The Himalayas Along Chinas Southwestern Frontier With India Are The Wo

The Himalayas along China's southwestern frontier with India are the world's tallest mountains. China's greatest river, the Yangtze, is the world's fourth longest. The Taklimakan Desert, in western Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, is one of the driest spots on Earth. The area of loessic soil (fine, siltlike soil created by wind action in dry regions) in Shaanxi and Shanxi provinces is probably more extensive than in any other place. China has a great wealth of mineral and natural resources. Reserves of coal, petroleum, iron ore, tungsten, tin, bauxite, copper, limestone, and many other minerals needed in modern industry are abundant. Used in domestic manufacturing and exported to obtain money, these resources provide China with a solid foundation for rapid industrial growth. Like the United States, China is located in the mid-latitudes. On the east and south China faces major arms of the Pacific Ocean. Consequently, eastern China especially the southeastern coast is humid and has generally mild winters compared to the rest of the country. High mountains close off the west, however, and much of the western two thirds of the country is relatively dry and isolated. Traditionally, China's western regions have been sparsely populated, largely by minority peoples such as Tibetans, Uygurs, and MongoliansChina has the largest population of any country: 1,133,682,501 people were counted during the census taken in 1990 . This population had grown rapidly in recent times, expanding by approximately 15 million each year, an increase equal to the total population of Australia. In an effort to reduce the rate of population growth, the Chinese government since 1978 has promoted the one-child family among the Han. (All married couples are urged to have only one child.) Before the Communist Revolution, a number of religious and philosophical systems were practiced in China. Traditionally Taoism and Confucianism provided ethical guides to the proper behavior of individuals and officials. Both of these systems originated in China during the so-called Golden Age of Chinese thought, several centuries before the beginning of the Christian era. Taoism sought to promote the inner peace of individuals and harmony with their surroundings. Confucianism, based on the teachings and writings of the philosopher Confucius, is an ethical system that sought to teach the proper way for all people to behave in society. Ea ch relationship husband-wife, parents-children, ruler-subjects involved a set of obligations which, if upheld, would lead to a just and harmonious society. Following his teachings would also promote a stable, lasting government (see Confucius). Buddhism, which came to China from India as early as the 1st century AD, was a more conventional religion. Its followers attended occasional services, practiced rituals, and supported a temple on a regular basis. It has been estimated that more than 68 million Chinese still consider themselves Buddhists, though it is unlikely that they practice the religion regularly (see Buddhism). Prior to 1949, practices that may best be called folk religions were common throughout China. Although they incorporated elements of Buddhism and, especially, Taoism, these religions were usually local, often based on local gods, and served the local people.. By 1945, however, it was estimated that only 20 percent of China's people could read and write.Since the Communists came to power in 1949 literacy has risen rapidly. Today it is estimated that 76 percent of adults are literate. Educational policy, however, has varied considerably. Generally, a primary school education has been made available to alm ost everyone, and about 40 percent of young people are able to attend middle school. This reflects a belief that basic knowledge is essential to rural development and economic progress. Education at the college or university level is difficult to obtain, however. The average primary school student has about one chance in 145 of enrolling in a university or college. More and more of China's young people are finishing high school, but no more than 2 to 3 percent of high school graduates go on to the next level. Policies on college admission have changed from time to time, and the basis of selection is not always clear. China's traditional economy was based on rural activities and farm production. Ownership of land was the main form of wealth, and large holdings often belonged to absentee landlords who lived

12 Angry Men Essays (560 words) - English-language Films

12 Angry Men Essays (560 words) - English-language Films 12 Angry Men 12 Angry Men: Juror #8 is the Most Important Juror Juror #8 was the most important juror in the play Twelve Angry Men for a number of reasons. The first reason is that when all the other jurors voted guilty without even thinking about their decisions, Juror #8 suggested that they talk about it before jumping to conclusions. Even when some of the other jurors got mad and started yelling at him, he stayed calm and tried to work things out in a mature fashion. The second reason is that he convinced Juror #9 to change his vote to not guilty. This was an important step because it paved the way for the other jurors to change their minds also. The third reason is Juror #8 re-enacted scenes from the night of the murder in order to prove his points. The first reason Juror #8 was the most important juror is that when all the other jurors quickly voted guilty, without discussing it first, he suggested that they talk about it for a little bit. When asked if he thought the boy was guilty or not guilty, he said, I dont know. This shows that he hadnt decided one way or the other. When asked why he voted this way, he replied, Its not easy for me to raise my hand and send a boy off to die without talking about it first. This shows that he wanted to talk things over with the other jurors before he makes a decision. Later on he said, I just want to talk for a while. This is more proof that he wanted to discuss the issue. The second reason Juror #8 was the most important juror is because he convinced Juror #9 to change his vote to not guilty. This was important because if no one changed his or her decision in the second vote, Juror #8 said he would change his vote to not guilty. However, Juror #9 did change his vote giving Juror #8 more time to talk about the case. Juror #9 said, He gambled for support and I gave it to him. I want to hear more. By convincing one person to change their vote, it forced everybody to listen to more arguments, and possibly change their thinking on the case. The third reason Juror #8 was the most important juror is that he re-enacted scenes from the night of the murder in order to prove his points. The first time Juror #8 re-enacted a scene was when he proves that the old man could not have walked from his bedroom to the hallway in fifteen seconds. He did this by measuring how far his bedroom was from he hallway, and then walking it himself. It took him thirty-one seconds, making it impossible for the old man to have made it in fifteen. By doing this re-enactment, he changed the minds of several other jurors. With the points I have given, Juror #8 is the most important juror. Not only did he do what he felt was the right thing to do, but he also may have saved a boys life. For these reasons Juror #8 is the most important juror in the play Twelve Angry Men. Bibliography English Literature Book

US healthcare system Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

US healthcare system - Essay Example The Fee-for-Service plan is grounded on offering of defined traditional insurance service to cover the cost of services rendered to the consumer. FFS plan creates the least limitations for both the provider and consumer. Due to this minimal restraints resulting from it, the FFS plan has higher costs per degree of protection to the consumers. The Preferred Provider Organizations is similar to the IPA but is mostly predicated upon selecting a subset of all available providers and making contractual agreements with them, which are dependent on price. This plan ensures that â€Å"preferred providers† have patients directed towards them by the PPO insurance plan in exchange for a lower price. This makes the PPO plan attracts a greater patient base that the PPO can apply to negotiate with providers. The Point of Service plan (HMOs without walls) implies a capitation arrangement with providers for their enrollees, even though the doctors are distributed in their offices as in IPA or IPA. Additionally, the compensation for providers is per patient per year and not FFS. Also, patients have strong financial incentives to use POS plan doctors. All the four plans ensure that both the consumers and the providers are not at any disadvantage in terms of provision and reception of healthcare services. Additionally, all the four programs are crafted to ensure each and every citizen gets access to quality affordable healthcare. 2. What roles have state and local health departments played in the delivery of health care services? Are these roles, in your view, appropriate and suitable in ensuring the protection of the public’s welfare? Should they be changed? The state and the local health departments play crucial roles in the delivery of healthcare services to the American citizens. The government’s main role in the healthcare is licensing (Jonas et.al., 2007). The government permits both practitioners and institutions that provide Medicare. Licensing ensures that

Analysis Of Harry Potter Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Analysis Of Harry Potter - Essay Example Interpretation in this context would imply an explanation or way of explaining, for instance, something that is open to a number of interpretations. Therefore, the discussion follows the following structure,ReceptionThe reception section of the Harry Potter and Fandom primarily entail the literary criticism based on British editions of the Seven Harry Potter books.Demand Thegreatdemandfor Harry Potter book motivated the New York Times to create a separate best-seller list for children’s literature min 2000, just before the release of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. By June 2000, Rowling’s novel had been on the list for 79 weeks with the first three books each being on the hardcover best-seller list. By April 2007, Barnes and the Noble declared that Deathly Hallows had broken its pre-order record with over 500,000 copies pre-ordered through its site. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, with 8.5 million, which was then shattered by Half-Blooded Prince with 10. 8 million copies. Awards Honors and Recognition Harry Potters work has received various awards, honors, and recognition. The Harry Potter series have been the recipients of a host of awards since the initial publication of Philosopher’s Stone encompassing four Whitaker Platinum Book Awards, Andal-were granted in 2011. Harry Potter honors include a commendation of for the Carnegie Medal (1997) and a short listing of the Guardian Children’s Award (1998). Factors for Criticisms

Human Factors in Aircraft Engineering Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

Human Factors in Aircraft Engineering - Essay Example All the 225 people (19 crew and 106 passengers) were feared dead in this accident, which further dented China Airlines’ dismal air safety record. Before we consider the detailed case study, it is necessary to dwell on the maintenance aspects of aircraft engineering especially with regard to its safety and security aspects, since this forms the bulwark of international air travel. The responsibilities of the maintenance crew is very significant since it could be mean the difference between life and death at say, 40,000 feet above the ground, if the proper maintenance is not carried out according to the strictest rigour and discipline, it would cause enormous losses of lives and properties. Another aspect to air accidents is that these are capable of causing significant damages even to people and property on the ground where the debris of the ill-fated plane are scattered. The responsibilities for incidents or accidents are most often than not assigned to the operating staff, i.e., flying crew and pilots. This may not always be true. In some cases, there may be inherent deficiencies or construction defects in the basic structure of the aircraft itself. Because of which the accident may occur before, or shortly after take-off. In which cases, the responsibility for incident or accident cannot shift to the flying crew but needs to be assigned to the ground staff, i.e. maintenance and operative personnel. Variable error model refers to condition when the type of error may be of discrete and unpredictable nature and would therefore, be difficult to judge and control. Under such circumstances, it is seen that constant error models, being of consistent and predictable nature, could be tackled more efficiently and effectively. The possibilities of controlling constant error are higher than that of variable error. Error models may further be categorized into two models. Those, which could be solved, or made operationable, and the other

Developing a Blue Ocean Strategy

Developing a Blue Ocean Strategy Introduction Currently many companies have to face the challenge of competing with steadily increased competition in their industries. This high amount of competition often leads to a high cost and price pressure which usually results in low margins for the companies. These markets are called the red oceans. One possibility to break out of these red oceans and to increase the margins for the company can be handled by creating a Blue Ocean. Such a Blue Ocean is a market space where the competition is irrelevant. Aim The aim of this paper is to explain how to create such a Blue Ocean and to discuss the degree of novelty of the Blue Ocean strategy. On the one hand this will be done by explaining the belonging theory. On the other hand two cases of innovative companies will be described and analyzed on basis of the Blue Ocean strategy. Blue Ocean Strategy Concept The market set is divided into two categories which are called oceans: Blue Oceans and red oceans. Red oceans are the known market space as it exists today, with all the various industries. Competitive rules are defined and barriers are clear and accepted. Competition exists among players to gain a bigger share; the more players are on the market, the fewer prospects for profit and growth is existent. Cutthroat competition turns the red ocean bloody.  [3]   Blue Oceans on the other hand represent the opposite they are the unknown market space with industries that are not existent today. Demand is not created by competitive rivalry, because the rules of the game are yet to be set. There is substantial opportunity for profitable growth because of the deep potential of market space that is not yet explored.  [4]   To be successful in economic performance most companies are laying the focus on competitive strategies, plenty of enthusiasm is spend on analyzing and outperforming rivals. Using the vocabulary of the authors their focus is on red ocean strategies. In the future this will not be enough to survive; in addition to swim in a red ocean companies need to create Blue Oceans.  [5]  The following image illustrates the major differences between red and Blue Oceans. Image 1: Comparison of Red Ocean with Blue Ocean strategy  [6]   Value Innovation The basis of the Blue Ocean Strategy is called Value Innovation. Competition is made irrelevant by creating value for both buyers and the company. Buyer value is created by the benefit and price that the company offers to the consumer; value to the company is created from the price and its cost structure therefore only if those two variables are aligned the strategy works. The innovation of a product/ service must create value for the market and eliminate features that are not valued by the current market. New and uncontested market space is made accessible by simultaneously differentiate and reducing costs. This strategy is contrary to common management strategies which propose that companies can either create value to customers at higher costs or create reasonable value at lower costs.  [7]  According to the authors Value Innovation is a strategy that embraces the entire system of a companys activities.  [8]  Image 2 illustrates Value Innovation. Image 2: Value Innovation  [9]   Analytical tools and framework There are three basic tools that will help companies to build a Blue Ocean Strategy. The strategy canvas The strategy canvas is a tool that helps to build a Blue Ocean Strategy. It highlights the current situation in the known market space and shows the offering level that buyers receive across several key competing factors. By illustrating these factors in a simple matrix a graphic description in form of a value curve is visible. This value curve shows a companys relative performance within its industrys factors of competition.  [10]  By illustrating the current situation of an industry the strategic focus can be shifted away from current competition to alternatives and noncustomers, a redefinition of the industry can be constructed.  [11]  Image 3 illustrates a strategy canvas with an example of an Airline. Image 3: Strategy Canvas  [12]   The four actions framework This tool uses four key questions to lead to a new value curve: Which of the factors that the industry takes for granted should be eliminated? Which factors should be reduced well below the industrys standard? Which factors should be raised well above the industrys standard? Which factors should be created that the industry has never offered?  [13]   The first two questions give an insight in how to reduce the cost structure in comparison to other players in the industry. Question 3 and 4 give insight into how to lift buyer value and create new demand.  [14]   The eliminate-reduce-raise-create-grid This tool is supplementary to the four actions framework. It gives companies the possibility to act on all four questions answered before to create new value. The four factors of what to eliminate, reduce, raise and create are put in a matrix and by that scrutinize every factor the industry competes on.  [15]   Formulating Blue Oceans strategies Reconstruct market boundaries In order to break away from the competition the first principle is to reconstruct market boundaries. The challenge is to find possibilities of Blue Ocean opportunities. During performing research across various industry sectors the authors found a basic approach to remaking market boundaries, the six path framework.  [16]  This framework is applicable in all kinds of industries and all are based on looking at data from a new perspective. These are the six paths: Path 1: Look across alternative industries Path 2: Look across strategic groups within industries Path 3: Look across the chain of buyers Path 4: Look across complimentary product and service offerings Path 5: Look across functional or emotional appeal to buyers Path 6: Look across time  [17]   By analyzing each of the single paths companies will be able to get an insight into how to open up Blue Oceans by rebuilding market realities and leave behind conventional boundaries of competition.  [18]   Focus on the big pictures, not the numbers The approach to the strategic planning process is based on drawing a strategy canvas, as it is explained in the section of analytical tools and framework of this document. A structured process for developing a strategy canvas has been developed, which is called the Visualizing Strategy.  [19]  As the name implies, this process uses visual stimulation with the purpose to unlock peoples creativity. The main focus here is laid on the big picture rather than on defined numbers and operational details.  [20]   Reach beyond existing demand To achieve a maximization of the size of the Blue Ocean you are creating the focus should be laid on two things: The analysis of non-customers and finding out strong similarities of what buyers value.  [21]  This is a reversed approach to common strategies, where the focus is on customers and customer differences. The three tiers of non customers The challenge is to find out who the non-customers are and get a deep understanding of them. The authors describe three tiers of non-customers that eventually can be transformed into customers. The first tier of non-customers is closest to your market and would stay and increase their frequency of purchases if a leap in value would be offered to them. These non-customers also referred to as soon-to-be.  [22]  The second tier of non-customers is further away from your market and aware of offerings in it but has consciously voted against them. These non-customers are also referred to as refusing.  [23]  The third tier of non-customers is farthest from your market and has never considered its offerings as an option. These non customers are also referred to as unexplored.  [24]   By analyzing each of the three tiers an understanding of the non-customers can be developed to attract them into your market and expand your Blue Ocean.  [25]   Get the strategic sequence right The fourth principle of Blue Ocean Strategy focuses on the challenge to build a sustainable business model that will make profit on your Blue Ocean idea. The idea here is to use sequences and key criteria within a sequence to reduce business model risk.  [26]  Each sequence has a key question that has to be asked. If answered with no the sequence has to be reshaped. If answered with yes one can move on to the next sequence. The four sequences are: Buyer utility: Is there exceptional buyer utility in your business idea? Price: Is your price easy accessible to the mass of buyers? Cost: Can you attain your cost target to profit at your strategic price? Adoption: What are the adoption hurdles in actualizing your business idea? Are you addressing them up front?  [27]   With this sequencing as a starting point further analyzing of strategic pricing, target costing and finally the profit model is developed.  [28]   Executing Blue Ocean Strategy Overcome key organizational hurdles The challenge to execute the strategy of Blue Oceans is significant, since there are changes made from the conventional way of doing things. The authors present four common hurdles in the execution: The cognitive-, political-, motivational- and resource hurdle. Dealing with those challenges in form of hurdles with tipping point leadership is the key to make Blue Ocean Strategy happen in action.  [29]   Build execution into strategy The sixth principle of the Blue Ocean Strategy is about building commitment and trust into the strategy from the start. The focus is laid on a fair process as a key variable that distinguishes successful Blue Ocean Strategy moves from those that failed.  [30]   Case analysis In this section, we intend to describe and analize two cases of innovative companies (Virgin Galactic and Petrobras) based on the Blue Ocean theory. Virgin Galactic Description of Virgin Galactic Virgin Galactic is a company which belongs to the Virgin Group. This group was founded 1970 by Sir Richard Branson and is one of the leading brand venture capital organizations of the world. The group has created more than 300 branded companies in a variety of different industries, employs around 50,000 people and generated revenue of approx. US$ 18 billion in the year 2009.  [31]  Based on them the success of this group derives from the power of the Virgin name, Richard Bransons personal reputation; our unrivalled network of friends, contacts and partners; the Virgin management style; the way talent is empowered to flourish within the group.  [32]   The Virgin Galactic company has the aim of making private space travel available to everyone by creating the worlds first commercial spaceline.  [33]  Virgin Galactic will create, own and operate spaceships, the SpaceShipTwo. To achieve this goal the Virgin Group uses it experiences in aviation, adventure and luxury travel combining with the technology developed by Burt Rutan. The company was founded in the year 2004 and is located in New Mexico. The SpaceShipOne became the first private spaceship with high altitude-flights in the year 2004. The successor of this technology, the SpaceShipTwo, has seats for two pilots and six passengers. Every passenger has to pay US$200.000 with a deposit ofUS$20,000. At the moment 340 passengers have registered for this service.  [34]  So far 450 people have ever been to space, the goal of Virgin Galactic is to take 1,000 people to space within the first year of commercial operation.  [35]  The first commercial flight shall start in the year 2012.  [36]   The mothership of the SpaceShipTwo, the WhiteKnightTwo, will take the SpaceShipTwo to a height of about 16km and then release it. At that point the rockets of the SpaceShipTwo will boost and bring it to a height of about 100km.  [37]  There it will fly for about five minutes in which the passengers have a magnificent view at the earth and can enjoy weightlessness. Afterwards the space ship will decrease the altitude and land at its base in New Texas. The first flying tests of the WhiteKnightTwo were executed successfully and the SpaceShipTwo completed the first manned glide flight in October 2010.  [38]   At current stage the company Blue Origin which is based close to Seattle is also working on a private space ship.  [39]   Analysis of Virgin Galactic The analysis will start by discussing the Value Innovation of Virgin Galactic. So far tourism in space was available for seven specific persons who paid in average US$ 25 million for staying about 14 days at the ISS.  [40]  The clear buyer benefit of Virgin Galactic is to make this tourism available for nearly everybody who can afford paying the US$200,000 which is less than 1% of the price so far. Moreover, these space trips also add value to Virgin Galactic as it will earn US$200,000 for every passenger having already 340 on the waiting list. Virgin Galactic clearly succeeded in creating a Value Innovation. In the following the strategy canvas for Virgin Galactic will be developed to see the value curve in comparison to its competitor the stay at the ISS.  [41]   As principal factors the following was defined: price, safety, request for personal attributes and easy preparation for the trip.  [42]  As seen in image one the Virgin Galactic company enables a much more comfortable and convenient stay as the previous tourism on the ISS. This is also based on the lower requirements a person has to fulfill to be able to execute this tourism and the lower time-investment. Image 4: Strategy Canvas of Virgin Galactic  [43]   Considering the four action framework Virgin Galactic reduced the costs by eliminated the factors that a stay in space has to be combined with a long duration and cost-intensive stay at the ISS and with cost-intensive rocket starts. Furthermore, they created the factor that nearly everybody would be able (from physical requirements  [44]  ) to go to space with a low time-investment and a comparably low amount of money. They increased the convenience of space-tourisms to a very high extent. In conclusion, they managed to dramatically reduce the costs while increasing the perceived value of the passengers which are interested in some minutes of weightlessness and seeing the earth from the space. Virgin Galactic also concentrated on the so called non-customers as the total number of customers was seven so far. They identified the implicit wish of most people to go to space once. Organizational hurdles The cognitive hurdle cannot be applied as Virgin Galactic did not start in a red ocean but directly entered the Blue Ocean with the start of the company. The hurdle resources will probably be not a big burden as the first flying tests went successful, customers on the waiting list already paid close to US$7 million as deposit and Sheikh Mansour invested US$280 million in this business.  [45]  Furthermore, the Virgin Group and the state of New Mexico are supporting this business. The motivation of the employees and managers is high which is also pushed by Richard Branson personal interest in the success of this company.  [46]  The political hurdle could be implemented by making new laws for required safety standards. But already in 2004 the US congress passed a law which allows passengers to fly into space with the understanding that these vehicles might not be as safe as regular airplanes. Furthermore, the governor of New Mexico supports this company  [47]  and the Virgin group has a high political power. In conclusion all the hurdles were passed successfully by Virgin Gallactic. Build execution into strategy From the beginning Richard Branson declared the vision of this company to make private space travel year 2004. Conclusion In final conclusion, Virgin Galactic entered a Blue Ocean from the beginning. It decreased the costs and made space travel available to everyone by creating the worlds first commercial spaceline. Virgin Galactic works towards this clear vision with having the first commercial flights very likely eight years after its foundation in the previous tourism in space and increased the value of it by leveraging especially the convenience for the customers. Moreover, it went beyond known customer space by offering this service for less than 1% of the costs so far. It managed the organizational hurdles and created a strong vision from the start. Although other companies as e.g. Blue Origin try to create space tourisms this ocean is deep blue so far for Virgin Galactic. Petrobras Description of Petrobras Petrobras was established on October 3, 1953 by the president of Brazil, Getà ºlio Vargas, to undertake oil sector activities in the country. In the early 1970s, the members of the Organization of the Oil Exporting Countries (OPEC) rose the international prices substantially, triggering the so-called Oil Shock. As a result, the market was troubled and marked by uncertainty. In order to overcome the difficulties, the Brazilian government adopted economic measures in order to overcome the supply of oil. Some examples of these measures were the encouragement for use of ethanol as automotive fuel and prioritizing offshore exploration and production. With the measures, the government intended to reduce the dependency on importing a very expensive product and to create an industry to create jobs and exports. These tasks where given to Petrà ³leo Brasileiro (Petrobras) for being executed.  [48]   Producing ethanol for powering the nation 1975 marks the beginning of the production of Ethanol by Petrobras in Brazil aiming to drive the large-scale substitution of oil based vehicular fuels for biofuels. Substituting gasoline for ethanol (produced from sugarcane and manioc) led to 10 million fewer gasoline fuel cars running in Brazil, reducing the countrys dependence on imported oil.  [49]   Today Brazil is recognized as the world leader in the production of ethanol for industrial purposes, based on the most advanced agricultural technology for sugarcane cultivation in the world and to the amount of arable land available in the country. In 2010, the Brazilian ethanol produced by Petrobras was designated as one of the most advanced biofuels due to the 61% reduction of green house gas emissions.  [50]   Pioneering in deep waters In 1984 the company discovered one of the biggest reserve in deep water ever registered in the world. The Albacora field was discovered; proving the existence of giant fields nestled at great depth in Brazil. This marked the beginning in deepwater exploration for the company. By 1986 the company, which until then purchased technology, was faced with the challenge of producing oil at a depth of 400 meters. After surveying the market and finding out there was no technology available for this depth, the company decided to invest in developing new technologies. This was an extremely ambitious project, since, at the time, Petrobras had been exploring at depths of 150 meters and had plans for 1000 meters by 1990. This project turned out to be a great success and the company is currently the global leader in this area. By 2005, Petrobras sets the record of drilling depth with a sloped that reached 6915 meters beyond the bottom of the sea.  [51]   Petrobras achieves self sufficiency In 2006 Brazil became a self-sufficient country in oil and gas production. With an average of 1.9 million barrels per day, Brazil went on to exporting more oil and oil products than it imported. It was like a dream came true, only possible because of the technological efforts and dedication of the employees. Since this point, Petrobras is the most profitable company in the Brazilian economy, being recognized as the eighth biggest oil exploring company in the world.  [52]   In the upcoming years, Petrobras intends to invest in using and developing new renewable energy sources. The portfolio of new projects includes wind, solar and water energy sources and fuel hydrogen. The intention is to reduce even more the dependency on oil, delivering the necessary energy sources to Brazil in order to sustain the intended growth of the upcoming years. Analysis of Petrobas Petrobras success can be summed up in one word and that word is innovation. This company faced the challenge of turning one of the biggest countries in the Americas from a big consumer of imported oil to self sufficient in oil and gas production. This strategy was based on focusing on the big picture (producing its own oil and become an exporter of petroleum) rather than finding a temporary solution for importing oil in the 70s, when the biggest crisis of oil prices occurred. Value Innovation They broke away from the competition by reconstructing market boundaries. For each challenge they faced, they were able to create and develop the necessary technology that didnt exist in the market, becoming a leader in deepwater oil drilling. They reached beyond their existing demand by having more oil available than they need for their own consumption. They also created value to the country by reducing the amount of CO2 in 61% emitted by cars and public transportation thanks to the introduction to ethanol and biodiesel. Brazil became a more efficient country thanks to the use of their natural resources for powering the nation. By mixing ethanol with oil, Petrobras has managed to increase the value for customers by creating a reduction of oil prices  [53]  and by guaranteeing the oil supply they reduced the dependency on foreign companies. Strategy canvas We have decided to explain the differences between the two largest producers of Ethanol in the world, Brazil and U.S.A. As we have mentioned before, Petrobras is the only company responsible for the production and distribution of ethanol in Brazil. Image 5: Stragegy Canvas Petrobas  [54]   As we can see in the figure xx, Brazil is the second largest producer of Ethanol in the world (6,500 million gallons in 2009  [55]  ) behind the United States (10,900 million gallons in 2009  [56]  ). But, the total area used by Brazil for cultivating their sugar cane (3.6 million hectares  [57]  by 2006) is far less than the land used by the United States (10 million hectares  [58]  in 2006). This means that the productivity per hectare is superior in Brazil than in the United States. Another important thing to mention is that thanks to the mixture of Ethanol and oil in Brazil, green house gas reduction has been reduced considerably (89%  [59]  ), increasing the value the company gives to their customers. Organizational hurdles The hurdles are based on the theory mentioned in the first section of this project. During the oil crisis of the 70s, the company faced the challenge of completely changing the paradigm of production. In the cognitive hurdle, we can say that the employees understood completely the need of the company and were able to transform the company. In the second hurdle resources, we can say that the company successfully understood that they needed to invest a great amount of resources in RD in order to increase the efficiency of the production of ethanol and also to raise the drilling depth for oil extraction. Motivating employees on a thirty-year-old project has been an enormous challenge for the company. They have managed to succeed by achieving small goals each year, increasing the level of satisfaction and trust towards the leadership of the company. Finally, the political hurdle was managed correctly due to the implications of the transformation project, involving the government, the management and employees of the company. Build execution into strategy As we mentioned before, the strategy was clear from the beginning: Reduce the dependency of oil and turn the country into a self-sufficient country. The facts speak for themselves, the whole company aligned in order to achieve the goal and it is an example on how to implement the Blue Ocean strategy. Conclusion So, why can the strategy of Petrobras be considered a Blue Ocean strategy? First of all they focused on creating value for the country by reducing the amount of oil imported and gaining self-sufficiency. As a consequence, they were able to reduce considerably the prices of gasoline in Brazil and the dependency of external factors to develop the country. They achieved this goal by innovating in ways to reduce consumption of oil (alternative fuels like ethanol and biodiesel) and exploit the potential the country had in its coasts, regardless the technology available at the times. In the last twenty years, Petrobras has become a key player in the success of Brazil to achieve development. The upcoming years for this company look really bright, thanks to the investment they are doing on other alternative means to produce electricity (water, solar and wind), improve the efficiency of alternative fuels and by creating the necessary technology for increa

Brazil Culture Night Essay

We have a lot of different cultural events going on, but at the International House there is always a culture event every two or three weeks. They usually dedicate a week to a specific culture. They show movies, do lectures, have coffee night and much more. They have different cultures every time. International House had culture events on different cultures like: China, Brazil, Japanese, French, Nepali, German, India, and many more. I have been to many of these culture events. One event in particular that I had been to recently is Brazil culture night. Brazil culture night was held on Wednesday, March 14, 2012. The doors opened at 6:00 but the actual event started at 6:30 and it lasted until 8:30. The event was held in the International House Great Room where all the events are usually held. I was very excited to go to this event because I know very little about Brazil but I have heard a lot and I was very excited to go and find out new things about Brazil. I specially wanted to see the food and the music. And the language, Portuguese. When I first walked in the lobby of International House it was packed! Everywhere there were lots of people. I saw different age group people from kids to late adults. This made me even more exciting, I love to see lots of people coming to event it just makes it even more fun. In the beginning as soon as you go in, you get your food and you find a place to sit. When I saw the food, my mouth got so watery. My Portuguese professor from last semester was serving us food, and she had told me that she made most of this food. This surprised me because I never thought that she could make this great food. The food was amazing, I specifically loved the desert, I did not know what it was called but it was all chocolaty and it was shaped like a round ball. After every one got sattled in, which completely filled the Great Room there was no space for anyone to sit, some people were even standing. And then the program started around 9:30. There were two presentations, one from the Brazilian people itself and another one was a students here who went there to do the study abroad program. Both of these presentations were very interesting, I learned a lot from them. It made me want to go to Brazil to do the study abroad program. The places they went to were just so beautiful. Later they had the band, â€Å"Cafà © Basil† and they played amazing as well. I realized that I really enjoy Portuguese music I never thought that I would like this type of music but I really enjoyed it. Later they had the Jiu-Jitsu demonstration, which was really interesting. I wish I could something like that. And at the end there was some Samba dance demonstrations, which Joanna presented. I was just mind blown when I saw it! They taught people from audience and then some people just joined them. I really enjoyed the Samba dance. They also had a traditional dancing. Overall I really enjoyed myself there. There was not a better way I would have wanted to spend my Wednesday night. I really enjoyed the food and loved the Samba dancing. I am really glad that they pass flyers around campus, post these events on International House website and also they use facebook to get a lot of people coming to these events. They always have a great out come. Sometimes they do not even have enough food left for the helpers. They have volunteers helping during these events. These volunteers are students and most of them are from the club, Asian American Association. I believe that these students do a great job, in weather it if preparing the food or preparing for the event. One another positive thing about these events held at the International House is that, these events allow us to meet new people outside of what we normally see, who our normal friends are. I have made a lot of new friend from going to these events. I have friends from lots of different culture only because I go to these culture events and I see them there. These events also allows us to experience other culture but in our own comfort zone. I also like how the main focus of these events is that, it show people on campus the similarities and differences between cultures in an interesting fun way, which everyone enjoys. I learned a lot from these events. Like I learned to do a little of Samba dancing and some interesting facts and also the food was amazing. I think they should just keep up the good work that they are doing. They should find a bigger room so that everyone could sit and enjoy but other then that it was wonderful. I loved it!

If You Have to Ask and Pleasant Personality Essay

1.What Is A Pleasant Personality? No matter what you create in life before you can create it you have to know and understand what it is that you are creating. If you are not consciously creating then you will create through default with the outcomes being random, unpredictable and often unpleasant. A personality is your set of characteristics which is made up of your attitudes, your beliefs, your knowledge, your perceptions, your behaviours, your interests and other personal traits that you hold. Your personality communicates your quality as a person . Your pleasant personality distinguishes you and is what makes you appealing to others. We have all met and interacted with those who have unpleasant personalities and have experienced the upsets created that come from our exchanges with them. In order to consciously create your pleasant personality you must first be aware of what your attitudes and behaviours are towards people and life. You have to take ownership of your knowledge rather than pretending not to know or worse, refusing to acquire knowledge and skills . You have to examine your beliefs and your attitudes . Further, what mood level do you operate in? Can you move easily through the different moods or are you chronically stuck or fixed in a low mood level or in the pretense of a high mood level that you really don’t feel? 2. Your Pleasant Personality  Your pleasant personality is defining you for those with whom you come in contact or interact with. What do you want people to know about you? How do you want to be perceived by others? What characteristics do you have? Are you helpful? Are you an inspiration to others? Do you have a sense of humor? Are you dependable? Are you empathetic? Are you friendly? Each of us has a unique blend of characteristics that contribute to our individual personalities. Draw on the best of these characteristics, the most positive of them and use your attributes and abilities to create your own, one of a kind, pleasant personality! Make a list of them if you have to. Your pleasant personality will shine through whatever identity you are wearing, be it your business identity, your spousal identity, your parental identity, your friend identity or any other number of identities you wear as you play your games in life. You may not wear the same identity to MacDonald’s as you would to the Four Seasons but your pleasant personality will co-ordinate with any identity that you consciously and purposefully choose to wear. 3. Why Develop A Pleasant Personality? You can be the smartest person in the world and you can be willing to tackle whatever task is at hand but if you have failed to develop a pleasant personality you will be hard pressed for an audience and it is unlikely that you will be chosen as a vital member of a team. It is therefore vital that you develop a pleasant personality. It is essential as you go out and about in life that you be aware of what your personality is saying and demonstrating about you. Whether you like sales or not every time you interact with another or others you are giving a sales pitch. You are building a reputation and you are telling others who you are not just by your name but by the knowledge you have and the level or responsibility you take for that knowledge. Of equal importance is the personality you use to convey your messages to others. 4. What Are The Consequences Of Having A Pleasant Personality? From the above you will have identified the characteristics of your pleasant personality. If you find that your personality has been predominantly unpleasant ask yourself, â€Å"What have been or could be the consequences of having an unpleasant personality? Keep asking yourself that question until all the consequences of having an unpleasant personality have been brought to view. Then, with your identified characteristics of a pleasant personality ask yourself, â€Å"What have been or could be the consequences of having a pleasant personality? Keep asking yourself that question until all the consequences have been brought to view. If you find that you already have a pleasant personality your having defined the characteristics of that personality will allow you to take full ownership of and empower your pleasant personality. Ask yourself, â€Å"What have been or could be the consequences of having a pleasant personality? Keep asking yourself the question until you have viewed all the consequence thereby acknowledging yourself while raising your confidence level. Having a pleasant personality and using it to its full extent will empower you in life and it will serve to empower and inspire others. Then, as Dr. Seuss so aptly put it, â€Å"Oh the places you will go.†

Visiting the Grand Canyon Personal Essay Example

Visiting the Grand Canyon Personal Essay Example Essay Being a nature lover, my one wish is to cover every possible nook and corners of our world to revel in the picturesque and spellbinding beauties of Mother Nature. I have always been fascinated with landscapes and geology. Their beauties can be captured by cameras, but it is nothing when compared to seeing live with our own two naked eyes. Right now, I feel a part of my wish is granted since I stand barefoot overlooking the most spectacular place in Arizona the Grand Canyon. I feel as if I am transported to an orange planet with green vegetation. The landscape is so huge and it covers acres of land. The whole structure is made of several layers of rocks, their contour cut and shaped by natures forces giving the canyon a marvelous look of striated and multicolored walls. The soft clicks of camera caught my attention as I transferred my gaze at the crowd of people I had come with. Since the park is vast, and I did not know which part of it has the best view, I signed up for tour trip with Flagstaff, Charter and Tours. I was lucky enough to get the last ticket. We first decided to explore the South Rim as it was the most accessible part of the park and is opened all year through. Presently, we all were standing at 7000 ft above sea level. Peeking down the last barriers of rock, we could see the deep inner gorge of the Colorado River, its blueness a sharp contrast to the canyons orange walls. On the other side of the river, the North Rim stood at a towering height of about 8000 ft above sea level. Our tour guide said it was not possible to explore the North Rim because the terrain was irregular and difficult to get to. Unclasping my camera holder, I adjusted my camera to take a shot of the North Rim. The shot came out too good. The way the orange hill kissed the light blue sky was almost ethereal. While we continued our hike towards the inner canyon, the gushing sound of the Colorado River resonated in my ears. The bottom view was even more awesome, scattered with land and aquatic life. The wild burrow and the big horned sheep moved about gracefully, their hovering over the land noses were looking for something to eat. As I let my gaze wander, I spotted a mule walking towards which I could only assume was the great Colorado River. Within seconds, I found myself dipping my hands into the cool water. I collected some water in my hands and sprinkled it on my face. It was pure bliss. The water felt so silky against my skin and a trickle of water somehow made its way into my mouth. Such sweetness, I had never tasted in any water before. I could not help but spend a few minutes relishing and enjoying its delightful taste. Afternoon flew by quickly with me taking as many pictures as possible. We were promised a sky walk over the Grand Canyon in the evening, and I just could not wait for it. That time eventually came, and I felt like heaven walking over the glass the multicolored view of the canyon shimmering below in the shades of evening. One moment, the walls seemed to blend with the sunset, the orange gleaming brightly. A slow cloud loomed its way over my head and, the next moment, the view seemed so mysterious, like if it was hiding some secret. The landscape is just is not made of buttes, spires and mesas, but it is a land filled with diverse and mysterious creatures. Whereas my journey comes to an end, I can conclude only that the Grand Canyon is a deeply spiritual place, a peaceful and quiet environment, whose translucent beauty will never cease to amaze me even in my dreams. It is a mysterious place, and I regard it as my safe harbor.

Death of a Salesman Literary Analysis Essays

Death of a Salesman Literary Analysis Essays Death of a Salesman Literary Analysis Paper Death of a Salesman Literary Analysis Paper Essay Topic: Death Of a Salesman Trent Beebe Beebe 1 Mr. Arena 4th hour AP Lang Comp 12/17/09 Death of a Salesman Essay The story, Death of a Salesman, is a story that has many literary devices that help to make it the deep and riveting story that has become an American classic. The use of symbols in the story adds to the overall effect and theme and also creates a different mood that the reader must infer from it. The symbols not only represent something in the story as literally a symbol, but of much importance because of the numerous times they appear in the work. There are countless symbols in the story that help to give the reader a different feeling for it but there are a select few that really represent the most important themes and ideas from the book. The use of seeds in the story as a metaphor for Willy Loman’s life gives the reader a short and simple thought of Willy’s thought on life. Willy believed that if he worked hard and set a good example for his kids that he would in turn be successful and they would eventually be successful. His thought was the same as that for the seeds; you plant them, put some effort into trying to grow them, and they will grow to be big and strong. His boys would be like the plants in a way that they would grow to be big and strong and successful and provide for the family but that never ended up happening and Willy was disappointed about this. Willy was mainly disappointed because he felt like a failure as a father to Biff. Biff had everything going for him, All-American football player, ladies man, anything he wanted he could get. Willy thought the highest of Biff and eventually Biff never really made anything of himself and was basically a bum. All of what had happened to Biff reflected back onto Willy and Willy felt that it was his fault and felt he failed as a father. Another use of symbols is almost a minor one because of its little insignificance to the play, but its broad idea can be easily understood when fully examined. For all of Willy’s life, his son Biff, was the ultimate athlete. He was college bound to play football and had everything going for him. He was missing just one thing; His academics. He flunked math and was not able to graduate, meaning he could not play college football unless he passed. Biff’s friend and â€Å"study buddy†, Bernard, assured Biff that if he didn’t study he would flunk math and not graduate. Biff ignored this idea and instead went to practice to become a better football player. This event comes full circle when Biff eventually becomes a bum all due to the fact that he never passed math and Bernard is a big successful lawyer. A decade after this whole ordeal went down, Willy goes to visit his neighbor Charley, at his office. Willy is surprised to see Bernard there and has a quick chat with him about how he became so successful. Through this process, Willy noticed that Bernard had a tennis racket, and asked Bernard what he needed it for to go on this trip. Bernard eventually told him that it was to play tennis at one of his friend’s house in Washington D. C. Willy is surprised by this and feels happy for Bernard. The whole point to that part of the story was to use the tennis racket as a symbol showing the significance that hard work has on people. The old saying goes, â€Å"you work hard, you play hard†, and Bernard worked hard and is now getting to play hard and Biff never worked hard and now his life is dull, boring, and he has become a bum mooching off of his parents. A third symbol used in the story as a literary device was the thought of getting rich and making it to the top, and that meant going to Africa with Willy’s brother Ben to find diamonds, the main source of becoming rich. Years back, Willy’s brother Ben, asked Willy if he would want to travel to Alaska during the gold rush to try and hit it big. Willy refused because he wanted to make it big by way of the American Dream. Willy did not know it then, but he was making a huge mistake. Ben went the wrong way to Alaska and ended up in Africa, only to become very rich by hitting it big with diamonds that he found in a mine there. The diamonds he find make him rich and he one day comes back to Willy to tell him off his intangible wealth. Willy is quite surprised and ponders at the decision he made. The diamond and the thought of being rich were Willy’s ambitions in life and what he strived for to achieve for his family. Towards the end of the story, Willy thinks about his way to find the diamonds and realizes the only way he could get it would to be by killing himself and having his life insurancego to his family so they could finally have what Willy worked for all those years. Willy did follow through in his plan and he felt that killing himself was meaningful toward the betterment toward the family and he found his diamond that he had been searching for his whole life. The story, Death of a Salesman, used these and other symbols to add the theme of the book and allowed for the story to be a literature dream. The symbols not only represented broad topics of it, but also the significance of minor details that add to the story and make it that much better for the reader. Miller, Arthur. Death of a Salesman. New York: Penguin Books, 1998.

Case analysis Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 2

Analysis - Case Study Example The Varsity team losing to the junior team is a significant concern. Members abhor each other hence lessening co-operation amongst the crewmembers. The reason for this loss is the deficiency in leaders who ought to co-ordinate and provide a sense of direction to the players (Snook and Jeffrey 31). The presence of disruptive persons in the team is also a major concern since nobody wants to sacrifice for the team. The crew team was rated in terms of weaknesses and strengths, which complimented the manager as a team leader The coach, Preczewskis, is in a quandary; thus, making a decision among three options. He was to decide on whether to exchange both the junior university and Varsity boats. The other option was to switch the boat members at an individual capacity. The last option was to improve the output performance of the university boat. Well performing teams do not only prosper because of combining members’ skills but also through motivating and energizing members through bonding hence striving towards a general goal. Teams that are poorly designed amounts to wasting of time and resources. A need arises to enhance communication; thus, keeping each member well informed to avoid communication breakdown (Snook and Jeffrey 46) Constant meetings enable members of the teams to portray grievances that will boost the achievements of the team. In this forum, consultations and participation should be evident to allow everyone to give useful information. This will provide room for accommodation of each person’s view. Trust is a virtue that must be cultivated because most of the crewmembers doubted each

Comparison and Differences between Date Positivism and Post-Positivism Assignment

Comparison and Differences between Date Positivism and Post-Positivism Concepts - Assignment Example Post-positivism is the exact rejection of the tenets that supported positivism. Having been coined after the original idea, post-positivism recognizes that the observable world has a connection between what scientists think and work. This implies that there is no difference between the scientific reasoning and the common sense reasoning. To verify observable phenomena in science, procedures are followed. This, therefore, means that in the scientific verifications, something beyond the measurable and observable, in this case, knowledge is achieved (Giddens & Sutton, 2010). To the sociology research today, the two concepts are important in that they guide the search for scientific answers. Whereas the positivist view of research holds that science should measure the observable in the search for truth, the post-positivist view of the same is that all measurements have an error and is fallible. This means that deeper inquiry is required to ensure that science holds steadfast the goal of getting it right about what is measured in research. The order perspective is based on the belief that the society is held close by shared principles and concepts. These concepts are responsible for the social consensus that is observed in any society. The cohesion and interdependence of the people in the society are a secured by the shared norms and beliefs (organic and mechanical solidarity). Conflicts according to this perspective arise from new perspectives that come to intrude the normal perceptions of beliefs and concepts. In the light of this perspective, structural approach to social work aims at maintaining the social prestige with little if any interference with the social structures and the related stability (Turner, 2012). The conflict perspective, on the other hand, is based on the concept of power and inequality in the society. As a result, the cohesion that exists in a society is unhealthy and not supposed to be maintained.