Love and Sacrifice Essay

Sacrifice is one of the purest and most selfless ways to love someone. There is no better way to show one’s loyalty or love for another than through sacrifice. The Kite Runner clearly demonstrates the sacrifices individuals made to make the ones they love happy. In Khaled Hosseini’s novel The Kite Runner, a little boy named Hassan demonstrates love and sacrifice the most. Hassan admires Amir an immense amount and his loyalty towards Amir is always present in everything he does. He constantly sacrifices things for Amir and does whatever he can to make Amir happy and Amir’s father Baba, very proud of Amir. Hassan makes sure Amir is always pleased and does anything and everything Amir tells him to do. Hassan has an unconditional love and loyalty towards Amir that he does not falter no matter how badly Amir treats him. Hassan is absolutely selfless; to a point where he sacrifices himself for the one thing he knows Amir has craved his whole life, his father’s admiration. When Hassan goes running for the blue kite, Amir asks him to come back with it and Hassan replies â€Å" For you a thousand times over!† (pg.71). Hassan has two choices; to give the blue kite, which will consequently betray his best friend Amir, or to be punished by Assef and his friends and keep the kite. His devoted love to Amir results in a horrible sacrifice. Hassan gets raped and does not even think twice about giving up the blue kite, the key to Baba’s heart. He stays loyal to Amir even though he pays a hard price. Hassan has always taken the blame for things Amir does or farthings Amir makes Hassan do. Hassan being the selfless person he is never speaks up for himself knowing that will only get his dear friend Amir in trouble. Hassan’s final sacrifice for Amir is deliberately planned by Amir himself. Amir cannot withstand the pain and guilt of knowing that he does nothing to help  Hassan from getting raped; he is selfish and a coward. He is reminded of this every time he looks at Hassan. He thinks if he can find a way to make Hassan and his father the servants of their house, Ali will then leave and rid him of his guilt and suffering. So he plants his new watch under Hassan’s bed and then accuses Hassan of stealing it. Knowing that Hassan will never disappoint him. He waits for Hassan to respond when Baba asks him if this is true. â€Å"Did you steal that money? Did you steal Amir’s watch, Hassan?† Hassan lies †¦ â€Å"yes† (pg.111) this is another sig nificant event where Hassan put Amir before himself selflessly. Baba Is always perceived as a wise man with strong morals and opinions in â€Å"The Kite Runner†. He is not a coward nor selfish, he stands up for what he believes is right and Baba is a very brave man. This is displayed when he sacrifices his life for a woman he does not know. He stands up and says, â€Å"Tell him I’ll take a thousand of his bullets before I let this indecency take place†. (Pg. 122) This act stops a Russian soldier from raping a woman that is carrying a baby on their way to America. This shows the love Baba has in his heart to help this woman from a terrible event that would have taken place if he had not stopped it. He has shown love and sacrifice for women he does not know and that shows his good character and bravery. Although Amir had feels his father never appreciated him enough his father makes a big sacrifice for Amir. With the war-taking place in Afghanistan, Baba knows it will not be a safe place for Amir to grow up and knows he has to do something about it. He leaves everything he has behind. He sacrifices everything he has for Amir, all his belongings, and his house, and where he grew up. He leaves his life behind so Amir can have a happy and safe life in America. He does not like America but he knows it is best for Amir. He puts Amir before himself, demonstrating another one of Baba’s selfless acts. Throughout the novel, Amir has some very negative personality traits. He is selfish, demanding, cowardly, disrespectful and jealous. He does not seem like the type of person that will do something for another out of the kindness of their heart. He always thinks about himself and what he wants. He has never sacrificed anything for the people he loves. Growing up with  the memory of Hassan’s rape still fresh in his mind like a situation that has just unfolded has finally opened his eyes and makes him realize he needs to be brave for once in his life. So Amir acts. He goes back to Afghanistan to find Hassan’s son, Sohrab. Rahim Khan’s advice, â€Å"There is a way to be good again† (pg.2) helps Amir to put his feelings into action. Assef, now a Taliban officer, beats Amir up badly, but this, heals Amir of his wrong doings from the past and he takes Sohrab back to America with him to live a good life. Amir finally puts someone before himself after all the sac rifices Hassan has made for him in the past. This shows the love and sacrifice he makes for Hassan’s child knowing it is the only way he can ever repay Hassan for the years of mistreatment in their childhood. The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini demonstrates a very good lesson on sacrifice and love. The novel is a perfect example of the ways Jesus shows us how to live our lives. â€Å"There is no greater love than to lay ones life down for a friend†.

Drink in Trend: Thailand Essay

Ready to drink tea ?In the past 1 to 2 years, ready to drink tea market seem declining. But in the first half of 2008, ready to drink tea market grew 16% in market value and 13% in quantity while the entire beverage market grew 5% only. This is the result of intensive marketing activities in the market. ?Consumers perceive that green tea is for health and wellness whereas black tea is for refreshment Source: Pepsi Co Trading Co. , Ltd Source: Oishi Source: T. C. Pharmaceutical. Total market value: Bt. 3,600 million Lipton? Lipton is the market leader of black tea segment (with 80% market share0 ? In the first half of 2008, Lipton ready to drink tea grew 30%. ?Lipton launched Lipton 9 to create an image of Lipton as the expert in tea products. 3-4 years ago, Lipton Wave green tea was not succeed and withdrew from the market. ?The selling point of Lipton 9 is new green tea product with 9 kinds of herbs. Asian believe these herbs are good for health. ?Thailand is the first market that for Lipton 9 ?Target group: female aged 20-39 years / with health and beauty conscious. ?A Bt20 million marketing budget has injected to build awareness of the new product with product trial road shows for 900,000 consumers, advertising through major media channels and photo contests on www. lipton9. com. ?Sermsuk expects Lipton 9 to carve out 4-5% of the green tea market this year ? Product price of Lipton 9: can Bt. 14 and PET bottle Bt. 18 ? Key person: Mr. Isaress Sundravorakul, marketing manager of Serm Suk Ms. Ratchada, non carbonated drink director, Pepsi Co Oishi. ?In order to tap the functional drink trend, Oishi launched green tea product with chlorophyll – substance in green plant which helps to improve body’s blood circulation and increase oxygen level. ?Marketing budget for launching Oishi green tea – chlorophyll: Bt. 10 m ? Key person: Tan Paskornnatee, managing director Puriku ?Puriku’s mixed berry flavor not only creates a big success for the brand but also a new trend and category for ready to drink tea market: tea + fruit juice. Even Oishi, the market leader, has to follow and launched Oishi green tea mixed berry flavored at the same size 350 ml. ?Puriku fruit white tea is positioned as refreshment drink for teenagers aged 12-17 years instead of functional drink for adult. It is because functional tea drink consumed time to educate consumer; and adult with health conscious prefers drinking water and fruit juice. Moreover, teenagers love the sweet and sour taste of fruit tea. ?Other than sell in 500 ml bottle and priced Bt. 20 as other brands, Puriku put its fruit white tea in smaller bottle 350 ml and sells Bt. 12 a bottle. It gets a well response from teenagers whom live in other provinces and has limited pocket money. ?Strengthen the brand image by adapting famous duo boy band â€Å"Golf , Mike† as presenter ? Puriku will launch new flavor every year. Currently Puriku has 4 flavors. ?Key person: Suwandee Chaivaroot, marketing manager Zenya ?Zenya has released two functional green tea products: 1. Zenya light plus fiber (same taste as original flavor but amount of calories reduced by 50%) and 2. Zenya C 100 plus (added 100 mg of vitamin c) Functional Drink ?Even functional drink’s market value grow double every year but it is still not very popular in Thailand market because: oThais do not accept the product yet. It has to take longer time to educate the consumer. For examples, I Firm from Unif and Alive from Coca Cola, which entered the market too early, has been withdrawn already. oStrong advertising restriction. Even the product has got Thailand’s FDA approval; it cannot advertise all its benefit to consumer. ?Now only B-ing of Singha Corporation is still active in this market. It has just launched the 4th formula â€Å"B-ing Relax† into the market in May 2008. o4 formulas: 1. B-ing Fine (provide vitamins for immune system) ; 2. B-ing Boost (provide amino for burning fat and energy); 3. B-ing Comfort (provide fiber for digestive system); and 4. B-ing Relax (for reduce stress) oUnlike other brands which have only one formula with different flavors, B-ing has up to four formulas. This strategy helps to build confidence to consumer and can fulfill needs of different target group. Market Value of Functional Drink YearMillion Baht 2006500 20071,000 20082,000 Beauty Drink ?A category of functional drink which is blooming ? Collagen is the most popular ingredient in this category ? Sappe ?Market leader and the first brand of functional drink that use beauty as a selling point ? Launched in December 2006 by Saap Anan? Distribution channel: in first 5 months, it was distributed in 7- eleven only. ?Target group: female 20-45 years ?Keys of success: oAdvertorial in TVC program and P. O. P. (no above the line activity) oBeauti Drink’s formula: fruit juice + beauty ingredients in 365 ml bottle. It can be drink more often than milk and 100% fruit juice because it contains only 12% fruit juice. So other than beauty purpose, Sappe can fulfill the thirsty purpose as well. ?Product: oBeauti Drink Collagen 1000 mg oBeauti Drink Co Q10 oBeauti Shot Collagen 3000 mg + Fiber 2500 mg oBeauti Shot Co Q10 + Grape seed extract Meiji Beauti ?Launched in 2007 by CP-Meiji. ?Product strategy: beauty yogurt ?In order to compete with Dutch Mill which gains 90% market share of yogurt market, CP-Meiji build a new segment. Beauty yogurt is differentiated from fruit yogurt of Dutch Mill. ?Marketing budget: 50 million baht ?Marketing activity: above the line and below the line activities (movie preview and sampling). ?After conducted a consumer research, CP-Meiji found that the brand image of CP-Meiji is not young. So the packaging has been redesigned. ?Product: oBeauti Detoey – with honey and lemon for detoxify oBeauti Bright – with collagen for good skin oBeauti Miracle – with apple cider and honey for well being ? Key person: oDr. Kinggard Pattarathamas, assistant to marketing director oPaisan Chonbanyatcharoen, managing director CP-Meiji’s shares in different markets Market Total Market Value Share of CP-Meiji Pasteurized milk 3,500 million baht 51% Drinking yogurt1,500 million baht7-8% Yogurt (in cup)2,500 million baht10% Healthy Drink ?In the past, the target audience for healthy drink is sportsman aged around 20 years and 40-50 years. Nowadays, health conscious trend is expanding the consumer base. People whom do not play sports also drink healthy drink ? Market value: 1,000 – 2,000 million Baht. (estimated by Sahaphattanapiboon) i-Healti ?Launched in May 2007 by Sahaphattanapiboon ?Product strategy: added Co Q10 (substance which is important for good health and skin) ? Marketing budget: 70 Bt. ?Major distribution channel: 7-eleven and member system ?Packaging: oFirstly there was a lady image on the label to avoid Thai FDA restriction on healthy drink. But later on the lady image has been removed in order to capture male consumers. oRed color is selected because it is a powerful color ?Keys of success oUsed skin doctor as presenter at the beginning and now use Miss Thailand oBoth above and below the line activities (ie.road show) oSmall bottle: 100 ml / bottle. Less quantity makes consumers perceive that it is effective and 100 ml can be drink for refreshment as well. oAffordable price: Bt. 25 / bottle. Consumer can drink everyday. ? Product: oi-Healti Q10 oi-Healti Q10 Lite (actually it is a sugar free formula but Thai FDA did not permit to put â€Å"sugar free† on label so i-Healti Q10 Lite put â€Å"Low Calorie† instead. ) ? Key person: Pennapa Tanasarasin, director Peptein ?Launched in Jan 2008 by Osotspa ?Product strategy: added soy peptide (substance for good brain performance) ? Imported soy peptide from Japan? Marketing budget: 400 million baht ?Sales target 2008: 300 million baht ?Osotspa had set up a new unit called â€Å"marketing department for health and functional beverage†. Each year it plans to launch one new product. ?Major distribution channel: 7-eleven ?Product: oPeptein 4000 oLaunched in Jan 2008 oSell at Bt. 38 / bottle (100 ml) oTarget group: teenager, young adult, and first jobber oPeptein 8000 oLaunched in Feb 2008 oSell at Bt. 68 / bottle (150 ml) oTarget group: adult aged 40 years old up oKey person: Prathan Chaiprasit, senior deputy director Brane Fit ?Launched by Ajinomoto. ?Product strategy: positioning as brain food (Brane Fit) and skin food (Skinn Fit) ? Healthy food and drink will be a new business unit of Ajinomoto. And it will launch at least one product a year. ?The strength of Ajinomoto is the know-how in healthy drink from mother company in Japan ? Major marketing activity: sampling ?Target group: student and worker ?Product: oBrane Fit oSkinn Fit ?Key person: Pichit Kusamit, managing director Trend # 1: Sugar-free ?Sugar-free soft drink category is blooming while the overall soft drink market does not grow in the first half of 2008. Consumers become more health conscious and the taste has been improved to be similar to classic formula. Source: Coca Cola Thailand ?Coca-Cola (Thailand) Co has spent 50 million baht for its Genzero campaign, aiming at strengthening its leadership in the sugar-free carbonated beverage segment. The campaign was designed to strengthen the success of Coca-Cola Zero by appealing to the emerging trend among teenagers and young adults to break free from stereotypes. Coke Zero was launched in May 2007 and now has a 43% share in Thailand’s sugar-free carbonated beverage segment, estimated to be worth two billion baht.? Key person: Chuenhathai Vuntanadit, regional marketing director (Coca Cola) Trend # 2: Sesame Soy milk market share by brands Vitamilk50% Lactasoy35% DNA 12% Others 3% Source: Vitamilk ?The intensive marketing activities of hi-calcium milk Anlene and Calcimex in the past few years has created a bone health conscious among Thai consumers. Soy milk companies catch the trend by adding black sesame, which is rich with calcium, into their products. And this soy milk’s category is now in full blossom. DNA ?DNA soy milk was introduced into the market 4-5 years ago by Dutch Mill. ?In order to compete with other two major players in the market: Vitamilk and Lactasoy, DNA is positioning as â€Å"hi-calcium soy milk† with black sesame. Now DNA is the market leader of this segment. V-Soy ?Vitamilk launched V-Soy in 2006 ?Positioned as hi-calcium soy milk and targeted at male consumer. ?Three flavor: double black sesame, white sesame, and no sugar Vitamilk ?Sales of Vitamilk original formula dropped in the first half of this year. It is because 1) glass bottle was short of supply; 2) retail price of Vitamilk UHT 250 ml increased 2 baht to Bt. 12 but rival, Lactasoy, remained price at Bt. 10 and added quantity to 300 ml. Vitamilk flights back with Vitamilk to Go in Black 300 ml (glass bottle) and 330 ml (UHT). The 330 ml pack sells at Bt. 10 / box until end of this year. ?Key person: Chanid Suwanprim, marketing manager of Greenspot Foremost Hi-5 ?Foremost launched the cereal flavor soy milk in end of 2005. ?Unlike other products on the market, Foremost Hi-5 contains black sesame, brown rice, barely and wheat germ. Anlene ?Anlene also launched soy milk with black sesame. ?Key person: Lalana Boonngamsri, marketing manager of Fonterra Brands (a subsidiary of Fonterra, the world leader in milk and dairy products and the world’s largest milk exporter. Fonterra is headquartered in New Zealand and operates a network of consumer dairy businesses in 40 countries worldwide. ) Trend # 3: Smaller size Recently several brands of beverage introduced small pack into the market with different reasons: Refresh drink ?Decrease in purchasing power. Small pack is cheaper. ?Able to finish the whole bottle in one time ?Can drink several kinds of beverage Samples: oPuriku green tea – 350 ml oOishi green tea – 350 ml oZeny green tea – paper box oSplash (orange juice of Coca Cola) – 180 ml (sells Bt. 10 a bottle / target: kids) oTropicana (orange juice of Pepsi Co) – 250 ml in glass bottle (sells Bt.10 a bottle) oCoke – mini can (sells at Bt. 10) oRed Bull Cola – 325 ml (sells at Bt. 10). Functional drink ?Consumer perceive that small bottle is more effective than the big one. Samples: oBeauti Shot – 50 ml oi-Healti Q10 – 100 ml oSt. Anna – 100 ml oPeptein 4000 – 100 ml and Peptein 8000 – 150 ml oBrane Fit 100 ml Hi calcium milk ?Anlene launched the concentrate formula, which contains 4 times the calcium of regular milk in 110 ml UHT box. ?Target consumer whom get calcium tablet. ?It is very successful. Anlene’s market share jumped from 17% to 38%with in 6 months. The total market values of hi calcium milk is 1,000 million baht. Samples: oBeauti Shot – 50 ml Others Fruit Fit For Fun orange juice: ?15% orange juice drink launched by TC Pharmaceutical for economical and super economical markets. ?Unlike 100% fruit juice which sell in modern trade channels only, Fruit Fit For Fun is applying the same distribution network of Red Bull, Sponsor, and Puriku. ?Ranked no. 3 in 7-eleven after Splash and Tropicana but its share in traditional channel is still far away from DeeDo, the market leader. DeeDo sells at Bt. 10 a bottle (500ml) while Fruit Fit For Fun sells at Bt. 13 a bottle.

Cow

Cattle (colloquially cows) are the most common type of large domesticated ungulates. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae, are the most widespread species of the genus Bos, and are most commonly classified collectively as Bos primigenius. Cattle are raised as livestock for meat (beef and veal), as dairy animals for milk and other dairy products, and as draft animals (oxen or bullocks) (pulling carts, plows and the like). Other products include leather and dung for manure or fuel. In some countries, such as India, cattle are sacred.From as few as 80 progenitors domesticated in southeast Turkey about 10,500 years ago,[2] an estimated 1. 3 billion cattle are in the world today. [3] In 2009, cattle became the first livestock animal to have a fully mapped genome. [4] SpeciesMain article: Bovini Cattle were originally identified as three separate species: Bos taurus, the European or â€Å"taurine† cattle (including similar types from Africa and Asia); Bos indi cus, the zebu; and the extinct Bos primigenius, the aurochs. The aurochs is ancestral to both zebu and taurine cattle.Recently, these three have increasingly been grouped as one species, with Bos primigenius taurus, Bos primigenius indicus and Bos primigenius primigenius as the subspecies. [5] Zubron, a cross between wisent and cattleComplicating the matter is the ability of cattle to interbreed with other closely related species. Hybrid individuals and even breeds exist, not only between taurine cattle and zebu (such as the sanga cattle, Bos taurus africanus), but also between one or both of these and some other members of the genus Bos – yaks (the dzo or yattle[6]), banteng, and gaur.Hybrids such as the beefalo breed can even occur between taurine cattle and either species of bison, leading some authors to consider them part of the genus Bos, as well. [7] The hybrid origin of some types may not be obvious – for example, genetic testing of the Dwarf Lulu breed, the on ly taurine-type cattle in Nepal, found them to be a mix of taurine cattle, zebu, and yak. [8] However, cattle cannot successfully be hybridized with more distantly related bovines such as water buffalo or African buffalo.The aurochs originally ranged throughout Europe, North Africa, and much of Asia. In historical times, its range became restricted to Europe, and the last known individual died in Masovia, Poland, in about 1627. [9] Breeders have attempted to recreate cattle of similar appearance to aurochs by crossing traditional types of domesticated cattle, creating the Heck cattle breed. Word origin†Cattle† did not originate as the term for bovine animals.It was borrowed from Old French catel, itself from Latin caput, head, and originally meant movable personal property, especially livestock of any kind, as opposed to real property (the land, which also included wild or small free-roaming animals such as chickens — they were sold as part of the land). [10] The word is closely related to â€Å"chattel† (a unit of personal property) and â€Å"capital† in the economic sense. [11][12] The term replaced earlier Old English feoh â€Å"cattle, property† (cf. German: Vieh, Gothic: faihu). The word â€Å"cow† came via Anglo-Saxon cu (plural c? ), from Common Indo-European g? ous (genitive g? wes) = â€Å"a bovine animal†, compare Persian gav, Sanskrit go, Welsh buwch. [citation needed] The genitive plural of cu is c? na, which gave the now archaic English plural of â€Å"kine†. The Scots language singular is coo or cou, and the plural is â€Å"kye†. In older English sources such as the King James Version of the Bible, â€Å"cattle† refers to livestock, as opposed to â€Å"deer† which refers to wildlife. â€Å"Wild cattle† may refer to feral cattle or to undomesticated species of the genus Bos. Today, when used without any other qualifier, the modern meaning of â€Å"cattle† is usually restricted to domesticated bovines. citation needed] Terminology Look up cattle or cow in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. A Hereford bullIn general, the same words are used in different parts of the world, but with minor differences in the definitions. The terminology described here contrasts the differences in definition between the United Kingdom and other British-influenced parts of world such as Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, and the United States. [13] An â€Å"intact† (i. e. , not castrated) adult male is called a bull. A wild, young, unmarked bull is known as a â€Å"micky† in Australia. 14] An unbranded bovine of either sex is called a â€Å"maverick† in the USA and Canada. An adult female that has had a calf (or two, depending on regional usage) is a cow. A young female before she has had a calf of her own[15] and is under three years of age is called a heifer ( /? h? f? r/ HEF-? r). [16] A young female that has had only one cal f is occasionally called a first-calf heifer. Young cattle of both sexes are called calves until they are weaned, then weaners until they are a year old in some areas; in other areas, particularly with male beef cattle, they may be known as feeder calves or simply feeders.After that, they are referred to as yearlings or stirks[17] if between one and two years of age. [18] A castrated male is called a steer in the United States; older steers are often called bullocks in other parts of the world,[19] but in North America this term refers to a young bull. Piker bullocks are micky bulls that were caught, castrated and then later lost. [14] In Australia, the term â€Å"Japanese ox† is used for grain-fed steers in the weight range of 500 to 650 kg that are destined for the Japanese meat trade. [20] In North America, draft cattle under four years old are called working steers.Improper or late castration on a bull results in it becoming a coarse steer known as a stag in Australia, Ca nada and New Zealand. [21] In some countries, an incompletely castrated male is known also as a rig. A castrated male (occasionally a female or in some areas a bull) kept for draft purposes is called an ox (plural oxen); â€Å"ox† may also be used to refer to some carcass products from any adult cattle, such as ox-hide, ox-blood, oxtail, or ox-liver. [16] A springer is a cow or heifer close to calving. [22] In all cattle species, a female twin of a bull usually becomes an infertile partial intersex, and is a freemartin.Neat (horned oxen, from which neatsfoot oil is derived), beef (young ox) and beefing (young animal fit for slaughtering) are obsolete terms, although poll, pollard or polled cattle are still terms in use for naturally hornless animals, or in some areas also for those that have been disbudded. Cattle raised for human consumption are called beef cattle. Within the beef cattle industry in parts of the United States, the older term beef (plural beeves) is still use d to refer to an animal of either sex. Some Australian, Canadian, New Zealand and British people use the term beast, especially for single animals when the sex is unknown. 23] Cattle of certain breeds bred specifically for milk production are called milking or dairy cattle;[13] a cow kept to provide milk for one family may be called a house cow or milker. The adjective applying to cattle in general is usually bovine. The terms â€Å"bull†, â€Å"cow† and â€Å"calf† are also used by extension to denote the sex or age of other large animals, including whales, hippopotamuses, camels, elk and elephants See also: List of animal names Singular terminology issue A herd of CattleCattle can only be used in the plural and not in the singular: it is a plurale tantum. 24] Thus one may refer to â€Å"three cattle† or â€Å"some cattle†, but not â€Å"one cattle†. No universally used singular form in modern English of â€Å"cattle† exists, other t han the sex- and age-specific terms such as cow, bull, steer and heifer. Historically, â€Å"ox† was not a sex-specific term for adult cattle, but generally this is now used only for draft cattle, especially adult castrated males. The term is also incorporated into the names of other species, such as the musk ox and â€Å"grunting ox† (yak), and is used in some areas to describe certain cattle products such as ox-hide and oxtail. 25] A Brahman calf†Cow† is in general use as a singular for the collective â€Å"cattle†, despite the objections by those who insist it to be a female-specific term. Although the phrase â€Å"that cow is a bull† is absurd from a lexicographic standpoint, the word â€Å"cow† is easy to use when a singular is needed and the sex is unknown or irrelevant – when â€Å"there is a cow in the road†, for example. Further, any herd of fully mature cattle in or near a pasture is statistically likely to consi st mostly of cows, so the term is probably accurate even in the restrictive sense.Other than the few bulls needed for breeding, the vast majority of male cattle are castrated as calves and slaughtered for meat before the age of three years. Thus, in a pastured herd, any calves or herd bulls usually are clearly distinguishable from the cows due to distinctively different sizes and clear anatomical differences. Merriam-Webster, a US dictionary, recognizes the sex-nonspecific use of â€Å"cow† as an alternate definition,[26] whereas Collins, a UK dictionary, does not. [27]Colloquially, more general nonspecific terms may denote cattle when a singular form is needed. Australian, New Zealand and British farmers use the term â€Å"beast† or â€Å"cattle beast†. â€Å"Bovine† is also used in Britain. The term â€Å"critter† is common in the western United States and Canada, particularly when referring to young cattle. [28] In some areas of the American Sou th (particularly the Appalachian region), where both dairy and beef cattle are present, an individual animal was once called a â€Å"beef critter†, though that term is becoming archaic.

'All About Eve 'Film Review Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

'All About Eve 'Film Review - Essay Example Although it is not set in the present-day, it does at least take women back to what it was like to be a star on Broadway who is up and coming during a time where the country was on the verge of rebuilding after a war. It is compelling and interesting and shows a relationship between Eve and the woman who is starting to age and see her career start to flail, Margo Channing. Women like to see relationships of other women, especially in show business where only a few women are lucky enough to relate. Since the 1950s were a time when women were starting to gain stronger roles in the household due to it being post-war, this movie is spot on. Eve, who stumbles upon Broadway, could easily be a strong and powerful woman. At this time, women were needed to be breadwinners in a household. Eve could be seen as one of those people as females were starting to finally take off as movie stars in the post-World War II

Research Report outlining the general database techniques Essay

Research Report outlining the general database techniques - Essay Example 16). When a database is designed, one should make sure that all functions performed by the database are correct and quick. There are some performances issues that arise due to the structure and the design of the database. Hence, it needs to be designed and structured carefully. Large tables in the database need to be identified so that special consideration to these tables can be given in terms of performance. Also the database should be tested by increasing a number of users who access the database in order to check performance. Database performance increases through normalization, database partitioning, using federated database systems and certain hardware considerations such as RAID. Normalization Normalization is a process of removing redundancies of data in a database or in other words it is a technique of producing a set of relations with desirable properties given the data requirements of an enterprise. (Stephens et al., 2008, p. 62). If normalization is not done, then certain anomalies occur which include the insertion anomalies, delete anomalies and update anomalies. Anomalies occur when at one table of a database there has been an occurrence of change either an insertion of a record or deletion of a record or updating the table; however, unaffecting the duplicate records that exist in other tables in relation to that table. The process of normalization is done basically in three steps. The database is brought to its first normal form (1NF). A relation (table, entity) in a database in which the intersection of each row and column contains one and only one value is said to be in 1NF. All relations are supposed to be in 1NF. After 1NF, the relations in a database are brought to the 2NF. A relation that is in its 1NF and all non-primary key fields is fully functionally dependent on the primary key is said to be in 2NF. Then a relation that is in 1NF and 2NF and in which no non-primary key field is transitively dependent on the primary key field is said to be in 3NF. These are the three basic steps that normalize the database. Database Partitioning Through database partitioning, database is broken into small physical units that can be managed independently. In this way, it becomes easier for the designers and operations personnel as the database becomes flexible in data management. Large physical units, on the other hand, cannot be structured, recovered, organized or monitored. Partitioning makes indexing easier and also allows sequential scanning. Through this process, data can be broken up by organization, business unit, region, date and others which help in the desired analysis of data (Connolly and Begg, 2008, p. 119). Through partitioning, the performance of database is enhanced. This is because when database is partitioned, subsets of data are formed. And these subsets can be managed and accessed with efficiency and are useful for analysis. Partitioning also makes the activities of maintenance operations such as defragmentation and index rebuilds. Partitioning mak

Research Methods Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 2

Research Methods - Assignment Example The research is divided into various topics that clearly explain each theme that the research is based on. Firstly, it focuses on various causes of absenteeism in schools. In this the roles of parents, teachers and the community at large of ensuring that students are always in schools are analyzed. Secondly, the article gives a connection between the absenteeism and exam failure. In this case, the essay explains in depth how school work accumulated up to a level that the student can no longer catch up with other students. Lastly, the study highlights the kind of life that the student lives once they clear school. In this case, the essay demonstrates how the student fails to fit well into the community. According to the research, the student will end being not very useful to the society should measures to restore them are not considered. The intention of this study was to probe the effect of constant communication on the general performance of online modules. The article makes an argument around the worth of effective communication in online units and the rationale of the achievement a scholar experiences when they succeed in an online course. The purpose the research is to find justification, to some aforementioned interests. Accordingly, the researcher was conducted in eight week through the analysis of students of an online module. This investigation incorporated the following strategy to observe classroom activity and online communication amongst student’s geographical location, maturity and cultural diversity are the most imperative fundamental dynamics. Additionally, the considerable statistics gathered by Mouffe, (2013) in their study describe the prospective consequences of failures and success was predictable. The research paper is divided into two parts; the first part investigates extent of the relationship between tutors and online students. In this the paper finds out various channels and

International Business - Global Team Case Study Essay

International Business - Global Team Case Study - Essay Example From recruitment to compensation, James failed to address various issues such as compensation and work relationship, thereby making it hard for the team to work as a unit. Open work accelerated the working relationship issues in the company. For instance, more challenges such as vacation, time differences, compensation mismatch and favors claims strained the relationship between the team members. These issues could have been resolved before the starting of the program. Unlike the initial intention of diversity which was to give the company an opportunity to deal with varying challenges in the market, diversity made it hard for the team members to communicate (Neeley & Delong, 2009). This is because their cultural, religious, and racial differences acted as a communication barrier rather than an aspect to enable the company to have a global outlook. In the short term, James should improve the communication levels. This is through making it mandatory for the team members to communicate with each other at a particular time (Neeley & Delong, 2009). In addition, in the long term, he needs to develop a reward program to offer the best team members with rewards. This will motivate the team members to work as a single unit and towards a common

We live in a world of new diasporas Critically assess this comment in Essay

We live in a world of new diasporas Critically assess this comment in relation to forced migrants - Essay Example However, instances of Diasporas never seem to end. In various parts of the world we often come to experience instances of forced migrants who are forcefully evicted from their home countries and expelled to new countries without regard to their rights to reside in whichever destination they prefer. For instance, the forceful migration of the Cyprians to many parts of the world due to invasion from the Turkish militia is unrealistically injurious to the rights of Cyprians. It indicates that the world is indeed a world of new Diasporas. This paper attempts to describe the situation of Diasporas and explain whether the world is a world of new Diasporas or not. Using the case of forced migrants in the Cypriot Diaspora, this paper will examine the circumstances surrounding Cypriot Diaspora and establish whether the Diaspora is an indication of the world being ailed with new diasporas on not. In order to bring the situation into a clear perspective, this paper will first explain what Diaspora actually means, when it started, whether it is still occurring and whether there is still some emergence of new Diasporas. The paper will then examine Cypriot Diaspora in depth so as to determine the situation of new Diasporas in relation to forced migrants. This examination if the Cypriot Diaspora will help the writer to support the argument in way that the reader will be able to understand. When people talk about Diasporas, what comes into one’s mind is the contact of different countries in terms of borders, travels and Diaspora. As explained earlier, Diaspora refers to dispersion of people out of their home countries to new destinations across the world. However, it is not clear whether the Diasporas experienced in the past during the colonial period are the same as the Diasporas of today. Studies indicate that there are new Diasporas that seem to relate to the colonial Diasporas. It is unfortunate that the

Themes The suffering body by compare the work 2 artist Louise Essay

Themes The suffering body by compare the work 2 artist Louise Bourgeois and Francis Bacon in different and similar approach under the theme of Suffering Bo - Essay Example Artists such as Louise Bourgeois and Francis Bacon (listed in their fields respectively) recognize and accept these changes and interpret them in their artworks. Art began around 15 000 BC, often favouring drawing over colour in forms such as cave paintings. There have been changes from emphasis on geometrical shapes such as mosaics and arches, religious and gothic-based, in which art evolved from it's two dimensions and was practised in sculpture format, the Victorian and art Nouveau-influenced craft movements in which art became decoration through to Dada in which the art was taken off the canvas - new materials and exhibiting practises were used to encourage stronger responses from the audience. Subject matter had changed from communicative, to aesthetic, to political, social and emotional. Dada was the jump-off point for performance art. The origin is said to be found in 1917 in Zurich, where several notable Dadaists, spoke nonsensical words to complement nonsense acts to protest the Great War and the importance f art in general: "...No more cute art in frames, no more static art that only makes the Philistines richer." An integral part f the ritual f performance art is it's ephemerality - it is not static like most artworks. After it is finished nothing will be the same again and nothing is left. Performance art is described as unprecedented and because f its originality, it is difficult to censor. It is very relevant to its time because f the short period f time needed between the process f conception and performance and political, social and philosophical views can be explored in-depth such as in the 1970's and in the 1980's in which "Queer Theatre" was founded in which homosexual issues were dealt with. It occupies an environment with specific objects and actions for a specific amount f time and because f the brevity and intent f the artwork, everything present has a meaning. Performance art also brings another change to the world f the artwork - the role f the audience. It is made to be watched and experienced in the moment specifically for those who witness it, therefore, the audience has a much more integral part. As the audience is generally small, there can be much interaction between them and the artist and the experience is much more direct and the message is more vigorously felt because f the proximity and actuality f the piece. What happens on stage can affect the audience and the artist more directly views their response. The audience can be loud, angry or irritating and what the audience does can affect the actors on stage unlike with other fixed artworks, whatever the audience does, (aside from vandalising it) the artwork will not change. Louise Bourgeois is a forerunner in performance art. His performance works are often structured around the confines f the artist's own body and often have a deeply impacting affect upon his audiences because f their graphically disturbing nature. For example, in 1977, he created the illusion f cutting off one f his arms with a small axe after stuffing meat into a shirtsleeve fitted with a prosthetic hand. In 2000 he impounded himself in a small cell-like confinement, without

Business Ethics in the Business World Research Paper

Business Ethics in the Business World - Research Paper Example The world of business, naturally, is no exception. Applied in such a context, these principles come into play in all aspects relating to business matters, especially when moral or ethical problems arise. Organizations and individuals alike demonstrate their grasp of business ethics in everything they do. In fact, business ethics may encompass a whole world of subjects on its own, many of which touch on the nature of the relationship between an organization, its employees, its clients and its stakeholders. Regardless, the main point that comes into play is that of the concept of right and wrong - whether a given course of action is right and just with respect to all parties involved (Smith, 1952).  The origins of the entire concept of business ethics date back as far as before the Christian Era, having first been discussed in ancient times by Cicero (Goldin, 2006). His view on the matter, one in line with the principles of Stoicism, mainly holds that no single set of moral principle s can apply to all aspects of everyday life. This means that, while the business world is still bound by principles of morality, these principles are not necessarily the same as those ascribed to by laypeople; indeed, businessmen have every right to the pursuit of profit, as it is their way of contributing to society. At the same time, though, such right only extends insofar as it does not conflict with the common good, at which point the latter should always prevail. This directly ties into the related concept of corporate social responsibility.  ... The origins of the entire concept of business ethics date back as far as before the Christian Era, having first been discussed in ancient times by Cicero (Goldin, 2006). His view on the matter, one in line with the principles of Stoicism, mainly holds that no single set of moral principles can apply to all aspects of everyday life. This means that, while the business world is still bound by principles of morality, these principles are not necessarily the same as those ascribed to by laypeople; indeed, businessmen have every right to the pursuit of profit, as it is their way of contributing to society. At the same time, though, such right only extends insofar as it does not conflict with the common good, at which point the latter should always prevail. This directly ties into the related concept of corporate social responsibility (CSR), which in turn helps ensure that an organization consistently complies with ethical standards (Wood, 1991). In the academic context, on the other hand, business ethics is a fairly new topic of interest. Baumhart (1961) was probably the very first to discuss the subject in his studies, and is actually credited by DeGeorge (2005) as one of the main proponents of academic business ethics. At the time, the Cold War as well as the Vietnam War was well under way, and America as a whole was experiencing rapid paradigm shifts with respect to business and even society itself. In fact, it was during this time that most of the corporate giants we know today were born. Of course, the rise of these corporations also had certain detrimental consequences, some of which earned them the ire of the public. As further

Discussion on the Marketing Impacts of the Global Recession Essay

Discussion on the Marketing Impacts of the Global Recession - Essay Example The Global Recession By the end of 2007, what started as an apparently isolated turbulence in the sub-prime segment of the US housing market turned into a full-blown recession by the end of 2007 (Verick & Islam, 2010). The US housing sector, as stated by Verick and Islam (2010), was unaware of the true extent of the complexities and liabilities which, in turn, caused liquidity to dry up, bringing down the global financial system. The economic drawback was spread rapidly and simultaneously through the global financial system to all corners of the world (Jannson, Hilmersson, & Sandberg, 2010). The result is the global economic recession that peaked in 2008. There had been massive lay-offs, unemployment, unpaid mortgages, bigger debts, enormous financial problems and fraud, financial deregulation of credit, automotive sales loss and manufacturing decline. Marketing Impacts of the Global Recession Up to now, recession is still evident in the global scenario. The increasing globalization of economic activity – the interconnectedness of economic activity across national frontiers calls companies and countries to adapt to the negative effects of the recession (Kitching, Blackburn, Smallbone, & Dixon, 2009). Kotler and Keller in 2009 stated that speed of global business is accelerating diversity but that has slowed down, yet, as they say, its business is as usual. The companies must change their marketing strategies and management capabilities to keep up in the market, at the same time giving customer satisfaction. Several methods and strategies were devised or emerged as the reaction of the global market to the recession. According to Kitching et al. (2009), recessions are regarded as periods of â€Å"creative destruction†, during which some businesses and industries decline while new ideas, technologies, products and industries emerge and become the driving forces of subsequent economic activity and growth. Business strategy and performance vary with ow ner perceptions, resources, and opportunities available of the threats faced (Kitching et al., 2009). According to Orr (2010), findings suggest that two principal factors are dominant in determining international strategy during times of financial crisis – home country market conditions, and the level of domestic industry protection introduced by the foreign country government in response to the economic downturn. Other factors including the variability in relative exchange rates also influenced international strategy during financial crises. Marketing Impacts in Certain Countries of the Global Recession Several developed countries had certain impacts in both marketing and management aspects due to the recession. These countries mentioned in the discussion include Japan, the United States, European Union in general, Australia, Singapore and China. In Japan, Toyota Motor Corporation's profitability was badly affected by the recession, resulting in a fall from record profits to record losses (Greimel, 2009 as cited by Orr, 2010). In response, Toyota is planning to limit expenditure and return to its original focus on quality. In reaction to global currency fluctuations, the lower value of currencies in countries such as the US, and

Data Preprocessing Essay Example for Free

Data Preprocessing Essay Data Preprocessing 3 Today’s real-world databases are highly susceptible to noisy, missing, and inconsistent data due to their typically huge size (often several gigabytes or more) and their likely origin from multiple, heterogenous sources. Low-quality data will lead to low-quality mining results. â€Å"How can the data be preprocessed in order to help improve the quality of the data and, consequently, of the mining results? How can the data be preprocessed so as to improve the ef? ciency and ease of the mining process? † There are several data preprocessing techniques. Data cleaning can be applied to remove noise and correct inconsistencies in data. Data integration merges data from multiple sources into a coherent data store such as a data warehouse. Data reduction can reduce data size by, for instance, aggregating, eliminating redundant features, or clustering. Data transformations (e. g. , normalization) may be applied, where data are scaled to fall within a smaller range like 0. 0 to 1. 0. This can improve the accuracy and ef? ciency of mining algorithms involving distance measurements. These techniques are not mutually exclusive; they may work together. For example, data cleaning can involve transformations to correct wrong data, such as by transforming all entries for a date ? eld to a common format. In Chapter 2, we learned about the different attribute types and how to use basic statistical descriptions to study data characteristics. These can help identify erroneous values and outliers, which will be useful in the data cleaning and integration steps. Data processing techniques, when applied before mining, can substantially improve the overall quality of the patterns mined and/or the time required for the actual mining.

Should Museums Charge For Admissions Advantages Disadvantages Economics Essay

Should Museums Charge For Admissions Advantages Disadvantages Economics Essay Museums are expensive to run, with the costs of acquisitions, conservation, maintenance, staff salaries and special exhibitions all weighing heavily upon their budgets. In many cases much of their funding comes from the government, whether at national or local level, with the remainder made up through endowments, income from museum shops and other commercial ventures, private donations and sponsorship, and, very often, through entry fees. By for-profit standards, museums are illogical. Museums have a business model with costs much greater than their revenues. In a non-profit organization, an admission fee wont even begin to cover the costs of delivering its service. Museums have found various ways to increase their income opportunities, for example through gift shops and restaurants. Logically, lowering the admission price, would increase the amount of visitors, these visitors would spend more money in gift shops and restaurants and could possibly result in a higher income. On the other hand, a museum misses out on extra income through admission fees. Is there an equilibrium price? And what are the alternative pricing options? The research question in this paper is: Should museums charge an admission fee? Literature on this issue provides this paper with a theoretical framework, next I will explore the effects of digitalization for museums. A Dutch case study, done by Aarts de Jong Wilms Goudriaan Public Economics (APE) will complete the answer to this question. Museum economics: Museums have high fixed costs. This results in a high average cost curve for museums. The demand curve often lies below this average cost curve. This makes it impossible to set an entrance price at which the total amount of income received through admission fees covers the costs of the museum. (Frey, 2006; Caves,2000) However, admission prices are of the main determinants that influence the economic outcome of a museum. The economic value of a museum is often very high as a result of its collection and location. To increase revenue however, museums do not only depend on admission fees but also on the income that comes from museum gift shops, restaurants, and renting possibilities. Additionally, museums receive a great deal of support, sponsoring and donations. For example, for Boijmans van Beuningen Museum Rotterdam only 20% of its total revenue is derived from direct revenues, while 80% is derived from subsidies. For some Dutch museums however, revenue derived from entrance fees can be up to 50% (Munster et al. 2008). Most museums receive governmental or public support, for the government, their economic performance is of high interest for policy makers. In all cases, entrance fees prove to be a very important determinant that influence the economic outcome of a museum. Questions about what role museums are playing, should play and will play in society, are today subjects very much under discussion. Is the museum a storehouse for things and memories, a showground, a centre for education, a playground for academics, a castle for people with a suitable habitus the way Pierre Bourdieu describes it, or an institution with an important role to fulfil in peoples life and a far-reaching part to maintain in the development of a society? In his article, National Museums: To charge or not to charge? OHagan explains that the most important function of a museum is educational. This function involves people educating and informing people concerning their past and origins, and if finance permits those of other peoples, through the artefacts of the museum, thereby contributing to the formation of a sense of the countrys identity and position in the world. For education only however, physical presence is not entirely necessary and especially in the digital world a museum is able to perform its educational role partly through the use of Internet. With this educational function in mind, charging an entrance fee would limit certain groups of people in accessing the museum, and therefore learning about its content. For museums admission fees maintain to be an important determinant of its revenues therefore museums use pricing options, such as price discrimination. Price differentiation occurs when a firm charges a different price to different groups of consumers for its service, for reasons not associated with costs. Students, children and elderly are often charged less than normal adult visitors. Only a minority of visitors pays the full entrance price. There is however one issue when looking at cultural organizations. The price elasticity for cultural demand is rather low which means differentiating in price does not result in a significant change in demand. As a result of this by raising its entrance price, a museum can generate a significant increase in revenue. Given the income of a consumer (i.e. the spending limit), prices and individual preferences result in a package of goods and services that best satisfy their individual utility. This economic optimization process leads to certain fe atures in which demand for different goods and services such as visits to museums depends on income and prices. Not only the price of the museum itself, but also the price of competing leisure activities and additional costs, such as travelling expenses play an important role in consumer behaviour. However tourists are less likely to feel limited by the admission fee. (Frey et al. 2006) The influence of competing leisure alternatives depends on the character of a museum; For a museum that is highly competing with other leisure alternatives, the price sensitivity of the visit turns out to be higher. In contrast, highbrow and unique museums show that their visitors are less sensitive to price changes. Blockbusters have also shown to be very price-inelastic. (Goudriaan et al, 2007) People with higher incomes tend to be higher educated and more developed preferences for cultural activities (Frey, 2006; Throsby 2001) People who are accustomed to visiting a museum to visit, are not inclined to change this behaviour when their income decreases or admission fees increase. On the other hand, people who are not accustomed to a visiting a museum are insensitive to the incentive free of reduced admission are ought to give. (Goudriaan et al, 2007) Digitalization allows museums to exhibit their collection online, this allows the museum to educate people online. Physical presence is no longer necessary to receive education about the museums artefacts. This could potentially lower the amount of visitors entering the museum. However, most museums gain great benefits from using the digitalization to their advantage, they educate and communicate with their visitors through the Internet. To charge or not to charge? Much has been written about the advantages and disadvantages of setting the admission price of a museum to zero (OHagan 1995; Anderson 1998; Baily and Falconer 1998). In for example the United Kingdom, national museums grant free entry to their visitors. More and more services have free access, such as the Internet, newspapers, unauthorized downloading, public transport etc. As a result, free access has gained popularity. Free access to museum has advantages, it enables all people to be able to visit the museum without getting charged. This might attract a new and bigger audience to experience the museum. In his article, Kirchberg (1998) found that income is the dominating characteristic influencing the subjective significance of entrance fees as a barrier to visiting museums. People in lower social classes experience admission charges as a barrier almost five times as much as higher sociological classed people. Increasing entrance fees increases revenues but according to Kirchberg, not only decreases the number of visitors but also change the socio-economic composition of the attendance. Distributing welfare is mainly the reason for subsidies, in the case of museums the distribution argument does not really hold up: studies have shown that visitors to a museum usually come from higher social classes. People from higher social classes can afford to pay an entrance fee, in practice this means that subs idizing admission prices, does not transfer welfare to lower social classes. Another benefit of free entry to a museum is that is increases the amount of visitors. For a museum, a high number of visitors often reflects cultural prestige (OHagan 1995). In his article OHagan also points out that donors prefer non-profit firms. With higher entrance fees, donors are less wiling to donate money or artefacts. The marginal costs of an additional visitor is zero, therefore another argument for free entry to a museum is the efficiency argument: entrance fees should then also be zero to satisfy efficiency (Frey, 2010). On the other hand, literature suggests that there are problems in determining the costs of museum services (Baily and Falconer 1998). There are still costs in allowing visitors into a building, they require security, heating, light and physical space). Free access also has disadvantages. According to Frey, efficiency is not attained if the respective museums get overcrowded and the quality of a visit decreases. This results in museums limiting visitors by enhancing admission restrictions, such as requiring visitors to place a reservation in advance. This raises the danger than tickets can be sold on the black market, a visit then cab still become a costly experience. Visitors can also think that something that has no price, has no value resulting in a decrease in a museums total revenue. In his article Steiner (1997) calculates the impact of free entry for one day to the total revenue of a museum. His study shows that the amount of additional visitors does not overcome the loss of the admission charges it would receive on a normal day. Additionally, the crowd of people the museum attracted contributed to the loss of value of the exhibition. Most of the museums that offer free access, charges for access to special or blockbuster exhibitions. Another strategy for free museums to make visitors pay is asking for a donation at the end of the visit. By doing so, they museum captures the wiliness to pay form visitors (OHagan 1995). A visitor is not obliged to pay, but often willing to do so as they enjoyed the visit. The more satisfying the visit, the more a visitor is willing to pay. This is also a better distribution of welfare, as the social higher classes have to ability to pay more, and the lower social classes have the ability to pay less. With free entrance leading to a higher amount of visitors, exit donation can bring in significant extra financial resources for a museum. Prices can be differentiated to allocate the resources as efficiently as possible. According to Frey, when demand is low, prices should be kept close to zero. When demand is high, prices can be higher to avoid overcrowding, This enables visitors with the highest willingness to pay to enter the museum. People with a low price elasticity should be charged higher prices than visitors with a high price elasticity of demand. Finally, price can be differentiated when visitors target a special exhibition, normal collection should be priced lower. Another option is to charge local visitors less than foreign visitors or tourists as tourists have a significantly lower price elasticity of demand than locals. Often, when visiting a city, visiting the museum is a must, and the additional costs of entrance fee are often easily paid for. Another argument for entrance fees is that the extra benefits a visitors receives from going to a museum, added to for example the existence value (Frey, 2006) should be paid for. As pointed out before, price elasticity of demand for cultural services is low, therefore ticket prices may not be the best explanation for demand. OHagan finds that, when The Long Room of Trinity College Dublin stated on entry that admission prices are required to improve the quality of the visit, the amount of visitors raised. Another variant of entry fees is creating a museum club. A fixed contribution is required to become a member and receive free entry to the museum. For culturally active people, this is a good solution and often cheaper than paying full entrance fees. For a museum, it has the same advantages and disadvantages of free entrance but it raises revenues (Frey, 2010) Problems with pricing is that it is often considered unfair. Considering the main role of a museum is education, it should be free for everyone to visit and become educated. In his article, Frey proposes a whole new pricing mechanism for museum: the application of exit prices. Instead of charging visitors when they enter a museum, they are charged on exit. The amount of time spent in the museum sets the exit price. A disadvantage of this proposal is that the length of visit becomes a great part of an economic calculation. A major advantage is that the experience of the visit, is charged afterwards. If the experience was not satisfying for the visitor, he/she would leave early and pay a lower price. Visitors pay for their use of the facility, this raises efficiency. The price system can considered to be less unfair, because up to a certain point, people can set their own prices. Frey also opts for the first 20 minutes to be free of charge, so that people who normally would not visit a museum, receive an incentive to stay only for a short period, maybe they will return later for a longer visit. The Dutch case study Aarts de Jong Wilms Goudriaan Public Economics (APE) has been commissioned by the ministry to research the possibilities for free entry for Dutch museums. In several extensive research papers, they calculate the effects of free entrances fees. Table 1: The quantitative effects of free entrance on all Dutch museums: Additional visits (x1000) Increase in visits (%) Total costs (x1mln.) Total cost per extra visit in Euros Free entry to the entire collection 5.867 30,0 98,9 17 Free entry every Sunday 416 2,1 23,4 56 Free entry once every month on Sunday 183 0,9 6,0 33 Free entry during one working day per week 267 1,4 11,2 42 Free museum card for students 1.623 8,3 12,3 8 Free entry to general collection 5.207 26,6 81,9 16 Source: APE Table 1 shows that the effects on the number of visits are most significant when free entry is given to the entire museum, including general collection and special exhibitions, followed by free entry to the general collection only. Both options also bring in the highest overall costs for the museums, costs per extra visit are relatively low because there is no real shift in the amount of visits from days on which visitors are charged, to days visitors are not charged an entrance price. A weekly free entry on Sunday raises the most costs for the museum because a shift appears from days on which visitors are charged to days visitors are not charged any admission fee. In all cases, the loss of entrance fees causes the greatest deal of costs for a museum. Their research shows that free entry increases the number of visits, but they state: we do not expect miracles to happen from removing entrance fees. The composition of visitors has proven to be very difficult to change. In another research, done by APE they have calculated the price elasticity of Dutch museums. From 1984- 2005 admission prices raised with 6,2% per year, this does not lead to a significant change in the umber of visits. They show that with a price elasticity of -0,18 the museum sector has the lowest price elasticity of all cultural sectors. With every 1% increase in price, visits reduce by 0,18%. According to the research this is a result of the fact that potential visitors value travelling expenses and consumption costs to be more important than admission prices. The price of substitutes is a major determinant for the number of visits to a museum: when substitutes raise their prices, the number of visits to a museum increases and vice versa. Ape also predicts price sensitivity for 2005- 2015: Figure 1: Predictions for changes in admission prices 2005-2015 Source: APE The index shows that the number of visits to a museum is unlikely to be affected by an increase or a decrease in entrance prices. Conclusion Museums have high fixed costs. This results in a high average cost curve for museums. The demand curve often lies below this average cost curve. This makes it impossible to set an entrance price at which the total amount of income received through admission fees covers the costs of the museum. However, admission prices are of the main determinants that influence the economic outcome of a museum. To increase revenue however, museums do not only depend on admission fees but also on the income that comes from museum gift shops, restaurants, and renting possibilities. Additionally, museums receive a great deal of support, sponsoring and donations. Museums have different roles to fulfil, educating is one of them, as is collection and researching. An important goal for many museums is reaching groups far from consuming culture. Other goals are financial revenue, conservation and gaining prestige. In this essay, various literature has been discussed offering different pricing options. The most important ones are free entry and efficiency admission fees, which both have advantages and disadvantages. Free entry is likely to increase the number of visitors, but museum visitors often come from higher socio-economic classes, which transfers the benefits from no entrance fee mostly to these upper classed visitors instead of the social lower classes as it is intended to. The existence value shows that museums radiate positive external effects for non-visitors, this effect supports free entrance. However, the benefits for visitors are higher than for non-visitors. Low price elasticity for museums helps support the argument for admission fees. There are various pricing options. Standard pricing is considered to be unfair, as it does not consider the willingness and ability to pay for visitors, considering the educating role, different groups of people should all be able to enter the museum. Prices need to be differentiated, allowing elderly, students and other groups to enter for a reduced price to match their ability to pay. Another option is to charge local visitors less than foreign visitors or tourists as tourists have a significantly lower price elasticity of demand than locals or the application of exit prices. The case study by APE, shows that removing entrance fees only results in a significant increase in the number of visitors when all Dutch museums would remove their entrance fees. As a result of a low price elasticity for museum visits, a change in price does not significantly affect the demand for a museum. These findings indicate that free entrance is not the best option for a museum to reach many people. Price changes do not affect the number of visits that much, a museum is better of differentiating its price in a way that lower socio-economic classes are still able to afford a visit if they decide to. Since higher socio-economic classes continue to be the most dominant visitors in a museum, an entrance fee will not likely decrease the number of visits. Entrance fees can contribute to a museums revenues and allow a museum to generate extra income that can be spent on increasing the quality of the experience for visitors.

Reggio Emilia Approach Analysis

Reggio Emilia Approach Analysis Children are explorers and love to investigate what is going on around them. Imagine if their whole day was spent in an environment with beauty formed by their own creativity? Having the opportunity to play with natural and open ended materials of their own interests, guidance from educators to construct their learning and thinking on exciting topics, and most importantly having their families be greatly involved in their day, the learning outcomes of each child would be concrete and long lasting. These are the kinds of opportunities provided by educators from the Reggio Emilia Approach, found by researcher and teacher Loris Malguzzi. Creativity seems to emerge from multiple experiences, coupled with a well-supported development of personal resources, including a sense of freedom to venture beyond the known (Loris Malaguzzi, The Hundred Languages of Children, ch. 3, by Carolyn Edwards (1993). This essay will be discussing what the Reggio Emilia Approach is, and which constructivist theories influence the Reggio Emilia curriculum. It will also uncover the curriculum elements and key programming used in the approach and lastly how its approach supports the six principles of the ELECT document used in Ontario. The topics discussed in this paper will be based on the research found in the book Authentic Childhood Experiencing Reggio Emilia in the Classroom by Susan Fraser and also online sources. First of all, what is the Reggio Emilia Approach? This question arises amongst many people like, researchers in child studies, parents looking for childcare, educators looking to work, the government when looking to see statistics to see what curriculum model has a successful outcome of quality childcare and many more persons who are interested in what different childcare approaches provide. In relation to this, the Reggio Emilia Approach was found by an early education specialist from a town in North Italy called Reggio Emilia his name was Loris Malaguzzi (1920-1994). Malaguzzis vision attracts the world through his play and project based curriculum, children play and educators guide their play into projects that interest them. The approach is a combination of principles that build the child centred environment and curriculum. Collaboration is when everyone works together and includes parents, educators, communities and the children; the image of the child-conceptualizing an image of the child as competent, inventive, and full of ideas (Fraser, 2000, Page 8). The environment is known as the third teacher as it is carefully set up by educators to challenge the childs curiosity and learning. Documenting is a display of what the childs experiences are shown through language and creativity. Provocation is when educators listen carefully to what the children are saying and further guide the thoughts and accomplishments. Plans and investigations are also made by everyone involved, which is known as progettazione. A unique principle found in the Reggio Emilia approach is the one hundred languages of children which means that the children use many different resources and materials to make symbolic representations o f ideas that may arise (Fraser, 2000, Page 8). The principles from the Reggio Emilia Approach also include uninterrupted play. As a whole it is an exciting learning environment for the children, educators and parents all co-learning together. As a second point, lets discuss which theories influence the Reggio Emilia curriculum. For instance in a Montessori school the philosophy will be of Maria Montessori and the day will be planned out using didactic materials and sequential steps based on her research on child studies. The Reggio Emilia Approach is not just based on one philosophy like the Montessori but it is actually based on a number of different philosophers. including Jean Piagets theory for the sequences of cognitive development, Lev Vygotsky theory for the social aspects of learning and the importance of play, Jean Deweys theory for the role of play, human nature and viewing the child in the context of the family and society (Fraser,2000, Page14), Hugh Gardiners theory of multiple intelligences, Urie Bronfenbrenners theory on the environment, Barbara Bibers theory included collaboration and positive self image, and there may be more. As a result of having so many philosophies combined in the Reggio Emilia Approac h, it is known to be a model, focusing on the whole child, development, environment, play, family involvement, self image controlled by educators really understanding how to guide children to express their feelings, and how children use their multiple intelligence and symbolic language. The third topic this paper is addressing, what are the curriculum elements and key programming used in Reggio Emilia Schools? Curriculum is what the children learn from and the experiences they have when being cared for in a child care centre. Key programming is the goals and schedules that a school may have. Traditionally a lot of early childcare centres would plan what toys and activities the children would play with and then help and teach the children how to use them or how to do an activity and then a report may be written to show parents how the child is getting along according to the childs development stage. In the Reggio Emilia Approach the curriculum is very different to traditional teacher taught curriculums. It is planned by what the children are interested in while playing and engaging in activities of their choice. Assessment is used to plan what to do in the classroom based on a childs interests. Its role in the project process is to learn the childrens behaviours, to discover childrens interests, to revisit projects with the children, to gain knowledge on the childrens capabilities and as a tool to study children. The Reggio Approach suggests that by assessing projects over and over again, children understand their own questions. It also stresses that parents, children and educators are co-learners. Additionally the rationale for educators is to assess alongside the children. Educators facilitate rather than directing the children. Educators assess by observing and stepping in or stepping back whenever they need to. They also ask important questions that challenge the children to figure things out by their own curiosity. Documentation is also used to plan the Reggio Approach. Here there are many different methods of documentation from simple note form to the more sophisticated electronic equipment, such as digital cameras, webs, audio recorders, and video recorders (Fraser, 2000, Page 83) depending on what kind of observations are being made. The different observational techniques are running records which are the method used more often, time sampling, art displays, event sampling, anecdotal records, tape recording, sequences of photographs, displays of projects, and video tapes. In the Reggio Approach documentation is used as soon as something happens, The diary of Laura a diary taken from a Reggio Centre in Italy states that teachers work closely with the children taking notes, recording observations they think have meaning toward the learning of that child. Documentation is done when needed theres not only specific timings, notes can be taken at any time, Documentation is done to further assessment and planning towards projects that children want to start or are already working towards. The Reggio Emilia Approach does not have an organized planned curriculum it is actually very spontaneous and is built according to individual or group interests of the children. To emphasize that the curriculum is spontaneous and is planned on the interest of the children educators use different methods of observations at any time. There are many ways to observe in the Reggio Approach. Note taking is one way to observe, they also use diaries to write reflections on observations, photography, videos, audio, written, watching play and careful listening to conversations. Parental observations are taken at home and noted. The rationale for the parent assessments are that they know their children best and children are carefully observed on how the environment is used. The Reggio Emilia Approach suggests that children speak one hundred symbolic languages and they use observations to determine and understand what these languages are. To clarify, observations are used for assessment, documen tation, planning and implementing the curriculum. With this in mind the educators role is to guide the natural curiosity and learning of the children, and the environment is known as the third teacher. The children are little researchers. They can and want to communicate with the surrounding world (Reggio Emilia Philosophy, www.education.com). There are many factors that have to be taken into account when it comes to the role of observations and implementing. The decision to carry out observations is usually the result of a question that has arisen about a child or a group of children and their behaviour or activities in the centre. (Fraser, 2000, Page 81) Similarly, other factors have important roles in implementing the learning process, for example time is important. Children need lots of time to work on ongoing projects. In the Reggio Emilia Approach there are no time limits on projects. Children work on projects as long as they are still interested. Space and layout is carefully set up for dramatic play, water play, block play, physical and manipulation, art and creativity, outdoor play, and quiet time area. This encourages social skills, problem solving skills, making personal choices and team work methods. Teachers carefully organize spaces for small and large group projects and small intimate spaces for one, two and three children. (About Reggio Emilia philosophy, www.education.com) The environment is made to look beautiful and inviting. Another factor in implementing the curriculum process is that the resources that are provided by the educator, another important role of the educator. Materials are carefully chosen they can be natural materials, toys, games, water play, creative materials, open ended materials, blocks, puzzles, books, sand toys, or even dress up clothes for dramatic play. Children use the materials so they can play and further their learning. To manipulate and start the process of projects the educators use positive language and encouragement to help children learn how to express their emotions. Educators plan team meetings to discuss the observations and planning. Parents are always welcome to join or help make decisions. Meetings are used to plan what materials need to be taken out, how the environment should be set up, what is needed for projects that are emerging and also what things need to be changed. The Reggio Emilia Approach is very similar to the emergent curriculum. A lot of the factors used in Reggio are used in the emergent curriculum, but the emergent curriculum emphasizes development and interest and Reggio emphasizes on interest. The final point to discuss in this paper is about how the Reggio Emilia Approach uses all six principles of the ELECT document. In the Reggio Emilia Approach there is a link to the first principle of the ELECT document which is Early child development sets the foundation for lifelong learning, behavior and health An example of this is that diaries are shown to parents, each project is based on being child centered and play based which means that it has to be developmentally appropriate, each assessment is done to figure out the interests of the child and each child is observed to their own developmental stage and long term projects are used so educators can see how children are growing and are developing their learning. Also there are various philosophies used in the Reggio Approach one in particular linked to the different stages and sequences of development are the philosophy of Piaget. The second principle of the ELECT document is Partnerships with families and communities strengthen the ability of early childhood settings to meet the needs of children. The link to the Reggio Emilia Approach to the second principle are that parents work as co learners with educators and children in the Reggio Emilia approach and photographs are displayed around the centre for the children to have a reminder of home. The third principle of the ELECT document is Respect for diversity, equity and inclusion are prerequisites for honoring childrens rights, optimal development and learning:. The next link to The Reggio Emilia Approach is parents are important, one influence is the philosophy of Bronfenbrenner, everyone involved -children, parents and teacher pay an integral part in what is known as the circle of we (Fraser, page.102) Reggio centres respect and support families, cultures and all diverse situations, in addition to this, the Approach also brings families together, learning about the different families, cultures, food and dressing up. The fourth principle of the ELECT document is A planned curriculum supports early learning. This principle is met by the projects that take place in the Reggio schools, projects are worked on in depth and detail, the child centered approach and childrens interest plan the curriculum. The Reggio Emilia Approach can be defined therefore as contextual, that is, it is determined by the dialogue among children, teachers and the environment surrounding them (The Reggio Emilia Approach Truly listening to young children, www.oecd.org). The fifth principle is Play is a means to early learning that capitalizes on childrens natural curiosity and exuberance, this principle is linked to the Reggio Emilia Approach The Reggio Approach is play based and has the same philosophy to the ELECT and the Emergent which is that children learn and grow through different types of play. The word play is not a frequently used word in The Reggio Approach, although as seen above, spontaneous play and play valued as meaningful learning figure among the goals for learning and development. (The Reggio Emilia Approach Truly listening to young children, www.oecd.org), in addition to this the Reggio Emilia Approach also states that play is used to depict 100 different languages through symbolic languages. The last principle, principle six is Knowledgeable, responsive early childhood professionals are essential. This principle is also linked to Reggio Emilias Approach, as Reggio Centers have teachers with extensive staff development; teachers make goals for them self and teachers also learn alongside the children enhancing their understanding of children. Another example of this principle is that the educators of Reggio schools sometimes are not qualified but learn from the other teachers and through each daily experience with the children. In conclusion to this paper it shows that it can take a number of philosophys to create a high quality model, and that not just one philosophy is better than another, but each philosophy actually compliments one another, similarly it proves that children dont necessarily need to be taught by a teacher but can learn by having the opportunity to construct their own learning through a child centered approach. In addition this paper also shows that the role of play, culture, parents, educators, the environment, observations, assessment, documentation, and planning are all very important to implement a childs learning to make up a model like the Reggio Emilia Approach. Finally this paper proves that the Reggio Emilia Approach follows an emergent curriculum that can link to all six principles of the framework provided by the ELECT document.

Gatsby Summary :: essays papers

Gatsby Summary Jay Gatsby is one of the most interesting and memorable males in fictional literature, even though he is not a dynamic and changing character during the novel. In fact, Jay Gatsby has changed little since he was a teenager. Born as James Gatz to poor farmers in North Dakota, he decided at an early age that he wanted more out of life than North Dakota could offer. He leaves home to find excitement and wealth. While lounging on the beach one day, he sees a yacht docked off the coast. He borrows a boat and rows out to introduce himself to the owner of the yacht. Dan Cody is an extremely wealthy and wildly extravagant man. He takes a liking to young James Gatz and offers him a job. When the boy boards the boat to become Cody's assistant and protector, he leaves behind the identity of James Gatz forever; the rest of his life he will be known as Jay Gatsby, an incurable and idealistic romantic who fills his life with dreams. After Cody dies, Gatsby joins the army and is stationed in Louisville, Kentucky, where he meets and falls in love with Daisy Fay, the most popular and wealthy young lady in town. She is also attracted to him and even thinks about marrying him and running away, but her parents stop her plans. When Gatsby is sent to Europe to fight the war, Daisy is faithful to him for a short while. She soon, however, tires of waiting for Gatsby and marries Tom Buchanan. When Gatsby receives her final letter, explaining her plans, he is crushed; he vows he will dedicate the rest of his life to winning Daisy back for himself. He is sure that if he amasses a large enough fortune, he will be able to manipulate time, erasing Daisy's marriage and fixing her future with him. Gatsby comes to the East Coast and makes a fortune in bootlegging and other questionable business activities due to the help of characters such as Meyer Wolfsheim. He buys an ostentatious mansion on West Egg, in order to be directly across the bay from Daisy Buchanan. He gives his wild, extravagant parties and drives his flashy automobiles in hopes of attracting Daisy's attention. She has become his reason for being - his holy grail.

Death Of A Salesman :: essays research papers

No one has a perfect life. Everyone has conflicts that they must face sooner or later. The ways in which people deal with these personal conflicts can differ as much as the people themselves. Some insist on ignoring the problem as long as possible, while some attack the problem to get it out of the way. Willy Lowman's technique in Arthur Miller's play Death of a Salesman, leads to very severe consequences. Willy never really does anything to help the situation, he just escapes into the past, whether intentionally or not, to happier times were problems were scarce. He uses this escape as if it were a narcotic, and as the play progresses, the reader learns that it can be a dangerous drug, because of it's addictiveness and it's deadliness. The first time Willy is seen lapsing off into the past is when he encounters Biff after arriving home. The conversation between Willy and Linda reflects Willy's disappointment in Biff and what he has become, which is, for the most part, a bum. After failing to deal adequately with his feelings, he escapes into a time when things were better for his family. It is not uncommon for one to think of better times at low points in their life in order to cheer themselves up so that they are able to deal with the problems they encounter, but Willy Lowman takes it one step further. His refusal to accept reality is so strong that in his mind he is transported back in time to relive one of the happier days of his life. It was a time when no one argued, Willy and Linda were younger, the financial situation was less of a burden, and Biff and Happy enthusiastically welcomed their father back home from a long road trip. Willy's need for the "drug" is satiated and he is reassured that everything will turn out okay, and the family will soon be as happy as it was in the good old days. The next flashback occurs during a discussion between Willy and Linda. Willy is depressed about his inability to make enough money to support his family, his looks, his personality and the success of his friend and neighbor, Charley. "My God if business doesn't pick up , I don't know what I'm gonna do!" (36) is the comment made by Willy after Linda figures the difference between the family's income and their

Fyffes Case Study

IntroductionFyffes are an Irish company founded in 1888 that specialise in fruit production. The company is said to be â€Å"world famous† according to the Fyffes website, one reason being that their bananas were the first branded fruit in the world (Fyffes, 2013). Fyffes are the oldest fruit brand in the world and are headquartered in Dublin. The company began in London, soon to become the most popular banana brand in the world, the organisation was born into the marketplace devoid of competition.Their â€Å"blue label bananas† allowed them to become unique and furthermore dominators of the fruit market. Today, their main product is the banana, although they also produce other fruits including the Fyffes Gold Pineapples and Fyffes melons. Fyffes currently market their produce in Europe and the United States and are involved in the production, procurement, shipping, ripening, distribution and marketing of bananas, pineapples and melons.SWOT Analysis of Fyffes.StrengthsF yffes have several strengths such as a large brand portfolio that is very well recognized. Furthermore they have a strong brand recognition among both customers and institutions, that allows them to penetrate new markets and also hold a large share in existing markets. They operate a vertically integrated supply chain that allow economies of scale in fruit in both sourcing and distribution. (Fyffes,2013) There strong market position allows them with a lot bargaining power in the market. They have a large number of supply chain activities that include ; Production, procurement, shipping, ripening and the distribution and marketing of bananas but also melons and pineapples.WeaknessesFyffes lack in the scale of operations when compared to their competitors ; Chiquita Brands, Dole foods and Fresh Del Monte produce. They are somewhat dependent on european market, but this has greatly improved since 2008 when  there 51% of their revenue came from the eurozone. There competitors have sig nificantly bigger distribution and marketing channels along with greater financial resources. This can be seen in 2013 revenues were Fyffes is listed fourth behind Dole food, Fresh Del Monte, Chiquita and Total Produce. (Fyffes,2013)OpportunitiesA company acquisition may help enhance pineapple production. This would increase production and supply. Fyffes have identified their weakness of lack of scale and made progress by establishing a network(s) across Germany. This includes both distribution and ripening centres. Fyffes have been paying a tariff on bananas imported in to the european union since 2006 due to the European Union banana import regulation. This has given competitors importing from other regions the upper hand. However the EU have agreed to reduce this tariff on latin american bananas in stages, when this fully implemented this could reduce Fyffes’ operating costs significantly. (ibid)ThreatsFyffes have strong competition across all their product lines, competit ion include global companies as listed previously but also agricultural cooperatives and foreign government sponsored producers. Further to this competitor companies have larger financial resources allowing them more purchasing power along with more capital to expand and improve. (ibid)Target CountryAs the huge demand for bananas and tropical fruits in Europe constantly increases Fyffes have found themselves sourcing throughout The Tropics,Caribbean and countries in Central America for example Costa Rica and Columbia. With the European Union being the largest consumer importer for bananas, it is Fyffes target market. In Britain alone over 5 billion bananas are consumed each year, hence why they are the 4th largest importer bananas in the world and one of Fyffes major target countries. They have a strong competitive advantage as the British market is one they know very well and can use this against other companies such as Chiquita who are a  Latin American company.Another target co untry for Fyffes is Germany being the 2nd largest importer of bananas in the world.Fyffes can easily trade with Germany as it is within the European Union.Although the United States are the number one largest importers for bananas it is unlikely that they would be able to compete with the firms from South America. Companies such as Del Monte,Dole Food Company and Bonita are the largest banana firms in the US and dominate the market.As bananas are only produced in countries with a very specific climate such as The Carribean or The Tropics they’re target countries are the places where the fruit cannot be readily grown and must be imported.â€Å"Bananas and pineapples are grown in countries of the tropics – Africa, Latin America, Caribbean, Pacific etc. Many countries produce bananas as a staple food and only around 20% of all bananas that are produced are actually exported.Most bananas and pineapples sold on the British market are exported from Latin America, and increa singly West Africa, as companies relocate in search of ever ‘cheaper' fruit, pursuing a ‘Race to the Bottom' in terms of social and environmental standards.† (www.Bananalink.org.uk 2013)Products Selected to Go InternationalHeadquartered in Dublin, Fyffes has expanded greatly and is now operating in several different regions including the United Kingdom, mainland Europe, U.S.A. along with Central and South America. With Fyffes being one of the largest fruit companies in the world, their internationally distributed products include bananas, melons, pineapples and the newly added product that is plantains.Fyffes are renowned on a world stage for being the most notable distributor and seller of bananas. Operating in a vast amount of countries in the Caribbean and South America, as of 2012 Fyffes was the â€Å"largest importer of Fairtrade bananas into the European Union† (Fyffes, 2012). These bananas are sourced from countries such Ecuador, Costa Rica, Brazil, P eru and the Ivory Coast. After the bananas have been harvested and washed they are palletised for shipping in temperature controlled holds.Fyffes have marketed their bananas from the standpoint that they are nutritionally beneficial to all. They preach the biological benefits of their products whether it is through their website, general advertising or through they’re labelling etc. They boast the fact that â€Å"bananas are known as the energy fruit because they provide a quick-but-sustained energy boost in a natural, nutritious and easily digestible form† as well as the rather low caloric count of just 95 kcal per banana. Much of the same marketing is used for their pineapples. Fyffes’ ‘Gold Pineapples’ are described as â€Å"Supersweet† (Fyffes.com, 2013) and is sourced mainly from Ecuador, Panama and Costa Rica. These are packaged and distributed around the world.The pineapples are shipped in condition controlled vessels to ensure an appr opriate balance of sugar and acidity is maintained. Once again Fyffes market their product based on the nutritional benefits. They declare that their â€Å"Supersweet† pineapples contain â€Å"three times more vitamin C than traditional pineapples† along with their low fat content and the presence of digestive enzymes (Fyffes.com, 2013). Fyffes third main product is their variety of melons. Fyffes’ selection includes a range of both summer and winter melons. The summer melons include galia, watermelons and cantaloupe.The winter melons include watermelons, honeydew and cantaloupe. They are high in vitamins A and C and contain digestive fibre. The countries in which they are in grown in include Guatemala, Honduras and Costa Rica. As previously mentioned, Fyffes introduced what are known as ‘fruit snacks’ in the form of plantains chips. The plantain is a variation of the banana and is being marketed as a variation to potato chipsEntry Modes UtilisedFyf fes have been exporting to the UK for the last 120 years from its base in Ireland. The first step Fyffes took after exporting to the UK was to export to EU member states. This was a low risk natural progression for Fyffes as the EU operate a free trading policy within member states and many of the original member states have a similar demographic as that of Ireland and the UK.These markets had similar demand as their climates were not susceptible to growing bananas and this proved to be a venture that increased the recognition of the blue label brand and maximised the use of current  resources as well therefore proving highly profitable. In 1995 to expand on its European distribution channels Fyffes entered into a venture with the Windward Island Banana Development and Exporting Company (WIBDECO), and bought out Geest Bananas which were a major competitor in the British market (Bananalink, 2013). In 2005 the company entered into a strategic alliance with the Turbana Corporation in order to expand its market reach and develop its US market share.As Fyffes grows and increases its market share larger economies of scale are allowed for. Fyffes buy most of their fruit from farms in Belize, Panama and Costa Rica, it does however own about 6,000 acres of land in Costa Rica as well as smaller farms in Panama and Belize (Carswell, 2013).The company is hoping that by 2014 they will grow 60 per cent of the pineapples they sell. A recent development in the containers used to keep the fruit fresh while shipping means that the fruit could be kept fresh for 35 days of shipping, far longer than the current 23. Fyffes are hoping this will allow them to export their fruit from their Central American headquarters in Costa Rica to growing markets in Russia and the Middle East.Resource Commitmentâ€Å"Resource commitment refers to the level of dedicated assets – physical or human – that cannot be transferred from one country to another without loss of economic val ue†. An example of this may be that a firm adapt its product and resources to suit the needs of the host importing company (Petersen, 1999). This essentially may result in increased revenue in that specific area but may not help revenue figures as a whole for the firm. Fyffes has continuously shown resource commitment to several different foreign markets.Due to the very nature of the fruit business Fyffes was technically always an import-export business. As an Irish company selling tropical fruit there was always a need for shipping the fruit from the likes of Costa Rica and Panama. Therefore these resources were already owned by the company. In order to grow their exports Fyffes had to expand on these resources. Fyffes were the first company to properly transport their fruit on their ships. They changed from just transporting the fruit in bunches to using proper containers on board, this was key to shipping the fruit further afield.Alasdair MaCleod, head of Fyffes in their Ce ntral American base said that  only once in his 20 years in the business had he lost an entire shipload of fruit as a result of a ripe box of bananas prematurely ripening others on board the ship. As mentioned previously Fyffes hope to further improve their shipping containers and therefore advance into more new markets. This is a resource commitment that is sure to pay off . (Carswell, 2013)Environmental Factors Impacting on InternationalizationThere are four main environmental factors that can impact the internationalization of a company. These are the competitive, legal, political and economic environments. It is imperative that a company must overcome these obstacles in the marketplace in order to establish internationalization of their firm. For fyffes, their competitive environment struck them first in the late 1920s.Their first competitor, Jamaica Bananas Producers Ltd, began to sell their fruit in large amounts to the British market. Fyffes counteracted by branding their f ruit to enable recognition of their bananas. The blue Fyffes label then became iconic, it was their major selling point. Henry Stockery CEO of Fyffes in 1929 said that,  Ã¢â‚¬Å"today people are asking for the ‘Blue Label’ bananas†.The popularity of their ‘blue labeled bananas’ allowed them to dominate the banana market and to wipe out all of their competitors.With regards to the legal, political and economic aspect, according to Fyffes website, it states that,   Ã¢â‚¬Å"fyffes is aware of the social and environmental issues associated with the products that it sources and sells†. (Fyffes, 2013).They follow a strict code of practices in order to produce their product at the highest quality and approved ethical standards. Furthermore, Fyffes is said to be â€Å"pro-active† with matters such as environmental impact and fair labour prices by heavily participating in industry forums on social, ethical, health and safety and environmental is sues.Success (or otherwise) ExperiencedBeing one of the worlds most prominent fruit distributors, Fyffes has enjoyed an overwhelming amount of success since its founding all those years ago in 1888. Not only are they still in existence, but they have still maintained their image as one of the fruit industry’s big guns. A huge contributing factor to their success was tapping into the retail supermarket area and producing at a large scale.â€Å"Our business has evolved to meet the needs of the big retailers and today, 90% of our produce is destined for supermarket.† (Barrett, 2013)Fyffes is Europe’s biggest banana importer with estimated sales of about â‚ ¬1 billion annually, exporting up to 40 million boxes of bananas (roughly 4.5 billion bananas) and 8.5 million boxes of pineapples from farms in Costa Rica, Belize and Panama every year. Ireland accounts for 10 per cent of the company’s exports. They became the first company in their area to place a bra nd on their fruit in 1929. The company’s approach to business in todays market is structured by the same commitment to quality and confidence in the integrity of it’s fruit that prompted the introduction of the pioneering brand label idea.As a company, Fyffes have pledged to carrying out the utmost of fair trade as well as environmentally sustainable production. Innovation is a highly influential factor in relation to Fyffes’ approach carrying out business. â€Å"Fyffes taps container technology to broaden market reach† (Carswell, 2013) This is a recent example of innovation where Fyffes propose the use of a new container system which can preserve fruit for as long as 35 days. This would allow the company to export more produce into Europe, better quality food into Russia and more fruit into the Middle East. Growth in business is something that Fyffes concentrate on every year and they are currently succeeding to do so according to a recent article on the dublin headquartered company.â€Å"The Dublin-headquartered international banana exporter yesterday posted pre-tax profits of â‚ ¬22.2m for the first six months of 2013, a 1.1% increase on the same period last year.† (Percival, 2013) However in 2007, Fyffes suffered an 11% fall in first- half profits because of losses at its melon joint venture in Brazil. This is one of very few examples of occasions of misfired venture for the company, where they suffered a â‚ ¬2.8m loss from their share of a Brazil-based melon producer Nolem. This was an event which was uncharacteristic of the company and it wasn’t ignored, judging by a  statement released at the time. â€Å"Significant internal resources have gone into addressing Nolem’s business in order to deliver an improved result in the forthcoming season† (Guider, 2007).ConclusionFyffes are an excellent example of a public quoted Irish company who have experienced success in international markets. Their innovative use of the blue label way back in 1929 made them the first fruit brand in the market. This was a huge development from Fyffes and has set them up to be the instantly recognisable brand they are today. This is a brand that has loyal customers who associate the Fyffes fruit with reliability, sustainability and most importantly a high quality product. It is this basis that has allowed them to grow into the flourishing business they are today along with their tactful low-risk foreign entry strategy.