Organization Evaluation

The organization that I will describe today is where I work, at Applause's. Here we have a vertical structure that consists of the owner, general manager, four managers, and all employees directly below them. The owner has complete control and say over everything that goes on in the restaurant. The general manager receives information on how to run and operate from the owner and relay that information down to the four members of management directly below him. Their Jobs are to collect information from the general manager and use that to complete their tasks and engage the employees under them.Each member of management has their own crew that they run, create schedules for, and help when problems arise. There is the kitchen manager who runs the kitchen crew and oversees the kitchen employees schedules, the food prep, and cleaning. There is also the bar manager who creates bartender schedules and training, as well as liquor costs and control. The staff manager creates schedules for the hosts and servers, controls the flow of the seating and dining experience, and ensures that the customers are happy.Finally the fourth anger is the assistant manager who can help out all managers with their duties and has basically the same responsibilities as the others but without a direct pool of employees. If business gets poor he will be able to assist every area of the restaurant. This form of organization varies from a horizontal structure because, although there are several managers on one level and all employees on one level, all employees report to a separate manager who resolves any issues, problems, or conflicts.There is no confusion as to who to report to and information is kept organized and accurate because there is only one person to report to. A horizontal structure in my company would have several managers for each section of the restaurant. There would be two or more kitchen managers, staff managers, bar managers and assistant managers. Although the assistant man ager helps out with everything in the restaurant, there is still only one manager for each area of the restaurant.Another form of organization would be a functional form of organization where the organizations â€Å"are specialized and grouped according to business unction's and the skills they require: production, marketing, human resources, research and development, finance, accounting, and so forth† (Bateman & Snell, 2011). The company I work for is similar to this form because all areas of the restaurant are separated into several areas where one person runs, maintains and regulates what goes on in that area.The only real downside of this type of organization is if it were in a very large company. Information and workloads may become too great for one person to handle. In this case, information can get lost and radioactivity can slow because of management becoming over worked. As the book states, â€Å"this type of structure may be most appropriate in smaller business se ttings and if the business becomes fragmented it may have difficulty bringing new products to customers and responding quickly to customer needs† (Bateman & Snell, 2011).I do not feel like the marketing department has anything to do with how the company's organizational structure because it is a chain restaurant. Therefore marketing is done at another location and does not interfere with how this branch is run. The name goes for the finance area, although they are pretty tight on the financial aspect so I feel like a vertical structure was chosen to save money. If they had a horizontal structure they would need to spend additional money on extra employees and or managers.Human resources' is also an area I feel is not affecting how the structure of our branch is run. However operations do affect how the structure is set up. Our shifts and workload is directly affected by the business that comes in. If there is a lot of business we will all have plenty of shifts and be able to w ork enough to make accessory money. If business gets poor enough all employees will be cut and management will take over and do our Jobs. I always hear the managers' talk about labor costs to sales and when sales are low people are asked to leave to save money.I think that by having a vertical structure the restaurant saves the most money because people and managers not only have one division of employees but are crossed trained in order to save money when needed. When looking at geographic, organizational, customer based, product, marketing channels, and personalization organizational design, these help determine which structure best suits the company I work for because we base the work we do (how much and for how long) entirely on sales and revenue that the company brings in.When you get into the human recourse and marketing area of the company the Jobs are stable and not reliant on sales. The organizational structure that we have is based off of customers. The larger part of the company would have maybe a horizontal structure when we get into marketing and there might be several managers controlling this rear because the demand for new food, advertisements, and ways to save money are a never-ending need which means that many brains are needed and that they will pay more people to work these Jobs which means the need creates the organizational structure of a horizontal structure.Because the actual restaurant is also customer based it means that based on sales, the structure is determined by the customer. If sales are high we can have more people on shift. If sales are low they have to ask people to leave and cut shifts so a vertical organization is ideal because each anger knows how to perform the employee tasks and can take over if necessary.Also by having a vertical organization the company is saving money on the restaurant level because they do not have to hire multiple people to do one Job. In the end the company I work for, on the restaurant level has a dopted a vertical form of organization which I feel is the best option because it saves money by adapting to a customer needs based environment. One manager monitors and controls many employees.

Cyrano/Roxanne Comparison Essay

Cyrano writes letters to Roxanne telling her how much he loves her, pretending to be Christian. He loves Roxanne, but feels that he is ugly and could never get her to love him back because of his huge nose. The book and movie have the same main characters playing the same roles. Cyrano is charming, poetic, and witty with a huge nose in both the book and the movie. Women love Cyrano as a friend but nothing more. In the book, Cyrano is a famous sword fighter who fights people. In the movie, Cyrano is the fire chief who fights fire. Cyrano is Roxanne’s distant cousin in the book, but in the movie, they meet when they are adults and are friends. Christian works for Cyrano in both the movie and book. In the play it discusses about the strengths and weaknesses of Cyrano, it is explained that Cyrano and C. D. both have love for Roxanne and that they are both skilled characters, the weaknesses are that Cyrano doesn’t really tell roxane in the play that he is in love with her but in the movie Bales does tell Roxanne how he feels but not face to face. The similarities of christian and chris are that they both ask for help on what to say to Roxanne, christian in the play asks Cyrano if he could talk to Roxane for him because he is very nervous when he talks to women, in the movie it is shown that bales and chris are workers and friends, but chris runs off and vomits every time he see’s Roxanne in either the bar where he runs off with sandy the bartender or Dixie’s diner( Raguneau bakery in the play). Christian and chris’s character traits are both the same and I think the author of the play and the director of the movie did an awesome job comparing the two in a more modern day form. C. D. Bales has a spilt personality just like Cyrano does in the movie because it is detailed that they both get insulted cause of the enormous nose but they handle it well with Cyrano sword fighting against others in the play and bales humorously fighting two tennis players with a tennis racket and also in the bar with 20 jokes to a dart champion. Both of the characters put the needs of others before himself, in both the play and the movie Cyrano and c. d. help chris/christian out with what type of letter he should send to Roxane/ Roxanne because it’s very hard to talk to her in person.

University should be free

Thesis: University should be free. Today, university fees are usually quite high. Many students find that it is extremely difficult to find the funds to pay for an expensive education, so they look for school loans. These loans can weigh heavily on the minds of university students and put too much pressure to lead to students dropping out. Thus, free higher education is necessary for everyone. B. Terms define * University: A university is an institution of higher education and research, which grants academic degrees in a variety of subjects. University provides both undergraduate education (also called first degree, bachelor's degree or simply degree) and postgraduate education. A postgraduate degree is one earned after receiving a Bachelor's degree. Examples of postgraduate degrees are master degree, doctor degree †¦ * University is free: University is free means that access to higher education should be available to all who desire it and should be available without regard to ability to pay. C. Background Information Today, university payment is so very high that many students cannot learn at university. Only the wealthy families can afford to send their children to universities, and the families having low incomes cannot. Moreover, those students with low-income family are hard to get good jobs that need professional skills. If students want to learn at university, they have to borrow money from government for covering the cost. That will give them the huge loans. These loans can weigh heavily on the minds of university students and put too much pressure to lead to students dropping out. Hence, university should be free for everyone. Every student can learn at university without paying tuition payment. In addition, students have more money to pay for books, rent, foods, study material, clothes when they learn at university. D. Arguments First Argument: University should be free because university fee weigh heavily on the minds of university students and students suffer with financial issue or money trouble. That is the reason for many students drop out of university. E. First argument * First Argument: University should be free because university fee weigh heavily on the minds of university students and students suffer with financial issue or money trouble. That is the reason for many students drop out of university. * University fees are usually very high. When student go to university they realize that it is too difficult to find the funds to pay for university fee. They will search for school loans. Student loans are the great help if students need some financial assistance to get through university. These loans can weigh heavily on the minds of university students, and put inordinate amounts of pressure to lead to students dropping out to earn money and pay back their student loans. In the United States, for example, many students obtain loans for higher education. The student loans debt statistics from Chronicle. com (date July 9, 2009) show that nearly 20 million Americans attend university each year. Of that 20 million, we have 60% students borrows annually to help cover cost and the average student loan debt of graduating university was about $58,000 before interest payments and typically $10,000 more including interest. This me ans that when students graduate from university, instead of working to make money for their future, they are working to make money to pay back their past. Especially, if their family could not afford their school loan, they will drop out of university to take the job. Even the jobs do not suit for students and the repayment of loans can take many years. The statistic from website http://www. asa. org shows that we have two out of five student loan borrowers – or 41% – are delinquent at some point in the first five years after entering repayment. In addition, from 2004 to 2009 there was 33% students drop out of university before earning a degree to struggle most with student loans. If university is not free, students will pay a lot of money for their study. That is the main reason lead to student drop out of university. * With free university education, student can go to university without crushing debt burden. University can offer a huge opportunity and student can study what they wish. Student will have more money to pay for their books, living, and other costs when they learn at university. * The statistics from website http://www. utoronto. ca show that the cost of living in Canada, and in particular Toronto, is very high. When students want to learn at university, they have to pay a lot of money for living expenses. In conclusion, it is clear that university should be free. University should be available to all who desire it and should be available without regard to ability to pay. Because the cost that students pay for their study at university is very high, many students will drop out of school to take jobs, earn money and pay back their student loans. Students cannot get the good jobs because they do not finish their study to ge t the graduation. It takes many years for students repay the debt. H. Conclusion University should be free for every student. When they study at university, they will pay a lot of money for studying cost and living cost. In addition, those costs are very high. Students have to borrow money from government to help cover cost. They cannot afford to pay back money to government. Therefore, they will drop out of university to earn money for paying the student loans. II. Opposition: A. Proposition’s argument 1: Universities need money to buy modern equipment for supplying student a good study environment. III. Rebuttal A. Review i. Thesis: University should be free. Today, university fees are usually quite high. Many students find that it is extremely difficult to find the funds to pay for an expensive education, so they look for school loans. These loans can weigh heavily on the minds of university students and put too much pressure to lead to students dropping out. Thus, free higher education is necessary for everyone. ii. Arguments 1. First argument: University should be free because university fee weigh heavily on the minds of university students and students suffer with financial issue or money trouble. That is the reason for many students drop out of university. B. Defend Argument . First argument: It is too expensive for students to pay tuition fees plus books, living, and other cost. * When students learn at university, they have to pay the tuition payment and they still have problems with paying for books, housing and food. People talk about education is free, and they forget such elements as housing and books. It is normal for students from countries with free education in Europe t o leave the university with a big loan. Education is indeed an investment and paying pack government the money you loaned to live while studying is reasonable. It is not only tuition payment that makes education expensive, but also rising living cost and lack of financial-support make education payment is more expensive. If university is free, students only pay for books, rent, foods, study material, clothes, and of course their nights out. Moreover, they do not pay for the tuition payment. If not, students will have to work in order to pay for tuition payment and living cost while studying. By working, students are most likely to skip their classes if their shifts overlap their schedules. Furthermore, they will not have enough time to study and review their lessons. When they are at school, they will most likely to fall asleep and cannot pay attention in class. * The Pew Research Center's 2011 study discovered that 57 percent of students who dropped out preferred to work and earn money, while 48 percent could not afford university whether they were working or not, and 50 percent of students do not pass the exams during their first semester of university when they are working part time jobs while studying. If university is free, students do not work to earn money, do not pay for student loans in the future, and will have more money to pay for books, rent, foods, study material, clothes. C. Attack opposition’s Arguments 1. First argument : Universities need money to buy modern equipment for supplying student a good study environment. – If universities need money to buy modern equipment for supplying student a good study environment, the tuition fee will be very high. Therefore, only students with wealthy families can go to university, and students with low-income families cannot. Thus, university should be free and education should be for everyone. * Whether university education should be free and reachable for both rich people and poor people is one of many burning problem that the education is dealing at the moment. If university education is not free, only the wealthy families can afford to give their children to universities, and the families having low incomes cannot because the higher education is so expensive. If students do not have money to pay, students have to borrow money from the government that will give them a huge loan, and they have to pay back after their studies done. It is also important to remember the cost outside the school with housing and books. This is unfair for the people who do not have the family money or the wealth that other people have. The students who are the poor family will not afford to attend university, they cannot get higher education and they will get a lower paid job. * The statistics form website www. ostsecondary. org, date May 02, 2012, show that while 79% of students born into the top income in the U. S. obtain bachelor’s degrees, only 11% of students from bottom families graduate from four-year universities. Put another way, about 55% of the bachelor’s degrees awarded in the U. S. went to students from top families with 2010 income above $98,875; 9. 4% of those degrees went to students with family income below $33,000. Therefore, sonly students from high-income families can learn at university because the tuition payments are very high. University should be free and education should be for everyone. Every student will have the opportunity to study. This means there would be more students going to university and more students will have higher degrees. Students will get the good jobs and bright future. D. Conclusion Therefore, we should say that university should be free for everyone. Every student can learn at university. Without paying tuition fee, students can get higher degrees without taking student loans, have more money for paying living cost, and have a bright future with a good job.Reference University fee should be free. (2013). Retrieved from http://debatewise.org/debates/1315-university-fees-should-be-scrapped/ Why University Education should be Free. (Tuesday, October 2, 2007). Retrieved from http://debatewise.org/debates/1315-university-fees-should-be-scrapped/ Poor Students Are The Real Victims Of College Discrimination. (5/02/2012). Retrieved from http://www.forbes.com/sites/danielfisher/2012/05/02/poor-students-are-the-real-victims-of-college-discrimination/ Casil. (2013). What Percentage of College Students Fail Their First Semester? Retrieved from http://everydaylife.globalpost.com/percentage-college-students-fail-first-sem

MCDONALDS Corp Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

MCDONALDS Corp - Research Paper Example McDonalds was established in the year 1955 by Ray Croc in USA as a retailer of snack foods like burgers. The company since then has grown by leaps and bounds with the company presently having its dedicated presence in about 118 diverse nations across the globe and an attractive product offering that includes famous products like Big Mac, Mc Nuggets, Quarter Pounders etc. McDonalds has about 33000 restaurants across the globe that provides the best experience at largely affordable price to the customers. McDonalds serves its customers through a dedicated employee base of over 1.7 million active employees who are determined to provide the best experience to the customers with a touch of excellence to satisfy the needs of the customers (McDonalds, 2011). The mission statement of the company is â€Å"be our customers favourite place and way to eat†. The company believes in creating a marketing mix that is essentially in line with the mission statement of the organization. McDonald s prepares a menu that is in tune with the market demands in an innovative manner that tends to satisfy the demands of the target market audience (McDonalds-b, 2011). The history of McDonalds began in the year 190 when the founder of the organization opened up a Bar-B-Que restaurant in California. This was essentially a drive in restaurants that provided snack items for individuals on the drive. However after a few years this restaurant was closed off an official McDonald’s restaurant brand was launched in 1955. The restaurant met with good success and eventually sold 100 million burgers by the end of the third year into the business. By the year 1963 there were about 500 restaurants operating under the McDonalds brand name. Subsequently the company went public in the year 1965 with IPO of 22.5 US dollars as the price of a share. After three years the company went about to launch the product Big Mac that is one

Critically analyse and assess the trend towards globalization of the Assignment

Critically analyse and assess the trend towards globalization of the banking system and its impact on domestic banks. Identify a - Assignment Example The changes include demands from new trends as well as components within the internal organization that are being redefined. Definition of Research Problem The concept of banking is one which is based on national needs, as well as regional elements which are associated with various groups of individuals. However, globalization is beginning to change the internal and external environment while altering products and services offered by those who are a part of banking. This is now leading to several problems, specifically because of the different needs in various parts of the world. Currency exchanges, cost of living relationships, lending channels and basic operations are now being altered, specifically because of needs that are associated with different regions of the globe. The changes are now leading to alterations in market value and many banks which are either making changes domestically or which are becoming dependent on foreign investments and stocks for new opportunities with b anking (Cetorelli, Goldberg, 2008: 14). The research problem defines the problems which are occurring with global transfers as well as how this is redefining the services, products and transfers that are within various banking systems. Literature Review The concept of global banking is one which is now only beginning to surface as a way to work with the corporation of banking systems. In the past, there were basic services and products which were offered specific to the currency of a location. The services and products combined attributes of banking according to one’s culture, capital flows and the financial firms within a specific country. The changes today are now based on an expansion of services and products to help nations in various regions across the world while offering new products and services for changes with global banking. The concept of global banking systems includes the options of lower cost of capital, improved allocation and investments with property rights and institutions. The banking systems are incorporating micro-financing as well as basic services and products which can transfer across borders. Many in other countries are using this as one of the first methods for financing within the country (Mishkin, 2008: 135). The main capabilities for banking systems to establish at a global level come from the enhanced technology which doesn’t define the borders or other applications which are a part of the system. Information processing, telecommunications and other options are providing banks with new alternatives for going overseas. This is combined with the investment opportunities which are continuing to arise for those that are in the different countries. The financial technologies are one of the investments that are leading the way with those who are looking at global expansion from domestic relationships. However, this also limits the products and services which are available and defines a different type of system and sets of services which can be available overseas. Most that are transitioning into this are still experiencing barriers for entry with the government as well as with different needs that are from the technology and the expectations within a given country (Berger, 2007: 1955). Limitations to the Banking System While there are specific aspects that are related to technology, most are finding that this transition is one which is too new to offer complete security

A Critical Evaluation of HRM and Organisational Behaviour Theories Essay

A Critical Evaluation of HRM and Organisational Behaviour Theories - Essay Example As such, this essay seeks to critically analyse the influence of HRM practices and organisational behaviour on the performance of the individuals as well as the organization as a whole. The essay starts by explaining the meaning of the key term, organizational behaviour and this will be followed by the evaluation of various factors that can affect the performance of the employees. The last part of the paper will summarize the main points discussed. Basically, organisational behaviour can be summed up as the study of what people do in an organization and how that behaviour affects the performance of the organization (Robbins, 1993). Organisational behaviour is specifically concerned with employment related situations and it emphasizes on aspects such as work, productivity, human performance and management. As such, there is a correlation between organisational behaviour and HRM given that these are employee oriented. In order for the workers to put optimum performance in their operati ons, it is imperative that the leadership of the organization put some measures that are meant to ensure that they are satisfied with their work. This leads to improvement in their performance which ultimately leads to the productivity of the organization as a whole.... Leadership is generally defined as â€Å"the social process of influencing people to work voluntarily, enthusiastically and persistently towards a purposeful group or organisational goal,† (Werner, 2007, p.36). A leader often adds an inspirational and emotional dimension to the organization through creating a shared vision among the members and inspiring people within that particular organization to be passionate towards the achievement of the vision and set goals. It can be noted that change is also inevitable in organisations hence there is need for the HRM to take a holistic approach in anticipating such changes. Given the complexity of the changing human resources management landscape, the leader has to be better positioned to engage the employees through working with them such that they will be in a better position to put optimum performance in their operations. The human resources managers as leaders play a great role in anticipating both internal as well as external fac tors that can affect the operations of the employees. More often than not, certain changes are viewed with mixed reactions by the members of the organisation hence there is need to first identify the aspects that can immediately affect the performance of the workers. Internally, there may be need for the managers to change the roles played by the employees but this strategy requires them to take into consideration the needs of the workers. Individuals in an organization have different needs and aspirations to fulfil hence their efforts have to be catered for by the management (Robbins, 1993). Some situations can emerge within the organization where there will be need to move away from traditional ways of doing

An Outline and Annotated Bibliography for the Final Persuasive Essay - 1

An Outline and Annotated Bibliography for the Final Persuasive Research - Essay Example Parker-Pope, T. (2010, June 6). An Ugly Toll of Technology: Impatience and Forgetfulness.  The New York Times, Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/07/technology/07brainside.html?ref=yourbrainoncomp&_r=0. The article is a well written description of the adverse affects that are being produced as a result of excessive dependence and addiction to technology. The writer gives an intelligent overview of how the personalities of individuals transform as a result of excessive dependence. He also points out how these shifts in personalities go un attended. Shelly, G. B., Vermaat, M., Quasney, J. J., Sebok, S. L., & Freund, S. M. (2012).Discovering computers: Your interactive guide to the digital world : complete. Australia: Course Technology, Cengage Learning. This book, written by multiple authors, provides an interactive view of the digital world human society has turned into. For a novice and for those still virtually living in the stone ages, this book provides a very interesting preview of the components of this digital world and the pros and cons associated with it. The readings in this book were particularly helpful in assessing the terminology of technology overload. It also provided an insight into certain issues that have emerged with the prevalence of technology and also ponders upon their eradication. This book was particularly helpful in asserting the point of view established by reading the first referenced article. A work of multiple authors intelligently put together, the book is appealing and explains its point of view well. The paper highlights the introduction of a particular technology broadband into a firm and previews its affects upon the organizational structure. It also discusses the economic aspects associated with the introduction of technology within a firm with special reference to

Counterargument of an essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Counterargument of an - Essay Example It is not the advertising that attracts and influences the individual but the contents included in the advertisement. Â  A company’s main aim may not be to sell their products or services alone because there are other important objectives of advertising such as advertising the company itself and introducing the new product in market. Company’s main objective varies from time to time and is considered necessary when it serves the purpose it is intended. However, the most important thing is to reach the target market as much as possible but not all people. Advertising may be received differently by consumers depending on whoever does the advertising and the contents of advertising. Consumers are different depending on the target market and therefore advertising is not bound to have similar effect on most consumers as alleged. Company’s main objectives cannot be targeting children alone since it depends entirely on what the company deals in. There is no way a company dealing in electronics would want to target kids since kids do not even have the capacity of purchasing the products. Furthermore, if any company targets kids, the kids may change their taste either by intending to experience something new or due to change fashion and

Mythology King Aurther Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Mythology King Aurther - Research Paper Example He was one of the great rulers of Britain. He killed giants, monsters, and witches and also drove on horses on many audacious marvels. King Arthur is famous for Knights of the Round Table and also for reuniting all the people of his land. The end of King Arthur was one of a catastrophic one but despite of that, he is celebrated and known by people all around the globe even today. The British Parliament hosts his story on its walls (Siivola). Joseph Campbell’s four functions of myth go in accordance with King Arthur’s mythology. The life of Arthur starts with his father, Uther Pendragon. Pendragon is obsessed by Igraine who is the wife of Duke of Cornwall. Now, Pendragon dresses up like Duke of Cornwall and sneaked into their bed with Igraine and that is when Igrain conceived Arthur. Seeing this despiteful behavior of Arthur’s parents, the wizard takes him away from his parents. The wizard, named Merlin, was the one who put up a huge Round Table for Arthur’s father where one hundred and fifty knights could sit at one time. When Uther died, the knights have no clue as to who should precede him. Merlin came up with a solution to this problem. He said that anyone who can take out a sword from a stone will become the next king (PBS). Many people tried to find the sword. But fortune was in King Arthur’s favor as described in Joseph Campbell’s Pedagogical function. King Arthur was a hero in his life who defined his own mythology. When Arthur came to visit his foster brother called Sir Kay; Kay sent him to find a sword as a replacement of his broken one. He came across the mysterious sword Excalibur which was dig into the stone and took it out. He did not know that it was any prophecy associated with it. He had no intention of becoming the king or finding the sword, so he found it out as his fortune (Siivola). He took his gender role into account as he accomplished the Social function of myth as described by Joseph Campbell. He united the Britain and also invaded the Saxons. As a king, Arthur was a well-liked and merciful king as he took the Campbell’s social factor into account. His period of influence is celebrated with romance of chivalric nature and of heroic factors. The biggest expeditio n of Arthur along with his Knights was the expedition for the Holy Grail, the mythical Holy Grail. It is the cup with which Jesus Christ drank at his Last Supper. King Arthur never found the Holy Grail but his Knight Sir Galahad did because of his virtue and pure heart. King Arthur was married to the daughter of King of Scotland, called Guinevere. The wizard Merlin warned King Arthur not to marry her as she loved one of his knights, Sir Lancelot. When Arthur found out that Sir Lancelot and his wife, Guinevere, were having an affair, his knight flew to France but Arthur follows him. As Arthur was off to France, his nephew, Mordred came into power. Arthur then went back to Britain to find out this terrible news. Obviously, complying with Campbell’s myth function, Pedagogical, King Arthur fought a terrible combat with his nephew in which many of his knights died and he was brutally wounded. He throws his magical Excalibur into a lake, and finds a boat to go to the magical Isle o f Avalon. At this place, he hoped to get better so that he can go back to his people and lead then. This is the very reason Arthur is known as â€Å"once and future king† (PBS). Mystical metaphysical factor of Campbell’s factors of myth say that there is a God and in King Arthur’s time, people believed him to be a God. He was a hero; a hero who came into an ordinary world for the people. This new world is not known to the hero but he has to accomplish his tasks and show him the mundane world. The special world is the area of

What are the benefits of online grocery shopping Essay

What are the benefits of online grocery shopping - Essay Example In between the fundamental objectives of enlarging their market visibility is the need to meet the consumer requirements, and so was the very genesis of online shopping. Grocery stores, for instance, have taken the advantage afforded by technology, â€Å"raking in roughly $15 billion a year — about 3 percent of brick and mortar supermarkets’ nearly $600 billion sales† (Williams, 2014). Williams further notes that the industry is expected to grow at approximately 13 percent per annum, ‘making up 11 percent of all grocery sales in the next decade. Indeed there is no doubt that the ever increasing use of the Internet has more than transformed shopping experiences with quite a huge chunk of benefits that has enabled the cutting down of costs on both ends of the consumer and the service providers (Appelhans, et al. 2012; Shannon & Mandhachitara, 2008). More and more businesses are warming up towards greater use of the internet as the ultimate marketing channel t hat is both unique in very many, but certain aspects that includes convenience, real time feedback, as well as the ability of extreme comfort, and so are the opportunities offered by online Grocery stores. Any serious entrepreneur knows for a fact that time in itself is but a precious commodity, and so with regards to shopping in particular, time has that tremendous capability of significantly altering shopping behavior. Indeed it the very levels of time pressure that allow the service provides to group consumers as well as service specific target markets along this dimension. Besides the time pressure, the online Grocery stores have long known that impulse are involved in in the purchase of food products and that the consumers’ effort in searching and processing related information concerning food products should be at the very bare minimum, for time-pressured consumers strive for

Benefit of school vs traditional college Essay Example for Free

Benefit of school vs traditional college Essay Technology and specifically ICT has permeated virtually all sectors of life including education. Traditional schooling is being replaced at an unprecedented rate. These days most professionals prefer to take courses online rather than attend school physically. The reasons behind this trend range from convenience, greater options, multitasking, and reduced cost among others. Often, this kind of schooling has been criticized because skeptics argue that the socialization aspect of schooling is cut off from schooling experience. Additionally, this technique has cost many people their jobs and means of livelihood. For instance, the cooks, secretaries, security personnel and such like. What’s more, this technology is still new to many people and naturally, resistance to adopt it is commonplace. However, I feel that despite the negatives associated with e-schooling, the benefits far out ways the costs and hence, my stance on the subject remains that school should be reinforced. To begin with, my community benefits greatly from e-schooling in the sense that, it enable re-schooling among adults who felt ashamed to go back to a traditional college to complete a degree. This is especially the case for people who had dropped out of high school or college. Nowadays, it is possible for them to earn degrees and diplomas while at home. This way they are able to multitask, say, baby sitting and learning In addition, collaboration between teachers and students has never been easier than with e-schooling. A wide range of digital resources, online libraries online tests, emails, videoconference and more are used to facilitate communication among stakeholders in the schooling system. Feedback on one-on-one basis makes school just as effective if not more to traditional college. Schooling to a marginal extent is cheaper than the traditional college. This has increased access to education for the economically challenged people in my community. Notably, the best colleges and universities are located in major cities, say, New York LA and so on meaning that the rural areas are sidelined from access to these colleges. The advantage of e-schooling is that these people now have a chance to get degrees and diplomas from these prestigious colleges without relocating from their home area. The costs of education have also been halved owing to technology of schooling. (Holmes Gardner, 2006) Personally, schooling has had both direct and indirect impacts in my life. Prior to the introduction of e-schooling, I used to find that the schooling duration was too long. I wanted to get my degree as fast as possible. With the introduction of e-schooling, I am able to accelerate my program such that I get a full credit course in one semester. Most people in my community are using similar approach and it has worked well. Moreover, I have more control and independence over my learning skills. The experience of taking a course online can be life changing. I have learnt to be more responsible of my time. Last summer I was able to take up an AP course that was not available in our site and my friend has explored a learning opportunity that was not schooling in our site. Generally, I believe that schooling has enriched not only my life but also the lives of the people in my community. (www. ucet. ac. uk/ ) In the community where I come from, people are athletic and get involved so much with games and sport to an extent that it becomes very difficult to manage an 8-hour school program and sports. E-schooling has curbed this problem by giving the students flexibility and independence to decide how they want to structure learning hours. For some they access learning material in morning hours while others prefer to do that late in the night. At the end of the day, whichever style used, people earn degrees. Alternatively, enrolment to e learning is fast and hassle free. Most people can attest to the pressure experienced during enrolment days in college. With online schooling, this problem has been erased. I would like to share the experience of my cousin who got involved in an accident. Subsequently, her two legs were amputated making it a challenge to move around in clutches. The option of e-schooling has benefited my homebound cousin and in few weeks, she graduates with a diploma from a distant college. Other disabled people from my community have also benefited from schooling. (http://aasd. k12. wi. us/eSchool/whyecourses. htm. ) Other benefits arising from schooling is students with unique cases or reasons for being away from school benefit from e-learning e. g. teenage mother s, terminally sick students participating in foreign exchange programs, resist, and self supporting students who juggle between work responsibilities and learning Briefly, schooling is a great advancement in the education sector. The outstanding features attributed to schooling are the flexibility and affordability of the schooling concept. Reflecting on the benefits that I have witness at a personal level and within my community, I believe traditional colleges will be phased out as more and more people embrace e-schooling for its benefits. A word of caution though, policies and regulations need to be clearly set to ensure that schooling achieves fundamental purpose of schooling. Additionally, students and educators need to e empowered on how to maximize use of digital resources and online technologies in order to reap benefits of schooling.

Importance of television in our life Essay Example for Free

Importance of television in our life Essay Natural rubber, also called India rubber or caoutchouc, as initially produced, consists of suitable polymers of the organic compound isoprene, with minor impurities of other organic compounds plus water. Forms of polyisoprene that are useful as natural rubbers are classified aselastomers. Currently, rubber is harvested mainly in the form of the latex from certain trees. The latex is a sticky, milky colloid drawn off by making incisions into the bark and collecting the fluid in vessels in a process called tapping. The latex then is refined into rubber ready for commercial processing. Natural rubber is used extensively in many applications and products, either alone or in combination with other materials. In most of its useful forms, it has a large stretch ratio, high resilience, and is extremely waterproof.[1] Varieties[edit] The major commercial source of natural rubber latex is the Parà ¡ rubber tree (Hevea brasiliensis), a member of the spurge family, Euphorbiaceae. This species is widely used because it grows well under cultivation and a properly managed tree responds to wounding by producing more latex for several years. Many other plants produce forms of latex rich in isoprene polymers, though not all produce usable forms of polymer as easily as the Parà ¡ rubber tree does; some of them require more elaborate processing to produce anything like usable rubber, and most are more difficult to tap. Some produce other desirable materials, for example gutta-percha (Palaquium gutta)[2] and chicle from Manilkara species. Others that have been commercially exploited, or at least have shown promise as sources of rubber, include the rubber fig (Ficus elastica), Panama rubber tree (Castilla elastica), various spurges (Euphorbia spp.), lettuce (Lactuca species), the related Scorzonera tau-saghyz, various Taraxacum species, including common dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) and Russian dandelion (Taraxacum kok-saghyz), and guayule (Parthenium argentatum). The term gum rubber is sometimes applied to the tree-obtained version of natural rubber in order to distinguish it from the synthetic version.[1] Discovery of commercial potential[edit] The Para rubber tree is indigenous to South America. Charles Marie de La Condamine is credited with introducing samples of rubber to the Acadà ©mie Royale des Sciences of France in 1736.[3] In 1751, he presented a paper by Franà §ois Fresneau to the Acadà ©mie (eventually published in 1755) which described many of the properties of rubber. This has been referred to as the first scientific paper on rubber.[3] In England, Joseph Priestley, in 1770, observed that a piece of the material was extremely good for rubbing off pencil marks on paper, hence the name rubber. Later, it slowly made its way around England. South America remained the main source of the limited amounts of latex rubber used during much of the 19th century. In 1876, Henry Wickham gathered thousands of Para rubber tree seeds from Brazil, and these were germinated in Kew Gardens, England. The seedlings were then sent to India, Ceylon (Sri Lanka), Indonesia, Singapore, and British Malaya. Malaya (now Malaysia) was later to become the biggest producer of rubber. In the early 1900s, the Congo Free State in Africa was also a significant source of natural rubber latex, mostly gathered by forced labor. Liberia and Nigeria also started production of rubber. In India, commercial cultivation of natural rubber was introduced by the British planters, although the experimental efforts to grow rubber on a commercial scale in India were initiated as early as 1873 at the Botanical Gardens, Calcutta. The first commercial Hevea plantations in India were established at Thattekadu in Kerala in 1902. In Singapore and Malaya, commercial production of rubber was heavily promoted by Sir Henry Nicholas Ridley, who served as the first Scientific Director of the Singapore Botanic Gardens from 1888 to 1911. He distributed rubber seeds to many planters and developed the first technique for tapping trees for latex without causing serious harm to the tree.[4]Because of his very fervent promotion of this crop, he is popularly remembered by the nickname Mad Ridley.[5] Properties[edit] Rubber latex Rubber exhibits unique physical and chemical properties. Rubbers stress-strain behavior exhibits the Mullins effect and the Payne effect, and is often modeled as hyperelastic. Rubber strain crystallizes. Owing to the presence of a double bond in each repeat unit, natural rubber is susceptible to vulcanisation and sensitive to ozone cracking. The two main solvents for rubber are turpentine and naphtha (petroleum). The former has been in use since 1764 when Franà §ois Fresnau made the discovery. Giovanni Fabbroni is credited with the discovery of naphtha as a rubber solvent in 1779. Because rubber does not dissolve easily, the material is finely divided by shredding prior to its immersion. An ammonia solution can be used to prevent the coagulation of raw latex while it is being transported from its collection site. Elasticity[edit] In most elastic materials, such as metals used in springs, the elastic behavior is caused by bond distortions. When force is applied, bond lengths deviate from the (minimum energy) equilibrium and strain energy is stored electrostatically. Rubber is often assumed to behave in the same way, but this is a poor description. Rubber is a curious material because, unlike in metals, strain energy is stored thermally. In its relaxed state, rubber consists of long, coiled-up chains. When rubber is stretched, the chains are taut. Their kinetic energy is released as heat. The entropy and temperature increases during elongation but decreases during relaxation. This change in entropy is related to the changes in degrees of freedom. Relaxation of a stretched rubber band is thus driven by a decrease in entropy and temperature, and the force experienced is a result of the cooling of the material being converted to potential energy. Rubber relaxation isendothermic, and for this reason the force exerted by a stretched piece of rubber increases with temperature. The material undergoes adiabatic cooling during contraction. This property of rubber can easily be verified by holding a stretched rubber band to ones lips and relaxing it. Stretching of a rubber band is in some ways opposite to compression(although both undergo higher levels of thermal energy of an ideal gas), and relaxation is opposed to gas expansion (Note: rubber bands last longer in the cold). A compressed and heated gas also exhibits elastic properties, for instance inside an inflated car tire. The fact that stretching is equivalent to compression is counterintuitive, but it makes sense if rubber is viewed as a one-dimensional gas, plus it is attached to other molecules. Stretching and heat increase the space available to each section of chain, because the molecules are pulled apart. Vulcanization of rubber creates disulfide bonds between chains, so it limits the degrees of freedom. The result is that the chains tighten more quickly for a given strain, thereby increasing the elastic force constant and making rubber harder and less extensible. When cooled below the glass transition temperature, the quasifluid chain segments freeze into fixed geometries and the rubber abruptly loses its elastic properties, although the process is reversible. This property it shared by most elastomers. At very low temperatures, rubber is rather brittle. This critical temperature is the reason winter tires use a softer version of rubber than normal tires. The failing rubber o-ring seals that contributed to the cause of the Challenger disaster were thought to have cooled below their critical temperature; the disaster happened on an unusually cold day. The gas molecules in the rubber were too close to their bound solid molecules(a partial phase change that separated the rubber molecules may have occurred), allowing the rubber to take on a more solid shape(a partial phase change to a more liquid and molecularly separated form would not be good, either). Heated gas has a higher energy, and rubber must be kept at specific temperatures and probably should not be used on vehicles that undergo extreme temperature changes. Chemical makeup[edit] Latex is the polymer cis-1,4-polyisoprene – with a molecular weight of 100,000 to 1,000,000 daltons. Typically, a small percentage (up to 5% of dry mass) of other materials, such as proteins, fatty acids, resins, and inorganic materials (salts) are found in natural rubber. Polyisoprene can also be created synthetically, producing what is sometimes referred to as synthetic natural rubber, but the synthetic and natural routes are completely different.[1] Chemical structure of cis-polyisoprene, the main constituent of natural rubber: Synthetic cis-polyisoprene and natural cis-polyisoprene are derived from different precursors. Some natural rubber sources, such as gutta-percha, are composed of trans-1,4-polyisoprene, a structural isomer that has similar, but not identical, properties. Natural rubber is an elastomer and a thermoplastic. Once the rubber is vulcanized, it will turn into a thermoset. Most rubber in everyday use is vulcanized to a point where it shares properties of both; i.e., if it is heated and cooled, it is degraded but not destroyed. The final properties of a rubber item depend not just on the polymer, but also on modifiers and fillers, such as carbon black, factice, whiting, and a host of others. Biosynthesis[edit] Rubber particles are formed in the cytoplasm of specialized latex-producing cells called laticifers within rubber plants.[6] Rubber particles are surrounded by a single phospholipid membrane with hydrophobic tails pointed inward. The membrane allows biosynthetic proteins to be sequestered at the surface of the growing rubber particle, which allows new monomeric units to be added from outside the biomembrane, but within the lacticifer. The rubber particle is an enzymatically active entity that contains three layers of material, the rubber particle, a biomembrane, and free monomeric units. The biomembrane is held tightly to the rubber core due to the high negative charge along the double bonds of the rubber polymer backbone.[7] Free monomeric units and conjugated proteins make up the outer layer. The rubber precursor is isopentenyl pyrophosphate (an allylic compound), which elongates by Mg2+-dependent condensation by the action of rubber transferase. The monomer adds to the pyrophosphate end of the growing polymer.[8] The process displaces the terminal high-energy pyrophosphate. The reaction produces a cis polymer. The initiation step is catalyzed by prenyltransferase, which converts three monomers of isopentenyl pyrophosphate into farnesyl pyrophosphate.[9] The farnesyl pyrophosphate can bind to rubber transferase to elongate a new rubber polymer. The required isopentenyl pyrophosphate is obtained from the mevalonate pathway, which is derives from acetyl-CoA in the cytosol. In plants, isoprene pyrophosphate can also be obtained from 1-deox-D-xyulose-5-phosphate/2-C-methyl-D-erythritol-4-phosphate pathway within plasmids.[10] The relative ratio of the farnesyl pyrophosphate initiator unit and isoprenyl pyrophosphate elongation monomer determines the rate of new particle synthesis versus elongation of existing particles. Though rubber is known to be produced by only one enzyme, extracts of latex have shown numerous small molecular weight proteins with unknown function. The proteins possibly serve as cofactors, as the synthetic rate decreases with complete removal.[11] Current sources[edit] Close to 21 million tons of rubber were produced in 2005, of which approximately 42% was natural. Since the bulk of the rubber produced is of the synthetic variety, which is derived from petroleum, the price of natural rubber is determined, to a large extent, by the prevailing global price of crude oil.[12][13] Today, Asia is the main source of natural rubber, accounting for about 94% of output in 2005. The three largest producing countries, Thailand, Indonesia (2.4m tons)[14] and Malaysia, together account for around 72% of all natural rubber production. Natural rubber is not cultivated widely in its native continent of South America due to the existence of South American leaf blight, and other natural predators of the rubber tree. Cultivation[edit] Rubber is generally cultivated in large plantations. See the coconut shell used in collecting latex, in plantations in Kerala, India Rubber latex is extracted from rubber trees. The economic life period of rubber trees in plantations is around 32 years – up to 7 years of immature phase and about 25 years of productive phase. The soil requirement of the plant is generally well-drained, weathered soil consisting of laterite, lateritic types, sedimentary types, nonlateritic red, or alluvial soils. The climatic conditions for optimum growth of rubber trees are: Rainfall of around 250 cm evenly distributed without any marked dry season and with at least 100 rainy days per year Temperature range of about 20 to 34 °C, with a monthly mean of 25 to 28 °C High atmospheric humidity of around 80% Bright sunshine amounting to about 2000 hours per year at the rate of six hours per day throughout the year Absence of strong winds Many high-yielding clones have been developed for commercial planting. These clones yield more than 2,000 kg of dry rubber per hectare per year, when grown under ideal conditions. Field coagula[edit] Mixed field coagula Smallholders lump at a remilling factory There are four types of field coagula, cuplump, treelace, smallholders’ lump and earth scrap. Each has significantly different properties.[15] Cuplump is the coagulated material found in the collection cup when the tapper next visits the tree to tap it again. It arises from latex clinging to the walls of the cup after the latex was last poured into the bucket, and from late-dripping latex exuded before the latex-carrying vessels of the tree become blocked. It is of higher purity and of greater value than the other three types. Treelace is the coagulum strip that the tapper peels off the previous cut before making a new cut. It usually has higher copper and manganese contents than cuplump. Both copper and manganese are pro-oxidants and can lower the physical properties of the dry rubber. Smallholders’ lump is produced by smallholders who collect rubber from trees a long way away from the nearest factory. Many Indonesian smallholders, who grow paddy in remote areas, tap dispersed trees on their way to work in the paddy fields and collect the latex (or the coagulated latex) on their way home. As it is often impossible to preserve the latex sufficiently to get it to a factory that processes latex in time for it to be used to make high quality products, and as the latex would anyway have coagulated by the time it reached the factory, the smallholder will coagulate it by any means available, in any container available. Some smallholders use small containers, buckets etc., but often the latex is coagulated in holes in the ground, which are usually (but not always) lined with plastic. Acidic materials and fermented fruit juices are used to coagulate the latex – a form of assisted biological coagulation. Little care is taken to exclude twigs, leaves, and even bark from the lumps that are formed, which may also include treelace collected by the smallholder. Earth scrap is the material that gathers around the base of the tree. It arises from latex overflowing from the cut and running down the bark of the tree, from rain flooding a collection cup containing latex, and from spillage from tappers’ buckets during collection. It contains soil and other contaminants, and has variable rubber content depending on the amount of contaminants mixed with it. Earth scrap is collected by the field workers two or three times a year and may be cleaned in a scrap-washer to recover the rubber, or sold off to a contractor who will clean it and recover the rubber. It is of very low quality and under no circumstances should it be included in block rubber or brown crepe. Processing[edit] Removing coagulum from coagulating troughs The latex will coagulate in the cups if kept for long. The latex has to be collected before coagulation. The collected latex, field latex, is transferred into coagulation tanks for the preparation of dry rubber or transferred into air-tight containers with sieving for ammoniation. Ammoniation is necessary to preserve the latex in colloidal state for long. Latex is generally processed into either latex concentrate for manufacture of dipped goods or it can be coagulated under controlled, clean conditions using formic acid. The coagulated latex can then be processed into the higher-grade, technically specified block rubbers such as SVR 3L or SVR CV or used to produce Ribbed Smoke Sheet grades. Naturally coagulated rubber (cup lump) is used in the manufacture of TSR10 and TSR20 grade rubbers. The processing of the rubber for these grades is a size reduction and cleaning process to remove contamination and prepare the material for the final stage of drying.[16] The dried material is then baled and palletized for storage and shipment in various methods of transportation. Transportation[edit] Natural rubber latex is shipped from factories in south-west Asia, South America, and North Africa to destinations around the world. As the cost of natural rubber has risen significantly, the shipping methods which offer the lowest cost per unit of weight are preferred. Depending on the destination, warehouse availability, and transportation conditions, some methods are more suitable to certain buyers than others. In international trade, latex rubber is mostly shipped in 20-foot ocean containers. Inside the ocean container, various types of smaller containers are used by factories to store latex rubber.[17] Uses[edit] Compression molded (cured)rubber boots before the flashesare removed Contemporary manufacturing[edit] Around 25 million tonnes of rubber is produced each year, of which 42 percent is natural rubber. The remainder is synthetic rubber derived from petrochemical sources. Around 70 percent of the worlds natural rubber is used in tires. The top end of latex production results in latex products such as surgeons gloves, condoms, balloons and other relatively high-value products. The mid-range which comes from the technically-specified natural rubber materials ends up largely in tires but also in conveyor belts, marine products and miscellaneous rubber goods. Natural rubber offers good elasticity, while synthetic materials tend to offer better resistance to environmental factors such as oils, temperature, chemicals or ultraviolet light and suchlike. Cured rubber is rubber which has been compounded and subjected to the vulcanisation process which creates cross-links within the rubber matrix. Prehistoric uses[edit] The first use of rubber was by the Olmecs, who centuries later passed on the knowledge of natural latex from the Hevea tree in 1600 BC to the ancient Mayans. They boiled the harvested latex to make a ball for a Mesoamerican ballgame.[18] Pre-World War II manufacturing[edit] Other significant uses of rubber are door and window profiles, hoses, belts, gaskets, matting, flooring, and dampeners (antivibration mounts) for the automotive industry. Gloves (medical, household and industrial) and toy balloons are also large consumers of rubber, although the type of rubber used is concentrated latex. Significant tonnage of rubber is used as adhesives in many manufacturing industries and products, although the two most noticeable are thepaper and the carpet industries. Rubber is also commonly used to make rubber bands and pencil erasers. Pre-World War II textile applications[edit] Rubber produced as a fiber, sometimes called elastic, has significant value for use in the textile industry because of its excellent elongation and recovery properties. For these purposes, manufactured rubber fiber is made as either an extruded round fiber or rectangular fibers that are cut into strips from extruded film. Because of its low dye acceptance, feel and appearance, the rubber fiber is either covered by yarn of another fiber or directly woven with other yarns into the fabric. In the early 1900s, for example, rubber yarns were used in foundation garments. While rubber is still used in textile manufacturing, its low tenacity limits its use in lightweight garments because latex lacks resistance to oxidizing agents and is damaged by aging, sunlight, oil, and perspiration. Seeking a way to address these shortcomings, the textile industry has turned to neoprene (polymer of chloroprene), a type of synthetic rubber, as well as another more commonly used elastomer fiber, spandex (also known as elastane), because of their superiority to rubber in both strength and durability. Vulcanization[edit] Main article: Vulcanization Natural rubber is often vulcanized, a process by which the rubber is heated and sulfur, peroxide or bisphenol are added to improve resistance and elasticity, and to prevent it from perishing. The development of vulcanization is most closely associated with Charles Goodyear in 1839.[19] Before World War II era manufacturing, carbon black was often used as an additive to rubber to improve its strength, especially in vehicle tires. Today, all vehicle tires are made of synthetic rubbers. Allergic reactions[edit] Main article: Latex allergy Some people have a serious latex allergy, and exposure to natural latex rubber products such as latex gloves can cause anaphylactic shock. The antigenic proteins found in Hevealatex may be deliberately reduced (though not eliminated)[20] through processing. Latex from non-Hevea sources, such as Guayule, can be used without allergic reaction by persons with an allergy to Hevea latex.[21] Some allergic reactions are not to the latex itself, but from residues of chemicals used to accelerate the cross-linking process. Although this may be confused with an allergy to latex, it is distinct from it, typically taking the form of Type IV hypersensitivity in the presence of traces of specific processing chemicals.[20][22]

Importance Of Public Open Space Health And Social Care Essay

Importance Of Public Open Space Health And Social Care Essay One of the principal aims of any public authority is to improve the quality of life. Parks and public open spaces have played an critical role to improve residents life in development of city (Nankervis, 1998). The history of public spaces could be found all over the centuries in the medieval era, the communal grazing space and city square also known as the common was a significant urban element. Industrial revolution might trace back the tradition of providing for POS(public open spaces) was recognised as a critical aspect in the city development (Churchus, C. et al 2004). For the majority of 19th and early 20th centuries, the provision of POS within urban areas were considered as essential to the resident health of inner city, where commonly crowded conditions, pollution and lack of sanitation were an issue. Recent research defined at the beginning of the new millennium shows that more than 60% of the worlds population lives in cities. By 2025 will be over 5 billion people who liv e in urban contexts and in 135 metropolitan areas, the number of residents will exceed 4 million (Musco, 2006). Those aspects is becoming problem; the increase in population, lack of public services, growth of cities by dispersion of settlements and pollution in the rapid urbanization. Therefore, residences require more safety and to be more environmentally friendly constructed. Nowadays, POS provide leisure, recreation and promote public health (Banjeree, 2001) as well as making areas more attractive and more pleasing places. According to World Health Organization of workshop report which is The future for our children, Physical activities absence cause by the lack of open spaces for recreation lead to psychological problems, obesity, accidents and injuries were considered as priorities. Other aspects is that children have more time for television, computer games and an increase in the development lead to use of commercial playgrounds (McKendrick et al. 2000). Moreover, the other research has identified these startling facts: 20% of four-year-olds are overweight and 15% of 15-year-olds are obese. Evidence shows that this increase in obesity is linked to more sedentary lifestyles and a decrease in outdoor activity. It could expect the adult patterns of exercise are set early in life (Kuh, Cooper 1992). Therefore, exercise shortage when young can breed problems in adulthood, i.e. diabetes and heart disease. It also appears that there is a problem with polluted places or ruins instead of open spaces. Surroundings without green space link to short of community sense and aspect increased behaviour of violence compared with those that included green space (Jackson, Kochtitzky 2001). In addition, the dangerous place attracts vermin and can harbour criminal activities (Lord 1995) For example, the largest wastewater sludge plant and medical waste incinerator in the Northeast of New York City, where has a childhood asthma 1000% higher than other city in New York State. Children might choose to play on the streets rather than in garbage and used needles of the vacant (Maantay 2001). This study shows that land-use patterns also significantly affect the health of urban communities and lack of safe places limits childs activities. In the recent study examined different socio-economic status(SES) of children play in open space. The 94% of parents concern regarding their childs safety was the most frequently presented factor influencing where children played. Parental-safety concerns about the their children playing were mainly influenced by strangers, congregate teenagers/gangs undesirable behaviours such as bullying, having alcohol and road traffic (Valentine and McKendrick, 1997). These concerns were particularly evident among more than one-third of parents from low and mid SES areas, compared to just 10% of parents from high SES areas. In addition, more than 80% of families lived on a main or through street, half of the parents allowed their children to play on the street where expose cars. Therefore, the children seem to spend more time at home, friends houses even in the bush, river, road and street. These safety concerns limit places opportunities for childrens play. Though almost all recognise that problem exists, the best possible response has not been easy to reach. Supporting green open space and sustainable design can bring down disease, mental problems furthermore carbon footprints through ecological park, green infrastructure and upkeep of allotments. It could have long-term positive effects on public health, economic value of public space and reducing crime, which three principal points can be justified with some evidences in next stage. London is still among the greenest capital cities in the world (visitlondon.com/areas/parks/). Londoner can enjoy the great outdoors more than other countries, also Nottingham is good example because not only there are a number of parks for people, but also people easy to access high-quality of green spaces which make a healthier community. There is a growing concern about the health of the nation which related particularly our public health. From the perspective of planning and building places that influence peoples health, an all-inclusive approach to public health which respects the prevention of disease and the promotion of physical and mental well-being(Honari and Boleyn 1999, Pacione, 2003). The figure 1 gives more information about obesity already costs more in public health terms, and why important the assessment of green space for public health.  ¿Ã‚ ¡4.2 billion Annual cost to the NHS of obesity and related diseases 50 per cent Reduction in risk of heart attack by a daily walk in the park 91 per cent People who believe that public parks and open spaces improve quality of life 300 per cent Increased likelihood of residents being physically active in residential areas with high levels of greenery Figure 1. Greenspace Scotland 2009: Health impact assessment of greenspace: a guide.www.cabeurl.com/30 Scottish Natural Heritage and Institute of Occupational Medicine, published by greenspace scotland Firstly, safe and clean area encourages people to walk more and therefore meet considerable health benefits. Surgeon General prescribed lively walking or cycling as little as 30 minutes a day in the park to improve health. It has been reported to reduce heart attack risk by 50%, (Hakim 1999) diabetes by 50%,( The Diabetes Prevention Research Group 2002) colon cancer by 30%( Slattery, Potter and Caan et al 1997). Moreover, it is estimated that if just one in 100 inactive people took adequate exercise it could save the NHS in Scotland as much as  £85 million per year. (Bird 2003). Secondly, there is increasing evidence that nature in the urban environment is benefits for both physical and mental health. Natural elements such as trees and lakes promote a drop in blood pressure and reduce stress feelings(Hartig, Evans, et. al. 2003). Increasing access to high-quality POS can produce substantial benefits of public health and save healthcare costs such as joining a gym or going swimming (Pretty, Griffin, Sellens and Pretty, 2003). Therefore, being activities in outside promote physical and mental well-being, reduce stress, overcome isolation, social cohesion and alleviate physical problems. In other words, future health can be defined how carefully design makes healthy places through public green spaces. Being urbanisation has led to children with short of opportunities to play out of house and experience the natural environment than previous generations. Under the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, children have the right to play, recreation and culture (Petrie, Egharevba, Oliver and Poland, 2000). Play breeds important phenomenon for development of children; the growth of social skills, experimentation about the crises of confrontation and the promotion of physical activity. Baranowski T. et al also defined natural open space for children, that being outdoors is the most powerful correlate of physical activity, and contact with nature can significantly reduce the psychological distress caused by stress. Firstly, activity in public, green spaces bring benefit to children suffering from Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD). Evidence shows that green space activities such as fishing, soccer were 85% regarded the behaviour of children with ADD, while non-green activities such as vid eo games, watching television were only 43% improved as beneficial (Taylor 2001). Secondly, places with trees and grass encourage better opportunities for childrens playing than spaces without such eclogical elements. For example, in inner-city Chicago, childrens playing was monitored in surrounding apartment blocks where were similarly planned trees and grass. Playing in the green spaces found significantly higher levels of creative than in the barren areas. Children playing in the green spaces had more opportunity for mental growth, this aspect can improve the interpersonal skills development (Taylor 2001). In addition, well-designed spaces will provide to fill fewer opportunities than previous generations through providing children with opportunities for exercise and leaning. The crime-ridden district can change to attractive, safe places and improve place value by public open space. Firstly, community gardens were shown significant reduction in crime rate. A positive example emerges from Southern Ontario, Canada, a community garden was attempted on the old rubbish dump site, which attracted local criminals and was avoided by the 1200 local residents as a result drastic 30% drop in crime through environmental design. Moreover, this reduction has encouraged residents to use the streets more at night, including better communication with different ethnic groups (McKay 1998). Such changes can promote everyone to meet the greatest of public spaces. Indeed, good-quality public spaces link to good management to prevent from slumism. Secondly, locating proximity to public space b economic value and trading by leading more people for retailers. It has been shown that well-planned public spaces improvements in town centres could generate commercial trading by up to 40% and the growth of private sector investment (DoE and The Association of Town Centre Management, Managing Urban Spaces in Town Centres 1997). Small businesses choosing a new business location rank the amount of open space and proximity to parks and recreation as the number-one priority in site selection. (The Trust for Public Land, Economic Benefits of Open Space, 2001) Thirdly, The local economy can achieve significant positive impact from a high-quality public landscape in terms of stimulating increase in value of house, since prorerty-buyers prefer to be near green space. For example, in Berlin by 2000, close to playgrounds in residential areas and a high number of street trees was found to increase 16% in the values of property. (Luther, Gruehn 2001). In Leiden, Netherlands, a view of a park have been shown to raise the house prices by 8% to compare with a view of an apartment block, which can reduce the price by 7%. The value of homes was at least 15% higher by the presence of green spaces, where the majority of residents mentioned the public green spaces as a major factor in their moving decision into the area. (Luttik 2000) When the environment is unattractive, Unsafe, i.e. unwalkable urban areas, can make it hard to achieve the requirements of physical activity and interaction between residents and nature area by the lack of greenery and dominated traffic. It will provide unproductive life style. Inclusive high-quality, well-maintained public spaces that encourage walking, cycling and various activities have a positive effect on our health. In other words, POS is a powerful weapon in the fight against obesity and illness. Responsibility explained the interrelationship between health, well-being and sustainability and urban design improvements undertaken as part of a wider strategy can breed even more dramatic results; shifting patterns of sickness, population, public health, also bring down carbon footprints. Probably, carefully design can deal with complex requirements in simple ways. However, above all, integrated decision-making should be preceded by policymakers, also they should concern existing c ommunities and refurbishments. This research has deal with sustainable, promotive health environments together with the concerning health and well-being. This win-win strategy in sustainability benefits accrue from every planning process through more collaborative working. Open space will become firmly part of ordinance and community development. Approach to public open space maximises its potential to contribute to a more inclusive and sustainable one on a local, regional and national level that will enhance a wide range of goals.

The Most Noble Order of the Garter :: Essays Papers

The Most Noble Order of the Garter History Of Orders: The secular orders of chivalry that came about in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries were fundamentally based on the idea of religious expression, social valor, and virtue. These institutions, â€Å"recycled some of the trappings of the original orders of chivalry, but with the aim to create a close knit and devoted circle of noblemen around the person of the sovereign† (Saintry). An order is an award or symbol of great authority and mark, â€Å"The most striking among them (Orders) were those founded by great princes and distinguished by their lavish ceremonial and their ornate dress regulations. The oldest of these princely orders seems to be the Order of the Band, founded by Alfonso XI of Castile in about 1348† (Keen). However, King Edward III, founded the Order of the Garter in 1348 setting a new standard for the future of these great orders. It is within these orders that the very essence or aura can be understood within the realm of chi valry. These orders were descendants from the age of feudalism. Even today the Order of the Garter is still practiced in Great Britain today. Every year at Windsor Castle the ceremony of the Garter takes place. This celebration is performed in the shadow of the famed St. George's tower where a procession takes the present 24 knights into St. George's Chapel (the shrine to the Garter). History of the Garter: The Order of the Garter, founded by King Edward III, is the premier Order of Great Britain. This order is comprised of twenty-six Knights who surrender themselves onto the mercy of their order. It is believed that the Order of the Garter is modeled after King Arthur's Knights of the Round Table and Edward does nothing to dispel that rumor! King Edward III is the epitome of the Order of the Garter and some even believed that Edward was King Arthur reincarnate. This fueled his idea for the Order, which embodied the idea of chivalry and everything that went with it, (i.e. largesse, honor, and nobility). It is rumored that at a celebration King Edward was dancing with the glamorous Countess of Salsbury when her garter slipped off. Immediately Edward picked it up, slipped it on his leg and said, â€Å"Honi soit qui mal y pense† or â€Å"Shame or dishonor on him who thinks evil on it.

Why in the world do we need derivative :: essays research papers

Why in the World we Need Derivatives Many years ago humans discovered that with the use of mathematical calculations many things can be calculated in the world and even the universe. Mathematics consists of many different operations. The most important that is used by mathematicians, scientists and engineers is the derivative. Derivatives can help make calculations of anything with respect to another event or thing. Derivatives are mostly common when used with respect to time. This is a very important tool in this revolutionary world. With derivatives we can calculate the rate of change of anything with respect to time. This way we can have a sort of knowledge of upcoming events, and the different behaviors events can present. For example the population growth can be estimated applying derivatives. Not only population growth, but for example when dealing with plagues there can be certain control. An other example can be with diseases, taking all this events together a conclusion can be made.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The population of the world is growing extremely fast. Eventually there is going to be overpopulation and resources are going to run out if something is not done. We know earth is overpopulated and that a control over population can be made or at least something can be done so there is not a catastrophe. Population growth can be determined using exponentials which directly relate to derivatives. This is a tool that can be very helpful for anthropologist and sociologists in the world (which have nothing to do with mathematics). Not only to know population numbers in ten or twenty years but to have control over other things. For example will there be enough food for five billion people in the world, will there be enough mineral supply for five billion people in the world or will there be enough fuel supply for five billion people in the world. Many of those types of investigations can be determined with the application of derivatives. The world population is growing extremely fast, and our natural resources are been consumed even faster, this study using exponentials and its graphs gives us an idea of what must be done to prevent a disaster. Around this fact of overpopulation and running out of natural resources many things have been created. Indirectly derivatives have caused all this and in some way it is very useful and important. For example birth control methods are a consequence of this.

Writing Cannot be Altered by Technology :: Teaching Writing Education Essays

Writing Cannot be Altered by Technology The term â€Å"cyberculture† is derived from the word â€Å"cyberspace†. William Gibson’s science novel â€Å" Neuromancer† predicted a world that man and machine merge to become a cyborg (Tribble and Trubek: 521). This prediction became reality during the end of study of the 1990s when cyberculture began to flourish. This culture exists within several cultures here on earth. Some may ask, what is cyberculture? Cyberculture studies cover the examination of the subject and the forming communities within the realms of those networked spaces that are being created through technological devices and amplifications (Silver). In this essay I will examine how technological advancements affect our fundamental habits of writing and reading. Our â€Å"traditional† writing was not traditional in ancient times. The birth of writing itself was a new technology. This is similar to the birth of the computers years ago. The writing process is taught in grade school. It begins with brainstorming, writing a rough draft, proofreading and completing a final draft. This process is often obsolete with modern writing. Traditionally a writer uses a writing utensil and paper to create their writings. Modern technology allows us to type as we write. This occurs when a writer begins to type their thoughts as they think. I personally design a paper structure similar to the traditional format to assist in my paper creation prior to typing; however, some people sit at the computer and type as the think. Some may argue eliminating the traditional process damages the fundamentals of writing. However, I feel we brainstorm in a different way with modern writing. As the person types, he/she deletes and rearranges senten ces to make the paper complete. The writer is able to use spell check or proof read from a printed copy. The fundamentals are not tarnished because the purpose of traditional process applies to the modern process as well. I feel we should learn the traditional format of writing in addition to using the advancements of technology. "Internet is another invention in a line of modern technologies that undermine traditional notions of civil society that require unity and shun multiplicity while giving impressions that they in fact re-create such a society" We should not rely solely on technology because we must know how to function if the technology fails.

Confessions of a Shopaholic

Existential consumption and irrational desire Richard Elliott University of Oxford, Oxford, UK If marketing is truly the â€Å"ultimate social practice of postmodern consumer culture† (Firat, 1993) then it carries the heavy burden of â€Å"determining the conditions and meanings of life for the future† (Firat and Venkatesh, 1993). Certainly, social theory is now focusing on consumption as playing a central role in the way the social world is constructed, and it can be argued that marketing is too important just to be left to marketers as it plays a â€Å"key role in giving meaning to life through consumption† (van Raaij, 1993).Marketing has been criticized from within as being a â€Å"technique† without moral regard for the consequences of its actions, and there is no shortage of critics of its most public face: advertising. This paper aims at identifying some of the issues raised by postmodern and poststructuralist accounts of consumption. In particular, it is argued that consumption can be conceptualized from cultural, social and psychological perspectives as being a prime site for the negotiation of conflicting themes of freedom and control.It is proposed here that in postmodernity the consumption of symbolic meaning, particularly through the use of advertising as a cultural commodity, provides the individual with the opportunity to construct, maintain and communicate identity and social meanings. This use of consumption as a resource for meaning creation and social transactions is a process that involves the making of choices that are sufficiently important to be considered as existential.This is not an attempt at rehabilitating the practice of marketing, but is intended to demonstrate that the consumer is far from being a passive victim but is an active agent in the construction of meaning. In part this can be seen as a response to Olander’s call for â€Å"consumer research for the consumer’s sake† (Olander, 1993), but also as providing theoretical underpinning for concepts such as â€Å"advertising literacy† (Ritson and Elliott, 1995a) which attempt to build new socially located and meaning-based-models of advertising.Exploring some consumption dialectics As a heuristic device to help unpack some of the complexity of the consumption experience, five dialectics will be explored and their (sometimes polar) tensions used as analytical frames for reviewing competing discourses on the meanings of consumption: My thanks to Geoff Easton and Rolland Munro for discussions which improved the ideas in this paper, some of which have been explored in Elliott and Ritson (1995). Existential consumption and irrational desire 285 European Journal of Marketing, Vol. 1 No. 3/4, 1997, pp. 285-296.  © MCB University Press, 0309-0566 European Journal of Marketing 31,3/4 286 (1) the material versus the symbolic; (2) the social versus the self; (3) desire versus satisfaction; (4) rationality versus irrationality; and (5) creativity versus constraint. It is acknowledged that binary oppositions are essentially structuralist and thus in danger of betraying the complexity of the poststructuralist accounts they are being used to elucidate here, and that they are inevitably reductionist.However, postmodernism is riven with contradictions, even Baudrillard’s account of postmodernity is itself a totalizing â€Å"meta-narrative† (Hebdige, 1989), so we must learn to participate in the â€Å"tolerance of incompatible alternatives† (Lyotard, 1984) and â€Å"the juxtaposition of opposites and contradictions† (Foster, 1983) called for by postmodern theorists in the hope that it can develop our understanding(s) of the meaning(s) of these complex ideas.As a heuristic device, these bipolar oppositions should not be read as posited structures but merely as aids to coming to grips with the sometimes mind-numbing interrelations between what are often incommensurable co ncepts. The binary opposition is false and should, of course, be allowed to â€Å"melt into air† (Berman, 1983). The material versus the symbolic As soon as a product’s ability to satisfy mere physical need is transcended, then we enter the realm of the symbolic and it is symbolic meaning that is used in the search for the meaning of existence (Fromm, 1976).Central to postmodern theories of consumption is the proposition that consumers no longer consume products for their material utilities but consume the symbolic meaning of those products as portrayed in their images; products in fact become commodity signs (Baudrillard, 1981). â€Å"The real consumer becomes a consumer of illusions† (Debord, 1977) and â€Å"the ad-dict buys images not things† (Taylor and Saarinen, 1994). This semiotic perspective of products as symbols raises difficult questions about the location of cultural meaning.The term symbol itself can relate to the product that carries meaning or to the meaning it carries, and the interpretation of meaning is a complex product of what is contained in the representation and what the individual brings to the representation (LeVine, 1984). Symbolism can be analysed semiotically by examination of the system of signs and what they signify. It has been realized, however, that this leads to an infinite regress as one sign leads to another without there ever being anything â€Å"real† outside the system.All meaning is socially constructed and there is no essential external reference point, so ultimately â€Å"There is nothing outside the text† (Derrida, 1977). To complicate matters further, symbolic interpretation is essentially non-rational improvisation that does not obey the codes of language but operates at the unconscious level (Sperber, 1975). A Jungian analysis goes even further and suggests that the full significance of a symbol cannot be Existential grasped in purely intellectual terms, if it becomes fully definable in rational consumption and terms it is no longer a true symbol (Storr, 1973). rrational desire But even for the sign-dependent human being things are never purely material nor purely meaningful, there is always a mediated relation between matter and meaning. This mediated process operates through the materiality 287 of language as a dynamic force in the transformation of an indeterminate range of human possibilities into a restricted moral economy of meaning, in which we are simultaneously authors of and authored by the language with which we try to communicate (Pfohl, 1992).This relationship is partly a function of the individual’s ability to understand and control the interaction between the material and the symbolic, and material objects themselves are always in transit and their meaning is likewise on a trajectory (Appadurai, 1986). The social versus the self The functions of the symbolic meanings of products operate in two directions, outward in constructing the social world – social-symbolism – and inward towards constructing our self-identity: self-symbolism (Elliott, 1995).Consumption of the symbolic meaning of products is a social process that helps make visible and stable the basic categories of a culture which are under constant change, and consumption choices â€Å"become a vital source of the culture of the moment† (Douglas and Isherwood, 1978). The meanings of consumer goods are grounded in their social context and the demand for goods derives more from their role in cultural practices rather than from the satisfaction of simple human needs (Douglas and Isherwood, 1978). Consumer goods, then, are more than just objects of economic exchange, â€Å"they are goods to think with, goods to speak with† (Fiske, 1989).Consumption as a cultural practice is one way of participating in social life and may be an important element in cementing social relationships, while the whole system of consumption is an unco nscious expression of the existing social structure through a seductive process which pushes the purchasing impulse until it reaches the â€Å"limits of economic potential† (Baudrillard, 1988). It is within this social context that the individual uses consumer goods and the consumption process as the materials with which to construct and maintain an identity, form relationships and frame psychological events (Lunt and Livingstone, 1992).The self-symbolic role of material goods is long established in social anthropology and the individual’s attachment to objects may be a culturally universal function which symbolizes security, expresses the self-concept and signifies connection to society (Wallendorf and Arnould, 1988). Consumer goods are not only used to construct our self-identity but are also used by others to make inferences about us that guide their behaviour towards us (Dittmar, 1992). But now in postmodernity we are able to use consumer products to become any of our â€Å"possible selves† (Markus and Nurius, 1986) inEuropean Journal of Marketing 31,3/4 288 which we utilize consumer goods to construct pastiches of others we have been exposed to via the media or more directly. â€Å"In cyberspace, I can change myself as easily as I change my clothes† (Taylor and Saarinen, 1994). But the choices as to which self to construct and present are attended by the possibility of social consequences which may be very negative for example, a failure of a young person to utilize symbolic capital in the form of knowledge of the appropriate meaning of advertising can lead to rejection by the peer group (O’Donohoe, 1994).Desire versus satisfaction The symbolic gratification promised by advertising manages to recode a commodity as a desirable psycho-ideological sign (Wernick, 1991), and the operation of advertising at the unconscious level is driven by the search for an imaginary self which motivates the individual with desire for cohere nce and meaning (Lacan, 1977).Advertising feeds the desire to achieve the unobtainable unity of the self with destabilized meanings (Featherstone, 1991), images which separate commodities from their original use and offer the possibility to reconstruct the self by purchasing the symbolic meaning of goods and constructing a â€Å"DIY self† (Bauman, 1991). For as Williamson (1978) points out, â€Å"The conscious chosen meaning in most people’s lives comes from what they consume†, and this is energized by the attachment of bodily desire to symbolic meaning where the inchoate needs of the pre-linguistic self are channelled into language.Central to Lacanian theory is the mirror-phase, where the child recognizes itself in a mirror and assumes an image through a transformation from the imaginary to the symbolic. The symbolic for Lacan is linked with absence, in that symbols represent a world of people and things that are not there. The â€Å"real† can only be ap proached through the symbolic medium of language, yet language itself contains the contradictions and fragmentations of gender, power and meaning (Kristeva, 1980).The symbolic focus of much promotional activity in postmodernity is desire, and for Lacan desire exists in the gap between language and the unconscious. â€Å"Desire does not desire satisfaction. To the contrary desire desires desire. The reason images are so desirable is that they never satisfy† (Taylor and Saarinen, 1994). Postmodern consumption is inextricably linked with aspects of sexuality, both conscious and unconscious, as it promises the satisfaction of previously taboo desires through imagery and representations (Mort, 1988).These desires are constructed through the symbolic linkage between consumption and the human body (Kellner, 1992), and operate in large part through the consumption imagery with which we are surrounded and which makes even mundane consumer actions, such as looking in shop windows, high ly significant in our psychic lives (Bocock, 1993). Thus meaning is created through a search for links between identity (the social) and the self and the pursuit of sexual satisfaction through consumption, both of which are doomed to failure.Rationality versus irrationality Existential This postmodern fragmentation of the experience of self has been termed the consumption and condition of â€Å"multiphrenia† by Gergen (1991), who points out that the new irrational desire opportunities for exercise of choice are almost unlimited and so bring with them a â€Å"vertigo of the valued† where the expansion of â€Å"wants† reduces our choice to â€Å"want not†, a multiplicity of competing values and beliefs which make â€Å"the very 289 idea of rational choice become meaningless†.The mass media, and advertising in particular, are responsible for an â€Å"expansion of inadequacy† which is encouraged by a barrage of new criteria for self-evaluation. Cushman (1990) argues that we are in an era of the â€Å"empty self† in which alienation and loss of community can be solved by the â€Å"lifestyle† solution in which the consumer constructs a â€Å"self † by purchasing and â€Å"ingesting† products featured in advertising, a behaviour which can be construed as, at best, of limited rationality.In the Lacanian perspective there is a stress on the individual subject as being fragmented and incoherent, and this leads to the framing of the consumer as simultaneously both rational and irrational, able to both consume and reject what is being consumed, to desire and yet consume without satisfaction (Nava, 1991). â€Å"Identity becomes infinitely plastic in a play of images that knows no end. Consistency is no longer a virtue but becomes a vice; integration is limitation† (Taylor and Saarinen, 1994).The consumption of meaning, even the meaning of supposedly unambiguous television soap operas, is always am bivalent and contradictory (Ang, 1985), and the modes of rationality which operate in the space between the unconscious world of the imaginary and the symbolic world of language are little understood as they are constrained by the â€Å"despotic signifying semiologies† which limit the possibilities for other forms of semiotic systems and other forms of rationality (Deleuze and Guattari, 1983).The conceptualization of other modes of (ir)rationality is paralleled by the recent development in social cognition of the theory of motivated choice, which emphasizes the role of emotion in decision processes (Forgas, 1992; Kunda, 1990). Motivated choice is where judgement is driven by an emotional desire to arrive at a particular conclusion, where biased information search and reasoning processes are used â€Å"to arrive at those conclusions they want to arrive at† (Kunda, 1990).From these perspectives, cool, rational, informationprocessing choice is at least uncommon, and may i n fact be very rare, for â€Å"the real, the really real, is irrational, that reason builds upon irrationalities† (de Unamuno, 1962). Creativity versus constraint The dialectic between freedom and control in the consumption domain is typified by the influence of advertising. The ability of consumers to resist the influence of advertising and thereby exercise freedom has been minimized by the Marxist analysis of its central role in the maintenance of capitalism (Leiss etEuropean Journal of Marketing 31,3/4 290 al. , 1990) which operates through the creation of â€Å"ideological hegemony† (Goldman, 1992). Marxists have also portrayed advertising as a â€Å"magic system† (Williams, 1980) of magical inducements and satisfactions which validates consumption, if only in fantasy, by association with social and personal meanings and thus transforms goods which had rational use-value into irrational symbols.This focus on the power of the symbolic is further developed by Williamson (1986) who argues that advertisements function at an unconscious level at which the consumer is unable to resist latent meaning transfer. More recent post-Marxist analyses have weakened their deterministic stance and recognized that â€Å"the meanings and uses of products cannot be entirely controlled† (Williamson, 1986).However, hegemony still exists, but now depends on affective gratifications provided by mass-mediated popular culture where â€Å"everyday life in amusement society proceeds within a dialectic of enfeeblement and empowerment† (Langman, 1992). From a post-structuralist perspective limited freedom is allowed to the individual through consumption choices: â€Å"for most members of contemporary society individual freedom, if available at all, comes in the form of consumer freedom† through which the individual must take responsibility to invent and consciously create a self-identity (Bauman, 1988).Through the â€Å"new existentialism† (Laermans, 1993) consumers can exercise the freedom to create new meanings for goods through their own idiosyncratic performance of everyday life (de Certeau, 1984). This freedom can be used for collective and individual resistance against the imposed meanings of the dominant cultural categories, particularly through the choice of style and the use of bricolage tactics (Fiske, 1987; Hebdige, 1979).A sustained argument for the active exercise of freedom through consumption is developed by Willis (1990), who characterizes the consumption choices of the young as the behaviour of â€Å"practical existentialists†. The young are seen as exercising choice through consumption-related symbolic creativity which operates via the concept of â€Å"grounded aesthetics†, a process which builds higher-level symbolic meaning structures from the mundane concrete experiences of everyday life.This allows the young a small creative space for making the received social world, to some ext ent, controllable by them. This process is very similar to the marginal â€Å"tactics† (de Certeau, 1984) by which the powerless make sense of consumption, and in relation to advertising would allow them some control over the meaning of a text, but not control over the agenda within which the text is constructed (Morley and Silverstone, 1990).This is a limited freedom where we â€Å"make our own spaces within the place of the other† (Fiske, 1989) but yet it is potentially liberating in that to escape from dominant meanings is to construct our own subjectivity (Condit, 1989), and can therefore be conceptualized as â€Å"authentic† existential choice, rejecting the â€Å"bad faith† of accepting the dominant consumption meanings as inevitable or unproblematic (Sartre, 1969). Advertisements can be seen as cultural products in their own right, and Existential young people consume them independently of the products and have a creative consumption and symbolic r elationship with them.Although Willis (1990) sees advertising as irrational desire manipulative to some extent, he emphasises the scope for individual choice and creativity in meaning and identity construction, as individuals use advertising images as personal and social resources. These are invested with specific 291 meanings anchored in everyday life, via the process of grounded aesthetics, which are then used to construct or maintain personal and social identities. These creative practices are particularly prevalent amongst young people of â€Å"Generation X† (O’Donohoe, 1994; Ritson and Elliott, 1995b).The construction of social identity through â€Å"styles of consumption† is referred to in terms of lifestyle membership of â€Å"neo-tribes† by Bauman (1990), where one may join the tribe by buying and displaying tribe-specific paraphernalia. The neo-tribe is informal, without authority and only requires acceptance of the obligation to take on the iden tity-symbols of the tribe. The consumer may thus exercise the freedom to choose social groupings through existential consumption.The exercise of choice through consumption now flows across national boundaries in a global cultural economy through the operation of advertising â€Å"mediascapes† which are image-centred strips of reality which offer the consumer a series of elements â€Å"out of which scripts can be formed of imagined lives, their own as well as those of others living in other places† (Appaduri, 1990). If aspects of advertising imagery can be appropriated at will by â€Å"practical existentialists† then they may, as Baudrillard (1983) suggests, â€Å"live everywhere already in an ‘aesthetic’ hallucination of reality†, in which the real and the simulated are indistinguishable.However, the extent to which, in a â€Å"mediacratic† age, advertising reflects reality or actually creates it is problematic. Are the â€Å"practica l existentialists† using advertising or is it really using them? Schudson (1984) suggests that advertising is â€Å"capitalist realist art† and that although it does not have a monopoly of the symbolic marketplace, different social groups are differentially vulnerable especially during transitional states of their lives. This form of art idealizes the consumer and portrays as normative, special moments of satisfaction.It â€Å"reminds us of beautiful moments in our own lives or it pictures magical moments we would like to experience† (Schudson, 1984). This suggests that young people in particular, who are at a transitional state in their lives, may be subject to excessive influence by â€Å"buying-in† to advertising’s depiction of a false reality. In contrast, young people may be exercising (limited) freedom in their use of advertising as a cultural commodity for â€Å"even as the market makes its profits, it supplies some of the materials for alte rnative or oppositional symbolic work† (Willis, 1990).This dichotomy between creativity and constraint (Moores, 1993) in the context of advertising is represented by the problematic of hegemony, which sets parameters on the freedom to construct meaning (Ang, 1990). Hegemony European Journal of Marketing 31,3/4 292 does not dominate from outside but is a â€Å"thick texture† which interlaces resistance and submission, opposition and complicity (Martin-Barbero, 1988) and which therefore poses difficult problems for ethnographic analysis to unpack.Structuration theory (Giddens, 1984) offers a solution to the dualism of structure versus agency, by positing that the â€Å"structural properties of social systems are both medium and outcome of the practices they recursively organise†. Thus the consumption of advertising can be both an active and creative practice yet is carried out within constraints imposed by material situation and ideological hegemony. Desire, irrati onality and choice Desire develops from physical need through a growing awareness of the existential choice between a desire to have and a desire to be, desire being defined by absence or lack of being (Sartre, 1969).Lacan’s identification of language as the symbolic order which develops from the pre-verbal imaginary order accompanied by increasing anxiety about the self has been reframed by Kristeva (1980) as the two orders of the semiotic and the symbolic. The imaginary/semiotic order is unconscious whilst the symbolic order is rational, but there is potential for â€Å"slippage† between the two orders of meaning, with a regression to the unconscious and irrational order of the imaginary where desire for the unattainable comfort of the perfect mother holds sway.The gap between the fantasy world of consumption day-dreams of perfect pleasure and the disappointments of reality is the basic motivation for Campbell’s (1987) â€Å"autonomous imaginative hedonismâ⠂¬  which results in limitless wants and a permanent state of frustration. The limited resources of the individual consumer must therefore require choices to be made, choices of which desire to feed and which to deny, which meanings to consume and which to reject or avoid. This vital act of consumer choice may not be to choose that which is most pleasing, but to reject that which is most distasteful.Bourdieu (1984) suggests tastes that â€Å"when they have to be justified, they are asserted purely negatively, by the refusal of other tastes†. We may define ourselves not by what we like, but by what we dislike, and it is strong negative emotional reactions to the consumption practices of others that may structure our social categories. This â€Å"refusal of tastes† seems to operate at the level of the imaginary/semiotic and be driven by pre-verbal inchoate emotion. While consumption may often operate at the level of the imaginary/semiotic or day-dream, it can also have â€Å"real† effects in facilitating the construction of self-identity (Falk, 1994).Phenomenological descriptions of the everyday consumer experiences of women (Thompson et al. , 1990) have surfaced a dominant theme of being in control/being out of control which reflected an anxiety about not buying in the â€Å"right† way, so that women felt guilty when they perceived themselves as not making rational purchase decisions. However, they nevertheless admitted to making purchases in a â€Å"dreamlike† way when they were â€Å"captivated† by a product. In this situation, to act in a self-perceived rrational fashion, to surrender to the symbolic, is itself an authentic existential Existential act of creating meaning through choice, the choice to be irrational. consumption and But to what extent is existential consumption the conscious exercise of irrational desire freedom through choice as idealized by existentialism? Certainly there are severe limits to the fr eedom contained in consumption choices due to individuals having unequal access to the necessary resources, so existential 293 consumption may only exist for some people in some societies.However, the lived experience described by consumers (Elliott and Ritson, 1995; Thompson et al. , 1990) conveys a strong sense of Sartre’s â€Å"engagement† even if not at the level of decisional seriousness discussed by Kierkegaard (Macquarrie, 1972). Marxists may dismiss an individual’s claim to be making conscious choices about consumption as â€Å"false consciousness† but this is to deny the â€Å"situated meaningfulness of everyday consumer experiences† (Thompson et al. , 1990). The freedom of practical existentialism is authentic, even if it is constrained by inequalities in the economic system and by ideological hegemony.The emotion-laden experiences of the consumer – irrational, incoherent and driven by unconscious desires; constrained by the market economy yet obtaining limited freedom through existential consumption and symbolic creativity; able to build a DIY self through consumption yet suffering an expansion of inadequacy through advertising – this constructs the subjectivity of the postmodern consumer with whom postmodern marketing (Brown, 1995) must deal. References Ang, I. (1985), Watching Dallas: Soap Opera and the Melodramatic Imagination, Methuen, London. 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