles in cm. T1+T2+T33= 2+6+23= 3. 33cm 2. Volume of oxygen bubbles cm3 Volume o f cylinder: ? r2xh 3. 14x (1. 25)2Ãâ€"3. 33=16. 34cm3 Discussion: As shown in table (2) as temperature increased from 10c ? to 37c ? , the mean height in cm of oxygen bubbles increased from 3. 33cm to 4. 86cm. Aa temperature increase from 37c ? to 60c ? the mean height cm of oxygen bubbles decreased from 4. 86cm to 2. 06cm. Reffering to the table (2) and graph , as temp. ncreased from 10c ? to 37c ? the volume of oxygen bubbles (cm3) increased from 16. 34cm3 to 23. 84cm3. As temp increased from 37c ? to 60c ? the volume of oxygen bubbles produced (cm3) decreased from 23. 84cm3 to 10. 11cm3. Each enzyme has an optimum temp. at which the rate of enzyme activity is the highest. Above the optimum temp the kinetic energy of molecules increases therefore the collisions between the active site and the substrate increase and as a result the enzyme would lose its 3D structure and active site and the enzyme would be denatured.This is shown in the graph, as the volume of oxygen bubbles cm3 de creased from 23. 84cm3 to 10. 11cm3 at 60c ?. Below the optimum temp the kinetic energy of molecules decreases ,therefore the collisions decrease and the enzyme would slow down and the rate of energy decreases as it’s shown in table (2) the volume of oxygen bubble decrease from 37c ? to 10c ?. According to our results in table (2) and graph, the optimum temp was 37c ? at which rate of enzyme catalase activity was the highest as the highest volume of oxygen bubbles was produced 23. 84cm3.The results obtained matched the hypothesis which stated that 37c ? is the optimum temp for enzyme catalase to break hydrogen peroxide which is a toxic product into water & oxygen. Evaluation & Improvements: 1. Size of potato cubes . Potato cubes were cut into cubes of dimensions 1cmx1cmx1. 5cm using a ruler and a blade which was a source of error since all cubes vary slightly in size which means the concentration of catalase enzyme is different. A potato cutter that cut the potato into equal sizes . 2. Height of oxygen bubbles measured by a ruler. This was inaccurate method.Volume could be measured instead in height using gas Syringe which will give more accurate results 3. Volume of detergent. 2 drops of detergent were measured using a dropper. A pipette can be used which will give more accurate results. Done BY: JIHAN AL-BUKHARI 9A ——————————————– [ 1 ]. [ (Jones, 2009) ] [ 2 ]. â€Å"Introduction to Enzymes. †Ã‚  Factors Affecting Enzyme Activity (). N. p. , n. d. Web. 16 Nov. 2012. . [ 3 ]. â€Å"Effect of Temperature on Enzyme Activity. †Ã‚  Effect of Temperature on Enzyme Activity. N. p. , n. d. Web. 16 Nov. 2012. .

Pencils Are Better Than Pens – Debate

Pencils are better than Pens Ladies and gentlemen, When you go to war you want to be prepared with the right weapons. Having the wrong ones can limit you success and impair your skills. Isn’t this the same case for writing a paper? When you sit down to write a paper you want to make your ideas flow, to be able to erase false ones, and stay focused; pencils enable you to do all of those things more effectively than pens. Pencils have erasers to fix all your mistakes, they’re 100% organic, and contrary to pens, which can be very messy, pencils are neat and long lasting.When you are writing, you make mistakes all the time. You write words messily, you spell them wrong, and you mix up the order of what you are trying to say. If you are writing with a pen you have to scribble out all of those misspelled words or draw arrows to where you want things to be. When you’re done, it looks like a paper in disarray. If you write with a pencil you don’t have to do any of that. You can erase all of your misspelled words, and neatly move sentences to where ever you want. When you’re finished your paper looks faultless.It has no messy scribbles or long confusing arrows, everything is precisely how you want it to be. Of course scientists have created an erasable pen, but it doesn’t work as well as pencils. Erasable pens can erase, but they normally leave streaks or smudges on the page. You also can’t just use any eraser on it, it has to be a special eraser that costs more than a regular pencil eraser. Pencils are much more affective at erasing and keeping papers mess free. Secondly, pencils are 100 percent organic. They are made up of cedar, graphite, and metal.Which are all organic substances. Pens are made up of plastic and ink. Ink is made up of oil, which is harmful to the earth. Plastic is not organic, and pollutes the environment. Also if you break a pen in half, it is permanently broken, and becomes incredibly messy. Once th ey are broken they end up getting thrown away, and produce more trash. When a pencil is broken in half. All you have to do is sharpen it, and you have two pencils! This then reduces the amount of wasted materials. With that in mind, pens are much messier than pencils. Pencils can’t write n you or other objects besides paper. But pens on the other hand can write on almost any surface. Even when you write, you can smudge it all over your page when its not dry, it gets all over your hands, and it’s very hard to get off of your skin. Once your skin absorbs the ink it can give you ink poisoning. But pencils can’t poison you, or do anything permanently harmful to you, and they are mess free. Lastly, pencils are a very useful and long lasting utensil. According to Dixon Ticonderoga Pencil Company, pencils can draw a line 35 miles long.And according to bicworld. com pens can draw a line 1. 24 miles long. Using one pencil is the equivalent to using 28 pens. One organic p encil eliminates much more waste than 28 pens do. In conclusion, pencils are the prime utensil for writing a paper. Pencils have erasers to erase all your mistakes. They are 100 percent organic, and unlike pens they are neat and long lasting. You don't want to impair your skills nor limit your success, so when you sit down to write a paper, remember to use the better writing utensil, the pencil. Thank you.

A Strategic Analysis of Qantas and the Australian Airline Industry Essay

The following paper provides an analysis and evaluation of the current market position of Qantas and the Australian Airline Industry. By assessing the company both internally and externally, this report will assess Qantas’ strengths and weaknesses. In addition to this, the report will focus on the specific elements that enable Qantas to obtain a competitive advantage over its competitors. Our team has established that Qantas is facing direct competition from new market entrants as well as threats from it’s own development – Jetstar. As a result, Qantas has lost some of the market share over recent years. However, while the treat of new entrants has affected Qantas, new opportunities have become available and have encouraged the airline to think outside the square. The Global Financial Crisis presented many industries with a challenge and Qantas was not excluded from this. In addition to this, the September 11 attacks in 2001 largely affected the industry as customers became reluctant to travel. Consequently, it is clear that Qantas has been faced with a variety of challenges that have resultantly prompted them to think of alternative ways to obtain a sustainable competitive advantage. Partnering with Tourism Australia, developing Qantas as a brand, and painting the boeings to advertise an Australian lifestyle have all been successful at achieving a competitive advantage. It is recommended that Qantas continues to compete with new market entrants by focusing on developing the brand further and generating greater loyalty. Qantas & the Airline industry Qantas Airways Limited is an Australian public company that obtains its revenue predominately from the operation of airlines. The company operates mainly in Australia, New Zealand and Asia and is also established in the UK and the USA. Globally, Qantas employs over 35,700 individuals. At June 30, 2010, international airlines in Australia were reported to be worth $14, 924, 000, 000, with Qantas estimated to hold 25.60% of the market share. From the same study, the domestic airline industry in Australia was reported to be worth $12,801,000,000 with Qantas accounting for 73.50% of the market share. (IbisWorld, 2010) Over recent years, the drastic increase in fuel prices coupled with the global economic crisis has resulted in the increased cost of airfares. Low income, high unemployment levels and unavoidable disasters like the recent ash cloud have seen the demand for air travel in Australia reduce significantly. Specifically, the Qantas Group’s industry revenue declined an estimated 1.8% per annum over the five years through 2009-10. (IbisWorld, 2011). However, it has been forcasted that the industry with grow by 9% over 2011-2012, reaching a revenue of $13,400,000,000. The potential growth has been attributed to several factors, for example, increases in business related travel and the growing popularity of cheaper airlines. (IbisWorld, 2011) See Fig. 1 Qantas’ flying business operates under two main brands, Qantas and Jetstar. Jetstar was first launched in 2004 and is Qantas’ cheaper airline. (IbisWorld, 2010) Qantas revenue from international flying is reported to be far weaker than it’s domestic business. While international flying accounted for 22.5% of revenue over 2009-2010 for Qantas, this figure was considerably higher 2004-2005. New market entrants and strong competitors were said to be responsible for this decline. In particular, the development of Jetstar and the ability to fly internationally at low-cost saw Qantas’ international flight business drop from 46.3% of industry total in 2004-2005 to 23.0% in 2010-2011. (IbisWorld, 2010) Conversly, Qantas’ domestic flights generate approximately 70.4% of total sales and are increasing slowly. However, while the domestic flight popularity is increasing, the growth rate is slow in comparison to the industry. This is due to the fact that Qantas has lost some of the market share over recent years with the entrance of new competitors, for example, Virgin Airlines and Tiger Airways. In addition to this, the entrance of Jetstar into the market and the recent financial crisis saw more passengers targeting the low-cost airline over Qantas. The following investigation will include an analysis of Qantas’ external environment by utilizing a Porter analysis of the industry’s competitive forces. In addition to this, the report will include an analysis of the internal environment at Qantas by conducting a value chain analysis and identifying the resources and capabilities that provide Qantas with a competitive advantage over its rivals. * Please note: All dollar values listed throughout the report are in Australian dollars. External Analysis When determining the external forces that affect the domestic airline industry there are four areas that need to be discussed; political, environmental, social and technological. In discussing these areas we will be able to determine what strengths and weaknesses arise for Qantas as a result. During 1990 the Australian government decided to deregulate the domestic airline industry (Bureau of Transport and Communications Economics, 1995). This has opened up the opportunities for new airlines to do business in Australia. For Qantas this could be seen as a threat as there are going to be new players in the market as it has opened doors for low-cost carriers to enter. However, it may also be an opportunity for Qantas to differentiate themselves from the rest of the domestic airlines and be the only one offering a premium service. The most recent and economically crippling factor that has influenced the airline industry is the Global Financial Crisis (GFC)(Nuguid, 2011). According to the House Standing Committee on Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government (2009)  the tourism industry in Australia was hit the hardest which declined at a worse rate than the rest of the economy. As a direct result of this the airline industry specifically has also seen a significant downturn. This presents a potential weakness or threat for Qantas who may come to feel that their premium price for quality service is not enough to get the customers to fly with them. Probably the most recent and most prominent social change that has affected the airline industry was the September 11 terrorist attacks in America(Ito & Lee, 2005). Although this was not in Australia it still had a large impact on people’s preferences when it came to domestic and international travel. This along with an aging population is slowing down the airline industry as the concern for safety of passengers has risen. This could be a potential opportunity for Qantas to offer, in addition to great quality, a higher safety rating for their flights and help them achieve an advantage against the opposition. There are always new technologies available to improve service and quality; an example of such is the introduction of the regional jet(Brueckner & Pai, 2007). This new technology provided better service quality and higher flight frequency to the airline industry. All new technologies represent an opportunity for Qantas to increase the quality of their services. This particular technology also provides Qantas with the opportunity to increase their flight frequency. The government regulations of the airline industry in Australia are very lax in comparison to other countries leading to fewer barriers to entry, particularly at the low-cost end of the market. This makes it far easier for potential entrants to enter into the market. So far since the deregulation in 1990 two new major domestic airlines have entered and done so successfully; Virgin Blue and Tiger Airways (Bureau of Transport and Communications Economics, 1995 and Bureau of Intrastructure, Transport and Regional Economics, 2010). Although there have also been a number of entrants that have failed to sustain their place in the airline industry this is not considered as Porter looks only at the threat of new entrants, not whether entry actually occurs (Porter, 2008). Pilots have a huge influence over what goes on in the industry as evidenced by the 1989 pilot strike(Schulte & Zhu, 2005). Even though the pilots were unsuccessful in this instance this shows that pilots are much more likely to be able to achieve change in the industry if they choose. Currently there are only two  major suppliers of airplanes, Boeing and Airbus. Being the only two major suppliers in the industry gives them a lot of power to determine prices and quality. Passengers have a lot less power in the airline industry as they generally don’t get a whole lot of choice or say in what happens. Firstly, there are high switching costs associated with changing to another airline. Secondly, there is not much difference from one airline to another especially if the airline is competing on quality or service(Investopedia News and Articles, 2010). For the domestic airline industry there really isn’t any major substitutes. The automobile industry and possibly the locomotive industry have the most influence here but if you are travelling from Sydney to Perth there really is no alternative to the airplane. The main determinants that make air travel non-substitutable include; time taken to travel, the cost of travel, personal preference and convenience(Investopedia News and Articles, 2010). There a four major domestic airliners that have the majority of the market share in Australia; Qantas, Virgin Blue, Tiger Airways and Jetstar (Dixon, 2006). With Qantas announcing recently that they are going to focus more closely on international services rather than domestic this could change the market share mix for the remaining three competitors. In considering the various forces that determine industry competition we can also draw a conclusion as to the profitability of the industry. Due to the aforementioned forces we can say that the profitability of the airline industry is quite low, which is also evidenced by Porter (2008). With respect to Qantas we can say that the threats of new entrants in the market is not quite as high for them as they are offering a premium service, not low-cost and so the barriers to entry for premium services are much higher. Internal Analysis Value Chain Analysis â€Å"Value is the amount that buyers are willing to pay what for a firm provides them and the quantity it can sell.† (Osegowitsch, 2011: 82) Conducting a value chain analysis, a concept popularized by Michael Porter, offers insight and understanding of a business’ activities that give it sustainable, competitive advantage. Qantas’ offerings to the market, according to its mission statement as of its Annual Report 2010, is safe,  airline travel at reasonable prices to both international destinations and domestic ones, through its complementary brand Jetstar. The Qantas Group asserts that it strives for a sustainable future through a two-brand strategy (that of Qantas and Jetstar) supported by its portfolio of business investments. This internal analysis will seek to examine The Qantas Group’s strategy through assessing its primary activities and its support activities. They use Altà ©a Inventory, which is an inventory management product. This system for example, has helped Qantas monitor rates and fares with immediacy. â€Å"Altà ©a Inventory provides instant data on demand and bookings to adjust pricing policy as potential passenger loads rise or fall. Altà ©a enables Qantas decide where to make seats available at certain price levels† (Amadeus Case Study) According to CIO John Willett; Design clarity means that major schedule changes are relatively easy to accommodate, allowing more efficient use of time of Qantas technical staff. The flexibility that came with Altà ©a allows Qantas to concentrate on revenue and how to improve it throughout the year. (Amadeus Case Study) With regard to onsite inventory, Qantas has extensive inventory availability â€Å"to support maintenance and overhaul programs for a wide range of customer engineering requirements.†   Operations Qantas is divided into 3 groups; Commercial, Customer and Marketing, and Operations. Its Operations group comprises engineering, airports, catering, flight operations, operations planning and control and Qantas Aviation Services. These To keep their operations running efficiently, Qantas has its own engineering division, called ‘Qantas Engineering’ Yield Management Often used in airline, hotel and advertising industries. Involves the concept of Qantas offering a ‘perishable’ good – being their airplane seat that if isn’t sold prior to flight, will ‘perish’. â€Å"For airlines, yield managers use widely accepted statistical tools to forecast seat demand, taking into account historical data and seasonal variables. For example, there is heavy demand on domestic routes during weekday peak periods and to leisure destinations during holiday periods, but there may be troughs in demand at other times. Each flight has its own individual forecast. Yield managers look at factors as diverse as economic swings which affect longer-term demand, seasonal schedule changes and changes in aircraft capacity to achieve an optimal mix of fares. In today’s environment, and without yield management, airlines would find it more difficult to make a profit and customers would be denied the broad range of fares and services offered.† (Qantas Fact Files) Marketing and sales Qantas have their own ‘customer and marketing’ division. They have heavy involvement in marketing and view it as critically important. The â€Å"Still Call Australia Home† was re-launched given slump in profits in 2009. The original campaign cost $6m but in 2009 when it was re-launched, they â€Å"deliberately just filmed in Australia and we have used the international footage we have from previous campaigns to manage the costs associated with it† (The Australian, 2011) according to CEO Alan Joyce. * Qantas appointed new head of Marketing in 2009 (http://www.bandt.com.au/news/qantas-makes-marketing-move) Qantas’ secondary activities Procurement Normally, Qantas seeks proposals from various suppliers – so as to maintain a level of competition amongst suppliers in an attempt at receiving the best offer. However occasionally, they do only seek the services of a single supplier. As is consistent with their procurement process, Qantas ask for formal bids or tenders and once they have been received, commence negotiations with prospective suppliers. At times, this can replace the tendering process, but normally it is done alongside it, as  a further step in their competitive benchmarking process. (Qantas Procurement Report: p. 1)Ultimately, their aim is to source the best service from suppliers, at the most competitive price, in a manner that is understood and fair according to all participants. Human Resource Management The Qantas Group employs approximately 37,000 people, 90% of which are based in Australia. (Qantas Website) The magnitude of Qantas’ operations and its abundance of employees have forced Qantas to develop competitive Human Resources (HR) strategies and maintain competitive advantage. HR is divided into four sections in The Qantas Group: 1. Corporate This includes responsibilities such as remuneration, employee benefits, industrial relations and other key tasks that essentially make this group in charge of forming strategies that will be carried through the other levels of HR 2. Business Segments HR teams within particular business segments of The Qantas Group, who deliver and implement the strategies as formulated at the Corporate level 3. Shared Services The central support unit that offers to assist employees, respond to inquiries and essentially offer support in all the typical HR responsibilities such as recruitment and remuneration 4. Learning and Development This branch relates to the development of training programs to teach, train and further improve Qantas employees. This layout of HR responsibilities is proven to be an effective structure for many large companies and has served Qantas effectively. Information Technology The Qantas Group’s IT division is predominantly based at a head office in Mascot, Sydney. The IT division consults and works within the areas such as: * Project and Program Management * Business Systems Analysis * Testing and Quality Assurance * Services and Relationship Management * Architecture (Qantas Website – Information Technology) Infrastructure Qantas’ infrastructure is immense and naturally demanding of high volume and efficiency given the company’s line of business. With a fleet of 254 aircraft, the maintenance of â€Å"superior infrastructure† (Qantas 2010 Annual Report, p. 9) , as coined by The Qantas Group, is imperative. The company manages the aircraft, in addition to 14 international lounges as well as several multi-tiered domestic lounges. The renewal of the fleet as well as other infrastructure is made possible through an â€Å"investment-grade credit rating†, making Qantas a desirable borrower for lenders. Furthermore, the company consistently experiences strong cash-flows and as such, is able to monitor and ensure high liquidity. The Qantas Group’s infrastructure is supported by a system of effective borrowing and investing, as well as maintained liquidity so its non-current assets and existing infrastructure is secure and kept up-to-date. Qantas’ Resources and Capabilities When analyzed simply, The Qantas Group boasts many capabilities/resources that potentially offer it competitive advantage, including; * Resources: * Airport locations/hangers * Engineering facilities * Trained personnel * In-flight food (Neil Perry’s involvement) * Qantas lounges/restaurants * Storage facilities for inventory, ranging from machinery to uniforms * Training facilities for flight attendants and pilots * Capabilities: * New IT systems to promote more efficient operations – such as the evolution of e-tickets * New development in cost effective service (e.g. with food,  cutting costs on ingredients or perhaps where the food is prepared) * New developments for the ‘frequent flyer’ scheme to adapt to competitors’ similar concepts – such as the Chairman’s Lounge * Fleet development: â€Å"The airline has been constantly growing since its inception as a result of increasing fleets. Qantas has been purchasing Boeing aircraft makes like the 747-400.‘ Bibliography 1. Brueckner, J., & Pai, V. (2007). Technological Innovation in the Airline Industry: The Impact of Regional Jets. International Journal of Industrial Organization , 27 (1), 110-120 2. Bureau of Intrastructure, Transport and Regional Economics. (2010). Avline 2009-10. Canberra: Australian Government. 3. Bureau of Transport and Communications Economics. (1995). Deregulation of Domestic Aviation in Australia. Canberra: Australian Government. 4. Dixon, G. (2006, February 23). Qantas not afraid of competition. The Age . 5. Douglas, E., & Cunningham, L. (1992). Competitive Strategies in Australia’s airline deregulation experience. School of Business Discussion Paper , Paper 28. 6. House Standing Committee on Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government. (2009). The Global Financial Grisis and regional Australia. Canberra: Commonwealth of Australia. 7. Investopedia News and Articles. 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