Smu 1st Sem Assmnt Questions 2010

Fall 2010 Master of Business Administration- MBA Semester 1 MB0041 – Financial and Management Accounting – 4 Credits (Book ID :B1130) Assignment Set- 1 (60 Marks) Note: Each question carries 10 Marks. Answer all the questions. Q. 1 Explain the Various accounting Concepts and Principles? Q. 2 Pass journal entries for the following transactions 1. Madan commenced business with cash Rs. 70000 2. Purchased goods on credit 14000 3. Withdrew for private use 3000 4. Goods purchased for cash 12000 5. Paid wages 5000 Q. 3 Explain the various types of errors disclosed by Trial Balance? [10 Marks] [10 Marks] 10 Marks] Q. 4 From the following balances extracted from Trial balance, prepare Trading Account. The closing stock at the end of the period is Rs. 56000 Particulars Stock on 1-1-2004 Returns inwards Returns outwards Purchases Debtors Creditors Carriage inwards Carriage outwards Import duty on materials received from abroad Clearing charges Rent of business shop Royalty paid t o extract materialsAmount in Rs. 70700 3000 3000 102000 56000 45000 5000 4000 6000 7000 12000 10000 10 Marks] Fall 2010 Fire insurance on stock Wages paid to workers Office salaries Cash discount Gas, electricity and water Sales 000 8000 10000 1000 4000 250000 Q. 5 Differentiate Financial Accounting and Management accounting? [10 Marks] Q. 6 Following is the Balance Sheet of M/s Srinivas Ltd. You are required to prepare a Fund Flow Statement Particulars Equity Share capital Profit & Loss 14,750 17,000 31,000 15,000 16,500 2006 50,000 2007 65,000 Particulars Cash balances Debtors Investment 25,000 5,000 27,000 nil 80,000 (7000) 2006 10,000 2007 13,000 [10 Marks] Trade Creditors 29,000 Mortgage 10,000 Fixed Assets 50,000 Less: Depreciation (5,250) Short term loans 15,000 Accrued expenses 8,000 7,500 Goodwill 5,000 nilStock Total 1, 26,750 1, 52,000 Total 37,000 1, 26,750 39,000 1, 52,000 Additional Information: 1. Depreciation provided is Rs. 1750. 2. Write off goodwill. 3. Dividend p aid Rs. 3500. Fall 2010 Master of Business Administration- MBA Semester 1 MB0041 – Financial and Management Accounting – 4 Credits (Book ID :B1130) Assignment Set- 2 (60 Marks) Note: Each question carries 10 Marks. Answer all the questions. Q. 1 Explain the tools of Management accounting? Marks] Q. 2 Find the contribution and profit earned if the selling price per unit is Rs. 25, variable cost per unit Rs. 20 and fixed cost Rs. ,05,000 for the output of 80,000 units. [10 Marks] Q. 3 Explain the essential features of budgetary control? Marks] Q. 4 A large retail stores makes 25% of its sales for cash and the balance on 30 days net. Due to faulty collection practice, there have been losses from bad debts to the e xtent [10 [10 of 1 % of credit sales on average in the past.The experience of the store tells that normally 60 % of credit sales are collected in the month following the sale, 25% in the second following month and 14 % in the third following month. Sales in the preceding three months have been January 2007 Rs. 80,000, February Rs. ,00,000 and March Rs. 1,40,000. Sales for the next three months are estimated as April Rs. 1,50,000, May Rs. 1,10,000 and June Rs. 1,00,000. Prepare a schedule of projected cash collection. [10 Marks] Q. 5 A factory works on standard costing system. The standard estimates of material for the manufacture of 1000 units of a commodity are 400 kg at Rs. 2. 50 per kg. When 2000 units of a commodity are manufactured, it is found that 820 kgs of material is consumed at Rs. 2. 60 per kg. Calculate the material variance Marks] Q. 6 The Anchor Company Ltd produces most of its electrical parts in its own plant.The company is at present considering the feasibility of buying a part from an outside supplier for Rs. 4. 5 per part. If this were done, monthly costs would increase by Rs. 1,000 [10 Fall 2010 The part under consideration is manufactured in Department 1 along with numerous other parts. On account of discontinuing the production of this part, Department 1 would have somewhat reduced operations. The average monthly usage production of this part is 20,000 units. The costs of producing this part on per unit basis are as follows. Material Labour (half-hour) Fixed overheads Total costs Rs. 1. 80 2. 40 0. 80 5. 00 [10 Marks]

Air force fume billboard Essay

Air force fume billboard Introduction   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In 1943 John Garfield, John Ridgley, Gig Young â€Å"The troop of an Air Force† bomber disembark in the Harbor in the outcome of the Japanese assault and is mailed on to Manila to provide a hand with the attack of the Philippines (Suids, 1996).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   There are observable characteristics, which attract customers to the product. Basing our argument on the above film are lifestyles, standards, color, physical appearance, taste, motivations, opinion, and desires. These take account of distinctiveness such as cheerful, preservationist, and safety-cognizant, value-oriented, class-driven. In our case, color attracts ones attention such that the distant-customers move closer.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Color information is supportive in identifying objective. It can be, sometimes, misleading. One of the tribulations with regard to images is the equivalent objects might have dissimilar colors and intensities when the illumination situation changes or there are dimness. It occurs predominantly often in our assignment. The billboard images for patterns were taken independently in a different circumstance from the unambiguous game in the video progression. However, in the live match dissemination, the lighting condition is diverse and they even revolutionize often during the match (Toyoshima, (2008).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Furthermore, there are numerous shadows caused by the players ahead of the billboards. When we to make use of the template color as the sample color and try to come across areas with the related color in the edge. The tolerant level is sky-scraping, a lot of gratuitous area will be incorporated and the diminution in searching area is not very considerable; on the other hand, if the lenient level is low, we have the risk of ignoring the main area. The brightly brown color captures awareness to the customers. The billboards exhibit great advertisements to fleeting pedestrians and even drivers. Characteristically, screening outsized, apparently amusing slogans, and distinguishing visuals. The billboards are exceedingly noticeable in the summit in market places. The bulletins are the leading modern-size billboards. They are located mainly on major highway, expressway and market zones to attract or capture peoples’ attention (Toyoshima, 2008)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   More so, imagery as a stylistic device applies during advertisement. For instance, â€Å"AIR FORCE† here implies war. This is the war of the crew against the Japanese as explained on synopsis. This type of film designed in such a way that it entails different styles. Since it is in a class of luxury has to be standard and specially designed to reach the test of customers. Primarily a good copy communicates to the ideal clients. In this case, the copy creates a great physical impression to the customers. In so doing more, sales are systematical done due to its unique appearance on the customers’ eyes (Suid, 2002).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Addition to that, customers like a description on the product in the market. Therefore, the synopsis contained on the copy gives customer detailed-evidence information in the copy. Furthermore, copywriter includes power words, which are very patting to the clients. ssOccasionally, these words are termed as power words which a very influential to the customer. They are advisable to apply in the language. In the above copy, â€Å"AIR FORCE† is an example of power words. Edges are very noteworthy illustration features in image processing. They are the points with high passion contrast and portray margins of objects contained in an image. Using periphery information of a copy also significantly condenses the amount of data while preserving the essential structural properties of an image. This gives a good impression to sight hence encouraging more purchases (Toyoshima, 2008). References Suid, L. H. (1996). Sailing on the silver screen: Hollywood and the US Navy. Annapolis, Md: Naval Inst. Press. Suid, L. H. (2002). Guts & glory: The making of the American military image in film. Lexington: University Press of Kentucky. Toyoshima, Y. (2008). Japanese movie billboards: Retro art from a century of cinema. Tokyo, Japan: DH Publishing Inc. Source document

Protection of Human Rights Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Protection of Human Rights - Research Paper Example The Committee of Ministers supervises and ensure that all judgments are carried out by the particular member state. Member state could be marginalized if refuses to honor such judgments. Even though explicitly ECJ is not only for Human Right violations like ECHR, there are many cases where issue touches both the courts and eventually, these two law bodies pass judgments in support of one another. In the Cossey case1 (ECHR, 1990), of sex change, it upheld applicant's claim that she has lived a woman's life, and after the operation, she was a complete woman, and is capable of marrying a man and claim all benefits reserved for women and this was a landmark judgment. The European Convention of Human Rights established The European Court of Human Rights as the lawmaking body, governing and securing the human rights that have been approved by the Convention. Court has the power to award damages, decide punishments and direct the Member States. "The establishment of a Court to protect indiv iduals from human rights violations is an extremely innovative feature for an international convention on human rights, as it gives the individual an active role on the international arena"Â   The European convention is perhaps the highest body in the world that provides a great amount of protection of the individual human rights of a person, as opposed to another person and also against member states. There is a rarely used option of one State complaining against another state in matters of Human Rights. Human rights enshrined by the Convention are (from Article 1 to 27): obligation to respect human rights, right to life, prohibition of torture, prohibition of slavery, right to liberty and security, right to a fair trial, no punishment without law, right to respect for private life, right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion, right to freedom of expression , right to freedom of assembly and association, right to marry, right to an effective remedy, prohibition of discrim ination, derogations, exemption for political activities of aliens, prohibition of abuse of rights, limitation on permitted restrictions of rights etc. and the Protocols are concerned with right to property, education and free elections, civil imprisonment, freedom of movement, expulsion, death penalty, expulsion, criminal appeals, compensation, double jeopardy, spousal equality, discrimination, death penalty, changing the conventions machinery etc.

Description of the Work as a Support Worker in Health and Social Care Assignment

Description of the Work as a Support Worker in Health and Social Care - Assignment Example Moreover, apart from conducting the above-stated activity, I focused on how to enhance my communication skills, as there lays the requirement of communicating with the people of the community in order to make them learn about varied complex needs within a particular community. My job profile, as a support worker specifically in health and social care segment, also includes supporting the people towards solving their respective diverse learning difficulties. It will be vital to mention that serving the people living in a community who are severely ill and in the condition of dying, is also one of my job roles as a support worker in the respective segment. These job roles are usually performed by making dynamic team efforts with the incorporation of individual professional skills (Prime Care, 2010). Apart from my work as a support worker in health and social care segment, I also perform the job roles of a fashion stylist. In this regard, as a fashion stylist, I had to communicate with the clients in order to make them aware of the new fashion trends. Especially mentioning, as a leader, I need to supervise the performance of my teammates and encourage their team spirit in order to gain professional excellence by highly satisfying the clients with better execution of my professional skills (Gradireland, 2012). Furthermore, in relation to the work of a fashion stylist, I often had to perform the job role of an image consultant, which requires greater development in professional skills while advising the clients to make them aware about the dresses that would best suit them. Thus, in order to perform the above-stated job roles, there lays the requirement of developing excellent communication skills in order to become an effective fashion stylist consultant. Especially mentioning my job profile as a fashion stylist demands as the role of a team leader for supervising my subordinates in delivering quality services to the client.  Ã‚  

Burger Joint Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Burger Joint - Case Study Example The chain which originally started off at Baldwin Park has now assumed cult status and generates revenues in millions. Adored by celebrities and the masses alike, the fat, juicy perfect burgers find their way into celebrations and have satisfied hungers for decades now. This is the radio jingle which most Californians would probably remember more accurately than the national anthem. Quality can add wonders to even the most basic advertising. The delicious burgers churned out by the chain can speak more than any advertisements. Started off in an Era of Post War development, the chain finds its humble beginnings in the dreams of the young couple Harry and Esther, both from the Military background. After they met at a common workplace, Harry and Esther not only found companionship but also the perfect business partners in each other. While Esther was grounded, gentle and calm, Harry was the Maverick, going by his guts to reach out to new avenues. She managed the accounts, while Harry took care of everything including Quality and the logistics. The synders found a partner and the much needed funds to fuel their business in Charles Noddin who invested a sum of $5000.However the business relations between the two associates soured and they decided to split ways soon afterwards when Harry insisted on keeping the price low and bettering quality while Charles wanted to take the practical and commonly followed route of increasing profits through cost cutting and price increase. Harry was stubborn in his ways and detested listening to others when he thought he was right-hence the store remained independent hence forth under his regime. The chain under the synders thrived on a system which ran on 3 simple words-Quality, cleanliness and Service. Harry was determined to bring in the best in all 3. And hence the buns were baked fresh everyday; the store personals always had a smile to share, and the open kitchen was visibly spic and span. And that's how the burgers found themselves staying on par, if not surging ahead of the competition. While the competition was busy franchising, In N out maintained a strict decree in maintaining it as a family owned business. This helped the chain maintain quality. And when it came to quality, Harry had got his formula right-He insisted on using only the best bits of the tomatoes and discarding the rest. He selected the best quality beef himself, and got in touch with suppliers frequently to maintain the best standards. There had to be perfection in every step that constituted the making of a Burger. This was the sole secret to the beginnings of the enormous success his creation was to become. As freshness and quality became the Mantras, only the freshest meat, potatoes and buns found their way into the kitchens. The chain diverted advertising funds towards increasing quality. This in turn led to increasing word of mouth publicity which worked better than churning out print and television ads. The Synders were not shy of exploring- and hence they found lifelong friends, business rivals and advisers in the Karchers, who were to own the entrepreneurial success-Jr carl's. Both the synders and the Karchers believed in creating their own

Pathophysiology of Sickel Cell disease Research Paper

Pathophysiology of Sickel Cell disease - Research Paper Example It results from homozygosity for a mutation in the beta globin gene and is transmitted by autosomal recessive inheritance (Passarge, 2007). A single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) occurs in the beta globin chain, which results in the substitution of the amino acid residue glutamine at position 6 for valine. An individual may have one such abnormal gene and another normal gene and is said to be heterozygous. When a couple that is heterozygous for HbS give birth to children, there is a likelihood of one or more of the children inheriting these HbS genes from each of the parents. When this happens, the child has both HbS genes and is said to be homozygous for HbS. This is when a child suffers from sickle cell disease. This disorder has potentially serious complications and early medication (prior to the development of symptoms) can advance morbidity and mortality. It affects hemoglobin, a protein that is part of red blood cells, which is responsible for oxygen transport. It is characterized by the presence of sickle cells in the bloodstream, which is also known as erythrocyte sickling. This causes difficulties in circulating red blood cells as the blood vessels get clogged and cause symptoms such as pain in the extremities (Gordon, 2000). This disorder develops within the first 2 years, and the symptoms can be traced back to two main phenomena which are hemolysis and clots. Hemolysis causes chronic anemia, jaundice, lack of growth and sexual maturation. The vascular occlusions cause crisis musculoskeletal pain, increase susceptibility to bacterial infections (S. pneumonia, K. pneumonia, Homophiles influenza, etc.), cerebral infarction, and renal impairment. As a consequence of the mutation, when the hemoglobin is deoxygenated, it spontaneously undergoes polymerization to form a crystalline gel. Each polymer is composed of longitudinal beams 14 of deoxy-Hb which are arranged to form a tactoid body, insoluble and rigid

K 12 Public Education Foundations Dissertation Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 8000 words

K 12 Public Education Foundations - Dissertation Example The mushrooming public school foundations owe their unprecedented growth to several reasons. For instance, it is very difficult for schools to procure funds. In addition, accountability of schools has increased manifold. Furthermore, members of the community are provided with a convenient device to involve themselves with local schools and their enterprises (Woodworth). As such, education foundations are non – profit organizations as per the provisions of section 501(c) (3) of the Internal Revenue Code. These foundations are affiliated with public school corporations, and they facilitate the establishment of tax-deductible funds to generate grants and scholarships (Robbins, 2009). Such foundations are of immense help to teachers and students. Moreover, section 501(c) (3) of the Internal Revenue Code considers education foundations as tax-exempt organizations. In addition, the laws of the state where the foundation is to be established have to be examined, with regard to tax ex emptions. As such, fundraising activity should not commence till such time as a tax exempt status is not granted to the foundation and its donors (Else, Assisting K-12 Education through the National Center for Public and Private School Foundations, 2003). For instance, the National Center for Public and Private School Foundations at the University of Northern Iowa has objectives that take into account the phenomenal growth of school foundations. These objectives consider the requirements of local public school districts and the private schools (Else, Assisting K-12 Education through the National School Foundations Association, 2011). The principal aims of the National Center for Public and Private School Foundations are; first to correlate people and organizations with private and public schools, and to promote support and awareness, by means of school foundations. Second, to help private and public schools, via the development of school foundations, in the task of creating educatio n funds of greater flexibility, and reducing the gap between the lower and higher income districts (Else, Assisting K-12 Education through the National School Foundations Association, 2011). Third, support school personnel in the US in the design, operation and sustaining of school foundations. Fourth, help local foundations by providing expertise and guidelines in the management and development of school foundations. Some of these are fundraising strategies, procedures, policies, management, organization and legal issues (Else, Assisting K-12 Education through the National School Foundations Association, 2011). Fifth, assist the leadership of the school foundation to develop professionally, especially with regard to working meaningfully with the board and in strategic planning. Sixth, conduct research on and adapt the extant research findings with respect to school foundations and determine the crucial factors that affect their success. Seventh, enhance the fundraising capability o f K – 12 schools so that they can effectively address emerging requirements (Else, Assisting K-12 Education through the National Center for Public and Private School Foundations, 2003).

Motivational Interviewing Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Motivational Interviewing - Research Paper Example This technique allows the practitioner to set up a supportive environment for a productive encounter. Expression of empathy encompasses acceptance and sincerity. This creates a feeling of not been alone among persons with problems. For instance, a person suffering from a chronic illness needs to realize that there other people dealing with chronic illness (Miller, & Rollnick, 2002). This technique prepares the patient for other therapies and MI techniques. Development of discrepancy is a basic element that defines MI objectives. It entails initiating an intentional conversation that allows individuals to identify their current position and determine its discrepancy with the position they intend to be or achieve. The technique allows patients to have a self-challenge and determination to achieve their objective (Prochasta, & DiClemente, 2008). For instance, a person struggling with drug abuse can begin a positive change through the discrepancy development technique. The technique allows the person to visualize the negative element about their current trends and the need to make timely interventions. The principal require motivational interviewers to resist from engaging in an argument with the person whenever he or she shows resistance. From the third principal of MI, a patient respond positively only when the therapist do not attack their feelings and ideas. Instead, a therapist should allow patients to identify their problems instead of pinpointing the problem. Avoiding argumentation allows therapist to create a supportive environment for patients to open up for information. For instance, a therapist interviewing a drug addict should allow him to view the consequences of his behavior instead of pointing out that drug abuse is a risky behavior. Resistance is a common encounter in MI that results when individuals argue against a change. For instance, if a therapist begins by making an argument on why

Nuclear Technology and Countries of the Persian Gulf Essay Example for Free

Nuclear Technology and Countries of the Persian Gulf Essay Nuclear energy has been used widely only for thirty years . In sixtieth it was an exotic source of power, researched by scientists, and widely discussed in press. Nowadays, as Ilan Lipper Jon Stone state in their article about nuclear powers and society, it is the second largest energy source in the U. S. There are more than 110 nuclear plants throughout the U. S, and they produce more energy than hydropower, oil or gas, researchers write. For the U. S nuclear energy became a cheap and relatively safe source of energy, and many countries decided to adopt American experience in this field. Today most European and Asian countries have nuclear plants that provide them with energy. Nevertheless, a question emerges which is whether it is safe to grant access to nuclear powers to countries of the Persian Gulf, like Iran, who are known for being aggressive and searching for the means to get weapons. Politicians and usual people all over the world are discussing this question. Their main fears are that nuclear power in wrong hands may be transformed into weapon, and thus harm the ecology severely. Discussions take place all over the world about the influence of nuclear power plants on the ecology. Some say that they are not safe, even when nuclear powers are used only as a source of energy, and not as a weapon. The thing is that nuclear power plants use radioactive materials like uranium and plutonium to produce energy, and there are toxic wastes left, the authors of encyclopedia entry on renewable energy source on NationMaster, a large statistical data source claim. They add that the results of one significant radiation leakage accident on Yucca Mountain were disastrous; so people should be really very careful when using nuclear energy as the source of electricity. In the same time, Ilan Lipper Jon Stone prove that the dangers of using nuclear power are overestimated. They state that unlike the wastes that stay after burning of coal, which stay toxic forever, nuclear wastes toxicity reduces with each passing day, as its elements are not stable. They prove that the amount of toxic wastes thrown into the air each year is less in the countries where nuclear plants are the main source of electricity, than in the countries where there are few or no nuclear plants. It is clearly seen that nuclear power is a very effective source of energy, and the damage it does to ecology in normal conditions is less than that of burning coal, or other means of getting electricity. Nevertheless human factor should not be forgotten. One serious human mistake is enough to let the effective and relatively safe nuclear power lead to disastrous consequences. In case an uncontrollable chain reaction emerges on the nuclear power plant, thousands of acres of lands and thousands of tons of water would be polluted, and the health of thousands of people would be damaged. The problem with nuclear power is that it is too powerful. When used correctly it can let governments save billions of dollars, as the energy produced by nuclear power plants is relatively cheap, and protect the environment from negative influence of toxic wastes other methods of getting electricity produce, but one mistake with nuclear power can lead to unpredictable and very serious consequences. Another serious problem with using nuclear power for producing energy is that the elements used for it can also be used for creating nuclear weapon. Human beings have always been at war with each other, and since prehistoric times they have been inventing more and more accomplished methods of murdering each other. On the present moment nuclear weapon is one of the most effective ones, along with bacteriological weapon. Nuclear weapon was used only two times in history, on Japanese cities Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945. It slaughtered all the dwellers of these cities, and polluted the area so that people could not live there. More than sixty years passed, and still no one lives in these places. The consequences of using nuclear weapon were so disastrous and cruel that humans finally understood they had to stop. Most countries signed various agreements stating that they would not use and produce nuclear weapons. Still many countries have nuclear powers, either officially on non-officially, but no one comes to the scratch to use them. Everyone understands that the first bomb dropped will became the end of the world we all live in. Nuclear weapon is so powerful that dozen bombs dropped can slaughter several millions of people, depending on bombs’ sizes. The country which became the target of the nuclear attack will fight back with nuclear weapon murdering people and making land unfit to live on. That is why the issue of giving nuclear power to aggressive countries like those of the Persian Gulf is so debatable. The leaders of these countries state they need nuclear power in order to make the life of their people better, enhance their economy and protect ecology. For example, Iranian scientists prove that the oil and gas resources Iran has are not enough for satisfying the countries need of electricity, as the plants that recycle them to get electricity are out dated, with tons of equipment broken. The article published in Herald Tribune states that the demand on electricity is getting bigger with each passing year, and using non-renewable resources like oil for satisfying it is not rational, and, moreover, dangerous for the country’s ecology. They add that 57 of 60 oil fields need major repairs and modernization in order to produce enough oil to satisfy the demand in electricity. In general their viewpoint is easy to understand, as they want to use the cheap and relatively safe method of getting electricity most European and American countries use. In the same time Iranian aggressive politics towards other countries makes everyone suspect that they can use nuclear powers in purposes other than producing electricity. Giacomo Luciani, the Director of Gulf Research Center, states in his article â€Å"The Gulf Countries and Nuclear Energy† that the resources of oil are scarce in Bahrain, Kuwait and Oman. He proves that soon there will not be enough of oil there to satisfy the existing demand in electricity. He adds that the restrictions USA and its allies impose on Persian Gulf countries in the issue of nuclear energy put their industries from adequate development. Luciani reminds that there are some industries within these countries, like aluminium smelting and water desalination that are of crucial importance to this region, and to other countries. His viewpoint is that given that Persian Gulf countries are gradually becoming industrial ones it is not rational to deprive them of the means to get cheap electricity, which is essential for all industrial fields. â€Å"The key to success is exactly in viewing nuclear technology as an economic, not a political or security choice. † – says Luciani. Nevertheless, given the political situation in this region the question of granting access to nuclear power cannot be viewed as an economic issue only. Some of the leaders of these countries are too ambitious to be satisfied with current situation. Of course most people who vote for creating nuclear power plants in Iran, Dahrain and other countries of this region in fact want to provide electricity. Their goal is to help develop industry in this region, in order to provide well-being to its dwellers. Meanwhile one person in power who desires control would be enough to create nuclear power plants to security threat. There are no warranties that the leaders of these countries will not be able to access nuclear power plants, as their powers in their countries are almost unlimited. In addition, terroristic groups functioning in Persian Gulf region should not be forgotten. Terrorists are people who are ready for anything to reach their goals; murdering thousands of people is not an ethical problem for them; again, there is no warranty they will not be able to access elements used for nuclear reactions on plants producing electricity. Nuclear energy is a relatively safe and cheap source of electricity nowadays. Most American and European countries use it. Some economists see nuclear plants as a universal solution for satisfying the demand in electricity. Meanwhile there are aspects about nuclear energy that have to be considered when using it. Using nuclear power may be dangerous, as an uncontrollable chain reaction may occur, and lead to nuclear explosion. In the same time the danger exists that nuclear powers may be used to create nuclear weapons. This fear is one of the main obstacles for giving Iran and other countries of the Persian Gulf access to nuclear powers. Researchers prove it would be beneficial for their economy, but, given the current political situation in that region, the decision cannot be the purely economical one. At the moment giving nuclear powers to Persian Gulf countries is too dangerous for the well-being of all the people in the world. References 1. Lipper, I. , Stone, J. (1998). Nuclear Energy Society. Earth and Society Interaction Project. Retrieved January 3, 2008 from http://www. umich. edu/~gs265/society/nuclear. htm 2. Luciani, G. (2007). The Gulf Countries and Nuclear Energy. Gulf Monitor, 6(20-23). Retrieved January 3, 2008 from http://www. grc. ae/data/contents/uploads/Gulf_Monitor_no_6_3450. pdf 3. Renewable Energy Source. (2005). Nation Master Encyclopedia. Retrieved January 3, 2008 from http://www. nationmaster. com/encyclopedia/Renewable-energy-source#Is_nuclear_energy_renewable. 3F 4. Sahimi, M. , Mojtahed-Zadeh, P. , Afrasiabi, K. L. (2003, October 14). Energy : Iran needs nuclear power. International Herald Tribune. Retrieved January 3, 2008 from http://www. iht. com/articles/2003/10/14/edsahimi_ed3_. php

Jeff Wall Photography Essay Example for Free

Jeff Wall Photography Essay Jeff Wall’s photography is a mixed media event that indulges more in narrative than in color, although color is an important part of his composition. Wall’s photograph is unique as well as reminiscent: his work builds off of the work of Delecroix and Manet. In this fashion Wall’s work combines a sense of artistic style with film and the ever present narrative. This paper will present three photographs of Jeff Wall with analysis on their use of narrative, color, composition and meaning (Holmes paragraph One). The Destroyed Room Jeff Wall’s expression in The Destroyed Room is in reference to window displays. In this photographer however the viewer gains a very different perspective than the neat and pedestrian window displays seen on 5th avenue during Christmas, instead Wall presents a room ripped apart. The main inspiration to the chaos as opposed to the control seen in typical window displays is in accordance to the punk style in which commodities and fanciful things such as high heels (as seen in the photograph) become a form of high class culture which the punks sought out to de-value as unnecessary. Wall’s ‘revenge’ as he states in this room is against domesticity, of corpulent people living mediocre lives in display window fashion instead of focusing on what lies beneath the surface of their culture: the dirt, the chaos, the room shredded in a protest against a docile living condition placated the rich. Of this photograph, Wall states, â€Å"†¦ I was lecturing on Romanticism. I think the Sardanaphalus is a very important picture historically and psychologically because it shows the eroticized ideal of military glory which characterized the Napoleonic period being turned inward, back toward domestic life at the end of that epoch, at the beginning of modern, bourgeois, neurotic private life† (MoMA paragraph One). Thus, this photograph is an elaboration on the idea that domesticity has no truth and thus the violence of the upheaval in the room. The Mimic Jeff Wall’s photography while alluding to specific figures in art, and their work, does not necessarily ‘steal’ from these works, but enhances upon the concept which the artist originally wanted to present to the audience. In this fashion, Wall’s photography does not mimic other photographers but merely, as the saying goes, builds upon their shoulders, and their work into an evolution of art. In the photograph The Mimic Wall illustrates this point: Wall’s photograph pays homage to the works of ‘Manet, Caravaggio, and Valezquez’ (MoMa paragraph Four) in that his focal figures are in the foreground of the piece, and they, as much as possible, appear to be life size (this is accentuated in their movement and their surrounding environment such as the buildings, the street and their placement next to one another). By using a trio as the focal point in The Mimic, Wall creates a specific dynamic between these figures in which the tension is very much palpable as the viewer may surmise from the look of the woman to the right of the man flipping off the other man, in the look of the central figure, one of angst, hate, and general animosity and the response of the figure on the left of the central figure in his response to being flipped off; the squint of the eye and the snarl in the lip â€Å"Mimic was made in 1982 and was a pictures in which I concentrated a lot on a typical gesture, perhaps a micro-gesture but certainly a small gesture of race hatred† (MoMA paragraph Six). Wall does not only build tension in the photograph but in the elapsing space behind the central figures is seen the tension emphasized. Thus, although the photograph is expansive in its depth, it’s size and its movement from one figure to another it is also a very traditional ‘portrait’ as is presented in Wall’s comparing of it to the three prestigious artists as mentioned above. Thus, although the crude behavior may be of a punk generation (the photograph was made in 1982), the candidness juxtaposes the classical feel of the piece. Milk Here again the viewer will see a typical motion of Wall’s in his photographer, that of explosion. Although most of his photographs portray the act of explosion after the fact (as in The Destroyed Room) this photograph portrays the act of explosion while midway through the air. This is in itself is a gesture of magnitude, as the other photographs mentioned in the paper only hint or makes previous reference to this motion (the racial hatred in The Mimic shows the subtle look of someone about to explode but not the full act). In this photograph Wall explores the natural shape and form of an eruption, as Wall states, â€Å"The explosion of the milk from its container takes a shape which is not really describable or characterizable, but which provokes many associations. A natural form with all of its unpredictable contours, is an expression of infinitesimal metamorphoses of quality. Photography seems perfectly adapted for representing this kind of movement or form. I think this is because of the mechanical character of the action of opening and closing the shutter—the substratum of instantaneity which persists in all photography—is the concrete opposite kind of movement from, for example, the flow of a liquid† (MoMA paragraph Ten). Thus, the action of the milk stands as an opposite to the camera’s shutter therefore mingling two opposite components into a single photograph which in itself becomes a mirror for fluidity. Conclusion Wall’s photographs have been explored in this paper as examples of movement, form, and the narrative of destruction in all three photographs is a palatable theme. This destruction as seen in accordance to denying domesticity, to what race hatred may bring out in people, and in the explosion of the milk carton all are facets of the same definition, that is, destruction breeds movement, as is seen in each photograph either with the lens, or beyond the lens and into the story of the photograph. Wall’s photographs are narrative pieces that focus on the artist’s own personal narrative to his predecessor’s in art such as Caravaggio and Manet and hit tribute to them in his work reflecting their genius and taking their development of human form and space to the next level; to the level of including personal narrative with photographic art, thus truly standing on the shoulders’ of giants and reveling in a new dream and progression of art into this new century. Wall’s photographs are a timetable from the past and into the future. This theme of destruction, or eruption and focus on the human condition only propels these ideas forward in a classical backdrop of foreground and space with the radical movements of the punk era and the politics of race matched with the fluid form of shapes, emotions, and that narrative is the theme which ties it all together. Work Cited Deutsche Guggenheim. Jeff Wall. 2007. Online. Retrieved 14 November 2007. http://www. photography-now. com/artists/K08545. html Holmes, T. Jeff Wall. Photography Art Contemporary. 2006. Online. Retrieved 14 November 2007. http://www. photography-art

Human resource practices at Tesco

Human resource practices at Tesco Identification of the organisations business strategy, mission and goals Tesco is, as Brand Finance (2014) notes, the largest retailer in UK, as well as being a highly significant retailer globally. As of 2014, Tesco is operating in 12 countries globally, and there are presently 6,780 Tesco stores. In addition, the company employs approximately 500,000 people worldwide. In addition to its core business in the grocery sector, Tesco has also diversified to offer a range of other products and services, such as personal finance and mobile phones. It has developed its ‘bricks and mortar’ business model to include an increasing emphasis upon modern day technology, through Tesco Direct (Ma, Ding and Hong, 2010) and the customer relationship management programme, Clubcard (Felgate, Fearne and di Falco, 2011). Business strategy Tesco’s has, as Schiraldi, Smith and Takahashi (2012) comment, a well-established and consistent business strategy that has enabled the company not only to strengthen the core UK business but also to expand successfully into a range of new markets. Those markets that were not successful, such as the US Fresh Easy stores, have been off-loaded in order to limit group-wide losses (Tyrell, 2014). Tesco’s business strategies mainly focus, as Wood and McCarthy (2014) further postulate, on the huge UK domestic grocery market, along with financial services, and telecommunications. Evaluating its business strategy, Schiraldi, Smith and Takahashi (2012) assert that one of the main objectives of Tesco’s business strategy is to create sustainable, long-term growth. According to Tesco plc (2014), this will be achieved by world-wide expansion. With this goal in mind, the company initially focused on expanding its business enterprises into Asia and central Europe. Tesco primarily focuses, according to Metzger (2014), on five key market sectors: 1) its core UK business, 2) the communities in which it operates, 3) non-food products, both within and beyond those offered ‘in store’, 4) retailing services, and 5) international markets. The company has, as this essay discusses, separate strategies for each of these aspects. The major objectives of Tesco’s business strategy include being a successful retailer internationally, facilitating the continued growth of the core UK business, being strong in the non-food market, the further development of various retailing services like telecommunications, Tesco personal finance and Tesco.com, and giving to the communities in which it operates, so as to strengthen brand loyalty (Piercy, Cravens and Lane, 2010). Tesco’s core UK business is the most important part of the entire business and accounts for 70% of group sales (Tesco, 2014). There are, as already noted, almost 3,400 Tesco stores employing around 310,000 people in the UK; these people are employed in five main, distinctively different, types of store, in order of size format: Tesco Extra, Superstore, Express, Metro, and One Stop. In addition, there are other format stores, such as Homeplus, Dobbies, and internet shopping options. There are presently 247 Extra stores, 482 Superstores, 195 Metro, 1,672 Express, and 722 One Stop stores, which, quite literally, give Tesco a presence in almost every town within the country (Tesco, 2014). In commenting upon how Tesco has developed its business model in light of lessons learned from the current global recession, it is suggested by Piercy, Cravens and Lane (2010) that the primary realisation has been that people want more value for their money but they do not want to compromise on product quality. This message can be seen to have been acted upon by Tesco in a number of ways. First, Tesco has enhanced promotion of its ‘Value’ range, coupled with less advertising of its premier ‘Finest’ range. Secondly, the rewarding of customer loyalty has led Tesco to create a world-leading customer loyalty programme called ‘Clubcard’. According to Tesco (2014), fulfilling corporate responsibility and creating value within the communities it operates are crucial for achieving growth. Tesco believes, as Blythman (2012) further notes, that each and every strategy that it designs has an impact on the community. Tesco’s strategies regarding corp orate responsibility include providing active support to local community, providing good jobs to locals, and taking care of the environment. In addition, the company is aiming to create zero carbon stores in the future (Rosethorn, 2009). The main objective of Tesco’s non-food strategy is to become as strong in this arena as it is in the food category. Tesco’s Dobbies, Homeplus and Extra stores are the three store formats where non-food products are available, the latter in addition to food. In 2000, Tesco Direct, the company’s online store where more than 125,000 products are available, was launched. The company has 25 distribution centres, out of which six deal with clothing and non-food products (Tesco, 2014). Cumulatively, these distribution centres deliver goods to an estimated 500,000 customers per week in the online sector only (Tesco, 2014); this division of the company has experienced rapid growth, showing the importance of diversification to the continued growth of the company (Ma, Ding and Hong, 2010). Tesco’s various retail services include Tesco Bank, Tesco.com and Tesco telecommunications. In the UK, Tesco Bank is the most successful supermarket bank (Scuffham, 2014), which once more shows how invaluable diversification has been to the continued success and growth of the group as a whole. Furthermore, developing Tesco.com was a strategy of keeping pace with modern trends in shopping which may result, in the future, in fewer resources being applied to traditional ‘bricks and mortar’ strategies, and more being routed towards on-line consumers. Identification of the organisations overall HRM strategy and goals This section discusses the overall human resource management (HRM) strategy and goals of Tesco. Given the global reach of the chain, it is imperative that managers make a complete and feasible HRM plan and use different strategies to manage employees. This will include changing strategies to account for local customs and variations (Brennan, Moore and Mughan, 2013). The human resource strategy presently utilised at Tesco’s revolves, as Merkel, Jackson and Pick (2010) discuss, around the training and development of employees, communication and consultation, and rewards and benefits linked to achieving targets. This triple-headed approach to HRM has been successful over the years and has helped the firm to retain and recruit well-motivated staff who present a professional appearance to customers and are proud to work for Tesco. The most significant part of the HRM strategy of Tesco is training and development in terms of both time and money (Tesco, 2014). Every year, Tesco emplo ys a large number of staff and a critical component of this, in addition to ‘front line’ shop staff, is the recruitment of high quality graduates from leading universities (Rosethorn, 2009). It is imperative, given the academic background of these recruits, that they are trained in ‘the Tesco way’ and introduced as quickly as possible to the corporate structure and mentality of the firm. This is why the training of graduates through specific recruitment programmes is essential (Merkel, Jackson and Pick, 2010). Tesco does not merely, however, favour graduates. It values all its staff as important resources and promises each of its employees that they will have a chance to develop their skill set and progress through the company (Fernie and Moore, 2013). This implies, in the opinion of the author, that each employee has the same opportunity to acquire essential skills relating to their work and the same opportunity to develop themselves to learn new knowledge . In the UK, skilled specialist employees in traditional occupations, such as fishmongers and bakers, can attain recognised qualifications during their careers at Tesco and, in 2008, 97.4% of shop-floor and 99.9% of Tesco.com employees in the UK were trained to bronze level (competent); 94.2% of shop-floor employees achieved silver level competence (expert or experienced). Such data suggests, as Ma, Ding and Hong (2010) comment, that Tesco realises the importance of investing in its staff and is keen to retain and develop a large number of skilled workers. In addition to the training programme evaluated above, Tesco has an Options development program. In this program, staff can select and learn skills that they need to grasp so as to progress to the next work level within the firm – this is, therefore, a form of self-guided career professional development. One in 30 employees of Tesco in the UK participate this programme, according to Tesco (2014). Mindful of its success, Tesco expanded this programme into Central Europe and Asia in 2009 (Brannen, Moore and Mughan, 2013). This suggests that different parts of the company can benefit from positive innovations trialled elsewhere. The second major part of its HRM programme is tied into issues pertaining to communication and consultation. Tesco wants to know the views of employees on problems which affect them and the wider company. This form of ‘bottom-up’ feedback is common in companies with a global presence, as Brannen, Moore and Mughan (2013) note. Managers are now encouraged to use different types of communication to gather feedback that can be used to develop the company further. This includes, according to Fernie and Sparks (2014), staff question times, face-to-face interviews, and use of the in-house internet. In addition, Tesco undertakes an annual staff survey and ‘Viewpoint’, which are anonymous and confidential (Tesco, 2014). Tesco uses these approaches to find the problems in working processes as soon as possible, so that it can address them and ensure that it responds to them in a manner so as to maximise returns. The third part of Tesco’s HRM strategy relates to rewards and benefits (Merkel, Jackson and Pick, 2010). Tesco tries to keep a competitive HRM edge over its major supermarket rivals by offering a basic wage that is as high as possible. This is enhanced by long-term reward plans and share bonuses (Tesco, 2014). Analysis of the various components of Tesco HRM Human resource management at Tesco involves various activities, including recruitment talent analysis, provision of a good working environment, programmes aimed at retaining employees who have good performance, and ensuring that all are treated equally (Rosethorn, 2009). These divergent trends within HRM are all important as, without them, employees may not feel valued. Increasing employee self-worth is, as Merkel, Jackson and Pick (2010) note, a valuable tool in the arsenal of the successful HRM practitioner because those who feel valued are likely to outperform less enchanted colleagues. In addition, a highly motivated workforce has been shown, by Fernie and Sparks (2014), to maximise the potential for high profit returns within a firm. It is also worth considering that ensuring equality in the firm is an important legal consideration given the right of all people to work in a safe environment that is free from bullying and respects human rights (Tushman and O’Reilly, 2002). For good employee relations the company also encourages its workers to work near their homes, which, as Piercy, Cravens and Lane (2010) observe, is a ‘green’ initiative that helps cut down on fuel costs and also reduces the time that individuals spend travelling to work. The company also gives their employees freedom of transfer, thus encouraging employee retention (Metzger, 2014). In addition, the use of shift work maximises the ability of people to work hours that suit their own timetables; thus, for instance, a student may be able to obtain an evening shift that does not interrupt his or her studies, whereas a mother of young primary school-aged children may be able to work during the day whilst the children are at school. This flexibility of working patterns, which is also important for the exchange of ideas and for the promotion of equality of faith (such as the need for Orthodox Jews not to work on Saturdays) are all factors that help Tesco to build a wide multicul tural team of workers that are attune to the attitudes of the individual communities that they serve. Indeed, as a result of the UK being a truly multicultural society, HRM can be seen to play a critical role in working towards the creation of a healthy work environment. Tesco also ensures that every employee knows his or her rights in the organisation, which can also be seen as a way of ensuring that employee unions are supportive of the market aspirations of the company (Rosethorn, 2009). That Tesco also embraces health and safety regulations and training may be seen as a further bonus. In addition, Tesco trains its employees on disaster management, which is not only a positive for staff but also for the shoppers who frequent Tesco (Blythman, 2012). That staff receive such training means that members of the public can shop in safety in the secure knowledge that in the event of a fire outbreak the staff are trained, and responsive. With regard to the use of human resource models, Tesco can be evaluated as using a range of different models to ensure that it meets it core business goals (Fernie and Moore, 2013). This is important to note within the confines of this essay because no two people are identical (in terms of their behaviour and personality traits), thus calling for different HRM approaches to be adopted to ensure that there is, within the workforce, harmony in the company (Merkel, Jackson and Pick, 2010). Tesco has, as Rosethorn (2009) notes, has resolved to u se a commitment-based model which does not force employees to meet frameworks. Rather, the achievement of goals is looked at as possible through respect, provided that there is co-ordination and self-control. This model calls for motivation and reinforcement in order to achieve the objectives of Tesco management and, as Tushman and O’Reilly (2002) suggest, employee opinions are taken into consideration and are used even during problem-solving processes. This model puts the employee at the forefront and helps to sustain motivation. Identification of areas that could be improved Tesco knows that it, in order to keep competitive in an increasingly cut-throat market, it has to keep sound strategies and build upon them (Wood and McCarthy, 2014). It is critical therefore, in accordance with the view advanced by Tushman and O’Reilly (2002), that human resource management continues to develop, identify, and strengthen the capacities of its staff. Tesco has a lot of employees who have substantial experience, and it follows that there is a key role for them to play in the training of new employees. In addition the company needs to train employees with expertise and ensure that they are kept up-to-date with regards to their key skill sets. The training concepts mentioned within this assignment work together to ensure that the organisation benefits from the increased competence of its staff. For rewards and wages Tesco is in line with existing laws and regulations and pays salaries according to the minimum wage law (Tesco, 2014). Nevertheless, further benefits could be accrued by making a more explicit linkage between performance and reward, especially with regard to the firm’s overall profits (Metzger, 2014). This would mean that when annual profits increase, there should be an increase in the salaries and rewards enjoyed by employees. Such rewarding of talent will have a positive impact on both workers and the company (Fernie and Sparks, 2014). Conclusion The human resource management department plays an important role in any organisation. Tesco has a well-documented, forward-thinking HRM department which is in tune with its overall business aims. Through the recruitment and retention of first rate staff and ensuring that all employees can perform to the best of their ability, Tesco increases the chances that its staff will be a positive asset (Merkel, Jackson and Pick, 2014). In addition, as Tesco increasingly diversifies its business portfolio, there is a need to ensure that all employees in each country in which it operates learn from best practice elsewhere (Brannen, Moore and Mughan, 2013). Indeed, if Tesco is to attain its global objectives, it is imperative that its HRM department continually evaluates its own performance (as well as that of employees), so that the company’s most important asset – its staff – can continually adapt to the changing needs and expectations of the company’s customers to h elp ensure that it retains its existing position of primacy within the UK supermarket sector (Metzger, 2014). Bibliography Blythman, J. (2012). Shopped: The shocking power of British supermarkets. London: HarperCollins. Brand Finance (2014). Global 500 2014: The world’s most valuable brands. Available at: http://brandirectory.com/league_tables/table/global-500-2014 [accessed 10 September 2014]. Brannen, M.Y., Moore, F. and Mughan, T. (2013). Strategic ethnography and reinvigorating Tesco plc: Leveraging inside/out bicultural bridging in multicultural teams. Ethnographic Praxis in Industry Conference Proceedings, London, September 16-18, pp. 282-299. Felgate, M., Fearne, A. and di Falco, S. (2011). Analysing the impact of supermarket promotions: A case study using Tesco Clubcard data in the UK. Kent Business School. Working Paper 234. Fernie, J. and Sparks, S. (2014). Logistics and retail management (4th edn). London: Kogan Page. Fernie, S. and Moore, C. (2013). Principles of retailing. Abingdon: Routledge. Ma, Y., Ding, J. and Hong, W. (2010). Delivering customer value based on service process: The example of Tesco.com. International Business Research, 3(2), 131. Merkel, J., Jackson, P. and Pick, D. (2010). New challenges in retail human resource management. In Krafft, M. and Mantrala, M.K. (eds) (2014). Retailing in the 21st century (2nd edn). Springer: Berlin, pp. 257-270. Metzger, K. (2014). Business analysis of UK supermarket industry. Master’s dissertation, Loughborough University. Piercy, N.F., Cravens, D.W. and Lane, N. (2010). Marketing out of the recession: Recovery is coming, but things will never be the same again. The Marketing Review, 10(1), 3-23. Rosethorn, H. (2009). The employer brand: Keeping faith with the deal. Farnham: Gower. Schiraldi, P., Smith, H. and Takahashi, Y. (2012). Estimating a dynamic game of spatial competition: The case of the UK supermarket industry. LSE Working Paper. Scuffham, M. (2014). Tesco takes on UK banks with current account launch. Reuters [online]. Available at: http://uk.reuters.com/article/2014/06/09/uk-tesco-bank-account-idUKKBN0EK24H20140609 [accessed 10 September 2014]. Tesco plc (2014). Annual report 2014. Cheshunt: Tesco plc. Tushman, M.L. and OReilly, C.A. (2002). Winning through innovation: A practical guide to leading organizational change and renewal. Cambridge, MA: Harvard Business Press. Tyrell, J. (2014). Introduction to socio-cultural influences. In Mutum, D.S., Roy, S.K. and Kipnis, E. (eds) (2014). Marketing cases from emerging markets. Heidelberg: Springer, pp. 9-11. Wood, S. and McCarthy, D. (2014). The UK food retail ‘race for space’ and market saturation: A contemporary review. The International Review of Retail, Distribution and Consumer Research, 24(2), 121-144.

Al-Ghazâlî, Causality, and Knowledge Essay -- Arabic Philosophy Philos

Al-Ghazà ¢là ®, Causality, and Knowledge ABSTRACT: Few passages in Arabic philosophy have attracted as much attention as al-Ghazà ¢là ®'s discussion of causality in the seventeenth discussion of Tahà ¢fut al-Falsafa, along with the response of Ibn Rushd (Averroà «s) in his Tahà ¢fut al-Tahà ¢fut. A question often asked is to what extent al-Ghazà ¢là ® can be called an occasionalist; that is, whether he follows other Kalà ¢m thinkers in restricting causal agency to God alone. What has not been thoroughly addressed in previous studies is a question which al-Ghazà ¢là ® and Ibn Rushd both see as decisive in the seventeenth discussion: what theory of causality is sufficient to explain human knowledge? In this paper I show that al-Ghazà ¢là ®'s and Ibn Rushd's theories of causality are closely related to their epistemologies. The difference between the two thinkers can be briefly summerized as follows. For Ibn Rushd, the paradigm of human knowledge is demonstrative science; for al-Ghazà ¢là ®, in contrast, the par adigm of human knowledge is (or at least includes) revelation. Yet both remain committed to the possibility of Aristotelian science and its underlying principles. Thus, I suggest that al-Ghazà ¢là ®'s stance in the seventeenth discussion sheds light on his critique of philosophy in the Tahà ¢fut: namely, philosophy is not inherently incoherent, but simply limited in scope. I also briefly compare this position to that of Thomas Aquinas, in order to place the view in a more familiar context. Few passages in Arabic philosophy have attracted as much attention as al-Ghazà ¢là ®'s discussion of causality in the seventeenth discussion of Tahà ¢fut al-Falà ¢sifa, along with the response of Ibn Rushd (Averroà «s) in his Tahà ¢fut al-Tahà ¢fut. A question which has been addressed ... ...onalist reading of al-Ghazà ¢là ®, translates the same as 'sheer vilification,' referring to the philosophers. Marmura's is clearly the better translation (tashnà ®' being the verbal noun of 'to vilify'), indicating that al-Ghazà ¢là ® is in fact referring back to the criticism made by the philosophers. The passage is at Tahà ¢fut, p. 296. See also Riker, p. 319. (12) Tahà ¢fut, p. 300, p. 258. English translation p. 330, p. 278. (13) Tahà ¢fut, p. 296. English translation, p. 325. (14) Tahà ¢fut, pp. 295-6. English translation, p. 324. (15) Tahà ¢fut, p. 294. English translation, p. 322. (16) Qurà ¢n 35.43, cited at Tahà ¢fut, p. 292. English translation, p. 320. See also Tahà ¢fut, p. 302, English translation, p. 333. (17) Tahà ¢fut, p. 296. English translation, p. 325. (18) Tahà ¢fut, p. 298. English translation, p. 327. (19) Tahà ¢fut, p. 84. English translation, p. 70.

Alcohol, Violence and Crime in America :: essays research papers

Alcohol is a dominant tool that controls the human’s body when it takes over its major systems. In addition, alcohol has a huge impact on people’s behaviors so that their behaviors go out of their control and could lead to things rather more serious. As a consequence of the impact of alcohol, crime rate increases dramatically under the influence of alcohol. On reason that supports this conclusion is that people who are addicted to alcohol but can’t afford buying would act aggressively to get access to alcohol by unmannered behaviors that some times could lead to serious crimes. In general, religions constitute the way of life humans should live no matter what kind of religion is that, and since the use of alcohol is either completely prohibited or not recommended, alcohol should be eliminated from any society to comply with god’s law’s just as people respect their government’s laws. However, the elimination of alcohol from a society at once is almost impossible and could result in severe incidents that could go beyond the control of the authorities. The best way to keep people away from alcohol is to make it hard enough for people to get alcohol; make them suffer to get the alcohol they need. Some of the ways a government could limit the use of alcohol is to increase its price dramatically by adding additional taxes and fees on those who sell alcohol so that its price will increase and wont be affordable for most of the people. The income of this increment should be spent on national awareness through media which would spread out the word about alcohol to people and warn them about the use of this evil product. Another restriction would be increasing the legal age of alcohol buyers from 21 to a higher age at which people would be responsible and think twice about the consumption of alcohol; a reasonable age would be around 25 I believe. Increasing the requirements of issuing alcohol licenses would limit the number of stores that sell alcohol so that people will need a bit more of time to get alcohol from a far place. In addition , limiting the quantity of alcohol sold to one individual would make him waste lots of time each time he wants to buy alcohol. Prohibition is not always the key of eliminating something from a society, but education is rather a better idea.

Rubber Company

Atlas Tire and Rubber Company 1) What were Atlas’ major challenges prior to the promotion of Walter Harrison as CEO? The main challenges faced by Atlas’ were competitive and financial challenges. As for the first time from 1905 the company was facing losses for consecutive 2 years in row as the company was facing a severe downturn. This was all because of the new challenges, which the company was facing due to their growth and expansion policiesThe company was also facing the competitive challenges from the low prices import products which were affecting their price strategy resulting in low profits, heavy slump in the automotive market in America also pulled back Atlas to regain its flagship. Due to all these the stock prices dropped down to 20 years low resulting in cutting down of credit rating to junk – bond status. So during this declining phase, the company needs some major transformational changes so that Atlas can regain its position and pride back. 2) Wh y did Harrison focus on an integrated supply chain as a significant element of Atlas’ new strategic plan?As Harrison and his team found that Atlas lacked integrated supply chain capabilities due to which disjointed distribution network was there and various third – partly logistic companies were used which lead to many problems and challenges. And logistics was only considered as a storage and distribution function rather than a strategic supply chain process. As Harrison came out with a strategic plan â€Å" Seven Principle of Growth† for turning around the Atlas’s fate. Harrison special focused on a superior and integrated supply chain.He focused on Integrated Supply Chain because he strongly feels that this would streamline the order and its fulfillment process so that they can be more accurate and easy to use because of their simplicity. The main focus was to deliver â€Å"the right tire to the right place at the right time while keeping costs and in ventories low. † Harrison wants to create an extra edge over the other tire manufacturers by creating the much better service capabilities. 3) What did the UST President, Michael Brogran, do to better understand customer needs? UST business defines Atlas’ s U. S.Tire business, which has the worth of producing, and selling 100 million tires per year and was generating approximately 50 percent of Atlas Revenue. Michael Brogran strongly feels that the superior supply chain was a vision that existed only on paper so he just made a team to understand customer needs in a better way. The main step the team had taken was to work across customer verticals, which were Consumer tires, Commercial Tires and Off Highway Tires. This structure help Atlas to better understand the customer needs in different segment and to meet them in different ways as needs were also different.As the part of this new alignment to understand consumers needs better Brogran facilitates cross company colla boration to identify interactions and collaboration and to share the best practices so that every department can better understand their customer needs for better visibility and control. 4) How did USTSC address the talent gap that they had in the organization? U. S. Tire Supply chain organization’s main objective was to integrate the planning and functional operations which included the responsibilities of contact centers, order management, pricing administration, distribution and delivery, billing and accounts receivable.USTSC was structured so that Atlas can understand & meet the needs of its customers that are classified under various segments likes consumer, commercial and off highway tires. The key goals of USTSC were – Lower the supply chain costs, – Boosting the customer services, – Improvement in the inventory management and associated working capital, – Simplifying the supply chain processes & management of the business. Initially USTSC c ame across major challenge with regards to talent gap.Reduction in headcount from several years impacted the internal supply chain analytical and execution capabilities. Moreover with five different 3PL (third party logistics) the focus was emphasized in managing the suppliers rather than the operations. After a thorough evaluation USTSC concluded that SCM (Supply Chain Management) was never a core competency of Atlas. In order to bridge the gap USTSC obtained assistance from organization that had expertise in planning and managing the complex supply chains.The synergy of these organizations was mutually beneficial to all the parties. Collaboration in supply chain planning, process development and service execution fetched superior results. Due to this synergy Atlas was able to leverage the expertise of Global’s supply chain & Global was in a position to gain a broader insight of Atlas’s requirements and supply chain capabilities. USTSC experienced a synergistic effect because of the Atlas-Global team and experienced more effective customer-supplier 3PL working model. Thus the talent gap was bridged by USTSC . Comment on the effectiveness of Atlas’ efforts to improve team-based strategic collaboration ? With the synergy of Global and Atlas, Atlas was in a position to leverage the expertise of Global’s supply chain & Global was able to derive a broader insight of Atlas’s requirements and supply chain capabilities. Alas-Global USTSC was able to develop team-focused, strategy-driven relationships that were unique in the 3PL industry. The organizations consistently maintained an active & effective coordinated participation across the supply chain sphere.Interactive teams from the three organizations facilitated the planning, developed and executed the key supply chain activities in order to achieve superior supply chain. The collaboration in team was very effective and was result oriented. The SCM team and the steering committee used to do brainstorming sessions to figure out new supply chain initiatives & at the other end the operations team and the SCM team evaluated and ensured the potential projects that could be implemented effectively and are favorable.The relationship building between the organizations was effective and there was a strong executive support from the top management. The organizations attained mutual benefits and they experienced more effective customer-supplier 3PL working model. There was effective synchronization in the strategies with regards to process design and execution. Allocation of resources was well planned and the responsibilities were well defined. More focused on the opportunities available. The integration of the team performance was able to create superior supply chain capabilities within the industry. . As O’Brien, what strategies would you recommend to Atlas to: A) Gain greater control over inventory; B) Optimize the flow of products in the supply chain. In ord er to gain control over inventory & to optimize the flow of products in supply chain: Implementing a centralized system within the 33 company owned regional distribution centers so that the information regarding supply chain, any innovations and critical information are accessible to everyone at one single point of time.Effective integration of the 4 third party logistics providers’ services would generate superior results. Forecasting should be done collaboratively by the Atlas sales group and manufacturing group in order to arrive at accurate estimates. Implementation of the ERP system like SAP would make it easy to figure out inventory analysis.A centralized system like SAP would also create transparency, easy availability of data, accessible to concerned department in a timely manner, constant flow of information, demand and supply of inventory can be balanced and can avoid instances like stock outs or over inventory carrying costs, more reliable and realistic, helps in d ecision making process, implementing a centralized approach in the transportation system, a well defined standard service parameter should be set and should get authorized by the compliance, regular audits and inspections should be done in order to check if there are any violations.

“A Secret Sorrow” by Karen van der Zee and “A Sorrowful Woman” Gail Godwin Essay

In both the excerpts from Karen van der Zee’s novel â€Å"A Secret Sorrow† and in Gail Godwin’s short story â€Å"A Sorrowful Woman,† the plots center on ideas of marriage and family. Conversely, marriage and family are presented in very different lights in the two stories. Karen van der Zee presents marriage with children as perfect and completely fulfilling; it is what Faye, the protagonist of â€Å"A Secret Sorrow†, wants and what is necessary to her happiness. For Godwin’s unnamed protagonist, marriage and family are almost the antithesis of happiness; her home life seems to suffocate hear and eventually leads her to death. â€Å"A Secret Sorrow† directly endorses and encourages marriage, whereas â€Å"A Sorrowful Woman† indirectly questions and discourages it. Both of the female protagonists in the two stories experience a conflict. In â€Å"A Secret Sorrow† Faye’s conflict comes before the marriage. She is struck with misery and torment because she cannot have children and fears that this will prevent her from marrying the man she loves. Both she and her beloved, Kai, desire marriage with children, and van der Zee suggests that only with these things will they truly be happy. Faye feels that her inability to have children is a fatal flaw that cuts her off from Kai’s love. â€Å"Every time we see some pregnant woman, every time we’re with somebody else’s children I’ll feel I’ve failed you!† (Zee 35). Faye’s anxiety and fear are based on the thought of losing her beloved Kai, accompanied by never having children. In â€Å"A Sorrowful Woman,† however, the conflict comes after the marriage, when the woman has already secured her husband and child. Unlike Faye, who would be ecstatic in this woman’s situation, the protagonist of Godwin’s story is not. Oddly enough, her husband and son bring her such sorrow that eventually she is unable to see them at all, communicating only through notes stuck under her bedroom door. Godwin’s character has a loving husband and child, yet in spite of this, she is still filled with grief. This sense of defeat is unimaginable when compared to a Harlequin romance because it goes against the assumption that the rest is happily ever after. In â€Å"A Secret Sorrow†, marriage is portrayed as the resolution. Van der Zee works to present the reader with the idea that only with this aspect will Faye be fulfilled and happy; it is what the entire story, with all the plot  twists and romantic interludes, works toward. Marriage is also the end in â€Å"A Sorrowful Woman† but not as expected: it is quite literally the end of the woman’s life. Though one doesn’t see what her life was like before her emotional crisis, there are hints of it. When she moves into a new bedroom, away from her husband, she mentions seeing the streets from a whole new perspective, which suggests the previous monotony of her daily life. In addition, when the woman bakes pies and bread and washes and folds the laundry, her son says, â€Å"She’s tired from doing all our things again,† (Godwin 42). This gives the reader the idea of what â€Å"our things† was and what the woman did with her time before her crisis. The monotony of marriage is absent in â€Å"A Secret Sorrow.† Faye’s inability to have children does not end Kai’s love for her, instead, the two go on to marry and adopt children. Faye’s married life is described in a very idyllic way: she raises her son and two daughters in a â€Å"white ranch house under the blue skies of Texas† (Zee 37). Once she is married and has children, there is no more anxiety because the plot leads one to the conclusion that marriage solves all problems and is a source of unending happiness. This greatly differs from Godwin’s tale, which takes place in winter and maintains a sense of cold. Whenever Godwin describes the family, it is in terms that suggest weight, guilt, or failure. The child’s trusting gaze makes the protagonist begin â€Å"yelping without tears† (Godwin 39). Any sign of life or love increases her sorrow and makes her want solitary. One case in point is when the hired girl brings her son to visit her with a grasshopper he’s found–something both alive and from the outside world; she gets very upset and forces her husband to fire the girl. It would appear that the girl is too much of an infringement on her space, too much of a reminder of what she can no longer be. The discrepancy between the two authors’ illustrations of marriage is most apparent when both women are viewing their families. Faye, sitting with her husband and watching her children play, feels that â€Å"life was good and filled with love† (Zee 37). Godwin’s protagonist, on the other hand, articulates, â€Å"The sight of them made her so sad and sick she did not want to see them ever again† (Godwin 38).When Kai, now her husband, embraces Faye, she feels,  Ã¢â‚¬Å"There was love in his embrace and love in his words and in her heart there was no room for doubt, no room for sorrow† (Zee 37). When Godwin’s heroine feels the loving touch of her husband’s arm and the kiss of her child, she cannot bear it any longer and cuts off all direct contact with them. The situation of her marriage forces her into a self-imposed imprisonment and indolence. She feels agonizingly poignant because she can no longer be who they want and need her to be. She avoids them not because she does not love them but rather because she loves them so much that it is too painful to see them and too troublesome for them to feel her failure. The axiom to Godwin’s story tells us that â€Å"Once upon a time there was a wife and a mother one too many times† (Godwin 38). The addition of â€Å"one too many times† to this traditional story opening forces the idea of repetition and monotony; it suggests that it is not the state of being a wife and mother that is innately dreadful but rather the fact that that is all Godwin’s character is. Day in and day out, too many times over, the woman is just a wife and a mother, and it isn’t enough for her. In van der Zee’s story there could be no such thing as too much motherhood or too much of being a wife. When Faye’s fears of losing Kai are assuaged, and she is happily married, it is as though a great weight has been lifted off her. Alternatively, Godwin’s character feels her marriage as a great weight pressing on her which results in her immobilization. When she leaves her room for a day and puts out freshly baked bread for her husband and son, they express their happiness in the notes they write to her that night, and â€Å"the force of the two joyful notes†¦pressed her into the corner of the little room; she hardly had space to breathe† (Godwin 42). Faye can be a traditional wife and mother, so her family is a source of joy. However, in Godwin’s character’s case, she can no longer be the traditional wife and mother, the representation of her own failure, which inevitably draws her guilt to push her further and further into herself un til she can retreat no further and ends her life. The closing stages of the two stories are powerful illustrations of the differences between them. In the end of â€Å"A Secret Sorrow† the author shows the reader Faye’s feelings â€Å"beautiful, complete, whole† (Zee 38) in her role  as a wife and mother. Godwin, on the other hand, leaves the audience with the protagonist dead on her bed. Godwin seems to give the reader hope by showing all that the woman has done when she says, â€Å"the house smelled redolently of renewal and spring† (Godwin 42). This makes the misfortune even harder when one discovers, along with the husband and child, the woman’s death. The ambiguous way the death of Godwin’s unnamed protagonist is dealt with reinforces the author’s negative tone towards marriage. It isn’t explicitly written as suicide; however, Godwin seems to encourage her readers to see it as the inevitable consequence of her marriage. Van der Zee creates a story full of emotional highs and lows, but one that leads up to and ends with marriage. After the marriage all of the plot twists and traumas come to a halt, replaced with peace and happiness. Faye is brought to new life by her marriage and children; she finds fulfillment of all of her desires in them. Godwin’s story, however, is full of post marital anguish and confusion. The character she creates is stifled and unquestionably unfulfilled by her marriage. A burst of creative energy right before her death produces, among other things, â€Å"a sheath of marvelous watercolor beasts accompanied by mad and fanciful stories nobody could ever make up again, and a tablet full of love sonnets addressed to the man† (Godwin 42). It is clear that the woman had talents and desires not met by the routine duties of her marital life. For Faye, the protagonist of â€Å"A Secret Sorrow†, marriage is the happily-ever-after ending she has wanted all of her life; for Godwin’s protagonist, marriage is just a monotonous and interminable ever after. In any case, humans cannot bear too much reality. Works Cited: Godwin, Gail. â€Å"A Sorrowful Woman.† 38-42. Van der Zee, Karen. â€Å"A Secret Sorrow.† 30-38. â€Å"A Secret Sorrow† by Karen van der Zee and â€Å"A Sorrowful Woman† Gail Godwin Essay In both the excerpts from Karen van der Zee’s novel â€Å"A Secret Sorrow† and in Gail Godwin’s short story â€Å"A Sorrowful Woman,† the plots center on ideas of marriage and family. Conversely, marriage and family are presented in very different lights in the two stories. Karen van der Zee presents marriage with children as perfect and completely fulfilling; it is what Faye, the protagonist of â€Å"A Secret Sorrow†, wants and what is necessary to her happiness. For Godwin’s unnamed protagonist, marriage and family are almost the antithesis of happiness; her home life seems to suffocate hear and eventually leads her to death. â€Å"A Secret Sorrow† directly endorses and encourages marriage, whereas â€Å"A Sorrowful Woman† indirectly questions and discourages it. Both of the female protagonists in the two stories experience a conflict. In â€Å"A Secret Sorrow† Faye’s conflict comes before the marriage. She is struck with misery and torment because she cannot have children and fears that this will prevent her from marrying the man she loves. Both she and her beloved, Kai, desire marriage with children, and van der Zee suggests that only with these things will they truly be happy. Faye feels that her inability to have children is a fatal flaw that cuts her off from Kai’s love. â€Å"Every time we see some pregnant woman, every time we’re with somebody else’s children I’ll feel I’ve failed you!† (Zee 35). Faye’s anxiety and fear are based on the thought of losing her beloved Kai, accompanied by never having children. In â€Å"A Sorrowful Woman,† however, the conflict comes after the marriage, when the woman has already secured her husband and child. Unlike Faye, who would be ecstatic in this woman’s situation, the protagonist of Godwin’s story is not. Oddly enough, her husband and son bring her such sorrow that eventually she is unable to see them at all, communicating only through notes stuck under her bedroom door. Godwin’s character has a loving husband and child, yet in spite of this, she is still filled with grief. This sense of defeat is unimaginable when compared to a Harlequin romance because it goes against the assumption that the rest is happily ever after. In â€Å"A Secret Sorrow†, marriage is portrayed as the resolution. Van der Zee works to present the reader with the idea that only with this aspect will Faye be fulfilled and happy; it is what the entire story, with all the plot  twists and romantic interludes, works toward. Marriage is also the end in â€Å"A Sorrowful Woman† but not as expected: it is quite literally the end of the woman’s life. Though one doesn’t see what her life was like before her emotional crisis, there are hints of it. When she moves into a new bedroom, away from her husband, she mentions seeing the streets from a whole new perspective, which suggests the previous monotony of her daily life. In addition, when the woman bakes pies and bread and washes and folds the laundry, her son says, â€Å"She’s tired from doing all our things again,† (Godwin 42). This gives the reader the idea of what â€Å"our things† was and what the woman did with her time before her crisis. The monotony of marriage is absent in â€Å"A Secret Sorrow.† Faye’s inability to have children does not end Kai’s love for her, instead, the two go on to marry and adopt children. Faye’s married life is described in a very idyllic way: she raises her son and two daughters in a â€Å"white ranch house under the blue skies of Texas† (Zee 37). Once she is married and has children, there is no more anxiety because the plot leads one to the conclusion that marriage solves all problems and is a source of unending happiness. This greatly differs from Godwin’s tale, which takes place in winter and maintains a sense of cold. Whenever Godwin describes the family, it is in terms that suggest weight, guilt, or failure. The child’s trusting gaze makes the protagonist begin â€Å"yelping without tears† (Godwin 39). Any sign of life or love increases her sorrow and makes her want solitary. One case in point is when the hired girl brings her son to visit her with a grasshopper he’s found–something both alive and from the outside world; she gets very upset and forces her husband to fire the girl. It would appear that the girl is too much of an infringement on her space, too much of a reminder of what she can no longer be. The discrepancy between the two authors’ illustrations of marriage is most apparent when both women are viewing their families. Faye, sitting with her husband and watching her children play, feels that â€Å"life was good and filled with love† (Zee 37). Godwin’s protagonist, on the other hand, articulates, â€Å"The sight of them made her so sad and sick she did not want to see them ever again† (Godwin 38).When Kai, now her husband, embraces Faye, she feels,  Ã¢â‚¬Å"There was love in his embrace and love in his words and in her heart there was no room for doubt, no room for sorrow† (Zee 37). When Godwin’s heroine feels the loving touch of her husband’s arm and the kiss of her child, she cannot bear it any longer and cuts off all direct contact with them. The situation of her marriage forces her into a self-imposed imprisonment and indolence. She feels agonizingly poignant because she can no longer be who they want and need her to be. She avoids them not because she does not love them but rather because she loves them so much that it is too painful to see them and too troublesome for them to feel her failure. The axiom to Godwin’s story tells us that â€Å"Once upon a time there was a wife and a mother one too many times† (Godwin 38). The addition of â€Å"one too many times† to this traditional story opening forces the idea of repetition and monotony; it suggests that it is not the state of being a wife and mother that is innately dreadful but rather the fact that that is all Godwin’s character is. Day in and day out, too many times over, the woman is just a wife and a mother, and it isn’t enough for her. In van der Zee’s story there could be no such thing as too much motherhood or too much of being a wife. When Faye’s fears of losing Kai are assuaged, and she is happily married, it is as though a great weight has been lifted off her. Alternatively, Godwin’s character feels her marriage as a great weight pressing on her which results in her immobilization. When she leaves her room for a day and puts out freshly baked bread for her husband and son, they express their happiness in the notes they write to her that night, and â€Å"the force of the two joyful notes†¦pressed her into the corner of the little room; she hardly had space to breathe† (Godwin 42). Faye can be a traditional wife and mother, so her family is a source of joy. However, in Godwin’s character’s case, she can no longer be the traditional wife and mother, the representation of her own failure, which inevitably draws her guilt to push her further and further into herself un til she can retreat no further and ends her life. The closing stages of the two stories are powerful illustrations of the differences between them. In the end of â€Å"A Secret Sorrow† the author shows the reader Faye’s feelings â€Å"beautiful, complete, whole† (Zee 38) in her role  as a wife and mother. Godwin, on the other hand, leaves the audience with the protagonist dead on her bed. Godwin seems to give the reader hope by showing all that the woman has done when she says, â€Å"the house smelled redolently of renewal and spring† (Godwin 42). This makes the misfortune even harder when one discovers, along with the husband and child, the woman’s death. The ambiguous way the death of Godwin’s unnamed protagonist is dealt with reinforces the author’s negative tone towards marriage. It isn’t explicitly written as suicide; however, Godwin seems to encourage her readers to see it as the inevitable consequence of her marriage. Van der Zee creates a story full of emotional highs and lows, but one that leads up to and ends with marriage. After the marriage all of the plot twists and traumas come to a halt, replaced with peace and happiness. Faye is brought to new life by her marriage and children; she finds fulfillment of all of her desires in them. Godwin’s story, however, is full of post marital anguish and confusion. The character she creates is stifled and unquestionably unfulfilled by her marriage. A burst of creative energy right before her death produces, among other things, â€Å"a sheath of marvelous watercolor beasts accompanied by mad and fanciful stories nobody could ever make up again, and a tablet full of love sonnets addressed to the man† (Godwin 42). It is clear that the woman had talents and desires not met by the routine duties of her marital life. For Faye, the protagonist of â€Å"A Secret Sorrow†, marriage is the happily-ever-after ending she has wanted all of her life; for Godwin’s protagonist, marriage is just a monotonous and interminable ever after. In any case, humans cannot bear too much reality. Works Cited: Godwin, Gail. â€Å"A Sorrowful Woman.† 38-42. Van der Zee, Karen. â€Å"A Secret Sorrow.† 30-38.

Branding Universities Essay

The end of the 1990s witnessed the corporatization of public universities in Malaysia resulting in the publication of corporate literature in these universities and the type of writing Fairclough (1993) refers to as the marketization of academic discourse. Marketization is necessary in public universities due to stiff competition in attracting students among the public universities as well as from the increasing number of private universities. This article reports how Malaysian universities re-brand themselves using the results of an investigation on corporate brochures from these universities. The investigation employs a structural analysis and a textual analysis. Although informative in nature, these corporate brochures exhibit the use of promotional elements in the texts as seen in the contents and the language use. The communicative functions of university brochures are viewed to be more promotional than informative. ABSTRACT KEY WORDS: brochures, corporate culture, genre analysis, re-branding, universities Introduction Academic institutions, particularly public universities, used to be regarded as the pinnacle of learning. Most of these universities were reputed for providing the best tertiary education and the mere mention of their names lit up the faces of those who had the privilege of learning from these fountains of knowledge and those who aspired to be associated with them. There was a time when admission was ‘by invitation only’, otherwise young men and women were seen struggling to gain admission into these prestigious institutions. These public universities acquired a promotional value (Wernick, 1991) without having to promote or market themselves. In advertising terms, these universities did not go through the process of branding. Branding is a fundamental strategic process of effectively marketing a product or service which includes creating a brand name and identity, designing Downloaded from http://dcm. sagepub. com by Heemal Kasseean on October 9, 2009 58 Discourse & Communication 2(1) the packaging and promoting the product or service (Randall, 1997). Although Randall (1997) argues that ‘brands (and therefore branding) are so fundamentally important to the survival and success of many firms’ (p.2), this was not the case in public universities in the past. This is significantly due to the fact that these academic institutions were claimed to be free from other influences as evidenced by Cardinal Newman’s view of universities cited by Wernick (1991) as: . . . the high protecting power of all knowledge and science, of fact and principle, of inquiry and discovery, of experiment and speculation; it maps out the territory of the intellect, and sees that . . . there is neither encroachment nor surrender from any side . . . (Cardinal Newman, 1847, cited in Wernick, 1991:151) That was the traditional image of public universities, independent of political or societal influence and this image was not built by advertising or branding. As centres of academe, public universities were known for their quality education based on the results of their graduates and their performance in the careers they embarked on upon graduation. As years passed, more aspiring young people would apply for admission in certain universities due to their reputation. This reputation in turn became the  image of the universities which automatically created the promotional value (Wernick, 1991) of these universities, mentioned earlier as the pinnacle of learning. Each university was identified by its name or logo and no further promotional strategies were required. By providing quality education, these universities successfully built ‘a distinct brand personality’ (Randall, 1997: 67) for themselves as the success of branding is justified when people are reminded of a particular brand just by looking at the logo or hearing its brand name. The traditional role of public universities was to manage society (Jarvis, 2001) by producing scholars in the various fields of study so that they can go out to make the world a better place to live or join the academia to continue producing scholars. However, towards the end of the 20th century, the role of universities started changing from serving the state in managing society to serving the industry and commerce in ensuring that people are employable (Jarvis, 2001). This is partly due to the demands of the contemporary knowledge-based society (Veitch, 1999) where consumers have become more knowledgeable and have started demanding for better education and improved quality of life. Changes started taking place in public universities in the West as early as the 1980s where the governments were forced to abolish academic tenure and decrease funding for these universities. This was when many traditional universities started transforming into corporate universities (Jarvis, 2001) where they have to assume a more corporate form and function more like a corporation. From being the centre of academe, universities have become business-like entities (Connell and Galasinski, 1998). In Malaysia, a number of public universities have recently been corporatized, a move taken by the Malaysian government in its effort to inculcate better and more efficient management of these institutions. As corporate culture (Treadwell and Treadwell, 2000) is a new culture in all these universities, most of them Downloaded from http://dcm. sagepub. com by Heemal Kasseean on October 9, 2009 Osman: Re-branding academic institutions with corporate advertising have set up corporate communications departments (Hajibah Osman, 2005) to handle corporate matters. Among the functions of these departments are managing corporate information and publication and projecting a positive image of the universities which are part of corporate advertising. Corporate advertising Business corporations use corporate advertising to enhance the image of the whole organization, or of the general brand in order to influence social values or to establish a connection between the corporation/brand and an already established positive value and in this era of identity, a lot of emphasis has been put on the importance of brand and corporate identities (Richards et al. , 2000). Unlike business organizations, universities are non-profit institutions. Public universities are viewed to use corporate advertising to enhance the strong foundation and to highlight the quality of these institutions of higher education. While it is common for business corporations to publish informative or promotional literature from time to time to inform the public about new developments in the organization (monthly or yearly reports) or to introduce new products or services (product launch leaflets), the use of promotional literature in academic institutions is a recent development. Malaysian public universities have started producing informative literature in the form of university brochures and special booklets in conjunction with certain celebrations in the universities as well as promotional literature in the form of leaflets providing brief information on academic programmes offered by the universities or introducing new programmes (Hajibah Osman, 2005). By employing new strategies to market their traditional image, from the advertising perspective, these universities are re-branding their products and services. Re-branding is the process of marketing an existing product or service of one brand with a different identity involving radical changes to the brand name, logo, image, marketing strategy and advertising themes (Wikipedia, 2006). In the advertising industry, re-branding is often referred to as re-positioning, that is, re-positioning a product or service in order to improve sales. Although there was no actual initial branding taking place in universities, being non-profit making institutions, the term ‘re-branding’ is used in this article to illustrate the change in the image of these universities particularly since the late 20th century. Significantly, this change has been effected without compromising the traditional characteristics and values of these institutions as the pinnacle of higher learning. The process of re-branding is aimed at improving the image of the universities by focusing on the facilities and highlighting the quality of the academic programmes. This article attempts to investigate the process of re-branding in public universities in Malaysia by conducting a genre analysis on university brochures, one type of print materials published by the institutions that represent corporate advertising. Analysing genres can lead to a ‘thick description’ (Bhatia, 1993) Downloaded from http://dcm. sagepub. com by Heemal Kasseean on October 9, 2009 59 60 Discourse & Communication 2(1) of the texts contained in these genres, explaining why certain texts have been constructed the way they are. The specific objective of this article is to identify and discuss the strategies used in the re-branding process based on the structural organization of university brochures and the communicative functions of this type of brochure. Previous investigations of advertising genres mostly focused on straightsell advertisements of products or services. Bruthiaux (2000), for instance, investigated how advertisers make use of a limited space available to them to create successful advertising copies by examining the syntactic features in an undisclosed number of display and classified advertisements. His results show that the degree of syntactic elaboration ‘varies substantially even when content of equal simplicity/complexity or familiarity to readers is being presented. This variation appears to correlate with perceptions of status on the parts of both writers and readers’ (p. 298) and the persuasive elements lie in the vacuous displays of linguistic sophistication designed to create a largely artificial sense of exclusiveness among status-conscious readers (p. 369). Investigations have also been conducted on the language of advertising in Asia, for instance, Tej Bhatia’s (2000) investigation of language of advertising in Rural India and Henry and Roseberry’s (1998) investigation of the linguistic features in tourist information brochures from Brunei. Thus far, there have been very few linguistic analyses conducted on the genre of corporate advertising. Therefore, the genre selected for analysis in this article is brochure, specifically corporate brochure from academic institutions. A brochure is a printed document of six or more pages, used to introduce an organization, published only once and distributed to special publics for a single purpose (Newsom and Carrell, 2001). The discourse community of Public Relations (PR) specifies five characteristics of brochures, three of which are related to the present article: always having a singular message statement; having a purpose – to persuade or to inform and educate; and attracting and holding the attention of the audience. Brochure genre makes an interesting study because, first, this genre is viewed as a ‘blurred genre’ (a term borrowed from Scollon et al. , 1999) in that the term ‘brochure’ has been used to refer to other forms of publications including booklet, flyer, leaflet and pamphlet (Newsom and Carrell, 2001). Second, a brochure is a genre of persuasive discourse shaping the thoughts, feelings and lives of the public (Dyer, 1993) placing it under the field of advertising. However, according to Newsom and Carrell (2001), brochures are produced by PR practitioners rather than advertising practitioners. This is probably due to the fact that PR, among other things, incorporates looking after the reputation of an organization ‘with the aim of earning understanding and support, and influencing opinion and behaviour’ (Beard, 2001: 7). The question of ownership arises placing brochures in an even more ‘blurred’ state as the communicative functions of brochures have been set by the discourse community to which the genre belongs. In the context of this article, brochures are categorized as a corporate genre (basically PR) involving the principles of corporate writing (Treadwell Downloaded from http://dcm. sagepub. com by Heemal Kasseean on October 9, 2009 Osman: Re-branding academic institutions with corporate advertising and Treadwell, 2000). Brochures are readily available, particularly in print version, and are easily accessible electronically. Finally, brochure genre needs to be investigated because brochure format is one of the most frequently used information formats in advertising and PR but is ironically the least written-about (Bivins and Ryan, 1991). Corporate genre in academic institutions This article establishes that any publications from universities, particularly those produced by the Corporate or Public Relations Office, are referred to as corporate genre. Corporate brochures are usually categorized as informative brochures (Richards et al. , 2000) providing all the necessary information about the organizations they represent. There are certain corporate elements present to qualify them as corporate brochures, but mostly these brochures are informative. However, an analysis of corporate brochures from multinational corporations by Askehave and Swales (2001) prove that these brochures also function to promote the organization. This is evident in the presence of promotional elements selected as syntactic choices in these brochures. Corporate brochures also function to establish long-lasting trading relationships which are in fact paramount in today’s industrial market. Hajibah Osman (2005) also notes that corporate brochures from academic institutions are promotional in nature with the use of promotional strategies apart from corporate and informative strategies. Another corporate genre in academic institutions, the university prospectus, started changing in form in the 1990s (Fairclough, 1993) where apart from providing information on the core business of the university, that is, the academic programmes, the prospectus has also included information on other aspects of the universities. Based on a critical discourse analysis of prospectuses from a number of British universities, Fairclough notes that these universities started promoting their programmes because they have come increasingly under (mostly government’s) pressure to operate like other types of businesses competing to sell their products to consumers. The university prospectus has become a ‘genre of consumer advertising colonising professional and public service orders of discourse on a massive scale, generating many new hybrid partly promotional genres’ (Fairclough, 1993: 139). Academic institutions in Malaysia have also published promotional leaflets (Hajibah Osman, 2005) to advertise their academic programmes and these are circulated to potential students particularly before a new academic year begins. These leaflets are no longer the plain, boring information sheets but colourful and interesting ones. This article concurs with Askehave and Swales (2001) that corporate brochures function as promotional brochures more than projecting the corporate image and providing information. Thus, the investigation in this article attempts to identify and discuss the strategies that realize the promotional functions in this type of brochure as part of the re-branding process in public universities. Downloaded from http://dcm. sagepub. com by Heemal Kasseean on October 9, 2009 61 62 Discourse & Communication 2(1) Methodology In 2005, there were 11 public universities in Malaysia (currently, there are 20). Brochures were obtained from the 11 universities and were initially analysed to identify the possible structural organization. Based on the organization, the communicative functions of these brochures were determined. The 11 public universities included in this investigation are: International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM/UIA); Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM); Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM); Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS); Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (UNIMAS); Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM); Universiti Perguruan Sultan Idris (UPSI); Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM); Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM); Universiti Utara Malaysia (UUM); University of Malaya (UM). A textual analysis was conducted to examine the strategies used in the rebranding process. The strategies in the context of this article are tactical choices (Bhatia, 1993) which are cognitive processes ‘exploited by the writer to make writing more effective keeping in mind any special reader requirements, considerations arising from the use of medium or constraints imposed by organizational and other factors’ (p. 20). The strategies used by universities in re-branding the institutions are discussed within the framework of the sociolinguistic theory which considers writing as ‘part of the overall activities of a group and organization’ (Gunnarsson, 1997: 140) and in relation to the corporate culture (Hagberg and Heifetz, 2000) practised by the universities. As a genre is a typical form of utterances, it should be studied in its social contexts of use (Berkenkotter and Huckin, 1993). Sociolinguistics does not only describe linguistic variation and the social context in which such a variation occurs, but also shows how linguistic differentiation reflects social structure (Coupland, 2001). The sociolinguistic perspective in this article considers the existence of factors underpinning the construction of university brochures and the concept of promotional culture (Wernick, 1991). Re-branding academic institutions It has been established that university brochures form part of the corporate advertising strategies in Malaysian universities which in turn are part of the rebranding process in these traditional institutions. The structural organization in these brochures consists of 10 sections identified as moves (Table 1). Some of the moves are exemplified with extracts from the university brochures in Figure 1 (see Appendix). In identifying the moves, the term ‘service’ is used to refer to the educational services and the support services offered by the universities. All the brochures from the 11 universities include Moves I, C, L, D, J and S, indicating that these six moves are obligatory. Ninety-one percent of the brochures include Moves A, T and E, while 81 percent include Move V, making them optional moves. The 10 moves have been used to realize three communicative functions of the university brochures which are: †¢ To inform the public about the academic programmes offered in the university and the facilities and other services available to support the academic programmes; Downloaded from http://dcm. sagepub. com by Heemal Kasseean on October 9, 2009 Osman: Re-branding academic institutions with corporate advertising †¢ †¢ To portray a corporate image of the university; and To promote the university as an academic institution based on the quality and the variety of academic programmes offered as well as the facilities available. These communicative functions of university brochures correspond with the general functions of brochures (Newsom and Carrell, 2001) set by the discourse community of PR. Re-branding strategies The 10 sections in university brochures have been identified as moves and these moves are realized with the use of strategies, and for the purpose of discussion in this article, re-branding strategies. The article discusses how the strategies contribute to the re-branding process and what their communicative functions are. NAME AND LOGO The first move in university brochures is called identifying the service which presents the name and the logo of the university. Although the brochures are in English language, the names of the universities are in Malay, the national language of Malaysia except two universities, International Islamic University Malaysia and University of Malaya. The names of the public universities were officially changed to Malay when the national language was made the medium of instruction in the mid-1970s. In the case of IIUM, however, the acronym by which it is commonly referred to by Malaysians is the Malay version, UIA. Similarly, University of Malaya is now popularly known as Universiti Malaya (UM). Interestingly, alumni up to the early 1980s still refer to this oldest university in the country as MU (Malaya University). TA B L E 1. Structural organization of university brochures Section Move identification Name of the university University slogan or motto Vision/Mission statement Profile or background of the university Location and size of the university Academic programmes offered at the university Facilities available to support the academic programmes Entry requirements, fees charged and duration of the programmes Career opportunities and recognition received by the university Contact addresses and telephone numbers Identifying the service (I) Attracting reader attention (A) Targeting the market (T) Establishing credentials (C) Locating the service (L) Describing the service (D) Justifying the service (J) Indicating the value of service (V) Endorsing the value of service (E) Soliciting response (S) Downloaded from http://dcm. sagepub. com by Heemal Kasseean on October 9, 2009 63 64 Discourse & Communication 2(1) In the past, universities were identified by their crests but now these crests have been generally referred to as logos. Although it cannot be ascertained when the change exactly took place, this is the first re-branding strategy. However, this is not an obvious re-branding element because some of the established traditional universities in the world still use the term crest, for example, Oxford University (http://www. ox. ac. uk/web/crest.shtml). As far as Malaysian universities are concerned, both terms are similar and a recent survey of the university websites shows that most of the public universities in Malaysia refer to the crest as the logo while two universities (UKM and USM) refer to them as emblems. Most of the websites also provide the rationale for the design of the logo (e. g. UiTM, UPM). Whether used as crest, logo or emblem, interestingly, there are two common shapes observed: the shape of a shield (six universities) and a round shape (five universities) (Figure 2, see Appendix). The shape of USM’s emblem differs significantly from other logos in that it resembles a state emblem. This qualifies for the use of the term ‘emblem’ (a heraldic device or symbolic object as a distinctive badge of a nation, organization or family – Oxford Dictionary and Thesaurus, 2001) by the university. Although the current shape of UPSI’s logo is round, it once had the shape of a shield (Figure 3, see Appendix). Compared with the logos of established universities which include traditional designs representing the academe, the current logos of Malaysian public universities include elements of modern designs. In fact, some of these logos have gone through some kind of ‘evolution’ as in the case of UiTM, UPM and UPSI. UPM ‘evolved’ from a training school to a college to a university focusing on agriculture. Later, the university started including more disciplines and the name was changed from Universiti Pertanian Malaysia (Malaysia University of Agriculture) to Universiti Putra Malaysia (Putra University of Malaysia) in 1997, taking after the name of the first prime minister at the same time keeping the same acronym. UPSI and UiTM underwent almost similar ‘evolution’; from a centre to a college to an institute and finally to a university. Throughout the ‘evolution’, the logos have also gone through many changes where the concept incorporated in the logos mainly represents the focus of the university. While UPSI’s logo changed in shape but not in concept, UiTM’s and UPM’s logos underwent a total facelift (Figure 3, see Appendix). This is probably due to the fact that UPSI’s focus of training teachers remains throughout. MOTTO AND SLOGAN A motto is a short sentence or phrase that expresses a rule for sensible behaviour, especially a way of behaving in a particular situation (Collins Cobuild Dictionary, 2001). Most of the university logos have the motto inscribed on them as the motto represents the culture or the way of life in the university. Once again, all the mottos of the public universities are in Malay. The more established universities still retain this culture inscribed in the logo as seen in UM’s motto (translated as) ‘Knowledge, the Source of Development’, UPSI’s ‘Knowledge, the Beacon of Pure Character’, UTM’s ‘By the Name of God for Mankind’ and UUM’s ‘Scholarship, Downloaded from http://dcm. sagepub. com by Heemal Kasseean on October 9, 2009 Osman: Re-branding academic institutions with corporate advertising Virtue, Service’. UPSI keeps the same motto inscribed on the logo throughout its ‘evolution’ but UiTM left out its motto of 39 years from its new logo. The newly established universities (UMS and UNIMAS) do not have a motto inscribed in their logos. While a motto is a traditional feature of a public university, having a slogan is a new phenomenon. A slogan is a distinctive catchphrase that serves as a motto for a promotion campaign (Wells et al., 2003) used to sum up a theme for the benefit of the product or the service in order to deliver a message in a few words which are easily remembered. There are two types of slogans (Russell and Lane, 1990): hard-sell slogans are strongly competitive, epitomizing the special significant features of the product or service being advertised. Institutional slogans establish a prestigious image for companies which they need in order to enhance their products or services. Slogans in university brochures fall under the category of institutional slogans. Again, it cannot be ascertained when universities started creating slogans but there is a strong probability that they started at the same time when Malaysian public universities were undergoing corporatization in the late 20th century. Slogans started appearing on brochures and prospectuses of these public universities. The use of slogans has been viewed as a significant re-branding strategy as slogans represent the most promotional element in advertising. The purpose of having a slogan is to attract the reader’s attention and to let it linger on the reader’s mind. According to Russell and Lane (1990), the memorability of slogans can be enhanced by making use of literary techniques. These techniques consist of certain types of words including: †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ Boldness – use of strong powerful words, and startling or unexpected phrases; Parallelism – use of a repeated structure of a sentence or phrase; Rhyme, rhythm, alliteration – use of repeated sounds; Aptness – use of appropriate, direct words (Russell and Lane, 1990). Slogans in university brochures have been created based on good advertising principles as they have been observed to make use of the literary techniques, for example: †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ boldness: Garden of Knowledge and Virtue (IIUM) parallelism: The National University with an International Reach (UKM) aptness: Your Inspiration parallelism: Contemporary and Forward Looking (UNIMAS) boldness: Towards a World-Class University (UPM) boldness: Towards Excellence and Supremacy (UPSI) Boldness is exemplified with words such as ‘virtue’, ‘world-class’ and ‘supremacy’ where the universities are bold enough to associate themselves with such high stature. Traditionally, public universities are centres of academe which do not portray an image of flaunting. Slogans using parallelism aim for jingle-like sounds so that readers can remember them easily while aptness acts like punchlines, strong and effective to be easily remembered. The bottom line is that a slogan is an Downloaded from http://dcm. sagepub. com by Heemal Kasseean on October 9, 2009 65 66 Discourse & Communication 2(1) advertising concept and a marketing tool. The fact that public universities as nonprofit making academic institutions use slogans place them in a different light. They are currently functioning more like business entities. MISSION STATEMENT This move is identified as targeting the market based on the communicative functions of the mission statements. A mission statement provides information about what type of organization it is and what it does (Falsey, 1989) at the same time highlighting the positive factors in the organization. Stating the mission of the university is viewed as one of the two crucial strategies (the other being using slogans) in re-branding academic institutions as this move never appeared in academic genres before. This move has placed public universities in the same league as other successful corporations. Mission statements of public universities in Malaysia are observed to provide information as to what and how they can contribute to the public in terms of tertiary education as highlighted (underlined) in the following examples: (10) To become a distinguished university, aspiring to promote academic excellence in higher education and professional training necessary for the country’s socio-economic development (UiTM). (11) To be a premier university seeking excellence in the advancement of knowledge to meet the aspirations of the nation (UM) (12) To become an exemplary university of internationally acknowledged stature and as a scholarly institution of preference and choice for students and academics through the pursuit of excellence in teaching, research and scholarship (UNIMAS) (13) To lead in the development of creative human resource and technology in line with the aspirations of the nation (UTM). The words ‘distinguished’, ‘premier’, and ‘exemplary’ are used to emphasize the quality of the universities. Other words like ‘excellence’, ‘advancement’ and ‘stature’ as well as ‘to lead’ are all bold words of promise by the universities. PROFILE OF THE UNIVERSITY This section is identified as the move to establish the credentials of the university as it provides information on the background and/or the current status of the university. The background information includes the date of establishment and the reason for the establishment while information on the current status of the university usually includes the achievements of the university in terms of academic programmes and physical development as well as the quality of the programmes offered. This move is supposed to be informational but there are a number of instances where the brochures provide the information on the current status of the university using ‘promotional’ words and phrases. For example: (14) UNIMAS is an ISO-certified university . . . Its undergraduate programmes have been designed to suit the needs of society and industry. Downloaded from http://dcm. sagepub. com by Heemal Kasseean on October 9, 2009 Osman: Re-branding academic institutions with corporate advertising An ISO certification for an organization confirms the quality of that organization and it is now a common practice among public universities to obtain such certification to convince the public about the quality of the university, particularly the academic programmes on offer. Universities with ISO certification usually highlight it in their brochures as a strategy to promote the institutions. Other instances of promotional words can be observed in the following examples: (15) The university is the catalyst for regional growth in the northern region of Peninsula Malaysia (UUM) (16) From these humble beginnings, UM grew hand-in-hand with the young nation to become the nucleus for producing graduates of the highest quality and calibre. The word ‘catalyst’ denotes the importance of the university in the regional growth of the northern region of the country, without which there would not have been much growth in that region, thus promoting the significance of the university. Similarly, the word ‘nucleus’ conveys the significance of UM to the developing nation. Another instance is when a university states the commitment of the university to the public or the nation. UPM boldly states its commitment to become a worldclass university to convince the public to come and enrol in this university. (17) Named Universiti Putra Malaysia in honour of the pioneering Prime Minister of Malaysia, . . . has adopted this pioneering spirit and is committed to become the world class Univers.