The Hunger Game Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The Hunger Game - Essay Example This essay aims at exploring the bad implications on people because of the power that Capital had and also the good implications on people because of the power that Katnis Everdeen had. Several evidences in the story as shown by these characters have been pointed ou in this essay to prove this thesis. Though Capital is not a singular character it plays the role of a manifested format of power. Capital, the epicenter of power had made life miserable for the people of poverty struck District 12. Katnis Everdeen, the protagonist of the novel evolves into an unsentimental, rough girl as she realized that without her engaging in ace hunting, her family won’t survive. It must be noted here that hunting was crime as dictated by the Capital and would result in life sentence. So the power to survive by overpowering the evil evolved in Katnis as being a continuous victim of submission and decisive control. Though these two characters persist to be powerful in the story, the way in which they use power are entirely opposite in nature. While the Capital is portrayed as a body which urges to forcefully gain power from people and the social systems around it, power is an inherent trait in Katnis. The expressions of power by these two characters are also in entirely different dimensions. A vital element in the story which enjoys and exercises power is the Capital. This character controls the work and resources within different district. They come up with systems to demonstrate the authority they had over the resources. The story unfolds into more expressions of power through the annual game conducted by Capital. Interestingly, the game is organized to make all the districts aware about the mighty power of the ruler of the country. Thus from the side of the Capital, power is exercised through cruel unfair expressions of authority. They change the rules of the game even in between the game so to show their power. The brutal measures appropriated by the capital are typica l examples of how power operates to manipulate people and social systems so as to remain more powerful. The Hunger Game is about overpowering other people in the game and surviving till the end to emerge as the winner. The process extends to killing each other. As nobody would volunteer into a game of killing, the capital exercises their power here again to nominate two people from each district. They have complete power over the death and life of the nominees. There are consistent efforts from the Capital all through the game to manipulate is so that the power equation within the country persists. The author has succeeded in portraying the cruelty through which the Capital operates. Every gesture has power as its central theme and the brutality of its execution has been well expressed all through the story. Katnis Everdeen, on the other side uses power to protect her family. It is a matter of survival for her. She nurtures the inherent power and courage within her through her life experiences. She lost her father in a mine explosion at an early age. She at the age of sixteen is responsible to feed her family and takes up hunting which is illegal. In the selection process of the tributes for District 12, Katnis’ younger sister gets selected. The expression of power with Katnis is well expressed at this juncture as she opts to volunteer in place of her sister. A powerful expression of power is depicted by the author in the presentation ceremony of the Hunger Games. Katnis

Literature Review Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Literature Review - Research Paper Example This article lays emphasis on the effects of drug and substance abuse on children, and tells that children may emerge as users. In today’s society, drug use and its impacts have heightened. This norm has been experienced across variable age forms with children gaining increased participation in this exercise. There has been a call to find out the cause of the drug abuse problem among individuals with emphasis placed on the outcome of indulging in the heinous act. Barrett and Veerman stated that children have joined the number of drug users and are affected directly or sometimes may be a third party in the substance abuse act. There is the need to protect children from the substance abuse problem because they constitute the population who constitute the future society. There have been numerous investigations into the cause of mental disorders. Substance disorder has been frontal to causing these complications with a 3.8-11.3%. Via the national surveys, countries have been able to articulate the main cause of mental behaviour. Up to an average of 4 % of the users have the problem to encourage the drug dependency, living with a motive to kill the craving by practising the substance abuse. The society dictates the morals of the members and with the measures it undertakes to curb the spread of drug addiction there will be a similar realization of the impacts of the measure. The paper researches on the link between drug abuse and criminal behaviour. There are several crimes in the society that have been caused by substance abuse and an example is in prostitution. The government policy has been identified as a form of regulation for these drug related crimes. These drugs have the tendency to create a vice within an individual to involve in harmful measures that corrupt societal event. There is a direct link between crime and drugs within the society and regulations to curb drug indulgence would help protect the innocent members. Drug use is often

Domestication of Maize in Mesoamerica

Domestication of Maize in Mesoamerica One of the most basic needs of a human being is that of food. We most eat and drink to survive. Subsistence is a natural thought which consumes every modern humans day. What will I eat for breakfast? What will I take for lunch or will I eat out? Should I take something out for dinner or pick something up on the way home? All of these questions seem at times quite complicated, however are without a doubt, much simpler than what may have crossed the minds of prehistoric humans. Just as it is today subsistence was the center of each cultures world. Whether you were nomadic or sedentary each group of hunter-gatherers had to eat. It is the survival of these societies which allows us as archaeologists a peak into the past. The process of gathering enough food in which to obtain a sufficient amount of calories was first and foremost in everyday life. The process of domestication of certain plants eventually led to more nucleated settlements. Let us keep in mind Morgans theory of culture, if this is correct, that cultural progression is lineal; than it is safe to assume that the only natural progression for prehistoric humans was to transition from the hunter gather stage of obtaining subsistence to a more agricultural life style. One cultigen in particular was maize, now referred to as corn. In this paper an attempt will made to properly explain what maize is, how maize became a major staple in prehistoric peoples diet, and lastly how has maize been detected in Mesoamerica through evidence in the archaeological record. What is maize? It is a large species of American grass of the genus Zea (Z. Mays) widely cultivated as a forage and food plant; known as Indian corn (http://archaeology.about.com). Maize is a cultigen; this is a crop that cannot propagate in the wild without human intervention. Plant domestication can be defined as the human creation of a new form of plant, dependent on human intervention, harvesting and planting for survival. Maize has a distinct planting season, growing season, and harvesting season. There is a worldwide importance placed on corn. In the Western Hemisphere it is by far the most important human food crop (Beadle, 615). It is still the most important crop in all of Latin America. On a worldwide basis it is the third most important human food crop, with an annual production of some two hundred metric tons (Beadle, 615). When Columbus arrived from the Old World and stumbled upon this strange crop on the island of Cuba, essentially all major races of maize-some two to three hundred- were already in cultivation and had been disseminated from its place of origin, probably southern Mexico (which will be explained further in the paper), to mid-Chile in the south and to the mouth of the St. Lawrence River in the north. The passage below from a science magazine will further help explain the definition of maize. Corn, also known as maize (from the Spanish maiz) was first domesticated nearly 10,000 years ago from teosinte, a wild grass that looked quite different from our modern crop. Teosinte grew in Mexico and Central America as a bushy plant with many spikes, the precursor to our familiar ear of corn. The small teosinte spikes had only two rows of nearly inedible kernels, or seeds, each enclosed by a hard covering. These seeds separated individually at maturity and were dispersed widely. In probably less than a thousand years, the tiny spikes of ancestral teosinte transformed into larger ears with edible kernels that remained on the cob for easy harvest. How these dramatic changes occurred has been a puzzle for over a century. Geneticists are now convinced that humans living in the Balsas River region of Mexico were foraging teosinte seeds when they noticed rare aberrations-likely caused by random mutations-that increased spike size dramatically. Seeds were propagated from these bigger spi kes, and thus the remarkable events of domestication began. By studying the maize genome, researchers have now confirmed that mutations in single genes, such as Teosinte glume architectural (Tgal). Alter kernel and plant structure and that changes in many genes influence complex developmental traits, such as the time to flowering. As human populations migrated throughout the Americas, new varieties of maize were selected to grow in local environments. Some varieties were maintained as so-called landraces, each growing in ecological niches in Mexico and South America. Now, these varieties and landraces hold a wealth of genetic diversity, which is being tapped for both basic research and as traits for crop breeding(http://www.sciencemag.org/products/posters/maize_poster) How did maize become a major staple in prehistoric peoples diet? Where there other uses or maize other than subsistence? New research shows that there is unequivocally four major independent centers of plant domestication; the Near East, China, Eastern North America and Mesoamerica. (Smith 1989: 1566) The Americas is believed to provide the clearest record there is of agriculture origins anywhere in the world, providing new understanding of the process involved in this key transformation in human history. However, the process is believed to have started in Mesoamerica. Maize has many uses; food, feed for live stock and energy for industries. As a food, the whole grain, either mature or immature, may be used; or the maize may be processed by dry milling techniques to give a relatively large number of intermediary products, such as maize grits of different particle size, maize meal, maize flour and flaking grits. (http://fao.org) These materials have a significant number of applications in a large variety of foods. Maize grown in subsistence agriculture continues to be used as a basic food crop. In developed countries more than 60 percent of the production is used in compounded feeds for poultry, pigs and ruminant animals. In recent years, even in developing countries in which maize is a staple food, more of it has been used as an animal feed ingredient. High moisture maize has been paid much attention recently as an animal feed because of its lower cost and its capacity to improve efficiency in feed conversion. The by-products of dry milling include the germ and the seed-coat. The former is used as a source of edible oil of high quality. The seed-coat or pericarp is used mainly as a feed, although in recent years interest has developed in it as a source of dietary fiber (Earl et al., 1988; Burge and Duensing, 1989). Wet milling is a process applicable mainly in the industrial use of maize, although the alkaline cooking process used in manufacturing tortillas (the thin, flat bread of Mexico and other Central American countries) is also a wet milling operation that removes only the pericarp (Bressani, 1972). Wet milling yields maize starch and by-products such as maize gluten, used as a feed ingredient. It is this flat bread or tortilla that is speculated to have been used in pre-historic times. This is not the tortilla that we think of today, however, the basic concept is rudimentary and could have been used even 10,000 years ago. George W. Beadles research shows that the probability of maize being similarly used as what we refer to as popcorn is high. This high probability points to the use of teosinte, which has been argued among scholars as an un-usable product, therefore not an ancestor of maize. Beadles research has proven that even the triangular kernel of teosinte could have been heated on heated sand, hot rock or fire and would have popped. There is speculation that in prehistoric time, maize had a religious and ceremonial purpose. It is written that in the height of the Incan empire maize was used in ritual and ceremonial gatherings in the form of beer. (Fernandez-Arnesto; 243) There isnt anything to indicate any different anywhere else that maize has turned up within the archaeological record. With a better understanding of maize and its possible functions, lets address where maize originated. Blake, Clark, Chisholm, and Mudar consider the transition to agriculture in the Formative period of coastal Mesoamerica (from approximately 1500 B.C. to the birth of Christ), specifically along the Pacific coast of Chiapas, Mexico. These scholars review the evidence from this area in terms of two competing hypotheses: the competitive feasting model of Hayden (1990) and the interaction of plants and humans as described by Rindos (1984) and Flannery (1986). MacNeishs work in the Tehuacan Valley has shown that the origins of maize and its integration into a system of agricultural production that included a variety of plants began as early as 7000 B.C. The earliest people to use and domesticate these plants were not sedentary, instead, they were nomadic foragers who incorporated these domesticates into a complex seasonal pattern of hunting and collecting (MacNeish 1967, 1972; Flannery 1968; Flannery 1986). It has been believed that from Formative times forward that maize is typically seen as the main staple crop in Mesoamerican prehistory. Agricultural advancement has long been thought of as the cornerstone of early sedentary village life and one of necessary conditions for the development of complex society (MacNeish 1972). Maize yields a high amount of caloric intake which is necessary in the process of sustaining the level of activity that prehistoric people in Mesoamerica needed to survive. A recent re-analysis by Farnsworth et al (1985) of archaeological data from the Tehuacan Valley, including a stable carbon and nitrogen analysis of the human skeletal remains, suggests that a heavy dependence on grains, including maize began as early as the Coxcatlan phase (ca. 5000-3000 B.C.). In Oaxaca, excavated macrobotanical remains show that domesticates, including maize, beans, squash, and avocados, were in use and consumed both before and after the appearance of the first sedentary villages (Flannery 1976, 1986). Kirkbys (1973) study of agricultural production suggests that the main staple, maize, was cultivated and relied upon from the Early Formative Tierras Largas phase (1400-1150 B.C.) onwards. She suggests, however, that maize did not reach a threshold of productivity, until about 100B.C. when larger varieties allowed greater yields per cultivated hectares of land. The assumption is that as maize cob size grew, and the plant became more productive, then early villagers c ame increasingly to rely on it as a subsistence staple. Both the Tehuacan and the Oaxaca data suggest that after agricultural products, particularly maize, became important in the subsistence system by the Late Archaic period, the trend towards increasing reliance on these plants continued through time. The movement of a relatively small amount of maize from established agro-ecology over long distances into a new environment is equivalent to an evolutionary bottleneck or a founder event (King, 1987; Mayr, 1963). Because only a small portion of the population is represented after one of these events, sampling error will result in, among other things, changed gene frequencies, breakdown of co-adapted gene complexes, and sometimes increased additive genetic variability (Cheverud and Routman, 1996). The above mentioned on page 2 and 3 of this paper attempted to explain the process of genetics when involved in the process of advancement of a plant. We can refer to this as agricultural evolution. Farming in modern day seems to be, from an outsider looking in; hard work, dirty work, and monotonous work. If with modern equipment farming is difficult what would it have been like in prehistoric Mesoamerica? Why farm at all? We look at hunting game now in present day society as romantic and sportsman like. There is a challenge to the game. There is fancy equipment purchased and well kept. Hunters tell stories that are passed on from generation to generation, hunting stories in prehistory had to be just as exciting and the stuff of which myths were made. So, again why farm at all? Many scholars have argued that without agriculture societies would not have existed. Only agriculture, with its pattern of population growth, urbanization, and economic surpluses has produced civilizations (Reed, 5). Thus helping to explain why agriculture led to complex societies. Varying conditions such as altitude, rainfall, soil, and seasonal temperature rand and latitudinal differences in the length of day during growing seasons led to the eventual diffusion of maize northward into North America, however for the sake of this paper the focus will remain on Mesoamerica. The research indicates that the evidence in the archaeological record states that the coastal areas show maize before any other area. Coe and Flannery until the 1980s were the only two researchers to report domesticates at Early Formative cities along the Pacific Coast of either Chiapas or Guatemala. Other than these few incidences relatively few sites have produced macrobotanical evidence of cultigens among their subsistence remains. Richard Scotty MacNeish conducts what he called the great corn hunt in 1958. MacNeish believed by tracking pre-ceramic caves in the southern part of Mesoamerica, namely, in the caves of Copan and the Comeagua Valley of Honduras he would have a better chance of tracking the corn (MacNeish 1962). His search extended to Zacapa Valley of Guatemala in 1959, as well having brief visits in Oaxaca and the Rio Balsas Valley of Guerrero. In 1961 MacNeish and his team started the Tehuacan project which yielded to be a great unbelievable success. Among many question with this project MacNeish and his colleagues were able to solve the problem of the origins of corn and were able to attack the how and the why of many other domesticated plants in highland Mesoamerica. According to MacNeish the amount of artifacts (50,000 lithics, more than 100,000 plant remains, over 10,000 bones and some 250 human feces) found in the 454 sites gave the team a time span that roughly stretched from 20,000 to 2000 B. C. Since MacNieshs research and excavations there have been over 1000 sites found and more archaeological evidence to support his original findings. In conclusion, the topic of maize is one that has intrigued and puzzled archaeologists for many years. The domestication and evolution of maize in and of itself causes much debate. It is because of great archaeologists like MacNeish and his unwavering curiosity of the great corn hunt as to why we have the information that we have today. The mere evidence of 454 sites becoming 1000 in a matter of years speaks for itself. The fact remains that there are 4 major independent centers of plant domestication, the Near East, China, North America, and Mesoamerica. It is the intent of this paper to have clearly introduced even the novice of persons to what exactly is the definition of maize, how maize became a major staple in prehistoric peoples diet, and how maize has been detected in Mesoamerica through evidence in the archaeological record.

How are the young David and Cassie presented as victims in the novels E

How are the young David and Cassie presented as victims in the novels 'David Copperfield' and 'Roll of Thunder Hear My Cry' 'Roll of Thunder Hear My Cry' is a story about an African American girl growing up in a racist community in Mississippi during the 1930's. It shows her family as they struggle to survive in the racist community, try to keep their land and survive on the little money they get because of the fall in cotton prices due to the economic depression. David Copperfield on the other hand is about a boy growing up in a mid-Victorian world. With his family dieing around him, nowhere to live and people constantly taking advantage of him, David also has a hard time growing up. In Roll of thunder we see the whole story through the eyes of Cassie and how life is for her. Whilst in David Copperfield the story is told by David so we only see how he thought it happened. In this essay I am going to compare the way in which these two young people are treated as victims and whether their characters influence people to treat them inadequately. At home David has memories of a happy childhood, until his mother Clara remarries to a man called Mr Murdstone who victimised him. In the early days of David's existence he describes his life as being picture perfect. 'my mother and I and Peggoty-for Peggoty is quite our companion my mother reads to Peggoty and me there is nothing half as green as that grass' David loved his childhood he remembers everything to be idealistic which reminds us that the story is from David's point of view and may not be exactly how it was really. We can tell that he cherishes the time when it was only he Clara and Peggoty because of the emotive language used by the author. When Mr Mu... ...d into her, tackling her with such force that we both fell over' 'and she apologised for herself and her father' Cassie devised a foul proof plan to 'stitch' Lillian Jean up. She then bribed her into not telling anyone. Although her family are constantly victimised she knows that they shouldn't be treated in that way and so won't put up with it. David and Cassie are both treated as victims throughout their childhoods. I think on one hand David is treated like a victim because he doesn't know how he should be treated and doesn't stick up for himself and on the other Cassie is treated like a victim because she knows how she should be treated and speaks out about it. While David apologises for what he has done -usually nothing- Cassie plots her revenge. I think both stories show realistic points of view of two people struggling to survive their childhoods.

Facebook Versus Friendster and Myspace

Stealing Success & Leaving the Unsuccessful Behind: Facebook Facebook, one of the most successful social networking sites up to date, has 500,000,000-users. Facebook found phenomenal success through the mistakes and downfall of fellow competitors, Friendster and MySpace. However, was Facebook’s success due to the downfall of its predecessors? In this paper, we will discuss what makes a social networking website successful, and reveal what Facebook did and what other social networking websites such as Friendster and MySpace, did not do.There are certain properties that will be highlighted later on in the paper that will distinguish the successful social networking websites such as Facebook from the unsuccessful, such as Friendster and MySpace. Social networking websites have five main characteristics. First, social networking websites are user-based where they are built and directed by users themselves. Second, social networking websites are interactive, meaning that they are n ot just a collection of chat rooms and forums anymore. Such websites are filled with network-based gaming applications, allowing individuals to play with one another online.Third, social networking websites are community-driven allowing members to join a group where they all hold common beliefs or hobbies. People are able to find sub-communities of people who share commonalities, such as alumni of a particular high school, or part of a charity organization, or who are just interested in the same things. Fourth, unlike other websites, social networks thrive on relationships. It allows people to build connections, links to one another and allows people to establish themselves toward the center of a network.These websites are also another way for individuals to discover new friends, but it also allows them to reconnect with old friends lost along the way, allowing them access to possible friendships out there. The last characteristic of social networks is the emotional factor. While we bsites are usually designed with the primary function of providing information to the visitor, social networks â€Å"provide users with emotional security and a sense that no matter what happens, their friends are within reach. †To start off, let’s beg the question of what exactly went wrong with Friendster? There isn’t a single reason that explains why Friendster failed, but merely actions Friendster did not take to secure their position as the number one social networking website. First, the more popular Friendster became, the longer it took to load the webpage, sometimes taking as long as 40 seconds. Such technical problems were not issues that could not be solved; however, they felt that such â€Å"technical difficulties proved too pedestrian† for them.Instead of spending hours fixing such problems, the team of Friendster devoted most of its time talking about future investors, potential competitors and new features that would give Friendster a distin ct look. They focused more on the future or rather than the problems of the present; they wanted to run before they could even walk. Secondly, Friendster was a closed system that allowed users to only view the profiles of those on a relatively short chain of acquaintances.As a dating website, it was imperative to be able to find people whom may be suitable for you, but if the viewing of their profile was limited, then the possibility of finding a possible date would be much lower than if Friendster took on a open system approach. As mentioned, most of the problems Friendster faced were technical, but it was their decision to only focus on the next big thing, rather than the simple mechanics that made Friendster possible in the first place.If the team had solved these minor problems, Friendster today could still be a leading social networking website, and possibly have prevented MySpace and/or Facebook from emerging. On these accounts, Friendster is an example of an unsuccessful soci al networking website. Next, MySpace saw phenomenal traffics growth starting in early 2004 and it continued all the way to 2007 even as Facebook entered the scene, but what happened along the way? Similar to Friendster, MySpace faced several technical problems.Firstly, MySpace pages are designed mostly by individuals with little HTML experience causing HTML code to be rarely met leading to accessibility problems for users and freezing up web browsers. Secondly, security is another major problems. There are advertisements that provide links to fake login screens tricking users into entering their information, allowing people access to their page. Another security issue would be of our personal information. There is no privacy setting; therefore f anyone wants to know more about an individual, there are no restrictions on the amount of information they could attain on the individual via MySpace. Lastly, MySpace lost to Facebook simply because there is no sense of privacy with MySpace. MySpace took an opposite approach from Friendster, allowing everyone and anyone to see their profile. Any individual keen on viewing a certain page would be given access whether or not the owner approved or not, rendering owners of MySpace account vulnerable to outside criticism and viewing.The open system caused a lot of security and personal issues creating stalking incidents, violent fights, and gate crashing of parties. These problems were due to the fact that anyone had access to people’s MySpace page, and nothing could be done to prevent limited viewership. Unlike Friendster, MySpace was able to see more success, however, that success was short-lived. And similarly to Friendster, MySpace did not respond to requests to fix their problems, causing them to fall into the category of an unsuccessful social networking website.First Friendster, second MySpace, and lastly Facebook? What makes Facebook a fad, and why has it survived longer than its predecessors? A normal routin e for a majority of the population would be, wake up, check facebook, go to school/work, check facebook again, do work/listen to lecture while checking facebook, and then go home and check facebook once again. On average, it’s been found that people check their Facebook an average of 4 to 5 times a day. There are many reasons why Facebook is so successful, and why Friendster and MySpace failed to see the kind of success Facebook is seeing today.In the next part of the paper, we will see how Facebook overcame the problems Friendster and MySpace encountered, turning what could have been unsuccessful into something immensely successful. As mentioned previously, Friendster and Myspace encountered issues such as technical problems such as the webpage taking up to 40 seconds to load or where it would sometime just fail to load altogether, and additionally, that Friendster was a closed system. Facebook knew these reasons and made sure these were not to be problems.Mark Zuckerberg st ates, â€Å"if the website is even down for a few minutes, people will leave. † As such, till this day, users around the world have not seen Facebook down. Admittedly, there still are a few small technical problems, but users never had to wait more than 10 seconds for a page to load, and if there were problems, they were fixed shortly after. Having downtime would mean that the rate of infection for social networking sites would decrease causing less people to firstly know about the website, and secondly, to be able to spread the ‘infection’ even further.This was a problem that caused the rapid reduction usage rate for Friendster because not only did the rate of infection die down, but also people just simply got annoyed causing the susceptibility of new individuals rather low. Therefore, Facebook made sure there was no downtime and in doing so not only made the rate of infection high, but satisfied million users worldwide causing many to be susceptible to the ide a of being part of the new fad, Facebook. Next, Facebook did not enforce a closed or open system policy.Instead, they allowed users to choose whether they wanted their page visible to people, and allowed users to adjust their security settings. It gave people an option to reveal as much or as little information about themselves, and allowed people to choose who to allow access to their information. This system not only solved Friendster’s closed system, but at the same time, MySpace’s open system and privacy problems. Security was never a real issue for Facebook until they started allowing more applications to be a part of the system.Inevitably, people created software that stole users’ sensitive information. However, shortly after, Facebook reacted by introducing new technology to limit the security breach. Facebook developer Mike Vernal stated, â€Å"We take user privacy seriously. We are dedicated to protecting private user data. † Shortly after the in cident, Facebook rendered all applications that broke such security inactive. Lastly, as with all companies, talent is a major issue.We can talk about how user friendly, or how the technical bits are better in Facebook when compared to Friendster or MySpace, but the truth is that it all boils down to who is in charge. Facebook brought in better viral experts, more efficient programmers, stronger usability coders, more influential public relations teams and faster HR Personal. For instance, Facebook recruited Sheryl Sandberg, the head of sales at Google, Jonathan Helliger, the former engineering head at Walmart, for former CFO and VP of Genetech and Elliot Schrage, the former PR head at Google.After talking about the properties that made Facebook successful, I’d like to talk about the receptivity of Facebook and how it responded to the population because a population can only go crazy for a fad if people are receptive of it. First, we will look at Friendster and how the popula tion responded to it and what made Friendster successful at times. In 2002, Friendster was originally created as a dating website, four years later, Friendster was changed to cater to young teenagers. In 2006, Friendster became very popular in the Philippines because of their games and fun applications that were marketed.Along with that, Friendster started incorporating advertisements on their websites, but more importantly, advertisements that had to do with games. Second, MySpace became popular because it was a means to hear about what was happening to others, keep track of the whereabouts of friends and celebrities and to create and attend parties, all on one page. MySpace was not just a blog, but it was an area for friends to congregate and communicate with one another. Next we will see how Facebook made use of Friendster and MySpace’s strengths, turning it into their success.Facebook made use of the successes of both Friendster and MySpace, and combined everything that w as successful into one platform. Friendster and MySpace were both marketed differently to different kinds of people, and because of this, Facebook knew how to make people more receptive to this new social networking site. Facebook did not just want to target people who wanted to find new friends or dates, or people who wanted to communicate with friends and keep in contact, or simply play games- Facebook wanted it all.And that was exactly what Facebook did, ensuring that people who joined would get the benefits from both Friendster and MySpace altogether. In doing this, Facebook made their website more appealing to a larger population, allowing two things to happen. First, by increasing the number of things an individual can do on the website would make more people susceptible to wanting to be a part of it. Second, a larger population being susceptible would eventually mean a faster rate of infection causing more people to join and be a part of the increasing fad. Facebook was the n ew generation social etworking website that incorporated all the successful elements of its predecessors, and neglected all the unsuccessful elements. In conclusion, we have established that Facebook has attained a successful status due to its 500,000,000 users worldwide. Facebook is successful because of two main reasons. First, the failures of Friendster and MySpace gave Facebook an opening into the market and the opportunity to fix those mistakes caused by the two. Second, Facebook fed off the successes of both Friendster and MySpace, incorporating all the ideas into one website.Therefore, to be successful one must remember to firstly attend to the problems at hand, secondly, find out what makes things work, and lastly, make sure the population is receptive. With this, Facebook not only overtook its predecessors, but conquered their failures, and fed off their successes, becoming the number one social networking website of all time. Citations: Chung, J. (2010) How Facebook won th e battle of the social networks. Innoblog. Retrieved from http://www. innosight. com/blog/564-how-facebook-won-the-battle-of-the-social-networks. tml Dykes, B. (2010) Another day, another instance of Facebook breaching user privacy. Yahoo News. Retrieved from http://news. yahoo. com/s/yblog_upshot/20101018/tc_yblog_upshot/another-day-another-instance-of-facebook-breaching-user-privacy Gary, R. (2006). Wall Flower at the Web Party. The New York Times. Retrieved from http://www. nytimes. com/2006/10/15/business/yourmoney/15friend. html? pagewanted=all Rdube. (2010). Characteristics of Social Networks. Retrieved from http://socialnetworking. lovetoknow. com/Characteristics_of_Social_Networks

The Difficulties Which International Students Face

Introduction:This article is about the troubles which international pupils face, particularly for Asiatic pupils, including thought manners, larning attitudes and composing and showing manners. In malice of its publication day of the month, it is still helpful for us to understand the international students` state of affairs abroad. In the text, the writers argue all the issues are rooted in traditional civilization. In general, the authors` statements are sensible, but to some specific instances their positions are no longer suited. The grounds involve the development of instruction within the approximative 20 old ages and their restrictions of ocular positions. In this paper, ratings about every chief thought are presented. About the state of affairss which the authors` thoughts are non suited, some suggestions are indicated. As for the applicable statements, more groundss are provided to endorse up.Background:In this twenty-four hours and age, rather a few of Asiatic pupils go abr oad to analyze. However, there are some typical troubles they must get the better of because of their innate inclination. In Ballard and Clanchy`s research, the innate inclination wholly stem from oriental tradition, which is a typical point of view in the yesteryear. Some subsequent research taken by David Kember and Lyn Gow indicates that the issues result from the course of study and learning environment [ 1 ] . With the development of the instruction system in Asiatic states, the issues seem to be fade away during recent old ages. Asiatic international pupils become more and more familiar to western civilization, and they can get by with the assignment from their lector more swimmingly. This makes probes in past clip become unsuitable, so some updating studies are necessary to cover new state of affairss.Summary:The rubric of the article is â€Å"Cultural Variation: Troubles for Student Studying Abroad† . It is from a book named â€Å"Study Abroad: A Manual for Asian Stu dents† written by Ballard and Clanchy ( 1984 ) . In this article, the writers argue three chief troubles that Asian international pupils face in their perusal procedure. Further, the writers suggest Asiatic pupils seting their perusal manner for successful survey abroad. The first chief thought in the text is about fluctuations of thought manners. As the writers say, different thought and acquisition intents lead to different consequences, which stem from changing civilizations. A peculiar illustration of a Nipponese pupil who adjusted his intent and adapted his essay construction to run into his lecturer`s demand is utilized to back up the chief point. The fluctuation in larning attitudes is argued as the 2nd chief thought. In the authors` sentiment, different educational traditions create different larning attitudes. Then different larning attacks, including generative, analytical and bad, are presented in peculiar instruction degrees, although they are non separated wholly. The writers quote three Asiatic students` words and depict an Indonesian postgraduate`s state of affairs to endorse up their chief thought. The other chief thought concerns differences in authorship and presenting manners. Five distinguishable authorship forms, including English, Romance, Russian, Semitic and Oriental forms, are described in the text ( Kaplan 66: 1-20 ) . As indicated, a typical illustration of a Thailand pupil whose thesis was crossed out by his Australian supervisor suggests that different authorship manners differ widely. As the authors` suggestions, a more analytical and critical acquisition attack is expected for Asiatic international pupils to win in their survey.Critique ( general ) :By and large talking, the three chief troubles pointed out in this article are sensible. Although this article was published in 1984, the jobs still exist in current international pupils. The influence stemming from traditional civilization is important, which can non be eliminated within about twenty old ages. The thought and authorship manners which are trained during their studying procedure unnoticeably, still act upon international pupils. Something different, nevertheless, has happened in these twenty old ages. Internationalization has been an unstoppable inclination, for which relationships between states has become more and more closed. In the tendency, instruction internationalisation is a representative 1. Compared with the state of affairs in 1984, much more pupils go abroad to analyze, particularly for pupils from developing states. With the figure of international pupils increasing, abroad analyzing is no longer cryptic or unachievable. Most pupils who are ready to travel abroad can acquire much utile information from cyberspace and relevant agents. As the consequence of this, pupils are comparative familiar to the instruction environment abroad. Additionally, they normally can acquire experiential cognition from forthgoers. Therefore, they are able to set themselves to the outlooks of alien universities more easy, In add-on, a series of linguistic communication trials and record scrutinies are developed to gua rantee that pupils who are admitted by foreign universities can last in another state.Critique ( specific ) :As the statement above, the chief thoughts argued in this article is still sensible at present, nevertheless, the state of affairs has changed. So to a certain extent, the descriptions in the text are no longer suited. As the authors` averment, the fluctuations in believing manners stemming from traditional civilizations, made the Nipponese pupil fail in his first twelvemonth. Sing the beginning of fluctuations, it must be true, but this illustration should be an utmost one. Normally, the believing manner of oriental pupils is suggestive. They ever make attempt to avoid measuring subjects straight. When they are sing a subject, they normally think over the influence of background foremost. With the debuts of western educational civilization, nevertheless, most pupils are likely to compare the positions and measure the subject, although they may depict the background at first. In Chinese secondary school, many assignments are to reason the chief thoughts of prepared texts and measure these chief thoughts from your ain point of view. Through preparation like this pupils obtain the capableness to measure the comparative virtues. So the description as the text presented, merely may go on in utmost inst ance. With the increasing of the acquaintance to western thought form, the similar extreme instance should be less likely to go on. About the different acquisition schemes mentioned in this article, the writers claim that it is needed to develop a more analytical and critical acquisition manner for many Asiatic pupils. It should be a credible recommendation at that minute. However, in today`s school, non merely universities or colleges, but besides secondary schools, it is paid attending to analysis ability. Basically, the instructors and lectors encourage pupils to inquire inquiries and believe more deeply. In this manner, pupils are required non merely to retrieve the cognition points, but besides to understand how the procedure is traveling. In add-on, many universities in China set up financess to back up undergraduates to take experiments. Then, pupils who want to make some research in peculiar Fieldss are encouraged to use them. In this manner, students` bad capablenesss are cultivated. Furthermore, harmonizing to relevant research, there is no important difference between Australian and Asiatic pupils [ 2 ] . As reported, Asiatic pupils are non rote scholars. In other words, the generative acquisition scheme is non directed towards Asiatic pupils. Then, for Australian pupils, the best manner to larn is besides to retrieve and understand by bosom. For these grounds, the authors` averments about these three acquisition attacks are non in conformity with facts and suited to the development of instruction. Refering authorship manners, the writers cite Robert Kaplan`s theory to explicate the changing authorship manners successfully. For oriental authors, explicating the issue straight is a blunt manner which lacks of ideations. In their positions, a better manner to show their thoughts is to depict the background and the influence factors as deductions. The terminal consequences should be obtained by readers themselves. As the writers suggest, this indirect authorship attack is non suited to academic thesis in Australian universities. In western scholars` positions, the â€Å"relevant descriptions† are non relevant at all. It is a existent difference between western and eastern authorship accomplishments, while it is unneeded to discourse which 1 is more advanced. Expect from the fluctuations between different civilizations, the differences between each academic subject are besides mentioned in the text. In this twenty-four hours and age, more and more interdisciplines are develo ped, for which flexible authorship manners are required. Additionally, as a comparatively nonsubjective authorship manner, scientific discipline and technology articles should be paid more attending to pull readers.Decisions:In this paper, in connexion with every chief point mentioned in the original article, ratings are provided. By and large talking, the authors` chief thoughts are still applicable at present phase, although in this article there are some inside informations should be changed to accommodate modern instruction. When the writers are comparing with Asiatic students` plants and Australian lectures` outlooks, utmost illustrations are cited. This is the biggest failing, because it ignores the general position. Deductions of this article are that pupil who study abroad should larn how to set himself to the demand.Mentions:David Kember, Lyn Gow: A Challenge to Anecdotal Stereotype of the Asiatic Student, 1991.F. Sushila Niles: Cultural Differences in Learning Motivation a nd Learning Schemes: A Comparison of Overseas and Australian Students at an Australian University, 1995.

Greek Art Essays - Greek Art, Ancient Greece, Ancient Greek Art

Greek Art Essays - Greek Art, Ancient Greece, Ancient Greek Art Greek Art Greek Art Art is the creation of beauty, it was the first written language and to study art history is to study the history of civilizations and mankind. The Greeks essentially molded the world with their intelligence in art, architecture and astronomy for many. They were a culture that strived for perfection and harmony. The abstract geometric patterning that was dominant during the Geometric period is replaced by a more naturalistic style in the Archaic period which inspired Greek artists to work in techniques as diverse as gem cutting, ivory carving, jewelry making and metal working. (The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2003) Also during this time the increasing naturalistic representations of the human body was being sculpted into perfection by using the perfect blend of balance and proportion for the male and female body. They called the male the Kouros; he was considered to represent the Greek god Apollo and was always depicted nude in a contrapposto position. The female equivalent was Kore, or standing draped maiden. She unlike the male was always clothed and standing erect with feet together or sometimes with one foot to the left. The Classical period removes us from the world of Archaic rigidity and on to one in which art takes on the task of representing life, and not merely just creating tokens of life, this in turn gets the viewer more involved. This period of time comprises of two distinct periods: the early classical and the high classical. However both these periods shared the uniquely contradicting, constantly explorative, and modestly idealistic vision of life, which made the subjects of the stele, at their moment of death, all the more human to the observer. Neither the previous Archaic period, nor the following 4th century, or the preceding civilizations quite so convincingly capture for the observer the poignancy of death the way a fifth century BC stele could. The period of the 5th century B.C. is sometimes referred to as the golden age, which is the height for Greek art and civilizations; and ironically has its beginning and ending in war. ?Between the boundaries of 480 and 404 the human figure ran through a wide range of psychological nuances. ? Of these many ?nuances? there are two significant styles that are observed in art history. First there is ?the self-confidence brought about by a deep-seated certainty of the outcome of the struggle with the environment in the course of the ?severe style?, which is a characteristic of the early classical period. And then there is the resignation bought about by dashed hopes the fickleness of illusions and escapism in the ever fragile creatures of the ?rich style? ?, which can be identified in the high classical period. The stylistic differences mentioned above tend to break this so-called golden era of the 5th century B.C. into two periods (Bordman, 1985). However, ironically the one factor that combines these periods together is death, or at least monuments erected for death. The Greeks viewed death somewhat differently from the way we do. To them death freed their souls and brought true happiness: then why does their grave sculpture look so pensive and thoughtful? It is because unlike today where the dead are only represented figuratively in a sobbing angel or mournful cherub, the Greeks depicted their dead as they were in life - life which was full of uncertainties and burdens but also with simple pleasures that made it all worth while. As seen in the example of this gravestone of a little girl as she would have been in actually life. Here the little girl holds two doves, one with its beak closed to her mouth as if kissing it, the other is perched on her left hand. (fig 1) Although the Parthenon in Athens remains the supreme example of classical Greek art. In its day, it would have been embellished with numerous wall-paintings and sculptures, yet even relatively devoid of adornment it stands as an unmistakable monument to Greek artistry. ?Originally, the Parthenon's sculptures fell into three groups. (1) On the triangular pediments at either end were large-scale free-standing groups containing numerous figures of Gods and mythological scenes. (2) Along both sides were almost 100 relief?s of struggling figures including Gods, humans,

Finc2011 Major Assignment Essay Essays

Finc2011 Major Assignment Essay Essays Finc2011 Major Assignment Essay Paper Finc2011 Major Assignment Essay Paper Executive sum-upFrank winfield woolworths Limited ( WOW ) . which is one of the listed companies in Australian Security Exchange ( ASX ) ( ASX 200 ) . is the largest supermarket in Australia ( Kruger 2013 ) . it specializes in the food markets. nutrient and retailing ( WOOLWORTHS LIMITED ( WOW ) 2013 ) . The purpose of this study is to gauge and find the dividend growing rate. stock return and current portion monetary value of Woolworths. Methods used for the appraisal include dividend growing theoretical account. Capital Asset Pricing Model ( CAPM ) and Gordon’s Growth Model. The consequences of the appraisal indicate that the dividend payments will continuous increasing in the hereafter. the return on the company’s assets is sensible and its portion monetary value is expected to lift. : In add-on. recommendations associated with the investing determination will be provided to the public investors sing to the hazards in the market by comparing with companies within the same industry. However. there are still a figure of restrictions of the study such as a few premises are made for computations and restrictions due to the difference of hazard free rate. Calculation of Growth Rate:The attack used to gauge the growing rate ( g ) for dividend payments of Woolworths is: g = Ploughback Ratio x Return on Equity ( ROE )Ploughback Ratio = 1 – Payout Ratio In which. payout ratio refers to the ratio of dividends to net incomes per portion ( EPS ) ( Brealey. Myers and Allen 2011 ) . Souce: hypertext transfer protocol: //www. woolworthslimited. com. au/annualreport/2012/pdf/WW_AR12_Full. pdf Based on the figures above. the growing rate ( g ) for the 2012 should be: g = ( 1 – 0. 8528 ) x 0. 2722 = 4. 01 % In order to calculate out a more accurate growing rate. the norm should be taken from 2008 to 2012. As it is shown in the tabular array. the mean g = 7. 68 % . Harmonizing to Woolworth’s one-year study ( 2012 ) . the payout ratio is rather stable. despite there is a sudden addition in 2012 ; hence. we could presume that the dividend payout ratio is changeless. Meanwhile. although Woolworths’ Return on Equity ( ROE ) shows a little lessening from 2008 to 2012. it is still reasonably steady – stopping point to 28 % . Since both of two premises – changeless dividend payout and return on equity – are satisfied ( Mellare 2013 ) . g = Ploughback x ROE is suppose to be an appropriate method to gauge the dividend growing rate for Woolworths. Calculation of needed return utilizing CAPMCapital Asset Pricing Model ( CAPM ) is a method used to mensurate the hazard and return of an plus. which describes that each expected hazard premium of an plus should lift in proportion to its beta ( Brealey. Myers and Allen 2011 ) : In which. Rhode Island refers to the return on plus. releasing factor refers to the hazard free rate of return. beta is the covariance and ( rm-rf ) is the market hazard premium ( Brealey. Myers and Allen 2011 ) . To get down with. hazard free rate ( releasing factor ) should be determined. Generally. 10 old ages authorities bonds rate is considered to be risk free rate as it is normally believed that a authorities would be improbable to default on its duties ( McNickle 2011 ) . However. it does non intend that authorities bonds face no hazards. it still encounter rising prices and involvement rate hazard ( Brealey. Myers and Allen 2011 ) . Beginning: hypertext transfer protocol: //www. rba. gov. asu/statistics/tables/xls/f02d. xls? accessed=2013-05-22-21-18-20 Harmonizing to the Capital Market Yields – 10 old ages Government Bonds provided by Reserve Bank of Australia ( 2013 ) . the 10-year authorities bond rates in 21th May 2013 is 3. 26 % . which should be used as the hazard free rate ( releasing factor ) for the computation of CAPM. Beginning:hypertext transfer protocol: //www. ato. gov. au/super/content. aspx? menuid=0 A ; doc=/content/60489. htm A ; page=36 A ; H36 However. those may reason that based on the historical information from Australian Taxation Office ( 2013 ) – the tabular array above. the norm of hazard free rate from 2003 to 2012 is calculated to be 5. 34 % . which should be the hazard free rate for the computation alternatively of 3. 26 % . Nevertheless. since the hazard free rate is ever altering. in order to gauge the return for plus more accurately. the current hazard free rate 3. 26 % is supposed to be taken for the appraisal. In this phase. the hazardous needed return ( rm ) . the same as market return. should be calculated. Stock market index is an attack to measure the value of stock market and S A ; P/ASX 200 is the most important stock market index which tracks the public presentation of two hundred large Australian corporations ( Australia Stock Market ( S A ; P/ASX 200 ) 2013 ) . Currently. S A ; P/ASX 200 is a primary portion market index in Australia which replaced the All Ordinaries in April 2000 and has become the benchmark for investing for the Australian Securities Exchange ( ASX ) ( ASX 200 2013 ) . Therefore. S A ; P/ASX 200 is the best index of the market return and used to find the market return. Beginning: hypertext transfer protocol: //blackboard. econ. usyd. edu. au/bbcswebdav/pid-636137-dt-content-rid-201558_2/courses/FINC2011_SEM1_2013/All % 20Ords % 20Accumulation % 20Indices. forty Based on the information from S A ; P/ASX 200 Accumulation index ( day-to-day ) . which is provided by Mellare ( 2013 ) . the annual index could be calculated by averaging all of the day-to-day indexes for that twelvemonth. Annual market return ( rm ) can be determined by: In which. old market index refers to the index for twelvemonth T and new index is the index for twelvemonth ( t+1 ) . A tabular array for the computation of market return will be created in a similar manner with the S A ; P/ ASX200 tabular array ( see Appendix – 1 ) for the periods of 10old ages in order to follow with ASX. Due to the monetary values in 2013 is non completed. the market return for fiscal twelvemonth ( FY ) 2012 can non be estimated faithfully. Importantly. averaging rm for 10 old ages from FY 2002 to FY 2011 is important for the intent of finding a more accurate figure. As a consequence. rm = 8. 31 % . Because rm is the amount of the hazard free involvement rate ( releasing factor ) and a premium for hazard ( Brealey. Myers and Allen 2011 ) . the hazard premium. as a portion of CAPM equation. can be calculated through: rm = releasing factor + hazard premium hazard premium = rm – releasing factor Based on the old analysis. rf = 3. 26 % and rm = 8. 31 % . hazard premium = 8. 31 % – 3. 26 % = 5. 09 % . Harmonizing to the study from last twelvemonth. the market hazard premium is estimated to be 6. 0 % in October ( Michael. Blake and Zolotic 2012 ) . the estimated value of 5. 09 % is sensible. Harmonizing to the fiscal information from Reuters ( 2013 ) . Woolworths’ beta ( ? ) = 0. 34. Therefore. by using CAPM: Calculation of Following Dividend PaymentThe following dividend payment should be determined by utilizing: In which. d0 is the current dividend payment. d1 is the dividend for the following fiscal twelvemonth and g is the growing rate. Souce: hypertext transfer protocol: //datanalysis. morningstar. com. gold. ezproxy1. library. usyd. edu. au/af/company/dividendhistory? ASXCode=WOW A ; xtm-licensee=dat The tabular array above shows the dividend history of Woolworths ( Morningstar 2013 ) . Since. the entire dividend payment in 2012 is $ 67+59 = $ 126 cents/ $ 1. 26 per portion. which should be d0. and the growing rate is estimated to be 7. 68 % in the old computations. d1 = 1. 26* ( 1+7. 68 % ) = $ 1. 36. which is the entire dividend payment for 2013. As the interim dividend for 2013 has already paid on 26/04/2013. the concluding dividend for 2013 which is the following dividend payment should be: $ 1. 36–0. 62= $ 0. 74 per portion. Determination of Expected Current Share PriceThe changeless divident growing theoretical account. which is Gordon’s Growth Model. is used for gauging the current portion monetary value: In which. P0 refers to the current portion monetary value. d1 is the divident payment for the following twelvemonth. rhenium is the needed rate of return and g is the growing rate. In order to cipher the current monetary value P0. foremost. d1 demand be calculated which should be the dividend for the following twelvemonth – 2014. Hence. d1 = 1. 36* ( 1+7. 68 % ) = $ 1. 46As required rate of return ( rhenium ) consists of both capital additions and dividend outputs ( Mellare 2013 ) and capital additions is the same as g ( Mathis 2001 ) . rhenium = capital additions ( g ) + dividend outputs. Souce: hypertext transfer protocol: //www. woolworthslimited. com. au/annualreport/2012/pdf/WW_AR12_Full. pdf Harmonizing to the historical information from annural study of Woolworth ( 2012 ) . taking the norm of all of the dividend outputs for the last five old ages – from 2008 to 2012. the dividend output = 3. 8808 % . Therefore. rhenium = 7. 68 % + 3. 88 % = 11. 56 % Last. the expected current portion monetary value in 2013 is:P0 = 1. 46/ ( 11. 56 % -7. 68 % ) = $ 37. 63 Recommodation and DiscussionInvesting determinations are rely on the return and hazard associated with a security. Harmonizing to CAPM. actural returns are measured by beta. which is defined as a security’s sencitivity relation to the alterations in the value of the market portfolio ( Brealey. Myers and Allen 2011 ) . over the long tally. Beta of Woolworths Limited is 0. 34 ( Reuters 2013 ) . which is a good mark as it indicates that the company is insensitive to the market hazard. Comparing it with other companies. Wesfarmers Limited ( WES ) . the Perth-based pudding stone which selling nutrient to clients ( Greenblat 2013 ) . has same state of affairs with Woolworths in footings of turning tendency of dividend payment and sharing market hazard as they operates within the same industry – nutrient industriy. Beta of Wesfarmers is 0. 96 ( Reuters 2013 ) . which means that Wesfarmers is more hazardous than Woolworths as it is every bit hazardous as the market porfolio ( Brealey. Myers and Allen 2011 ) . As good. beta of Goodman Fielder ( GFF ) . another nutrient company. is 0. 98 ( Reuters 2013 ) . which means it portions about the same hazard with the market porfolio ( Mellare 2013 ) – realtively in the same state of affairs with Wesfarmers. Therefore. when refering with the hazards. it is recommended to put in Woolworths. However. under CAPM. high-beta securities will ensue in high return: Rhode Island = releasing factor + ?* ( rm – releasing factor )As all of these three companies are in the same market. they portion the same market hazard but the proportion is different based on their beta. Although. securities of Wesfarmers and Goodman Fielder are more hazardous than Frank winfield woolworths due to higher beta. they provide higher return to investors. Since investing determinations are depend on personal involvements ( Mellare 2013 ) . it can non be denied that there are a few investors prefer higher returns with higher hazards. Furthermore. the higher returns compensate investors for higher hazard. hence. it is improbable to find whether invest in Woolworths is a better option. However. puting in Woolworth is still recommended. Investing in low-risk securities provides changeless and stable returns. Investing in Woolworths is worthwhile non merely because Woolworths provides rather changeless returns. but besides its possible to growing due to its strong profitableness and hard currency flows ( WOW – Woolworths Limited 2012 ) . Overall. it is recommended to put in Woolworths. It is of import to detect that there are a figure of restrictions for this study. First. the method used for ciphering dividend growing is based on the premises – changeless dividend payout and return on equity. but in world. both dividend payout and return on equity are improbable to be changeless. Consequently. the computation of g may non be accurate. As good. since the 10-year authorities bond rate. which is considered as hazard free

Absent Fathers

In The Other Wes Moore, by Wes Moore, both boys named Wes Moore without fathers living in their immensely poor neighborhood display the effects of living in a destitute area without a proper male mentor. Wes Moore, the author, was left without a father at age 4, which may have caused him to feel a lack of direction in the beginning of his life; in addition, living in a poor neighborhood may have caused him to be unable to see how success can come through education. His mother did indeed give him love, tried to get to him do well in school, and sent him to a private school, but Wes didn’t feel like trying to do well in school for at least two likely reasons. Wes always grew up in a place where most families had a low income. At Chinquapin Middle School in Baltimore: â€Å"Close to 70 percent of the kids were on the school lunch program†. Many of the parents of the community couldn’t afford to feed their children without financial aid from the government. Although he spent a lot of time living outside Baltimore, in the Bronx, he still lived in a place where crime and drugs were rampant. In places such as these, academic success would seem to be futile because of the lack of impression from people in their world. There wouldn’t be very many scholars, who had achieved a higher education and led a successful career that brought them happiness and a handsome salary. Living in Baltimore and the Bronx, Wes had nowhere to actually see with his own eyes how education could take him to great places. The death of the author’s father, and lack of a male mentor, definitely caused a stir of anger, confusion, fear, and possibly ended up in a depression that even affected how well he did in school. At such an early age, being hit with the sudden reality that your father is no more, emotions can become bottled up. According to a study in The Journal of Adolescence, the lower the GPA of students, the more commonly they were depressed. Wes had been left with a mental stigma for a part of his life, because of the death of his father, and his terrible performance in school is undeniable. In the third grade, he was reading at a second grade level. When attending Riverdale, he was hardly attending school and doing so terribly in academics that the principal called his mother. His mother then sent him to military school and because of that he was able to have male role models. Having male role models, arguably, was the main factor in how he turned his life around. He no longer felt the repressed emotions from when he was a child, and he eventually started to enjoy academics. Had he a father for all his life, he might have never had the same problems with academics and such. The other Wes Moore’s life was greatly influenced by his life’s circumstances. He also was raised in a destitute area where crime and drugs had taken over neighborhoods, and never had a real father figure. Young boys need a role model, and because he never had a male hero in his life, he looked to his brother as a role model. Even though his brother did not want him to get involved in the same crimes he was involved in: â€Å"To Wes, Tony was a ‘certified gangsta’† (Moore 27). Tony had an immense reputation in the drug game. He worked his way to the top, and naturally, such respect and reputation would appeal to other people. Wes eventually followed in Tony’s footsteps. He was also gravitated toward dealing drugs, because the only neighborhood he knew was filled with demand for drugs. His mother spread thin financially which was in part because they didn’t have any income coming from their father, and drugs seemed an easy way to make money in his world. He became heavily involved with selling drugs, and ultimately, he joined Tony in committing the crime that got them both into prison for the rest of their lives. With no father, Tony was the only one to look up to. Adolescents without fathers are twice as likely to drop out of high school, just as Wes did. Wes seemed doomed to never make it out of his poor, crime infested neighborhood, because of the environment and the absence of his father.

Disscuction Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

Disscuction - Article Example Adoption or utilization of the new concepts illustrates either positive or negative aspects of the new opinion or concept. I accept data which challenge my present views. The challenging data provides very many alternative courses of action. For example, I presently believe that the main reason for education is knowledge development for employment purposes. But there are other significant views on benefits of education such as; developing entrepreneurship potential, ensuring innovation and creativity in society, and finally realizing good political governance through developing law abiding citizens. Accepting challenging data ensures understanding of the advantages and disadvantages of the view that I illustrate. For instance, my view on affirmative action is always positive. But there are shortcomings of affirmative action, for example, giving average employees in terms of competencies senior management positions in organizations. There are ideas that can challenge the comfort level that I am in currently; for example technological innovation ideas. New technology creates new processes. The emergence of the social networks has changed the way I communicate with friends. Because of busy work and education schedule, I mostly communicate with friends via Facebook and twitter

Roles of a Global Manager Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Roles of a Global Manager - Essay Example According to the Soviet-Belgian joint venture agreement, Wane Machines was supposed to send three experienced executives for the key managerial positions -– to serve as Rus Wayne’s deputy general manager, manufacturing manager, and financial manager for the first two or three years. After that, the Russians would take over the positions. The major objectives of this policy were to provide "assistance in technology and management skills transfer, management systems and processes development, and local personnel coaching." While the obstacles and the issues that came up in staffing were basically due to cultural differences, not all the issues arising out of culture difference would be handled here. This report focuses on the inefficiencies in cross-cultural communication that impacted the smooth functioning of this joint venture. The Soviet law insists that local managers should be in charge as they are most knowledgeable and capable of handling local situations although they do not insist that Soviet citizens should hold the senior-most position. Local nationals were taken in the positions of sales and service managers and human resources manager from the beginning as the knowledge of local and employment practices helps in overcoming these obstacles. These decisions were not implemented. The general manager could not send the three expatriates to Russia as per agreement nor was an HR manager appointed on schedule. The general manager wanted to play the role of HR manager as well. The deputy general manager, an American, sent to Russia had no experience of working in Russia but accepted the job because of career move. The manufacturing manager was from France and his interest in Russia was purely career development. The financial manager, an Englishman sent to Russia had merely 2 years of experience at Wane and hence they provided him training for 6 months before sending him to Russia.  

Nike Just Do it advertising campaign analysis Essay

Nike Just Do it advertising campaign analysis - Essay Example Major trends in marketing Global marketing has witnessed several trends that have revolutionized the ways companies inform and persuade customers to start using their products and services. One of the trends is the shift from mass media advertising to specialized media that caters for personalized consumption patterns and segmentation of the market in terms of income levels, tastes and preferences (Batra, Myers and Aaker, 2009). In this case, Just Do it campaign initially focused on the mass market through appealing to target audience regardless of income, age, and sporting activities. However, Nike shifted the campaign to niche markets such as athletics sports, football and young generation who prefer fitness through seeking celebrity endorsements (Batra, Myers and Aaker, 2009). Another trend is the use of data-based marketing as opposed to focus marketing thus Nike has shifted its efforts to market research activities that aim at identifying the consumer incomes changes, changes in tastes and preferences (Shah, K & D’Souza, 2009). Accordingly, the internet and new media channels like YouTube, direct marketing through e-mails and digital platforms like twitter and online discussion forums have enabled Nike to cut its advertising costs on traditional media and focus on new media channels that elicit high feedback and interest among consumers. Web-based marketing has enabled companies to reach the global market due to instance response and its ability to elicit responses. Another major trend in marketing is the event marketing that entails face-to-face conversations via trade shows, live events and corporate meetings (Carbasho, 2010). Nike uses several sporting events to... This essay " Nike ‘Just Do it† advertising campaign" analyze Nike's commercial and why it become so successful. Nike aimed at attaining several objectives with the ad campaign. First, the company wanted to gain brand awareness and recognition during the fitness craze in order to gain market share in the American market. Accordingly, the company aspired to create good relations with potential consumers through providing inspiring messages and encouraging consumers to pursue their dreams. At the same time, Nike was geared at informing the consumers of the benefits of fitness, sports and benefits that could be derived from purchasing Nike’s athletic shoes and sporting apparel. Accordingly, the use of the slogan in merchandise such as school bags and jumpers was geared at creating primary demand for the non-sport and Nike-related commodity market through demonstrating the value of Nike products. Advertising aims at positioning the product in order to create a distincti ve impression on the minds of the consumers and assign an intangible value to the brand. Accordingly, Just Do It ad aimed at linking the social lifestyle in America with the brand’s image through making consumers understand Nike cares for their health and wellbeing. In addition, Nike aimed at winning back the previous customers who had shifted to competitors like Adidas and minimise the existing negative attitudes towards Nike products). Nike sought to build brand loyalty in a friendly manner and increase sales among the existing consumers.

In the majority of cases plastic surgery not only improves the Essay

In the majority of cases plastic surgery not only improves the external appearance of the person, but it also makes the individual more confident and happier - Essay Example Hence, beauty is regarded by today’s generation as necessary and not a choice. However, not everyone is fortunate to be born with natural external beauty. Nevertheless, the tremendous advancement in the area of medical science has a solution to this problem. Presently, if one has an adequate amount of financial resources one can improve their physical appearance. The method of cosmetic surgery can provide one with an improved external appearance and possibly a better life. Cosmetic surgery is a surgical specialty of medical science that deals with a variety of corrective treatments (Gail, 2000). The objective is to enhance ones outward physical appearance by changing particular features. In the 1990s, people could not even think beyond particular kinds of hair transplant or methods of face-lift or lips enhancement. Presently, one can choose from different beautifying procedures that can improve almost all parts of one’s body, beginning from the head to the feet. With the fast paced advancement in this area of medical science it is not beyond the bounds of possibility to acquire the alluring lips of Beyonce, as it is also not impossible to get the buttocks of Jennifer Lopez. With the assistance of certain surgical methods such as Rhinoplasty or nose surgery, Blepharoplasty or eyelid surgery one can become the owner of an enhanced external appearance. Non-facial cosmetic procedures have likewise become important in defining beauty. Liposuction and breast implants are some of the well known cosmetic procedure that promises one to give an improved outward appearance. Other modern procedures likewise include different kinds of facial implants and chemical face peels that help one maintain a youthful appearance or correct hereditary imperfections. The bottom line is that self confidence is huge factor of success and a beautiful appearance adds to one’s confidence. That is why there is little reason why one should not grab the

Corporate risk management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Corporate risk management - Essay Example Each region or country has their own rules and regulations to be followed. There are many additional features like giving financial protection against theft of the vehicle or possible damage to the vehicle. It is illegal for any person to run their vehicle in the road without any motor insurance. Most of the jurisdiction are applied both to the drivers well as to the car, though degree of severity varies. There are many countries where there is a scheme like â€Å"pay-as-you-drive†. Here the driver has to pay the premiums through the gasoline tax that he uses. Using this both the problem get solved, one like charging the uninsured motorists and another is to charge them based on the number of miles. This increases the efficiency of the insurance through streamline collection. But associated with it is the risk of insurance companies charging higher premiums than others. But being a compulsory thing, the motor man sometimes faces the risk of paying higher insurance in cases if he doesn’t get any options. Discussion The manager here owns a fleet of motor vehicles. The problem here is that the motor insurer has given them a premium quotation which appears to be high to them. Hence the manger has to look for alternative course of action. The manager must look for other motor insurance provide. The manager must know what the options available to him in the market are, like he can go to any brokerage house where there is a number of insurance provider tied up with them. Manager must understand the features offered by the insurance provider (Frenkel, Dufey, Hommel and Rudolf, 2005, p. 543). There are several basic features which he needs to look at. Like the Liability Only Policy. This type of insurance policy covers the liabilities of insure towards third parties only. It is mandatory for the each and every vehicle which runs in any the public place as per the Motor Vehicles Act of any country. Next important step is the Package Policy. This states that for any loss or any damage to the vehicle insured it will be covered subject to the terms and conditions to the policy. The manager must understand that premiums are calculated on various factors like type, usage, model, place of registration, past claims of history etc. of the vehicle under consideration. Hence the approach should be known to him (Vinnem, 2007, p. 32). He must understand that while buying a fresh new insurance during the renewal he can go for other companies who provide the insurance. The manager must also know that if the premium is charged too high he can go to the insurance provider and ask for the exact details of the components where the money is being charged high. He must mention whether the vehicle runs on Gas or on Petrol because each of them will have a different cost attached to it (Khatta, 2008, p. 241). Hence the manager should understand the fact that there is a risk of moving from one insurer to another new insurer. For any new client the motor car insurance provider will check what is the vehicles damage, what is the cc of the car and accordingly quote the premium. But it might happen that government may increase tax rate which is applicable to the motor insurance. And as a result the premium may again rise (Merkin and Smith, 2004, p. 387). Hence the manger has to consult many insurance providers at the same time and assess the risk by discussing with them. There are many steps to assess the risk. First step is to identify hazard, here the managers must know

Coping, Stressor Anticipation and Endurance Assignment

Coping, Stressor Anticipation and Endurance - Assignment Example ctions can include anger, guilt, anxiety, sadness, or despair; physical reactions like sleeping problems, change in appetite, health issues can occur. Disturbances in social aspects may be in the form of taking over other family responsibilities, interacting with family and friends, ability to return to work etc. In such situations, grief counselling and grief therapy can be very effective. It helps the person to accept the loss, to live without the loved one and to make decisions, emotional separation from the person, and makes the mourner stronger mentally, emotionally and physically. Allowing the mourners to experience the entire grief process helps in relieving them from grief and depression, and in bringing their lives back to normality (Cancer, 2003). Kissane et al.’s (2006) research identified that a family-focussed grief therapy is most effective in coping the grief from loss of loved one. This specifically brings about reduction in complications of bereavement, helps the family members function normally, and helps in cohesion and communication among family members. In conclusion, coping with loss and grief due to illness is specific to every individual and should be approached considering all the impacting factors and their

Corporate risk management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Corporate risk management - Essay Example Each region or country has their own rules and regulations to be followed. There are many additional features like giving financial protection against theft of the vehicle or possible damage to the vehicle. It is illegal for any person to run their vehicle in the road without any motor insurance. Most of the jurisdiction are applied both to the drivers well as to the car, though degree of severity varies. There are many countries where there is a scheme like â€Å"pay-as-you-drive†. Here the driver has to pay the premiums through the gasoline tax that he uses. Using this both the problem get solved, one like charging the uninsured motorists and another is to charge them based on the number of miles. This increases the efficiency of the insurance through streamline collection. But associated with it is the risk of insurance companies charging higher premiums than others. But being a compulsory thing, the motor man sometimes faces the risk of paying higher insurance in cases if he doesn’t get any options. Discussion The manager here owns a fleet of motor vehicles. The problem here is that the motor insurer has given them a premium quotation which appears to be high to them. Hence the manger has to look for alternative course of action. The manager must look for other motor insurance provide. The manager must know what the options available to him in the market are, like he can go to any brokerage house where there is a number of insurance provider tied up with them. Manager must understand the features offered by the insurance provider (Frenkel, Dufey, Hommel and Rudolf, 2005, p. 543). There are several basic features which he needs to look at. Like the Liability Only Policy. This type of insurance policy covers the liabilities of insure towards third parties only. It is mandatory for the each and every vehicle which runs in any the public place as per the Motor Vehicles Act of any country. Next important step is the Package Policy. This states that for any loss or any damage to the vehicle insured it will be covered subject to the terms and conditions to the policy. The manager must understand that premiums are calculated on various factors like type, usage, model, place of registration, past claims of history etc. of the vehicle under consideration. Hence the approach should be known to him (Vinnem, 2007, p. 32). He must understand that while buying a fresh new insurance during the renewal he can go for other companies who provide the insurance. The manager must also know that if the premium is charged too high he can go to the insurance provider and ask for the exact details of the components where the money is being charged high. He must mention whether the vehicle runs on Gas or on Petrol because each of them will have a different cost attached to it (Khatta, 2008, p. 241). Hence the manager should understand the fact that there is a risk of moving from one insurer to another new insurer. For any new client the motor car insurance provider will check what is the vehicles damage, what is the cc of the car and accordingly quote the premium. But it might happen that government may increase tax rate which is applicable to the motor insurance. And as a result the premium may again rise (Merkin and Smith, 2004, p. 387). Hence the manger has to consult many insurance providers at the same time and assess the risk by discussing with them. There are many steps to assess the risk. First step is to identify hazard, here the managers must know

Pride and Prejudice Essay Example for Free

Pride and Prejudice Essay Pride and Prejudice is a nineteenth century novel written by Jane Austen. Pride and Prejudice is about a lady named Elizabeth Bennet, one of the five Bennet sisters who must marry a wealthy man, as she stumbles across the prideful Mr. Darcy. This novel is particularly interesting because it shows the overcoming of huge character flaws for love. The author, Austen, tries to stress the point about love always finding its way. Admittance of love and proposal, omitting initial prejudices, and two lovers falling in love and marriage proves the point of two people falling in love and overcoming prejudices towards those in different social classes. Omission of initial prejudices allows for people to interact more frequently leading to better relationships. Austen says, â€Å"Gave him to understand, that her sentiments had undergone so material a change since the period to which he alluded to† (354). Elizabeth, in this quote, is trying to tell Mr. Darcy that her mind has changed since his last proposal, essentially, overcoming her initial prejudice towards him and the people of his social class. Elizabeth truly loves Darcy, and that is why she has undergone such a change to prove it which also shows the supersession of her character flaw, prejudice. The novel encourages a sense of superiority over other characters† (Neckles). Christina Neckles acknowledges the fact that Mr. Darcy feels a sense of superiority over Elizabeth because of her social class. This quote relates back to the theme because as he lets go of this feeling and prejudice it enables him to truly and willingly love Elizabeth fully and vice versa for Elizabeth, she feels superior in a knowledgeable sense. â€Å"Darcys pride, which causes him to reject Elizabeth and her family, and Elizabeths resulting prejudice, which is reinforced by Wickhams false story about Darcy. (Zimmerman) This quote from Zimmerman reinforces the idea that it is Darcy’s pride and Elizabeth’s prejudiced that leads them away from each other and yet brings them together. Their relationship was tarnished because of these flaws but with the omitting of their problems it allowed to realize the loved each other. Because of Elizabeth’s strong sense of love towards Mr. Darcy, she was able to overcome her initial prejudice towards him. Admittance of love and proposal towards a person stresses the theme of love finding its way. Mr.  Darcy states, â€Å"In vain have I struggle. It will not do. My feelings will not be represses. You must allow me to tell you how ardently I admire and love you. †(188) Mr. Darcy is trying to tell Elizabeth that he does not want to love her but unfortunately, he cannot do anything about and he is truly in love with her. By Mr. Darcy proposing and saying this, it shows how Austen is trying to portray the fact that his love for Elizabeth, overcomes the fact that she is in a lower social class. â€Å"Darcy’s letter is not persuaded to change her opinion† (Soni). Mr.  Darcy’s letter of his admittance of love was a huge swallowing of pride towards Elizabeth, and this quote shows how Elizabeth still upholds her pride. Although the letter towards Elizabeth temporarily leaves her confused about Mr. Darcy, this is the turning point and crisis in the book where love starts to find its way. â€Å"Elizabeths attachment to Darcy results from the clarification of her vision, not from the modification of her values; consequently, the view that the novel suggests a blending of two contrasting value systems, two extremes searching for a middle† (Zimmerman). This quotes says that since Darcy’s extreme pride and Elizabeth’s extreme prejudice, they found love and a common place in the middle of their matters. Their love and admittance of love is found because they despise each other so much that they meet in the middle. Through Mr. Darcy’s proposal, and letter, it proves that his love for Elizabeth is strong enough to overthrow his pride and also his prejudice towards her, and her social class. People, falling in love and getting married even further proves the theme of love finding its way. Elizabeth says, â€Å"Gave him to understand, that her sentiments had undergone so material a change since the period to which he alluded to† (354). Elizabeth says here that she accepts Mr. Darcy’s proposal and she would like to marry him. Mr. Darcy overcame his pride and proposed to Elizabeth, and she overcame her prejudice of Darcy and said yes. â€Å" But when Elizabeth decides to marry Darcy, there is finality to her Judgment. (Soni) This quote is showing how her judgment of Darcy has come to an end, the matter of social class difference no longer is of concern to the two lovers. This quote also proves that love always finds its way regardless of personal pride and social classes. â€Å"I always had a value for him. Were it for nothing but his love of you, I must always have esteemed him† (Morgan). This quote relates to the marriage and love Elizabeth has for Darcy which relates to love finding its way. She always had a â€Å"value† for him which shows she always cared but didn’t know how to show it. By the marriage of Darcy and Elizabeth, it supports the theme of love finding its way, regardless of social class and pride. Love between two people will always find its way, regardless of personal pride, and also regardless of the prejudices we bestow on the people of a different social class. Now, and even back then, the â€Å"class† we are put into is essential to who we associate ourselves with and who we marry as a result. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen proves that those in a different social class can fall in love and get married.

How music influences the fashion industry

How music influences the fashion industry This study is purposely carried out in order to find out whether music has any influence on fashion. The research question that will be a guide to the establishment of the intended explanation will be: Does music influence fashion? The hypothesis therefore for this study will be; music has had a great influence on fashion both now and in the recent historical times. This is greatly supported by the fact that music is an independent variable and has everlasting effects of various aspects of the society including fashion (Powell, 2001, pp 134). Fashion in this case will serve as a dependent variable since it is affected differently by the different types of music that exist within the society. Additionally, it has been seen that fashion changes with the entry of a certain song to the music industry (Lounger In Society, 2009, pp 4). This study as it tries to establish the effect of music on fashion will provide helpful information to the fashion designers because they will be able to id entify the best marketing strategies for their products by relating it to a particular genre of music that is considered fashionable (Huntley, 1972, pp 66). Introduction There are various entities in every society that influences its behavior and interaction among its members. The way people work, relate, play, eat or even dance is influenced by music in one way or the other. Within the society, it is also important to note that its members have different tastes and preferences to various kinds of music (Powell, 2001, pp 137). Such kind of music includes reggae, rhythm and blues, pop, rock, classical, hip-hop, jazz among others. Music in essence is a form of an art that organizes sound in a melodious manner with the aim of expressing feelings and emotions. It is rare on earth to find a human being who does not have a taste to any kind of music (Shmoop University, 2000, pp 13). The music could either be international like reggae, pop and rock, or local as used by various native languages within a certain locality. Music has tremendously grown and may prove hectic for one to be able to categorize it into various types because its origin may not be easi ly decoded by history (Huntley, 1972, pp 69). The study of behavior and music shows that music has an eccentric influence on fashion as manifested by the trends emulated by youths and other members of the society. Fashion can be defined as the mirror of what the society thinks and does within a certain period of time (Randel, 2003, pp 253). This is widely noticeable when music of a particular genre is released and attracts the attention of many listeners. This is also expressed through the radio stations that people listen to and the videos for the songs they watch. Music is an integral part of the social environment and cannot be avoided. It also influences how young people grow up and ultimately contributes in the setting of various societal norms (Campbell, 1994, pp 27). This is seen as a way that creates excitement and alters how an individual especially teenagers dress and decide to emulate the dressing code of a particular singer. This research will greatly dwell in providing evidence that the various trends in the music i ndustry have had a big influence on fashion (Warner, 2003, pp 123). Aims and objectives It has always been and will remain to be a belief that music is the food of the soul and a panacea of the mind as greatly depicted by the ability of children and other individuals to grasp a verse of a particular song within a short time (Randel, 2003, pp 253). This becomes a relevant topic because it influences different dressing styles of the society being examined. The purpose of this research therefore is to revisit the evolution and history of music and cultural backgrounds, outline various types of music, examine the prominent debates relating to music and fashion, and enumerate various fashion trends in each type of music. The research will further introduce and examine various fashion designers, musicians, and photographers who have influenced fashion through their careers particularly music (Cargan, 2007, pp 116). Literature review The success of this research and the definite provision of solutions to the identified objectives will dwell on the facts provided by various writings that relate to this topic. Various authors have shared their arguments and made immense contributions to indicate that indeed, music has an influence on fashion. This is clearly pointed out and illustrated by the dressing styles that people copy when they listen to a particular type of music. Tortora and Eubank in their book Survey of historic costume: a history of Western dress argued that the industry related to fashion has always been a risky venture due to unpredictable dressing trends emulated by the society caused by the dynamics in music industry. They pointed out that people changed the ways they dressed to imitate that of the singers in any famous song within a particular period of time (Tortora Eubank, 2005, pp 171, 519). An article by Hunter in the Cincinnati Magazine points out clearly that music and fashion are one entity and they go hand in hand. He used an example of the seventies where there was spontaneous freedom in the choice of music that was attractive to the youthful population of the time. During that time, people went for the outfits that would make one look disco-like and contrasts the ones of the nineties. He however showed that the fashion tastes for a particular age-group may be different and this is enhanced by music that they listen to (Hunter, 1997, pp 50). Duran Alan on the other hand gives diverse interpretations that have been given as it relates to fashion. He uses an example of David Bowies song, Fashion that clearly points out how rock music is intertwined with fashion concerning the dancing styles and mode of dress. According to him, the interpretation of fashion and how it has been affected by music does not involve the taking of rigid stands and should not be assumed (Dur an, 1984, pp 189). Wilbekin on his part while interviewing Armani (a designer) was able to find out that most of the fashion outfits he makes are determined by the type of music people listen to. An example of hip hop music is given where he says that it embraces the fact that one becomes more real and individualistic. This is because according to Armani, all rules of fashion have been broken by hip hop by technically fusing sportswear and high fashion. In addition, he says that the street wear has formed a fundamental idea of modern and casual lifestyles. We can be able to identify that this magazine critically answers our research question. He also uses the examples of DAngelo, Mariah Carey, and Lauryn Hill to explain the influence that the musicians have made in his fashion boutique. He also points out that most hip hop artists are attracted to the legendary Italian wear like suits, fedoras, and jewelry and this will automatically be copied by their listeners (Wilbekin, 2000, pp 172). In her book, Fundamentals of sociology, Sharma points out that music refines human tendencies in day to day life which enhances the societal feelings depicted through singing and dancing. He also adds that since there have been improved modes of communication, the influence of a particular genre of music spans over a wide area thus proving a universal effect (Sharma, 1996, pp 345). The effects are clearly brought out when Steele analyses the effects music has had to the society for the last fifty years (Steele, 2000, pp 155). It critically examines the effect it has brought culturally, socially and even economically. It is important to point out that during the same period, there was a great evolution of music and thus the effects were diverse. She enhances her analysis by using fashion pictures thus providing the required evidence of the changing fashion trends of the time (Steele, 2000, pp 163). Blackwell and Stephan in the book Brands that Rock have used Madonna as a perfect example to bring in the fact that music influences everything and fashion cannot be left out. They explain that music hypnotizes everybody and this relates to Madonnas fashion of KISS. They have indicated that the success of this fashion trend was achieved due to various performances and shows in clubs (Blackwell et al, 2004, pp 157). What would follow were unprecedented sales of the clothing inclined to the KISS fashions. In this case, it has been illustrated that people were able to elevate themselves to megastar status by choosing music as the best choice to do so. This involved the choosing of the best music style that was acceptable and quality and this would influence people of all categories (Blackwell et al, 2004, pp 153). Bunt on the other hand categorically states that because music influences the society, the effect will automatically shift to fashion. This serves to answer our research quest ion because Bunt has shown that music has some influence on fashion (Bunt, 19994, pp 98). The effort of Radano and Bohlman cannot be left out in this research due to their contribution in the provision of facts of the effects of Gypsy music in rural Hungary. According to them, the effect of this kind of music swept the rural Hungary irrespective of the age bracket. This was followed by the imitation of the dressing culture of the musicians and this had immense effect on the fashion and the traditional musical traditions (Radano and Bohlman, 2000, pp 409). In his comparative studies, Kerman in his part took much consideration on the assimilative culture of Elizabethan madrigal. According to him, the impetus of copying foreign musical styles led to the local flourishing of musicians and within a short span of twenty five years, the whole fashion industry had drastically changed. He credits the cause of the changes to the native inspiration of musicians and their fans (Kerman, 1962, pp 130). Hockx and Strauss on their part made a significant impact in this field by taking a study on the Chinese culture. According to them, the dressing culture of the cities of Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou have been influence by a particular musical genre. Beijing for instance has faced a lot influence from rock music while the city of Xinjiang has been influenced by pop music. They also point out that this has contributed immensely in dynamic change of fashion where music is the driving force. The local music industry has seen itself adapting to innovative ways which are instantly copied by the fashion industry and ultimately their fans (Hockx Straus, 2005, pp 3). Hendrickson in his book Musica Christi gives us some information about the effect that music has had on fashion. He takes into consideration a discussion by various theologians that shows that the dynamic nature of music has influenced the defining of analogia entis and fashion. The effect of musical styles on fashion during the renaissance period has also been wholly discussed and this goes in line with our research question and our objectives (Hendrickson, 2005, pp 83). Sims in his book Rock Fashion illustrates and explains the fashion trends that have accompanied the changing times of rock music. One example is the fetish wear items and biker clothes that were won by singers and this was immediately imitated by the listeners. Chain jackets and sideburns that the rock musicians like are most of the time seen among their listeners and fans. Sims goes ahead and uses the example of Cliff Richards white tie and Johnny Kidds eye patching that made most of their fans to change their wardrobe. His contribution in this research extends further when he points out that in the past forty years, the rock stars have influenced fashion in various cultural groups of the world (Sims, 2001, pp 14). Jones in his book Fashion Design expresses music as an inspiration to the world of fashion since designers are forced in one way or the other to be creative and follow the fashion details and fabrics that would fit the listener market for a particular genre of music. He p oints out that a good fashion designer goes with the music of the time if he/she has to make good sales. This clearly points out how music influences fashion (Jones, 2005, pp 17). An article by Tony Ware in the CMJ Music Magazine titled Brand New Wave describes the dressing trends of the eighties where musicians wore asymmetrical outfits to battle for their commercial space in the discos. This extended to the various geometric haircuts by musicians like Britney and Kid Rock. From this analysis, we can point out clearly that the fans would go ahead and ape their model stars especially in the field of hip hop and pop (Tony, 2001, 45). Vernallis in her book Experiencing music video: aesthetics and cultural context, takes into consideration enormous effect that music video has influenced music and fashion. The visual imagery that pop songs of the sixties had on the society according to her, affected fashions to a very large extend. She points out clearly that the introductions of music videos enabled the fans to watch for themselves and thus were able to identify the particular dressing styles of their stars. They would in turn copy it and thus making the fashion of the society to be affected in a way that follows the trends of the time (Vernallis, 2004, pp 287). Shepherd John in his book titled Continuum Encyclopedia of Popular Music of the World: Media, industry and society made a significant contribution to this research by identifying the various musical types and how they have influence fashion. His book contains contributions from more than a hundred individuals relating to how popular music has influenced the society. His works contain all the influences music has had on the societal culture which of course has a direct influence on fashion trends that accompanies the songs. The book clearly indicates that, regardless of any part of the world, music has a significant influence on the trending trends of the listeners (Shepherd, 2003, pp 56). Morrell Ernest in his book Becoming Critical Researchers uses the evidence from the urban culture teenagers to conclude his finding that music has a direct influence on fashion. He says that hip hop for instance influences fashion as indicated by a college student wearing a T-shirt and a hat which i s mostly a characteristic of hip hop musicians (Morrell, 2004, pp 72). The contributions made by Kendall Diana to this research cannot be left out because she has brought clearly the aspect of fashion as a valued style of behavior found in many areas of our lives including music (Martin Lehu, 2009, pp 34). She further asserts that contemporary music and clothing in the United States to some extent reflect some aspect of African, Caribbean, and Asian culture. It is also in this book that we can be able to know that music has facilitated cross-cultural influence in fashion indicated by the dressing styles that accompany the song in question (Kendall,2009, pp 66). Bennet, Temperley and Yang in their book Lectures on musical life, endeavored to show the influence that music as an art has had on fashion. According to them, music is rooted in the acceptable manners of the society and these results in dynamism associated with every kind of new music that comes across. They went ahead and pointed out that the performance of a particular fashion as rooted on mu sic has a traceable and more gradual effect on the composition of the song itself (Bennet et al, 2006, pp 146). Research Methodology The primary method that was used to obtain the answers to the objectives of this research involved the use of questionnaire. A well structured questionnaire was formulated and contained probing questions that would ensure that the correct answers are obtained from those whom they were administered to. The use of this method of obtaining the required data is reliable and facts are recorded instantly thus merited (Miller Salkind, 2000, 27). The method is also advantageous because information is obtained from the correct person and not second hand which would otherwise lead to distortion of results (Lippman, 1999, pp 34). The presence of the person who is administering the questionnaire is also an advantage for this method because the questions that have not been understood may further be explained in more understandable manner. The method however, is too involving and cumbersome. In addition, it was realized that open-ended questions took longer time to be answered and took long time to be analyzed while some respondents made a lot of exaggeration in some other questions (Cargan, 2007, pp 116). The questionnaire that was used in this research consisted of twenty five questions all which were geared towards achieving the objectives of the research. Some of the questions included among the following: What is music? What is fashion? Is fashion influenced by music? Give the instances that you think fashion has been influenced by music? What types of music do you know? Briefly describe the history of music according to your own understanding. Name any musician who has influenced your wardrobe or that of someone you know (Titon et al, 2009 25). These are some of the sample questions that were in the questionnaire among others. In order to minimize errors and enhance accuracy, two hundred and fifty questionnaires were prepared and administered over randomly selected individuals. Results were then collected and analyzed before arriving at the final conclusion (Metz Benson, 1999, pp 166). The other primary method that was used was direct interview with identified clients. Interview however had fewer questions than the questionnaire but answers were more detailed because the interviewer could use various skills to identify if the person they are interviewing has answered the question correctly (Seale, 2004, pp 165). Wherever a mistake was realized, the interviewer would immediately devise ways that would ensure the question is correctly answered. The method however has some limitations, these includes; the exercise itself being too involving and sometimes affected by language barrier or handling illiterate clients. The interviewer was also expected to avail himself to the client unlike the use of questionnaire where it would just be sent to trusted clients. Few interviews were however carried out because they were just meant to supplement the questionnaire. Data collected was then analyzed and relevant results recorded (Seale, 2004, pp 170). In the course of the research however, there were instances that required the use of secondary sources with the aim of primarily giving weight to the data that were already collected (Kumar, 2001, pp 58). Our research used library search as and indexing and involved the research panel going through written texts that had similar topic on the effects of music on fashion. This method was the best alternative of secondary sources because it provides trusted results and data thus enhancing the accuracy of the data being collected (Kumar, 2001, pp 63). Futhermore, its analysis required minimal time and limited skills from the research panel. This method however had a limitation because it was difficult to obtain the exact required data and thus several texts were to be analyzed. This consumed some good quality time in the research (Campbell, 1994, pp 27). Results and Findings After the completion of the research and findings analyzed, it was found out that most people agreed with the fact that music affects their fashion in one way or the other. Some would find themselves aping the dressing styles of the musical stars or the hair styles (Hook, 2010, pp 3). Others however were not directly affected by music but out at their friends who find themselves changing their wardrobe to resemble that of renowned stars like Rihanna, Jay-Z, Madonna among others (Tera, 2009). Due to the agreeable fact that music affects our lives, its found out that the rate at which the listeners respond to a particular fashion was unpredictable since music solely depends on mass media for it to be heard or known (Manlow, 2009, pp 45). The introduction of musical videos is seen as milestone that enhanced how music affected their fashion because they can be able to perceive the current trend of dressing (Perpetual-vogue, 2008). The history of music according to this research can be factually traced until the First World War where jazz music was sang in the 1920s (Miller Salkind, 2002, pp 16). Famous jazz players like Louis Armstrong began his career as a jazz player and his music attracted many people of the time (Tera, 2009). The euphoria of jazz was later replaced by Swing type of music which was later replaced by Rock and Roll of the 1950s. In 1960s, The Beatles was the fashionable musical style of the time. The rockers of the 50s were primarily characterized by leather jackets and the keeping of long unkempt hair. On top of these, drainpipe trousers and rubber-soled shoes were a characteristic of Rock and Roll artists (Tonneau Thompson, 2000, pp 269). Music of the 1960s made so many people to be cloth-conscious and teenage fashion of the time entailed the wearing of short hair, shoes and green parkas were relatively long. It was during this time that musicians started wearing necklaces and were quickl y aped by their fans (Jones Brown, 2005 pp 128). Disco hits came in the 70s which became a driving tool of fashion in the urban areas and it may seem as though the style is dead but the current fashion is deeply rooted in it. People in the 80s and 90s desired the Grunge look popularized by hip-hop and involves attires not limited jumpsuits, sneakers, and Kangol hats (Katz Dahlhaus, 1987, pp 93). Fashion of this generation is considered modest and the music industry of this genre was popularized by artists like Notorious B.I.G, Tupac Shakur, and Jay-Z among others (Hess, 2007, pp 406). Wearing of t-shirts and jeans is an example of the millennium music closely related to Hip-hop fashion and pop (Welters Cunningham 2005 pp 19). The supremacy of baggy jeans and large black rimmed glasses are characteristic of fashion in this musical era. It was also found out that it is during this time that the use of pink color by the lady world found its way to the fashion shelves (Rosengren, 1994, pp 73). In the course of this research, various kinds of music were identified and it was clearly pointed out that each musical genre was related to a particular fashion trend. Among the genres include; classical music, rock music, metal music, hip-hop music, trance music, jazz music, and techno among others (Katz Dahlhaus, 1987, pp 93). It is important to note that irrespective of the type, music has an impact on its listeners. The roots of Rock type of music can be traced to the rock and roll era which began a dance but later became dominant to the teenage audience of the time. Metal music on the other hand is a rather rapidly played music that dates back to World War II (Henwood, 2010, pp 16). Most people consider it to be associated with members of the society who are not satisfied and this has greatly impacted on the other types of music. The minorities in America are believed to be the inventors of rap music characterized by break dancing and a lot of graffiti. This kind of music has also influenced the Jamaican music which is deeply rooted in reggae music (Benstock Ferriss, 1994, pp 197). Wedding music was also identified in the research but one can realize that it can be fused with other types like classical or traditional. This is because wedding is an occasion characterized by the changing moods of the people (Campbell, 1994, pp 27). It also diverse among the different cultures of the world and dancing in this occasion can range from the Brazilian salsa and even to pop music. Hip-hop on the other hand is the one characterized almost all instruments with bass taking the prominence (BensmaÃÆ'Â ¯a, 1987, pp 88). It is generally used by artists to show different feelings and this has resulted in hip-hop culture and thus hip-hop fashion. The roots of this musical genre can be traced to West African music. Trance music is mostly played in clubs and discotheques and is easily traced to the 20th century music. It is basically characterized by fast tempo and quick repetition of beats that creates a hypnotic effect on its listeners (Longhurst, 2007, pp235). The research would not have been successful if country music would not have been identified. This kind of music and a couple of other folk music gained popularity in the 40s to mid 70s by musicians like Bob Wills and Bill Mornoe (Greaves, 2009). There is also Techno music which was identified and this has been seen to have a direct relationship and following among high school students. Western music has a variety of musical genres among them are music which incorporates classical and experimental music (Wallin et al, 2001, pp 49). There is also the pop music and fabulous music that ranges from reggae, rock, and metallic. Latin music has also been gaining popularity in the recent past and with its unique dressing style, people are also aping the fashion associated with all the kinds of music (Krummel, 1987, pp 93). Music as identified from the research carried out affects fashion and fashion trends in any society. It has been indicated that fashion is the styles especially dressing which are constantly dynamic in a given culture within a given time (Malone Stricklin, 2003, pp 124). Someone may be considered fashionable when they fit to the current dressing trends that are mostly popularized by music (Llanas, 2010 pp 11). When they do not fit to such kinds of dressing modes then they are considered unfashionable. Fashion can sometimes be used together with beauty or style. Fashion trends have solely been influenced by musicians and songwriters to the extent that the fashion industry has been intertwined with musicians (Bierut et al, 2002, pp 259). Such artists use their fame popularity to sell a particular line of clothing. Jennifer Lopez and Gwen Stefani for instance are making a kill by incorporating fashion and music (Gehlhar 2008, pp 230). Adidas as a fashion phenomenon was popularized by rap song and this resulted in massive sales. This also happens to other wears like hats, tracks and T-shirts. The trend is seen to have change to sleeveless rock T-shirts in the 90s and was particularly popularized by musicians like Poison, Ratt, and Ozzy among others (Seale 2004, pp 165). The Grunge look is also a fashion trend that was popularized by Nirvana in the 90s while Kangol became fashionable when LLcool J placed it as a trademark of his hat. It is also in the 1980s that Madonna drastically changed the way girls dressed to look bold and beautiful (Perkins, 1996, pp 266). She became the queen of fashion during this time and most girls imitated her dressing style to the fullest (Tonneau Thompson, 2000, pp 267). On characteristic of this era was the black leggings, bangles, bracelets, ballerina skirts, large earrings among others. This resulted in the formation of the MTV television network that brought out stars and their out standing fashions (Solomon Rabolt , 2004, pp 72). The launch of MTV popularized the fashion trends of musicians like Michael Jackson, Madonna, Whitney Houston, among others in the year beginning 1981. Their names were extensively used in various households and this promoted imitation of their fashion by teens and even young adults (Malone Stricklin, 2003, pp 127). This includes his legendary jackets which he wore mostly in his videos and later the white gloves of the millennium times that are still worn by his fans even after his death. A song sung by Madonna titled vogue mentions some of the renowned actors and actresses who have influenced the wardrobe of the populace (BensmaÃÆ'Â ¯a, 1987, pp 89). Among the people she mentions includes Grace Kelly, Jimmy Dean Jean Harlow among others this was seen as a tool that generated more sales for fashion designers (Schneck et al, 2008, pp 186). It is vividly noticeable that whenever a new song comes out, fashion changes and it appears rather funny to see how people change rapidly with the entry of a particular song. One example is during Avril Lavigne time when she released her song Girlfriend. Just because the video of the song featured her wearing a tight miniskirt was enough to make other girls ape (Lysloff Gay, 2003, pp 334). It is important to mention the contributions of three hip hop artists who have been the latest movers and shakers in the fashion industry. Kelis Daringa in the video of her song I bossy is credited for the introduction of the sleek and A-symmetrical haircut that was immediately imitated by her fans (Malone Stricklin, 2003, pp 124). Rihanna on her part as a pop star changed her look from the traditional brown hair to the edgy black style. The influence that she elicited can best be seen by looking at teenage girls around. Kanye West on his part has impacted the fashion industry wherever he goes. T alk of sweater vests and unique sunglasses and all directly linked to him (Tonneau Thompson, 2000, pp 260). Conclusion Both music and fashion are forms of art and are inseparable since they depict our expressions and viewpoints within our scope (Hawkins, 2006, pp 12). It was found in this research that people dress in relation to the music they listen to and thus providing an answer to our research question, does music affect fashion? Our cross-examination of the last six decades has given us tangible evidence on the growth of music and how it has influenced and how it has impacted on the wardrobe of their listeners (Lysloff Gay, 2003, pp 330). Fashion designers and marketers are fully aware of the effect of music on their products and they can only be able to maximize their sales by coordinating it with music. It is also important to mention the fact that people are placed in a particular stereotypical image due to the music that they listen to and the clothes they put on (BensmaÃÆ'Â ¯a, 1987, pp 88).