Brand image of Kenya as a destination Dissertation

Brand image of Kenya as a destination - Dissertation Example With the aim to identify the image of and the potential of Kenya as a destination, three objectives were set in Chapter I. After extensive literature review, the methodology was stated in Chapter III. This was a quantitative study in which primary data was collected through survey questionnaires. The findings and conclusion have been presented below. The study concludes that Kenya offers various attractions such sports, adventure, nature-based holiday, wildlife and safaris and beach and cultural tourism. However, nature and wildlife tourism are the only ones that are largely advertised for as is evident from some of the brochures from different countries. The perception of Kenya in the minds of the people is that of a country with low cost of living, a country where theft and robbery is common, or a country that specializes in wildlife tours and nature-based tourism. Nowhere has beach tourism or cultural tourism been publicized. People derive their perceptions either through their ow n experience or through the media. The tour operators play a critical role in projecting the right image of any destination. The tour operators in turn, should be educated and familiarized with the destination by the host country government. The study concludes that Kenya carries a poor brand image in the minds of the people. The brand image can be enhanced through proper marketing strategy and through educating the tourists. Table of Contents Chapter I: Introduction 1.1 Background 1 1.2 Rationale for the study 2 1.3 Research Aims and Objectives 2 1.4 Structure of the study 3 Chapter II: Literature Review 2.1 Kenya – as a destination 5 2.1.1 Mass tourism and decline 6 2.1.2 Tourist activities in Kenya 8 2.2 Motivation for tourism 9 2.3 Brand image in tourism 10 2.4 Role of tour operators 13 Chapter III: Methodology 3.1 Research philosophy 14 3.2 Purpose and phenomenon of research 14 3.3 Epistemology 14 3.4 Research approach 15 3.5 Data collection 15 3.6 Data collection instru ment 16 3.7 Research Design 16 3.8 Ethical concerns 17 Chapter IV: Findings and Discussions 4.1 Introduction 18 4.2 Findings from survey 18 4.3 Discussions 24 Chapter V: Conclusion and Recommendations 5.1 Conclusion 27 5.2 Limitations 28 5.3 Recommendations 28 References 30 Appendices 32 Figures and Charts Figure 2.1 Brochure of Ministry of Tourism 11 Figure 2.2 Brochure of UK-based tour operator 12 Figure 2.3 Brochure of an Australian-based tour operator 13 Chart 4.1 Age Group 18 Chart 4.2: Occupation 19 Chart 4.3: Visited Kenya 19 Chart 4.4: Purpose of visit 20 Chart 4.5: Duration of stay 20 Chart 4.6: Accommodation used 21 Chart 4.7: Image of Kenya 21 Chart 4.8: Perceptions of safety 22 Chart 4.9: Source of information 22 Chart 4.10 Memorable experiences 23 Chart 4.11: Perception 24 Chapter I: Introduction 1.1 Background One of the changes brought about by globalization is change in consumer demand. Changes in consumer demand have impacted several business sectors including the t ourism sector. As demand for new sectors has developed tourists constantly seek newer destinations. In the 20th century tourism has grown as the world’s largest industry even surpassing industries such as autos, steel, electronics, and agriculture (Sirgy & Su, 2000). Tourism is a large source of foreign exchange, employment and enhanced income due to which all attention and resources are diverted towards this industry. Changes have occurred in the structure of the society as a result of more purchasing power in the hands of the people. This is one of the strong reasons that tourism worldwide has grown proportions. It thus becomes the responsibility of the destination managers

Analsysis of the Hero by Siegfried Sassoon Essay Example for Free

Analsysis of the Hero by Siegfried Sassoon Essay Analysis- The Hero Brief Summary of Content-In the Poem The Hero Sassoon has presented the hardships that a soldier goes through in the war through the use of the soldier’s death. He also shows the pain of the families left behind by showing the mother’s pain after she finds out that her son as died on the battle fields. The first stanza is introducing the mother at the moment that she finds out her son has died. The mother reads a letter that a Colonel wrote for her and she hides her true feelings about her son’s death because she believes that if she is upset she will dishonour his memory. In the second stanza the brother officer is introduced and he has lied to the mother about how her son had died. The brother officer is patronising to the mother in this stanza because he lies straight to her face about how her son had died and he is doing it so she would not suffer anymore. In the last stanza the brother officer is remembering how Jack had behaved in his last days. The brother officer portrays Jack as being a coward in his last days on the battlefields and this contradicts what he told the mother. The last stanza also shows that Jack tried to get home because of the hardships of war but died before he could. The last stanza also shows that no one cares about what happened to Jack except his mother the ‘Lonely woman with white hair’. Themes and Issues raised in poem- Sassoon has included realistic issues in his poem ‘The Hero’. He clearly portrays the death, and pain associated with war. He also shows the fear associated with fighting through Jack’s attitude in the poem.

Essays --

How do life threatening illnesses affect children and their families? All children will likely have many different health problems during infancy and childhood, but for most children these problems are mild, they come and go, and they do not interfere with their daily life and development. For some children, however, chronic health conditions affect everyday life throughout childhood. Even though these are very different illnesses, kids and families dealing with any chronic condition have a lot in common. Learning to live with a chronic condition can be very challenging for a child, for parents, and for siblings and friends. I know that children with these types of illnesses struggle in school and with life. Not only is it hard enough for them to get through school but sometimes the schools don’t corporate by not following their 504 plans. Children have to travel thousands of miles to see a doctor for something that isn’t curable but with the help and dedication of the doctors they are able to use experimental treatments hoping to prolong their life. Ten years ago they had one experimental treatment for pulmonary hypertension and within ten years they were able to develop two more. Some days the kids are so sick they can’t even get out of bed. When my sister was in seventh grade she missed more than fifty days of school. Their medicine is always changing and nothing in their life is ever stable. Children with chronic illnesses are more likely to experience frequent doctor and hospital visits. Some of their treatments may be scary or painful. Hospital stays can be frightening and lonely. Children with chronic illnesses will feel "different" than other children. Their activities may be limited, and, in many cases, their families m... ...erything is spinning wildly out of control. There are new medical terms to learn, and new procedures and routines to master. You want to provide the person with every opportunity for survival without making any mistakes. Life as you know it is put on hold and you rely on adrenalin to get you through the initial crisis. Perhaps the hardest thing to deal with is the overwhelming unfairness of the situation. "This shouldn't happen to kids-especially my family!" But it has and as the reality of the situation sets in, your focus will need to change from the immediate to the long term. You will need to carefully evaluate your lifestyle and be willing to adjust it to your new reality. The circumstances that clamor loudest for your attention may not always be the most important ones to concentrate your limited resources on and you will need to make the most of everyday.

Disneyland: Now and then

I remember being a child and enjoying the smallest bit of happenings here and there. I remember watching cartoons and laughing till my stomach ached. I remember being innocent and lively. I remember going to Disneyland. My memories from back then are very clear and crisp in my mind even today. Disneyland is the dream world for kids and a place for perfect retreat. I can still think of the day when I was eleven and I was about to see Disneyland for the first time. I couldn’t restrain my enthusiasm and excitement as we entered the main gates of the land filled with magic and amazement.That’s how I perceived Disneyland when I was eleven; a land of wonders. I couldn’t wait to see Mickey and Donald smiling back at me. All the fun and frolic came alive to me, as I stepped in to the magical land of fairy tale. Today when I think about Disneyland, I do not contemplate it as a magic land or a land of wonders. For me, it is just any other amusement park or theme park, noth ing added. But what surprises me is the way my perception has changed towards the same thing in due course.Disneyland is the same; in fact it is believed to have grown for better in these years. But for me, it no longer remains a place of magic or enchantment. It only tells me one thing, I have moved far ahead and my childhood is still behind, lost in the memories of Disneyland. Disneyland meant to me, making the world of animation and cartoon come alive. Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, Goofy and Bugs Bunny were one of my favorite cartoon characters ever and watching them alive was like a dream come true.I remember being excited by the thought of seeing those characters in front of me. Like, when I was eleven, I ran with exhilaration to shake hands with the legendary Mickey Mouse. I couldn’t let his hand go; moreover, I hugged him and curled into his arms like he was my teddy bear. I asked my dad to take bundle of pictures with Mickey and Donald. Later, I framed those photographs and hung them up on the wall of my room. Moreover, for a long time, I thought of the moment I met Mickey, when I watched cartoon back at home.However, today, when I think of it, I feel a tinge of embarrassment. I would never hug Mickey Mouse or Donald Duck for that matter. Although, sometimes, I watch Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck cartoons on television, I do not think of those characters as real cartoons. I understand the fact that they are real people under the disguise of these famous cartoons trying to woo kids and entertain them to their best. I feel taking pictures with them as a laughable act and something only kids would want to do.My excitement level is as normal as it would be when I am at home, watching those cartoons. Additionally, when I first went to Disneyland Park, I had enjoyed and jumped in high spirits even for the all the small rides. The miniature circus train with cars designed as wild animal cages, the crazy tea cup ride, the chip and dale tree house, exploring Goofy’s house, the flight to fantasyland with jumbo, the merry go round, all made me roar out in laughter and eventually, I enjoyed every bit of my ride.The rides were long, simple but very enchanting. The joy found in those simple things was incomprehensible and ceaseless. The moments seemed to be so prized and exceptional, that even a camera couldn’t bind it in its flashlights and tape. When compared to the latest trip, the experiences, however, beg to differ. The rides seem to be ordinary, just like any other ride, in another amusement park. Every ride tries to test the patience by making us fall from huge heights, in dangerously simulated situations and backgrounds.All thrill rides seem to endow with higher risks, higher heights, more velocity and more twists. Even after finishing a single ride of few minutes of length, there is no sense of delight or bliss. The feeling of joy in the small things seems to have lost. It’s just not about having fun anymore. I t is only about moving from one ride to another, trying to finish as many rides as possible. Furthermore, when I was young, I remember being excited about the main street parade. I was so keyed up to watch the parade that I blocked seats an hour before the parade actually began.I was overwhelmed with the stunts and performances of all the characters. Consequently, I struck my eyes all along, without moving an inch. I waited till the end of the parade and not for a moment, thought about leaving early. Each character performing in the parade was special in its own way and I admired them all equally. Nonetheless, now when I think of it, it doesn’t seem to be as astonishing as before. Even though the performance of the artists remains of high caliber and incredible excellence, I do not seem to be attracted towards it.I remember the last time I visited Disneyland, my concerns were more towards driving back home. I didn’t want to block seats an hour before; neither did I wan t to stick till the end. I was getting late and I was more worried about the traffic. As a Conclusion, I believe that things change with times. Also, the way we perceive things, changes with changing times. When we are young, innocent children, we are ignorant to worries and responsibilities. Also, life seems much dreamier and everything looks like a play area.As we grow older, we seem to intertwine in the complications of life and start losing the small joys we can experience in moments of life that may seem insignificant and diminutive. The moments that are filled with immense joy and blissful entertainment are no longer observed. Life becomes fast with growing age and even a beautiful thing passes by, without being noticed. A place like Disneyland, that meant so much to me at one time in my life, no longer holds the meaning it used to. I seem to have lost my innocent childhood in the fast life, in the race to achieve something more.

Interlanguage Theory Essay

It is a well-attested fact that learners commit errors when learning a second language. Errors are in fact considered inevitable in any learning process. For a very long time different authors (Corder, 1967; Richards, 1971; Dulay and Burt, 1972, as cited in Taylor, 1975;) see those errors not only as deviations of the rules but also as important sources for studying the process of learning a target language. The learner’s mental process and rules adopted by them at different stages are evidenced by those errors. (Fauziati, 2011). It is, therefore, the language of the learner that Larry Selinker (1972) would study and name interlanguage. He would consider interlanguage as follows: L2 learners construct a linguistic system that draws, in part, on the learner’s L1 but is also different from it and also from the target language. A learner’s interlanguage is, therefore, a unique linguistic system (as cited in Ellis, 1997, pag. 33). This system of the language is evolutional and dynamic, and its grammar is under construction and in constant development. It may have inconsistency errors but it will be changing and developing all the time. Selinker (1972, as cited in Taylor, 1975) claims that interlanguage is not merely the learner target language grammar that is filled with errors due to the learner’s L1 interference but, instead, it is a linguistic system that reflects the learner’s dealing with the deviations of the target language itself. Selinker also states that the perspective of Interlanguage considers the learning strategies which the learner employs in a task despite of their mother tongue or kind of training they receive. According to Selinker (1972), there are a number of processes or strategies that the learner adopts in order to help them acquire the target language. The first one is L1 Transfer, which is a learning strategy where the learner uses their own L1 as a resource. â€Å"[T]he learner transfers their knowledge of their native language into their target language attempts† (Taylor, 1975, p. 393). The second process is L2 Transfer, in which the learner works out the rules of L2 and challenges them. The third process is Overgeneralization; the learner uses an L2 rule in situations in which a native speaker would not use them. This can occur at different levels, namely, at the phonetic level, at the grammatical level, at the lexical level and at the level of discourse. Taylor (1975) defines overgeneralization as â€Å"a process in which a language learner uses a syntactic rule of the target language inappropriately when he attempts to generate a novel target language utterance†. The fourth process or strategy is General Learning Principles; the learner acquires strategies for learning the language, such as association or grouping. However, these strategies are not exclusive to language learning; they can be applied to any other kind of knowledge. Finally, the fifth process is Communication Strategies, which are actions that the learner carries out in order to compensate their lack of knowledge and also to reinforce or optimize communication. Among these strategies are body language, circumlocution, using a general term, resorting to L1, asking for help (the teacher or the dictionary), coining (making up a word) and avoidance. All of these five processes contribute to the development of the L2. Another important characteristic of Interlanguage is Fossilization, which is a term introduced also by Selinker in 1972. It refers to â€Å"the persistence of plateaus of non-target-like competence in the IL† (as cited in Fauziati, 2011, p. 25). Selinker (1972) provides a precise definition for fossilization: [A] mechanism that underlies surface linguistic material which speakers will tend to keep in their IL productive performance, no matter what the age of the learner or the amount of instruction he receives in the TL. (Selinker, 1972: 229, cited in Han, 2002) In other words, fossilization can be described as the interruption of the process of development of interlanguage. Learners are usually expected to achieve progress as their competence advances towards the target language system, and thus it contains fewer errors. However, some errors continue to occur and never disappear completely, and are, therefore, considered as fossilized. That is to say, such errors are permanent and defining characteristics of the learner’s language system (Fauziati, 2011). Among the factors that influence fossilization in the learner’s learning process, there are both external and internal reasons that are worth mentioning. Environment is an external reason that can influence the student’s performance and it can be due to the lack of exposure to the language or probably the level of the course the student is taking is either higher or lower than their level of the language. As regards internal reasons, the learner himself is considered to be a significant influence on their performance. His personality (insecurity, family background, uncertainty), motivation, demotivation and backsliding (the student unlearns things he already knows and goes back to previous stages) contribute to the mechanism of fossilization. Another important point to consider is that of interlanguage pragmatics, which has been defined by some authors, namely, Kasper and Dahl (1991), Kasper (1998) and Kasper and Rose (1999). However, in this paper, the concept of interlanguage pragmatics will be considered as follows: [T]he investigation of non-native speakers’ comprehension and production of speech acts, and the acquisition of L2-related speech act knowledge. (Kasper and Dahl, 1991:215, cited in Barron, 2001) Interlanguage pragmatics deals with use of the language as action and its research focuses on the learner’s use and acquisition of pragmatic knowledge. Although many studies on interlanguage have been based on spontaneous speech data, there is considerable difficulty in processing such data in order to tackle with problems persisting in the L2 learner’s initial state. One possible reason for this is that the speech utterances are gathered so early and may not exactly mirror the L2 initial state. Another perplexing problem is that the collection may be scarce and useless. (Lakshmanan and Selinker, 2001) A further problem is that language learners, especially young L2 learners, have been thought to undergo a ‘silent period’, during which they do not produce any utterance (Lakshmanan and Selinker, 2001). Although students may differ significantly with respect to the duration of their silent period since some of them undergo longer periods than others, it is not proven what is exactly happening in this stage. Moreover, it cannot be proved whether there is passive acquisition of some of the elements of the target language while undergoing the silent period. Consequently, an accurate account of the development of the language of the learner is difficult to provide. Another main argument concerning interlanguage is that of comparative fallacy. As Lakshmanan and Selinker (2001) state, criticizing the language learner’s speech utterances as ungrammatical without drawing first a comparison between the interlanguage speech utterances with the related speech utterances of the native speaker is not advisable since it leads to either underestimation and/or overestimation of the student’s linguistic performance. The interlanguage competence’s information should be obtained by examining the data of the interlanguage performance. Lakshmanan and Selinker (2001) suggest that in order to achieve this and not belittle or overvalue the student’s performance, it is necessary to compare consistently the interlanguage performance data with the native speaker’s performance. Taking everything into account, interlanguage is a theory that has been supported by a number of scholars because it helps educators know what their learner’s language is like. However, it is worth mentioning that it has some weaknesses that need to be addressed. As for teachers, it is not only important that they support this theory but they also should identify its flaws as well so as not to misjudge our language learner’s performance on the language. References * Barron, A. (2003). Acquisition in Interlanguage Pragmatics: Learning How To Do Things With Words In A Study Abroad Context. Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins. * Ellis, R. (1997) Second Language Acquisition. New York: Oxford University Press. * Fauziati, E. (2011) Interlanguage and Error Fossilization: A Study Of Indonesian Students Learning English As A Foreign Language. (Vol. I No. 1, pp. 23-38). Indonesia: Indonesian Journal of Applied Linguistics. * Han, Z. (2002). Fossilization: Five Central Issues. Toronto, Canada: The Second Language Research Forum (SLRF), Teachers College, Columbia University. * Lakshmanan, U. and Selinker, L. (2001). Analysing Interlanguage: How Do We Know What Learners Know? (Volume: 17, Issue: 4, Pages: 393-420). Southern Illinois University at Carbondale and Birkbeck College, University of London: Second Language Research. * Taylor, B. (1975) Adult Language Learning Strategies and Their Pedagogical Implications. (Vol. 9. No. 4, pp. 391-399). USA: TESOL Quarterly.

Free Essays on Cause Branding

Cause branding: â€Å"Out of the box approach.† Is it a fad? â€Å"The in thing†? The ultimate status symbol a corporate can achieve? Or cause branding means business? Is cause branding a balanced business model that will sustain the rigmaroles of the market dynamics? This paper is going to discuss how a well thought out strategy integrating the business goals with a social objective should make practical sense and be of sustainable nature. Many a great businessmen, entrepreneurs and highly successful corporate czars have said it time and again that the business should return to the society what it is taking from it. To mention a few of the entrepreneurs who have been successful after adapting this social approach are Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield of â€Å"Ben and Jerry’s† ice cream fame say that it was incorporated in their management style to give something back to the society. J.C.Williams of Xerox says, â€Å"We seek not only to be an effective commercial enterprise, but also to establish an institution that is socially responsible and constructive.† There can be innumerable examples of such beliefs and attitudes of visionaries who were very successful in their business. The companies involved can influence two things at the same time by being socially responsible: 1) the psychology of the stakeholders visvis the health of the organization and 2) make the economy grow and sustain in the long run. The various stakeholders are the employees, the stockholders, the buyers, the sellers, the society and the environment at large. These are the stakeholders in an organization and we are going to discuss in details how each of these stakeholders is influenced when the organization has taken up social responsibility in full earnest. Employees are the most valuable asset of any company and also the most difficult to be copied by competitors given the various factors of production. The only active factor of production is the lab... Free Essays on Cause Branding Free Essays on Cause Branding Cause branding: â€Å"Out of the box approach.† Is it a fad? â€Å"The in thing†? The ultimate status symbol a corporate can achieve? Or cause branding means business? Is cause branding a balanced business model that will sustain the rigmaroles of the market dynamics? This paper is going to discuss how a well thought out strategy integrating the business goals with a social objective should make practical sense and be of sustainable nature. Many a great businessmen, entrepreneurs and highly successful corporate czars have said it time and again that the business should return to the society what it is taking from it. To mention a few of the entrepreneurs who have been successful after adapting this social approach are Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield of â€Å"Ben and Jerry’s† ice cream fame say that it was incorporated in their management style to give something back to the society. J.C.Williams of Xerox says, â€Å"We seek not only to be an effective commercial enterprise, but also to establish an institution that is socially responsible and constructive.† There can be innumerable examples of such beliefs and attitudes of visionaries who were very successful in their business. The companies involved can influence two things at the same time by being socially responsible: 1) the psychology of the stakeholders visvis the health of the organization and 2) make the economy grow and sustain in the long run. The various stakeholders are the employees, the stockholders, the buyers, the sellers, the society and the environment at large. These are the stakeholders in an organization and we are going to discuss in details how each of these stakeholders is influenced when the organization has taken up social responsibility in full earnest. Employees are the most valuable asset of any company and also the most difficult to be copied by competitors given the various factors of production. The only active factor of production is the lab...

Heat and space travel essays

Heat and space travel essays Heat and Insulation Methods and Problems in Space Travel Effective heat control in spacecrafts is crucial in ensuring a safe environment for astronauts, from landing, to their orbit in space, and to their final re-entry back to Earth. It allows spacecraft components and systems to operate effectively, without temperatures becoming too extreme. An uneven distribution of heat causes different parts of the spacecraft to heat and contract, causing the spacecraft to warp, and its components to break. Heat sources can be both internal, such as the friction between the spacecraft parts, propulsion and electrical energy, or external, such as that of the sun. Throughout the spacecrafts journey, thermal heat levels must be balanced by ensuring that the amount of heat leaving the ship equals the amount of heat energy entering the ship. This can be achieved through passive and active means. The thermal protection system, or TPS, is one such passive system, which applies a careful arrangement of insulating materials to the outer skin of the spacecraft, in order to maintain spacecraft temperatures. As well as creating the aerodynamics of the craft, it absorbs heat and prevents it from reaching delicate parts of the craft. Materials chosen must perform in temperatures ranging from the extreme cold of space, which can reach -1570C, to temperatures over 1500 0C upon re-entry. Friction caused by plasma flow, as well as the damaging vibrations on re-entry, are also problematic. Varieties of ceramic tiles, which are made from high purity silica, help to overcome these difficulties, as they are light-weight, durable, and dispel heat extremely quickly. Black and white surface coatings affect their degree of insulation. High-temperature surface insulation tiles are used in the underside of the spacecraft, around the windows, and on the edges of the vertical stabiliser. Low-tempe rature surface insulation tiles are used on parts of the fuselage ( ...

How to Write a Scene The Ultimate 8-Step Guide

How to Write a Scene The Ultimate 8-Step Guide 8 Steps to Writing a Perfect Scene- Every Time You know how complex writing a novel can be. You not only have to come up with a great premise, engaging characters, high stakes, and conflict that pushes the protagonist toward his goal, but you must also learn how write a scene that compels readers- and fill your book with them. That is a lot harder than some think. Many writers spend a moment thinking up a vignette but give little regard to the scene’s purpose. While a checklist can help analyze the structure, it doesn’t address the process. Need help writing your novel?Click here to download Jerrys ultimate 12-step guide. Positioning First: scene types vary depending on where each is placed over the span of a novel. Opening Scenes should be loaded with character and set up your premise. That’s where you want to slip in important bits of backstory. Middle Scenes carry complications, twists, and raise the stakes. Climactic Scenes should build to a riveting climax, so they might be shorter and packed with action and emotion. Genre Second: there’s no â€Å"one size fits all† template for a perfect scene. The kind of novel you’re writing also dictates the style, length, and structure of a scene, so study novels in your genre. How to Write a Scene Using My 8-StepProcess Progressive steps to help you write that perfect scene: 1. Identify Its Purpose Here’s where too many writers flounder. You’ve likely heard that a scene should either advance the plot, reveal character, or both. Good advice but vague. You want strong pacing, showing rather than telling, and to create empathy for your protagonist. Plus, you want mystery and conflict in every scene to keep readers turning the pages. So, the purpose of the scene is key. In life, things happen, we react, process what happened, and decide on new action. So it’s action-reaction-process-decide-new action. Write one sentence that encapsulates that for each scene. For instance, a scene I’m working on for my new historical Western romance marks the midpoint of my novel. Its purpose is to show my hero, Buck, losing control and scaring the heroine, Angela. I fix that in my mind and make sure every element of my scene serves that purpose. If you can’t identify the purpose for your scene, throw it out and come up with one that works. 2. Identify the High Moment This occurs near the end of a scene, maybe even in the last line. Why? Because most of your scenes should mimic overall novel structure, with a beginning, middle, climax, and ending. Of course, a scene could effectively â€Å"hang† at the end, to add tension and propel the reader into the next scene. The high moment in my midpoint scene comes when Buck goes crazy in an attempt to keep Angela safe. I had established that she is terrified of snakes, and the scene begins just before they run into a mess of rattlers. The high moment is Angela screaming as the snakes strike. Buck shoots his rifle, then slashes in fury at the critters with his knife. I end the scene with Buck a man possessed and Angela more frightened of his behavior than she is of the snakes. This crucial step in the process reveals the ultimate purpose of your scene. 3. Emphasize Conflict: Inner and Outer A great novel will have conflict on every page, sometimes inner, other times outer. Or both. But you don’t want meaningless conflict, such as two people arguing over what type of coffee to order- unless that specific argument reveals something important that advances the plot or exposes a key bit of character. Think of ways to ramp up conflict to the highest stakes possible. Too few writers do this. Every scene- even thoughtful, â€Å"processing† ones- should convey tension, inner conflict, and high stakes. You don’t need explosive action to have conflict. My rattlesnake scene carries obvious outer conflict: man against snakes. But if that were all, the scene would be lacking. The deeper conflict is Angela’s inner angst over Buck’s violent streak. She has resisted falling for him, so this incident creates super-high conflict between them, as Buck’s behavior pushes her away. He intends to show courage and his desire to protect her, but it backfires. 4. Accentuate Character Change Writing instructor James Scott Bell says, â€Å"Every scene should have a death†- of a dream, a relationship, or a plan. Literary agent Donald Maass encourages writers to consider how a point-of-view (POV) character feels before a scene starts and how she feels when the scene ends. Your character should be changed by what happens. That change can be subtle or huge. It can involve a change of opinion, or it could be a monumental personality shift. But change must occur. Why? Because, for the story to advance, decisions must be made and action instigated. Every event in your novel should impact your characters and foment change. But it must be significant and serve the plot. How will Angela change by the end of the snake scene? Before the scene, she was falling in love. Now, her feelings have been squashed. She wants to flee back to NY. Buck drastically changes too. He’s also shocked at the violent streak he fears he’s inherited from his father (who murdered Buck’s ma). Though he loves Angela, he believes he can never let himself get close to any woman because he will hurt her. 5. Determine POV Who is the best character through whom the reader should experience this scene? With novels solely in the protagonist’s POV, this isn’t an issue. But for novels in shifting third person, with more than one perspective character, you need to decide whose POV you’ll portray in each scene. You may find it easier to choose your POV character when you determine the purpose of your scene. Or the POV choice may become obvious. In romance novels it’s common to alternate between hero and heroine, so each gets a turn filtering the scene through their POV. To decide whose POV to choose, ask yourself: Who has the most to lose or gain in the scene? Who will react strongest emotionally? Who will change the most? Whose reaction would most impact the plot? 6. Leave Out Boring Stuff And the on-the-nose stuff no one wants to read. Start your scene in the middle of the action, a bit before you build to the high moment, and you’ll avoid pages of unimportant narrative. Inject important backstory but not at the expense of the present action. Cut anything that doesn’t serve your scene’s purpose. Make every word count. 7. Perfect Beginnings and Endings It’s not just your novel’s first line that has to hook readers. Every scene promises to entertain your reader, to enthrall, to evoke emotion. You must make good on those promises. Study best-selling novels in your genre to see how adept authors create strong scene openings and riveting scene endings. A scene’s last paragraph and closing line should ratchet up the conflict and underscore character transformation. What about symbolism or motif? In my scene, by the end, the snakes become to Angela a symbol or image of Buck. One minute they’re silent, unmoving, and the next, they erupt in a violent attack. Beneath that calm exterior, Buck is poised to strike. 8. Inject Texture and Sensory Details While some writers stuff scenes with too much detail, most tend to underwrite sensory specifics. This step in this scene-crafting process involves combing through your draft and bringing scenes to life with vivid detail that engages your reader’s senses. Your goal is to paint enough of a picture to help your reader see the scene as if on the big screen. Too much detail is boring, as are details that don’t reveal anything important. Scenes serve as the framework of your novel and shouldn’t be thrown together. Use this 8-step method every time, and you’re sure to succeed. To help, I’ve created a worksheet you can download and print. What are your biggest challenges when youre deciding how to write a scene? Does this process make sense? What would you add to the process? The guest blogger: C. S. Lakin is a novelist, copyeditor, writing coach, mom, and backpacker. She blogs about writing at Live Write Thrive, and specializes in manuscript critiques. Get a free copy of her book Writing the Heart of Your Story when you join her novel-writing fast track mailing list here. Need help writing your novel?Click here to download Jerrys ultimate 12-step guide.

International business Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 7

International business - Essay Example The company offers varied range of products or services to different customers by expanding their business portfolio in many countries. The internationalization of Tesco PLC has created huge impact to change the supplier-retailer dynamics in terminating, weakening and consolidating relationships. The internationalization also created problematic situation for the company. The aim of the paper is to present and describe mistakes done by Tesco Plc. during the process of internationalization. It has been understood that learning concept delivers new perspective and theoretical framework for filtering, re-evaluation and reinterpreting on the process of internationalization. Furthermore, the paper provided vivid explanation about mistakes done by Tesco PLC. The application of effective theoretical concepts or models enables to provide better understanding about the problem. In recent years, the amount of cross-border operations that are conducted by retailers is on rise. The group of growing retailers has seen a substantial structural change. A redefinition of balanced externalized and internalized purposes has provided vivid evident that retailers are expanding their business operation to move out of domestic marketplace. The application of internationalization has become pivotal requirement for these multinational enterprises to gain and grow their scale of economies. Tesco PLC has focused to diversify their grocery retail business. The process of internationalization has become prime focus of the company to grow their market globally (Knight, 2008, p.92). Tesco PLC has globalized environment with stores in the Turkey, Hungary, Czech Republic, Poland, Japan, Taiwan, Thailand, South Korea, etc. In the year 2006, there was a headline which stated that foreign market growth is the one of the key goals of Tesco PLC. But now it seems like this strategy of global ambition is heading for the checkout

Analysis of Cross Cultural Consumer Behavior and marketing Term Paper

Analysis of Cross Cultural Consumer Behavior and marketing communication - Term Paper Example There are different sections of consumer in a society formed according to the basis of monthly household income for example lower income class, higher income class etc. (Earl and Kemp, 2002) The purchasing behavior of a consumer partly depends on Consumer Psychology. A purchase decision confronts the consumer with a host of potential changes. Most important is the problem structuring that occurs prior to taking any decision: becoming aware of the need or availability of a new product or service, collecting information of alternatives, and thinking about the future circumstances relevant to the purchase decision & also considering the possible outcomes contingent to the decision. Now these types of action vary within the different sections of consumers. In this context the marketing of the product or the branding has a quite influence on the consumer purchasing behavior. (Earl and Kemp, 2002; Zaichkowsky, 2006). During the current phase of globalization, branding has a lot of influenc e on middle class consumers also. To buy a product, consumers first think about the quality of the product. If two different brands of a kind of product with more or less same appearance, & same price are there in the market, brand name & its branding effect matters a lot. Consumers often judge on the basis of various informational cues that they associate with the product. Thus, proper marketing of a product is extremely vital in a market economy. Hence, marketing communications play an important role in creating demand for any market in any market. The main key to success for any firm is the application of appropriate business strategy. To ensure high customer base along with substantial growth in business, a firm needs to devise several strategies regarding the production process, marketing, distribution etc. and efficiently implement them. Among all these strategies, proper planning regarding marketing of the products is very crucial for creating demand in the markets. Unless an appropriate marketing technique is adopted by a firm, it would not be able to attract customers towards its products and business would automatically fail. Now marketing is quite a broad area which embraces various aspects like price, place, promotion and product. These four aspects form a marketing mix of a firm. As far as the issue of marketing communications is concerned, it actually refers to the area of ‘promotion’ in a marketing mix. The term ‘communication’ refers to exchange of information. An interesting feature of communication is that although it simply implies flow of information among people, it does not mean one-way exchange of information. A successful communication takes place when the receiver of a message actually receives the message and provides proper response. Advertising is a very useful tool for communicating with potential customers. (Egan, 2007) Advertising strategies, however, vary across culture. Cultural differences are very pr ominent across the nations. Thus, one particular advertising or promotional formula will not be appropriate for every culture. There are various cultural dimensions that are required to take into account at the time of designing any advertisement. For example, the cultural aspects of western countries are quite different from the cultural values of the eastern nations. Thus, there exist significant differences in

Efficiency in the Market Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Efficiency in the Market - Essay Example It requires goods to be produced in the least cost way. The firms are forced at the minimum level of average cost in the long run. The consumers are benefitted under productive efficiency as they are required to pay the lowest possible product price. Allocative efficiency is given by the equality between price and marginal cost. It requires firms to take that production path that is the need of the society. When the firm is not able to increase its welfare by producing more of one good then a situation of efficient allocation is said to exist. A firm can achieve such efficiency by equating marginal cost and price. Marginal cost is regarded as the amount of satisfaction foregone due to the production of another good. If P=MC then value of produced goods is equal to the value of not produced goods. Considering a hypothetical country and a firm who is a price taker, the firm will produce at the profit maximizing quantity which will equate price and marginal cost. The firm will face U-sh aped cost curves and horizontal demand curve. 1 Perfect competition can efficiently allocate resources in the long run. The following is the long run equilibrium condition: P=SRMC=LRMC=SRAC=LRAC This equation states prices to be equal to marginal cost and average cost both in the long and short run. With P+MC no firm has the motive to make adjustments in quantity. Again with P=AC each firm earns only normal profit. This is a situation of no economic profit-loss situation. The long run condition is satisfied only at the minimum of LRAC curve. This is also termed as the minimum efficient scale. The minimum efficient scale provides the economy to utilize resources in optimal and efficient fashion. Two types of agents participate in the competitive market. The other participant is scarce resources. In the economy framework a resource is defined as the item (goods or services) that is valued by the agents. It is the scarcity of resources which calls for efficient allocation of resources to satisfy all the participating agents. The decisions on allocation are of prime importance in this market principle. A market is defined as the place where buyers meet sellers. The mode with which the exchange takes place is called price. The main characteristic of competitive market is the adjustment of prices until supply is equal to demand. The price sets the market in equilibrium and such a situation is called Pareto optimal situation. In a decentralized economy the equilibrium price is determined by tatonnement process. Prices tend to rise if demand is greater than supply and decrease when demand is less than supply. An adjustment to occur the demand and supply at the current prices must be known beforehand. Consider the case where there are many independent sellers. If there access to full information to both the buyers and the sellers then price of the product will set at the equilibrium. Now suppose a high price and a low price is charged for the product. The consumers may opt firms selling their products at high price to offer at some price level which is the difference between the high and low price. Such a situation will offer a better off situation for both parties. The quantities are in the Y-axes. The equilibrium price is denoted as p*. At this price the buyers will be willing to pay at least this amount of price to buy the products and the firms will be able to sell their products at the market rate. If the price is less than the equilibrium p

Business Continuity Plan Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Business Continuity Plan - Assignment Example The plan formulated and implemented is specifically designed for the White House security staff. The staff is meant to ensure security of the White House is not breached. Plan Scenario Numerous possible scenarios may interfere with the security and normal functioning of the White House. Some of them may include: 1.Natural Calamities Examples include: Floods and Storms 2.Inadequate employees The inadequacy may be due to sickness and injuries, staff strikes or go slows, resignations and retrenchments. 3.Security Breaches Possible incidences include: intruder invasion, cyber-attacks and loss of data and hostile invasion among others. 4.Deficient Infrastructure Possible incidences include power outages, network outages and telecommunication equipment breakdown. Plan assumption The following assumptions will be made subsequent to the implementation of this policy: 1.Sufficient security personnel will be available at any given time at the expected assigned posts 2.An appropriate evacuation procedure will be in place in the event of possible security breach and onset of natural calamities. 3.Backup power generators and network boosters will be available at any particular moment. In the departments not affected, power and network should be maintained. 4.A data breach response team equipped with up to date strategies should be available when needed. Plan Section Recovery Strategy Summary The strategies to be undertaken are expected to neutralize the consequences of the scenarios.

Review of three political classic film Research Paper

Review of three political classic film - Research Paper Example With the fall of Berlin Wall, Capitalism had been advanced in East Berlin and Alex becomes unemployed only to meet Denis Domaschke, a filmmaker who becomes his ally. Christiane recuperates after eight months in grave health still traumatised from the events that she had faced. To protect her mother, Alex attempts to conceal the newly presented unjust Germany from her mother who had been emotionally affected. Christiane had been the victim in the movie who underwent a series of tragedies after her husband abandons her. Ariane, Alex and his girlfriend Lara had formulated the plan to conceal the changes that had occurred in the government into a dictatorial regime, when they had confined her to her bedroom. East Germany had been connected with the West on the fall of the Berlin wall, and capitalism shaping the society that the families dominated (Becker, 2003). The movie depicts the contradiction of the expected life by personalities like Alex who experienced an oppressive society after advocating for the demolition of the Berlin wall. The unity in the two regions had been presented in the movie using Christiane who died after the official reunification of Germany (Becker, 2003). Western Germany had been considered the venue that presented more challenges to individuals and Christiane evaded transporting his children to the state joining, the Socialists to offer protection to her family. Even with the unity, variable rules are still prohibited, and the family has to break the law in spreading Christiane’s ashes in the wind. The battle of Algiers 1966 The movie had been created to suggest the tension that had existed between Algerians and the French in the quest to articulate justice. This action had been the norm presented in the nations that had the desire to achieve self-governance and liberation. However, with the dominant nations, the challenge presented had been in the expertise and the skills available to achieve the witnessed victory. The Algerians h ad opted to use massive tactics and bombs as compared to the ruling French who included torture as a means in exerting their dominance. The events in the story are told through the memory of Ali, who had been a key member within the Algerian Front de Liberation Nationale (FLN). He had been captured in 1957 following the attempt by the French to impose their rule (Pontecorvo, 1996). Earlier, Ali who had been a criminal within his society joined the group in the attempt to obtain liberalization. The rebel groups formed led to a national movement that saw unity developed in the attempt to rid the foreign rule. The majority of the casualty had been French police officers that saw retaliation of the massive massacre of Algerians. The events led to revenge killings that summed in Colonel Mathieu leading the efforts to destroy NFL. Ali remained the last NFL member to be captured, and he had been assassinated after the flashback. The NFL efforts had been noticed in 1962, when Algerians mana ged to be self governed. Dr. Stangelove The movie suggest the bureaucracy that had existed within the United States and the Soviet Union with the inclusion of the nuclear technology. The commanding General, Jack Ripper ordered his B52 squad to overturn the agreement and attack the Soviet Union. The events see the General protect the base through formulating a barrier against the external environment. The other participant in Leper Colony failed to acknowledge the actions that ordered the attack until the

Business Continuity Plan Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Business Continuity Plan - Assignment Example The plan formulated and implemented is specifically designed for the White House security staff. The staff is meant to ensure security of the White House is not breached. Plan Scenario Numerous possible scenarios may interfere with the security and normal functioning of the White House. Some of them may include: 1.Natural Calamities Examples include: Floods and Storms 2.Inadequate employees The inadequacy may be due to sickness and injuries, staff strikes or go slows, resignations and retrenchments. 3.Security Breaches Possible incidences include: intruder invasion, cyber-attacks and loss of data and hostile invasion among others. 4.Deficient Infrastructure Possible incidences include power outages, network outages and telecommunication equipment breakdown. Plan assumption The following assumptions will be made subsequent to the implementation of this policy: 1.Sufficient security personnel will be available at any given time at the expected assigned posts 2.An appropriate evacuation procedure will be in place in the event of possible security breach and onset of natural calamities. 3.Backup power generators and network boosters will be available at any particular moment. In the departments not affected, power and network should be maintained. 4.A data breach response team equipped with up to date strategies should be available when needed. Plan Section Recovery Strategy Summary The strategies to be undertaken are expected to neutralize the consequences of the scenarios.

The Houston Museum of Natural Science Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

The Houston Museum of Natural Science - Essay Example The colours of the stones or gems are very pleasing to the eyes. It adds to the effect of the object being antique. The person in the object is wearing a gold necklace portraying a man with wealth or power. I really like the object. It is very antique. It also opens us to understanding the culture and history of Ukraine. The image shows us that the people in earlier times already are very creative. They incorporated animal sculptures and sacred symbols. 2. This art piece shows us that Texas has an epic history and a diverse geography. The image shows us three different persons. I believe these persons are three of the most popular legendary persons in Texas. Though I am not familiar with the history and legends of the State of Texas, this art piece shows us that the people in Texas knew how to give respect and pay tribute to their legends or heroes. The image shows the max of the state and three persons. The three persons are painted naturally by the painter. The two persons looked l ike they were wealthy and powerful. The third person looked like a leader of the army. The map of Texas was used a background of the three persons. This just shows that Texas has a lot of legendary people. I liked how the painter wanted to communicate to the people who are looking at his art work. Even at first look, you will really think that those persons in the image are known in their state and might have contributed greatly in the history of their place.

The Major Media Types for Advertising Essay Example for Free

The Major Media Types for Advertising Essay Advertising Advertising Advertising is any paid form of nonpersonal presentation and promotion of ideas, goods, or services by an identified sponsor. There are three goals of advertising. These goals are to: Inform, Persuade, and Remind. The major media types for advertising are: Newspapers, Television, Direct mail, Radio, Magazines, Internet, Outdoor (billboards, blimps, etc. ), Yellow pages, Newsletters, Brochures, and Telephone The traditional conceptual model for creating any advertising or marketing communications message is the AIDA Model: get Attention, hold Interest, arouse Desire, and then obtain Action. The AIDA Model John Caples, one of the greatest copywriters of all time, provides us the following principles (although he was talking about direct response marketingmore about that laterthe wisdom is directly relevant to all forms advertising) when it comes to communicating an advertising message: Caples Principles: * Get attention * Hold attention * Create desire * Make it believable * Prove its a bargain * Make it easy to buy * Give a reason to buy now An even newer paradigm, according to some, is Interrupt, Engage, Educate and then Offer. In any of these models, the first step is to somehow get a persons attention. It should be noted, however, that there is a growing trend of consumers being more resistent to advertising messages and less open to marketers communicating with them without their expressed permission. As such, advertising models are continuously evolving due to an explosion in media outlets and shifting public opinion. As new communications channels expand at a fast rate, advertisers are exploring the new media options at a rapid pace and exploring new ways to reach an often fickle target audience. How do we do that? In my opinion, there is one overriding rule that should guide all advertising: Tell omebody something helpful to them and make sure they are receptive to your message in the first place. Also, do not underestimate the importance of strong copy or content and do not overestimate the importance of graphic design/creative. Whether writing copy for print ads, a website, a Youtube video or writing a script for television, radio, or multi-media presentations, a strong headline is the most important element of the advertisement. This is the element of the message that needs to quickly connect with people and pre-communicate some benefit that is reasons. The headline: * Attracts attention Communicates a strong benefit * Appeals to the self-interest of the reader. It answers the question, Whats in it for me? * Sets the tone for the offer * A headline acts like a marquee does for a movie theater and selects the right audience. Advice to copywriters: When you are assigned to write an ad, write a lot of headlines first. Spend hours writing headlines or days if necessary. If you happen to think of a headline while walking down the street or while riding the bus, take out pencil and paper and write it down. John Caples On the average, five times as many people read the headlines as read the body copy. It follows that, unless your headline sells your product, you have wasted 90 percent of your money. David Oglivy Once the headline has done its Job, then prospects are so engaged in what we have to say that we can educate and inform them about the benefits of what we offer so that they cant wait for us to tell them what next step they should take to learn more or get the product or service. Most advertising today falls short. Too much energy is spent on glitzy art or cool graphic design and the resulting ads absolutely fail in the first step of interrupting and capturing attention. Various Advertisement Exampl es

Treatment for Hypothyroidism

Treatment for Hypothyroidism Levothyroxine sodium is a synthetic thyroxine (T4) hormone, and is the mainstay of treatment for hypothyroidism and the suppression of thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) in patients with thyroid cancer or after thyroidectomy.1 Two main properties of levothyroxine have contributed to a turbulent regulatory history. First, levothyroxine targets a narrow therapeutic range of T4 hormone and requires careful titration to a safe and effective dose.2 Second, levothyroxine is relatively unstable and its degradation is accelerated in response to environmental factors and in the presence of some inert product ingredients.3,4 Between 1991 and 1997 there were at least 10 recalls of different levothyroxine products mostly due to sub-potency or uncertain potency, comprising 150 lots and 100 million tablets.5 Although major regulatory changes were implemented to improve the quality and safety of levothyroxine products in 1997 and again in 2007,5-7 concerns persist about bioequivalence and variation in product potency.8 In a previous study of generic drug use from a nationally representative sample of commercial claims data in late 2013, we found that generic utilization of thyroid agents, mostly comprising levothyroxine, was 61%,9 despite the availability of generic preparations for >10 years. This utilization rate is markedly low given that overall generic uptake is approaching 90% in U.S.10 To encourage use of generic levothyroxine, more information is needed about the healthcare provider and patient barriers to uptake of generic preparations. We used a large electronic health records (EHR) database from a healthcare delivery system to evaluate measurable determinants of, and unexplained variation in, outpatient generic prescribing of levothyroxine. We hypothesized that both patient and provider factors contribute to generic levothyroxine prescribing and that residual variation in providers generic prescribing would persist after accounting for measurable factors. METHODS Race and ethnicity were captured by self-report during routine clinical practice in accordance with U.S. Census standards.13 We identified TSH laboratory results for each patient in the 12 months prior to the index prescription. In the case of multiple measurements, we chose the one closest to (but not after) the date that the index prescription was ordered. We also extracted information on other patient characteristics, including use of concomitant medications, insurance type, and clinical diagnoses. Insurance type was categorized as fee-for-service or preferred provider organization (FFS/PPO), health maintenance organization (HMO; including Medicare Advantage), Medicare, Medicaid, and unknown (including self-pay). For each patient, we calculated a Charlson Comorbidity Index (CCI) score based International Classification of Disease-9 encounter and problem-list diagnoses documented in the 12 months prior to the index prescription.14 We used 2010 U.S. Census block information to deter mine the median householdincome of the Census track in which patients reside as a proxy for socioeconomic status. We used information from the EHR database to characterize the index levothyroxine prescription. We classified the encounter at which the index prescription was ordered as an office or online/telephone encounter. The index prescription was classified as incident if there were no active prescriptions or pharmacy claims for this drug in the 12 months prior; otherwise it was classified as a renewal. For each patient, we quantified the duration of index prescription (recorded start date to the imputed end date, as determined by the prescribed daily dose, quantity dispensed, and number of refills). We quantified healthcare providers prescribing volume of levothyroxine by calculating the average number of levothyroxine prescriptions written per week in the three months prior to the index prescription for each patient. We also quantified healthcare providers total patient volume by calculating the average number of office encounters per week in the three months prior to the index prescription per patient. Statistical Methods We used mixed-effects multivariable logistic regression models to assess the relationship between generic prescribing of levothyroxine (dependent variable) and patient and prescription factors (level-1 predictor variables), and healthcare provider factors (level-2 predictor variables) (see Table 1). We assumed that patients with prescriptions from the same healthcare provider were more alike in their propensity to receive a generic than patients from different providers. Accordingly, we included random-effects (i.e., random intercepts) in our models for each prescribing healthcare provider of the index levothyroxine prescription (N=941). To quantify between-cluster variation, we calculated the intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC) in the absence of covariates (variance-components model) and in the presence of patient, prescription, and provider fixed-effect covariates (mixed-effects multivariable models). These models were also fitted separately by provider type (PCP and endocrin ologist). Odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated for fixed-effect covariates. We derived predicted probabilities of receiving generic levothyroxine for each fixed-effect covariate from post-hoc estimation of adjusted means, holding all other variables constant.15 We included interaction terms in the mixed-effects multivariable model to examine effect modification by provider type for patient age, sex, race/ethnicity. When interactions were present, we calculated predicted probabilities of receiving generic levothyroxine for the covariate of interest stratified by provider type. Due to multiple comparisons within models, a P-value 220 days vs. 74% for prescriptions à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ °Ã‚ ¤60 days). Patients and providers may have been more accepting of generic levothyroxine when it would be taken for longer periods of time, reflecting lower cumulative out-of-pocket drug cost. The predicted probability of receiving generic levothyroxine was also higher for renewals than incident prescriptions (83 vs. 73%) and for online/telephone encounters versus office encounters (81% vs. 72%). These factors are related, as patients with a renewal more frequently receive levothyroxine during an online/telephone encounter than those with an incident prescription, yet they remained independent predictors of generic prescribing in the multivariable model. Among patients with a renewal, 84% received generic levothyroxine prior to the index prescription and, of those, the vast majority (92%) received a renewal for generic levothyroxine. It follows that patients were less likely to have been prescribed brand levothyroxine if they were already taking a generic. In a study of 36,832 older adults (à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ °Ã‚ ¥65 years) in the U.S. initiating narrow therapeutic index drugs, of which warfarin (48%) and levothyroxine (29%) were the most prevalent, predictors of higher generic drug initiation, included older age, male sex, higher comorbidity, lower Census block median household income, and prior generic utilization. These findings from a Medicare population are overall consistent with our results.23 In our study, bivariate analyses showed that HMO and Medicare beneficiaries were more likely to receive generic levothyroxine; however, this association was mitigated in the presence of other factors in multivariable analyses. We found that provider type was an effect modifier for the relationship between patient sex and generic prescribing of levothyroxine in multivariable models. In stratified analyses, while the predicted probability of receiving generic levothyroxine from a PCP was similar among women and men (81%, each), the probability of receiving a generic from an endocrinologist was disproportionately lower for women (63% vs. 71% for men). Because lower prescribing of generic levothyroxine was observed for endocrinologists but not PCPs, this occurrence is likely driven by provider rather than patient preferences. Future studies are warranted to understand these prescribing practices among endocrinologists. The results of this study should be interpreted in the context of several limitations. The retrospective, observational nature of this study prevents causal inferences. Furthermore, rates of generic prescribing of levothyroxine may overestimate generic utilization of this drug, as some patients may not consent to generic substitution at the pharmacy. Although California has a permissive generic substitution law, patients can still refuse a substitution. In the absence of pharmacy claims, we cannot know whether a generic or branded product was actually dispensed. Nevertheless, in a previous study we showed that our algorithm used to determine brand versus generic prescribing measured by EHR data performs well in predicting actual dispensing patterns.12 Thestudy setting is a healthcare delivery system in Northern California, and we cannot know if our findings are generalizable to other parts of the U.S.; however, the organization is a mixed-payer system, and operates much like other pr ovider-based delivery systems in the nation, without a single drug formulary. As such, we are confident that our findings are relevant to other similar health systems in the U.S. This study has several strengths. We used a relative large cohort of patients from a mixed-payer healthcare delivery system over a four-year period to examine patterns in and determinants of generic prescribing of levothyroxine. We leveraged extensive information from the health systems EHR database, including disease and medication history, TSH levels, and providers levothyroxine prescribing and patient volume. To our knowledge, this is the first study to quantify variation in generic prescribing of levothyroxine between healthcare providers. The presence of residual variation between providers in generic prescribing of levothyroxine, after controlling for important measurable confounders, indicates potential unwarranted variation due to prescribing preferences. Such variation, which may also be influenced by patient beliefs and preferences, can be the target of provider interventions or patient education aimed at improving levothyroxine generic uptake.

Narrative †My Interests :: Personal Narrative Essays

Narrative – My Interests I am interested in anything that is interesting. Eclecticity seeps into my brain much more easily than the thunderingly similar data of a single concentrated topic area. Though I tend to gravitate towards computer, science, and math information, I will just as likely find an article on a political, religious, or historical topic just as interesting as an article on how astronauts keep their Coke fizzy in space or a book on how public key encryption works. My interests are gauged by how much time I spend in each of them. I spend time on my personal relationship with Christ (greatest interest), computing, writing, performing trumpet, and cycling, in order. Though I do not spend most of my daily time actively engaging in monastic exercises of personal study and reflection, or even in what would popularly be considered religious activity, I have determined to mold my entire life, moment by moment, in a way that is pleasing to God. This is my greatest interest. The second-most done activity in my life is computing, as it is currently my job. I do try to spend some time off the clock exercising this interest, but if allowed free in the wild, it would probably take third place to the next interest: writing. I enjoy writing very much. My writing topics and style tend to match my eclecticity, though I enjoy the role of an essayist-poet most of all. I have written many instructional articles, though I have lately stayed away from them due to my over-exercise of that area of writing. I enjoy poetry, and while few poets ever put bread on the table and write substantial amounts of poetry, I am not motivated by anything primarily for money and find poetry an expressive way to communicate things that prose is unable to. I have played the trumpet since the end of third grade and have become fairly accomplished at it. Music is important to me, and I find the practicing every day to be a satisfying relaxation. When I have time to ride my bicycle, I do. At one point, I used to actively train and race, when I came out of obesity and worked more diligently on my physique than I am now.

Parker Pen Company Essay

Background George Safford Parker founded Parker Pen Company in 1892 in Janesville, Wisconsin. It began with the production of his first fountain pen. Afterwards in 1894, Parker had its first major innovation; â€Å"the lucky curve† which consisted on reducing the leak caused in fountain pens. Parker’s first marketing approach was to produce high quality pens and make them become status symbols; Parker pens were signer’s favorite, giving the company the first or second position globally. The company obtained this successful position due to investigations and development by constantly innovating for the production of new products; for instance with the creation of Quink â€Å"quick drying ink, they produced the Parker 51; which became a bestseller and was catalogued as â€Å"the most perfect pen ever produced†. It gave the company $400 million within 30 years. By the end of 1980 the parker pens were sold in over 150 countries. In 1987 the company’s headquarters was moved to Newhaven, East Sussex, England. Then in 1993 Parker was aquired by Gillette Company, which already owned the PaperMate brand. Then in 2000 Gillette sold the company to Newell Rubbermaid, and became the largest in the world owning writing products with brand names such as, Sharpie, Parker, PaperMate, Waterman and Liquid Paper, among others. People involved George Parker the founder James R. Peterson the president and CEO of Parker Pen: Peterson has to deal with the compay’s problems, for instance instead of having over 40 publishing firms he hired one that could do the job of all. Jack Marks the head of writing instruments advertising Richard Swart the marketing vice president: Before entering Pen Parker, he worked for 3M Carlos Del Nero is Parker’s manager of global marketing planning. Business involved Pen Parker Company Gillette Company Newell Rubbermaid The U.K. subsidiary Ogilvy & Mather: Main problem Parker Pen Company faced some difficult years where they were not obtaining as much revenues as expected. Therefore the company hired a new board of marketing directors seeking the implementation of new strategies for the company. The new board, which consisted of highly qualified people, began their campaign by standardizing the products in a centralized system. This centralized system consists of abolishing plurality in the decision-making. The new system they adopted which was a world wide strategy caused the company more than $20 million in looses. Marketers didn’t investigate therefore gave the company a negative image in the market. Solution Due to the fact that the company was having some issues that was preventing the company to rise up, in 1985 the CEO was fired, moving the company’s new system to a decentralized one. The company is now able to adapt to changes, it is able to adapt to the numerous cultural barriers existing around the world, creating different marketing plans for each nation; with this, Parker regain their image in order to be able to position themselves in the market. Questions 1.The globalization process in the Parker pen company was a failure until major structural changes were implemented by James R. Peterson. Before this  change the company had misdirected its efforts to globalize its operations, many key maneuvers were ignored and this led to a close to bankruptcy status which was never in the company’s plans. Basic rules of globalization for any company state that an extensive research of the potential market has to be done, and very thoroughly. investigating the market conditions in not enough, political, legal, social and cultural aspect have to be at the top of the list to ensure that the strategies will b effective and that consumers will respond positively to the strategies implemented. This was one of the things that Parker pens failed to do, they just relied on a weak currency that allowed foreign markets to purchase American-made products, this would only last until the U.S. dollar lost its acquisitive value. Another reason why their globalization process failed was because they broke another fundamental rule, they didn’t centralize their operation and gave creative and operational autonomy to all of their branches. This caused a great loss of corporate identity and became a big problem at the most critical time since a different solution was to be presented for each one of the subsidiaries. 2.The problem that Parker pen had in its globalization process was spawned form miscalculations or lack of vision in very key areas. The first thing which globalization promoters at the Parker Company underestimated was the strength and impact of the changing market. They never considered that economic and political conditions would vary in such a way that their overseas operations would collapse in such a way. They relied on a very strong dollar which made it easy for foreign costumers to purchase their products, making this their most important income source. By overlooking this important event they drove themselves into an awkward position where they had low sales internally and over autonomous subsidiaries with a large stock and no market share at all. The other factor that they failed to consider seriously before engaging in such a risky entrepreneurship was the fact that they were living in a time when Chinese massive production was starting to flood the markets with cheaper and more convenient products, at a point where people demanded  cheaper product due to a volatile economy and political situation. Their product line depth and width were very impressive with over 400 different product, they had a solid portfolio but nothing to compete directly with the mass produced pens coming from China. They relied on their traditional products and their traditional distribution channels, in which they were losing their entire market share as well. 3.The Parker pen company is one on thousands of examples that can be quoted as being merged with a bigger company; this is an inherent condition of globalization as an economic phenomenon. Like everything else that is involved in globalization, this specific case of being acquired by a bigger company has its upside and its downside. For a company like parker that had a considerably large operation worldwide, the negative things are lesser important than the positive things. The main negative factors that this could have are for example a possible loss of the company ´s know how. By having to accommodate to another company’s rules and methods, Parker could have lost its own knowledge of the business, this is a very valuable commodity in the world today and it’s hard to maintain it when a company has to become an active part of another one. Uniting Parker pens to Gillette and Rubbermaid could also trigger a dangerous situation amongst the employees, changing cities and managers has a very large impact of the moral of the employees since they begin to lose their company identity which is another valuable commodity that companies cannot afford to lose since it is one of the main incentives that the workers have. Identity inside the company is just as important as identity outside it, if a merger like this means that there will be changes implemented in the company ´s image it could trigger a loss of costumers or even a major shift in the place that the company has in terms of â€Å"top of mind†. The benefits that this situation could bring upon a company are several and of great importance. In the case of Parker pens, a company with a very important level of recognition worldwide, joining a larger enterprise would imply broadening its market share globally, by having better, bigger and more distribution channels, allowing them to reach new costumers which is a very difficult thing to do in the world today. A big name behind a brand  means more resources, this in turn means more research for product development, more advertisement, more promotional strategies, better market research with a finer degree of segmentation and every other activity that would help a company to better it ´s self. Another very important thing is the support that Parker pens would have by being part of the Rubbermaid holding, this makes it easier to innovate and take risks, it also transmits a sense of safety to the costumer, they know that being part of the world ´s leader in writing instrument s does not come easy, so trusting Parker pens is something they can and should do.

Wal-Mart and Nordstrom

Wal-Mart and Nordstrom are well known companies and established brands listed on Fortune 500 list. Wal-Mart caters almost all needs of its customers from grocery to clothing while Nordstrom operates in fashion retainging industry. It keeps collection of more than 500 brands in its store. Wal-Mart Wal-Mart is the largest retailer in America. These discount stores became part of American’s life in 1960s. At present it is operating in 15 countries, it employs more than 1.8 million associates worldwide. The number of stores is nearly 6,500 stores and serves more than 176 million customers per week. The â€Å"most admired retailer† according to FORTUNE magazine has just completed one of the best years in its history: Wal-Mart generated more than $312.4 billion in global revenue in the fiscal year ended January 31, 2006, establishing a new record and an increase of 9.5 percent. The company earned almost $11.2 billion in net income in fiscal 2005.[1] Wal-Mart has gone through considerable changes through the year 2003-04. Wal-Mart had increased its advertising budget by $434 million between 2003 and 2004. The mission of Wal-Mart has been to provide good jobs, good works, and citizens and do good investments in 2004. The vision of Wal-Mart has always been to provide customer each and every product at the lowest price. Wal-Mart focused on cost cutting by its strategy on the merchandise mix and various operations. It utilized its database for consumer and requirement analysis. This helped it to understand the demand pattern of various products and helped in inventory management to make products available when customer wanted it most. The marketing activities revolve around the equation People+ Price+ Product=Value. Company’s promotional strategies are not limited to a particular source. Company has utilized all the traditional and modern channels to reach its customer with its best offers. Wal-Mart adopts simple price promotion strategy in all its strategies. Its website is colorful attractive and displays various products and offers in each of its web page. Wal-Mart uses billboards and signboards which are placed at the public places and the places with high visibilities. The pamphlets and print materials are used for both in side the store promotion as well as outside the stores. Nordstrom Its one of the largest fashion retail stores in US. Its annual revenue is $7,722.9 million. It is ranked 8th in the general merchandiser group of fortune 500 companies. â€Å"Today, Nordstrom has grown from one downtown Seattle shoe store into a nationwide fashion specialty chain with renowned services, generous size ranges and a selection of the finest apparel, shoes and accessories for the entire family. The company's philosophy has remained unchanged for more than 100 years since its establishment by John W. Nordstrom in 1901: offer the customer the best possible service, selection, quality and value.† This claims to provide branded clothes in the best minimum prizes. It adopts various promotional strategies for the promotion of its store. These strategies include electronic medium such as internet and computers, events and programs and printed materials. Events like designer clothes events, in store beauty events, sales events and many others. The web presence of the Nordstrom’s website is elegant. It also works as a platform for the promotional strategies. Currently $ 5 shipping campaign is going on this website.   Its webpage has various attractive pictures creating interest about the products as well as self promotion of the company. It has its own e-catalogue which list all its product and accessories for the information and shopping purpose. Each of the company uses almost all kind of promotional tools to reach their target consumers and other stake holders. The use of web pages in both the cases has been different with similar objective of attracting consumer and selling. However the e-catalogue of Nordstrom and images used in the website is more urban and attractive. Wal-mart tries to attract mass and it is evident from its website presentation. Nordstrom conducts various events as one of its most important promotional strategies. Reference: Kotler, Philip, Marketing Management, Prentice-Hall Inc. New Jersy, 10th Edition, 2000 Nankani, Economic Growth in the 1990s: Learning from a Decade of Reform retrieved on 22 January 2007   from http://www1.worldbank.org/prem/lessons1990s/chaps/01-Ch01.pdf Serres, Chris Target vs. Wal-Mart, Is Target Corporation Any Better for Workers? May 22nd, 2005 retrieved on 22 January 2007     from http://www.reclaimdemocracy.org/walmart/2005/target_better.php http://investors.target.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=65828;p=irol-newsArticle;ID=233786;highlight=accessed on 22 January 2007 http://www.sathguru.com/Note_on_Retail_Industry.pdf accessed on 22 January 2007 http://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/fortune500/snapshots/957.html accessed on 22 January 2007 http://about.nordstrom.com/aboutus/companyhist/companyhist.asp accessed on 22 January 2007 [1] http://walmartstores.com/GlobalWMStoresWeb/navigate.do?catg=5

Marketing Myopia Essay

Industries growth has stopped due to the failure of management the top executives, railroad business because they focus on sciences not on the customers. To keep growing industries must focus on customers’ needs and wants then solely on their products. Many companies are endangering their business due to improper defining of their purposes. DuPont, corning and aluminum industry flourished because they were customer oriented. Taking example of Dry cleaning; has reduced in a remarkable way and may sooner be diminished. Grocery stores have been replaced by super markets. There is nothing like a growth industry but there is an expansion that is because the companies organize themselves to create growth opportunities. Self-deceiving cycle has four conditions. 1. Growth is due to increase in population. 2. Believing that there will be no substituent for any major product. 3. Mass production and declining unit cost for output increase. 4. Preoccupation with a product. The belief that increasing customers will increase your business have a negative impact as you will yourself not bother to expand your business. The petroleum industry thinks that there is no competitor as there is no substitute of oil but many refineries have such huge stock of oil that they can be a threat. Firstly the crude oil was greatly demanded as kerosene was used for lamps until the bulb was invented and the heaters were started with coal burns. If the company would have been product oriented the business would be ended but they started refining the crude oil and made uses out of each product of crude oil. Oil has proved to be the strongest growth and millions of barrels is consumed daily. Production pressure to some companies such as advertisement and commercials are sometimes this much great that they try to get aid of it. But in all this we forget marketing and focus on the needs of seller and marketing fulfill the customer need. Industries now spend billions of rupees in consumer preference and fulfilling their ideas out of Chevrolet’s 7000 dealers only 57 provide night maintenance service. Ford invented the assembly line and reduced the cost of production and sold millions of $500 cars. Survival needs a change. Consumer needs change and if a company does not provide it they lose. With the wider perspective the CEOs have to recheck on their vision and the selection of the proper targeted market. This was seems to be successful as the organization was able to find out some opportunities that were initially unseen. This is also helpful in predicting the future progress with the help of business prediction techniques that are currently available. To rise above the myopia one should have his main focus on the strategies and predictive techniques that are used to gain hold on the opportunities. And mainly focus on the customer’s lifetime value. This will maintain the long term profit objectives.

Strengths and Weaknesses of Labour Process Theory Essay - 1

Strengths and Weaknesses of Labour Process Theory - Essay Example This paper illustrates that Labour Process Theory (LPT) plays a fundamental role in management. It effectively controls the environment and supports the capital accumulation. Through this theory, it is going to analyze that what managers, owners are seeking for to maximize the profit and minimize the capital losses that extract the maximum labor or employees efforts.This LPT theory is introduced by the Marxist and criticized by different scientific management authors. The labor process theory is concerned with shifting the relationship between the organization and technology with the arguments that technologically develop new accounting system. In the ideal enterprises, the technology needs resources and deploys it for capital accumulation. Although, technology is a capital weapon that is used in labors domination. The organizations today are looking forward to the crystallized outcomes of this ongoing battle. According to the Lixin Han, Labour Process is the dynamics of social and o rganizational change. Marx defined labor process in which nature and man both practices are noticed. The man on his own settlement usually starts changeable, controlling and consider the material reaction. It is the theory between the man himself and the nature of the human himself opposes the nature through one of its own forces like settings of arms, legs, hand, and head. In order to produce appropriate natural process, it is required to adopt own wants. The major factor of labor process is the purposeful personal man’s activity and the understanding of work subject to the instruments handling. The labor process theory is about the controlling the power of labor that is the human ability to perform work. There are three dimensions of technological change like a transformation of work, its changes and controlling. The replacement of human-machine combination requires many dimensions over time. In order to improve the technology transformation, the innovative factors are focu sed on the point of a production process that is based on limited factors. Like textile industry involves spinning and weaving process is simplified through technological evaluation.

Changing organizations is as messy as it is exhilarating, as Assignment

Changing organizations is as messy as it is exhilarating, as frustrating as it is satisfying, as muddling-through and creative a process as it is a rational one. (Palmer et al, 2009) - Assignment Example 369-370). The requirement for change can be because of the external factors such as due to change in demand, shifting taste and preferences of the customers, obsolete products or technology, etc. The internal factors include the growth of the company, retired leaders of the organization, or a re-engineering of operational functions of the company. Regardless of the causes and sources of change, all the organizations frequently face the need of transforming certain system, people, or process within. This is a difficult process and many unsuccessful results are seen every day, yet it is considered to be the most significant function in an organization (Flamholtz, and Randle, 2008, p. 5). This study is based on the following definition â€Å"Changing organizations is as messy as it is exhilarating, as frustrating as it is satisfying, as muddling-through and creative a process as it is a rational one† (Palmer, Richard and Akin 2008). Many processes and systems are uprooted during the course of bringing about the change in the organisation. So the different facets of organisational dynamics would be studied, so as to understand the dynamics which lead to strategic changes within the organisation. Also the types of such change would be discussed in order to understand the outcomes of such dynamics on the change management process in the organisation. Apart from this the study would also throw some light on the situations, opportunities, threats, and emerging issues, when change unfurl inside the organisations (Flamholtz, and Randle, 2008, p. 6-7). Even after knowing all the benefits, one thing remains constant that is change is complicated. An organisation faces numerous challenges while planning, and implementing change. So discussion on strategic changes with organisations is incomplete without analysing the challenges associated with the change process. The common challenge is

Unit 6 management of information systems Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Unit 6 management of information systems - Essay Example 3 years tracking duration, use two sales tracking methods, and promise being able to be part of an ‘exclusive group of affiliates’ so that affiliates can â€Å"be happy and earn money†. There is no cost to join, and participation is open to everyone but subject to review. Program Details: Monthly payments by paypal or wire transfer with a minimum payout of $100. Joining the program requires filling in a registration form, after which the website will be evaluated for suitability. No other promises are made. Program Details: Site promises to give 50% of any income it receives from visitors referred. Payment is monthly as long as the amount exceeds $25 otherwise it gets carried over to the next. No further promises are made. Choose a topic in which you are interested. Select three different search engines (e.g., Google, Yahoo!, and MSN) and use them to look for information about the subject. Rank the performance of each site. A long list of sites that provide too broad a range of information is bad; a shorter list of sites that provide more narrowly defined information is good. Explain your ranking. The topic selected to test the search engines was ‘making a solar powered water heater’. The aim was to obtain detailed information with clear instruction on how to make such a device on one’s own. The search engines tested were Google, Yahoo and MSN accessed on 10 August 2009, and only the first page of results were analyzed. After entering the key terms ‘make’, ‘solar’, ‘power’, ‘water’ and ‘heater’, the following results were obtained: Google returned about 545,000 results displaying the first 10 (as standard) in 0.25 seconds, plus a further 11 sponsored links. The top link in the list was http://www.builditsolar.com/Projects/WaterHeating/water_heating.htm. This is an excellent collection of copious information and links (with summaries) to other sites rightly deserving its position at no.1. Yahoo’s top result was at no. 2 on

Bowlby Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Bowlby - Essay Example This is where the process of coming up with the attachment theory came in. he watched the behavior of the children keenly and how they behaved when they were left by their mothers (Rachel 78). This theory of attachment came to bring confusion with another theory known as the behavioral theory of attachment which Dollard and Miller had come up with in the year 1950. The theory had underrated the bond of a child and a mother. The behavioral theory stated that the child became attached to the mother for the reason that the mother fed the child. Bowlby suggested that attachment was adaptive and it plays a major role in the surviving of the child. He said that the infants feel the need to be close to the people who take care of them when they are stressed up. The stages of attachment go by the age of the child. When the child is 3 months old most children respond well to all people that take care of them this is referred to as indiscriminate attachment. 4 months there is preference for certain people. 7 months preference to a specific person and after nine months there is multiple attachments where the baby becomes independent (Jerry

Impact of Market Imperfections on International Capital Markets Essay

Impact of Market Imperfections on International Capital Markets - Essay Example This paper makes an assessment of the impact of the market imperfections on the functioning of the international capital markets. The perfect market is an economic model which describes a hypothetical market condition in which no producer or consumer has an absolute control to influence the prices. As laid down by the concept of Pareto efficiency a perfect market model would eventually lead to a totally efficient outcome. The theories of demand and supply have been evolved using the analysis of perfectly competitive markets. Efficient allocation and use of resources and maximization of social welfare characterize the perfect market equilibrium (Writing Campus). The perfect market model assumes the presence of certain conditions which make the prices move towards economic equilibrium instantaneously. However these conditions are to be treated as sufficient but not necessary conditions. In a perfect market there exist a large number of small producers and consumers. Because of their relative sizes the actions of these players do not have any significant impact on the others. The prices are set by the market and the firms represent only price takers (Writing Campus). In the perfect market model the goods and services represent perfect substitutes to each other. All the firms in the market sell identical products and there is no product differentiation among the individual products (Writing Campus). Perfect and Complete Information All the players in the market have perfect and complete information about the prices and the activities of other players in the market. The prices set by different firms in the market are known to all the players (Writing Campus). Equal Access One of the major assumptions in the perfect market model is that all the firms in the market have equal access to production technologies and resources, since the technologies and resources are considered to be perfectly mobile (Writing Campus). Free Entry There are no restrictions on the entry to or exit from the market for any firm. The firms may enter and leave the market as they wish and such exit will not have any additional burden on the firms. There is the existence of complete independence in the market that the individual buyers and sellers act independently of each other. The market is structured in such a way that there is no scope for a group of buyers and sellers to join together to influence the prices for their common interest. In other words there is no possibility of cartels or collusion in a perfect market model (Writing Campus). Apart from the above conditions there are certain other behavioural assumptions which also form the basis of a perfect market model. They are: It is the objective of the consumers to achieve maximum utility and the objective of the producers is to maximize their profits. The perfect market model is subjected to severe criticisms on the ground that the model is too simplified and the simplifications are irrelevant and inappropriate to describe the kind of society, market etc. This model can be regarded as a description of one type of market structure with most of its assumptions getting violated in the real world. For instance the firms may not have perfect information about each other. The usefulness of perfect market mo

Impact of ICT on the community Essay Example for Free

Impact of ICT on the community Essay Southall is located in a town of London borough of Ealing it is close to Heathrow airport which is one of the busiest airports in the world, which creates lots of jobs and large number of Southall residents are employed in Heathrow. Southall is quiet a small area but holds a large amount of population. Southall is one of the busiest places in England. In this area the route of communication such as, railways and roads need real improvement because at the moment they are not good enough and doesnt meet the needs of the community really well. There is also project going about trams but our community is not happy with the decision made by the Ealing Council. In Southall it is very difficult to settle down for a person who has just been to this town because there are no enough jobs for people to do and those with jobs are paid very less wages compared to national average wage. Southall also has a very low reputation is attracting the visitors to the town, thats because of the low employment rate. Basically this means that the people with business should give others a chance to work and pay them the same amount of wages like other employees are being paid in other towns and countries. This town is one of the towns in England which has most problems with public transport because there are very few buses to go around and the population is bigger if a bus comes early the person still cant reach his destination in time because of the traffic. This means that the local governors of Ealing must improve the services to keep the people in the community happy and to attract more people in the town. In Southall there is also quiet a lot of traffic but mostly its controlled by CCTV, there is also speed limit but the residents in our community dont follow the rules. Southall is primarily an Asian residential district, and is informally known as little India. Over 55% of Southalls population of 70,000 is Indian/Pakistani. One of the Sikh Gurdwaras in Southall won the Ealing Civic Society Architectural Award in 2003. There are a few Christian churches and there are few mosques as well. The main street in Southall is called The Broadway. Southall contains the largest Asian shopping centre in the London area. Southall was the main location for the film Bend It Like Beckham. Southall is also the location of the Glassy Junction, which serves several Indian draught beers and was the first pub in the UK to accept payment in Indian rupees. Recently Southall has become notorious for the amount of violence caused by Tamil gangs and the consequences on the community. South India and Sri Lanka have been brought to the United Kingdom. There have been many shootings and other incidents that have been connected to Tamil gangs. In origin this rivalry was caused by rival politcal groups vying for power. However many of these groups have now formed street gangs abroad and resort to violence to gain power. Percentages of group per authentic group Indian: 50.3% White: 29.8% Black: 7.5% Pakistani/Bangladeshi: 7.2% Chinese: 0.2% Others: 4.9% Needs of my local Community Banks Sports and Leisure Public Transport Schools and Colleges Medical Centre Hospitals GPS Internet Cafà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ Information Point Security CCTV Southall community Website Fire Department Every Community have needs and they have to meet Banks My community needs banks and ATM machine as people needs to keep their money secure people can also withdraw money from the ATM machines they need ATM because they can skip queues. The people can withdraw money from the ATM any time; it also provides us with a mini statement and gives you many more options. People in our community need to skip queues so they can have a service thats give you all the detail about your bank online. Sports and Leisure Centre People in my community need to stay healthy and eat balance diet so the Leisure centre provides them with pre-booking and computer readable cards. It also gives help about eating healthily and gives information about other sports for e.g. Cricket, Karate, and Football etc. My community also need to know what activities are taking place and how to book it. My Community need to know where is the nearest leisure Centre and about the costs. Public Transport People in my community need Transport for moving and travelling around the city. My community provide use of Oyster card which is machine readable so they dont have to wait in the queue for waiting to get inside and Oyster pre-pay. In addition we need to have ICT technologies in our transport for e.g. CCTV cameras so the passengers are safe and every moment is recorded. People need countdown timer which will tell them what time will the next bus come and which bus will come. My community also need a replacement service if one bus has a mechanical fault they need to have another bus at that time which will take the passenger. Schools and Colleges My Community needs to have schools which would provide basic education to younger generation. Students in schools need computer and internet access. Schools in our community need computers so they can keep record of every students and staffs to keep the school on track. Schools also need CCTV cameras to record students behaviour and dont cause trouble. So the community will need computer and ICT to stop the students causing trouble. Health Centre People in MY community also need health centre to be provided with quick efficient service. Health centre will need to provide people with easy services and making registration. Health centre in Southall should have better ICT facility they should be given a choice to book on the phone. An also they shouldnt take time to give an appointment. Internet Cafà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ Every person in my community doesnt have access to the internet. Some might not even have computer. People in my community are multicultural and came from other countries so they will need to communicate with their relatives in a cheaper way so internet cafes will meet their need. They need ICT that provides them with cheaper internet and let them have access to internet with cheaper offers as well. Southall Community Website Most of the people in my community will need to know widely about their community events and businesses in the community so the Southall website also provide information about the leisure and sport, religion, culture and businesses in the community. My community need ICT facilities to provide people with better services and keep people up to date about the events in our community. Police Station My community need to be safe and secure and police also need to try protecting people from theft, robbery and murder. My community needs good technology to keep record of crime and CCTV, so it needs ICT technology to keep records and solve peoples problem. In the above the need of my community some are more important than others. For my report I will need to look in detail of five of them. I will also need to describe the way it is used in my community. I have to define each technology and the use of the technology. I will look at the technologies that are used the most and have effect on my community. I will look at technologies that affect the whole of my community not a single person. I will also need to include how people benefit from using the service. And finally I will then evaluate how the technology will meet the need of my community. In my coursework I will write about those technologies which are in the most need and has impact on my community. Financial Transaction- Banking Definition of ATM: ATM stands for Automated teller machine is computerized telecommunications device that provides an agents customer a secure method of performing financial transactions is a public space without the need for a human teller. Using an ATM, customers can access their bank accounts in order to make cash withdrawals or credit card cash advances and check their account balances. Many ATMs also allow people to deposit cash or cheques, transfer money between their bank accounts, pay bills, or purchase goods and services. Explanation of the technology Banking is the biggest place in the world that uses ICT. ICT is used in ATM Machines (electronic funds transfer at point of sale). ATM is used to withdraw money there are also other facilities that ATM machines provide other facilities for example: you can print or view balance on the screen, change pin, order statement. EFTPOS helps customers to withdraw money through Debit Card it is mostly used in shopping. The customers card is swiped through a card reader and the merchant usually enters the amount of the transaction before the customer enters their account and PIN number. Before the customers didnt needed to enter their PIN number now the customers has to enter it for security reasons. How does the technology meet the needs of the community? Every bank has its own ATMs machines however the bank card works in every ATM machine. These machines meet the needs of the community as people are able to withdraw money at any time. It is also quick to withdraw money as if there werent any ATM machines it would have taken much time queuing in a lane and getting cash from the bank. It is quicker and reliable as the customer doesnt need to show ID when withdrawing money from your own account. ATM machines are safe as no one can get the data from the ATM. How ATM works? ATM is simply a data terminal. Like any other data terminal, the ATM has to connect to, and communicate through, a host computer. The host computer is analogous to an Internet Service in that it is the gateway through which all the various ATM networks become available to the cardholder the person wanting the cash. The host computer may be owned by a bank or financial institution, or it may be owned by an independent service provider. Bank-owned processors normally support only bank-owned machines, whereas the independent processors support merchant-owned machines. Use of ICT in the banks CCTV Database Security Alarm Evaluate on the use of ICT good/ and bad features and also advantages and disadvantages of the technology ICT that is used in the banks is a big advantage to people working in the bank and to the public as well. ATMs and EFTPOS services are open 24 hours 365 days in an year, this means the people in the community can withdraw money at any time so they dont have to wait for the bank to open. Another advantage is that there are a lots of ATM machines in Southall so there arent big queues which is then quicker to withdraw money from the bank. People also need to skip queues in the banks so they can do banking online which helps the sort transaction quickly and efficiently. Online banking also has disadvantages as there is danger from hacker. You will need to provide your bank details so there is risk of you details transferred. In addition the people in my community can also check their bank detail by internet it can be done 24 hours a day using a computer and internet connection. It can help my community in various ways: * People in my community can pay bills from the comfort of their home or the workplace. * People in my community can also transfer money immediately to high interest accounts. * People in my community can check balances and daily transactions on line. * People in my community can set up direct debits and order stationery on line. * People in my community can get higher interest rates and are available to Internet bankers. * It is easy to shop around on line for the best interest rates and switch funds automatically. * And also in some banks the counter can speak more than one language it benefit my community as some people in my community can speak English. There are also many concerns about ATM and the Banks: * Small banks in my community closes or having opening hours reduced * Reductions in staffing at the major banks. * Some customers have worries about security because of possible credit card fraud. How ever there are two new banks which will be opening in the next few months one of the Bank has already opened ICIC. And the other banks is Panjab national it will help my community and the people in my community will benefit a lot because they can send or transfer money to their country quick and reliable. And also some people in my community wont be able to read English so it will help the Punjabi and Indian people a lot but it will also help other people. How does the technology benefit my community? Modern ATMs provide customers with their bank account balance; they can issue money, print statements and even take cash deposits. Customers are able to use almost any ATM in any bank, supermarket or garage. And in this country it is normally a free service. Customers could get hold of their money without having to queue. This saved the customers time; it also saved the bank a huge amount of money since fewer staff was needed. The people in my community can benefit in many different ways as there are many more banks been opened in Southall for e.g. Panjab national it will benefit my community as well as the Panjabi and Indian people benefiting other people from different culture can benefit. Panjab national provide their service to my community in many different language for e.g. Hindi, Panjabi and English The people in Southall can also call the Centres where the Customers could now telephone the centre using either a free number or local cost number and find out information on their accounts without even leaving home. They can also change their bank detail. The people in my community can also access the their bank detail and information by internet they can open their account, check their balance online, move money pay bills and print statements from the comfort for their own homes. Lastly the ATM machines are free to use and most of the ATM machine are free of charge. To what extent does the technology meet my community need Without ATM people in my community will face various problems they wont be able to send money abroad. People will also need to keep their money in their houses where they might face robbery. Buying house will be hard as people wouldnt be able to get loan where they will need to pay all the money. ATMs machine also play a very big role in my community banking as people doesnt keep all the money in their pockets due to risk of theft so they need the ATM to withdraw money whenever they need. There are various ATM machines in Southall nearly every bank has an ATM in Southall Broadway e.g. HSBC, Abbey National, Barclays, Nat West etc. To some extent it doesnt meet the needs of my community as some of the people in my community are not educated so they arent able to withdraw money they has to go inside the bank and withdraw money which takes time. Another disadvantage is that ATMs and EFTAPOS provide money and cant provide advice. Last disadvantage of ATMs Machines and EFTAPOS is that whoever doesnt have a bank account that person wont be able to use these facilities. Possible development of the technology in the future They can improve the ATM machine by storing more cash so it doesnt run out. In the past years there were frauds where the ATM machine takes your card and doesnt give it back. They can also improve the ATM machine by having a secure place where people cant see your Pin number or your bank details. In some places for e.g. Tesco or Sainsbury the can charge you for taking money so it could be free of charge. And the big improvement of ATM machine could be that they can have other language on the screen for e.g. Urdu, Pashto, Farsi, Punjabi, Somalian and Gujarati. They can make the ATM machine safe in the future where the ATM machine wont need your pin number but it will need scanning of a customers fingerprint. Control and Monitoring- CCTV Explanation of the Technology CCTV stands for Close Circuit Television camera it is used for video surveillance. In my community CCTV is used in banks, casinos, shopping centres, streets, airports and now days it is even in the shops etc. Now it isnt expensive people uses it at home for security. CCTV in Southall is used for security and to decrease crime it is also used as evidence. It is also used in schools which help the school to control behaviour of the students. CCTV is used by police and council to decrease crime and used it as evidence against the criminals. There are different types of CCTV cameras as some of the can turn at the bearing of 3600 and some of them are straight. There are also some cameras that have black glass cover and the people around can see which direction is the camera recording. How CCTV camera works? CCTV cameras in my area are continuously monitored at the Councils Communications Centre. The Police are informed of suspicious incidents as they arise and can be directed to the exact location by CCTV operators. Since CCTV has been introduce in our community and in the borough, Southall crimes have been decreased for e.g. shoplifting, Pick Pocketing, Possessions of Drugs and unauthorised taking of motor vehicles. The control room for CCTV is in Ealing Town hall they are responsible for round the clock monitoring of over 337 CCTV cameras are fixed and 20 mobile cameras. The cameras can pan, tilt and zoom to record the action, and radio link with police make sure that the cameras are capturing the right footage. How does the technology meet the needs of the community? CCTV is used in various and different places in Southall, some CCTV cameras in my community are located in Southall Broadway and in High Street it control Anti Social Behaviour and some people drive over the speed of the limit it meets my community needs as it makes it easier to stop crime and record what has been happening it is also helps in controlling crime on the streets and shopping centres. It is used in streets to help the police catch crime and use evidence against trouble makers. It is also used in traffic lights which helps the police catch people who passes red lights and charge penalties those against who breaks the law it meets community needs as it decreases crime. CCTV cameras in Southall are able to zoom in and zoom out as it makes it easier and clearer for police and staff in the community to see what is happening. They are also computerised this means that it can record for some days and it can be used as an evidence. CCTV is also meets the needs of the community w hen it comes to use against criminals it helps my community as it produce a clear picture of the place where it is placed. It meets my community needs in a better way because every community needs to be as secured as it can be, in Southall CCTV is used in several places which meet the needs of the people and community as it provide security and records every thing is happening around. It also helps police in the as one of the CCTV cameras are able to rotate at 360 degrees which helps the police check around direct through the camera. Evaluate on the use of ICT good/bad features (advantages/disadvantage of the technology The introduction of CCTV cameras in my community has been one of the best weapons against crime in the Borough and in this community. It has been proved effective in both cutting and detecting crime and because of this people now feel safer when theyre out and about. CCTV cameras are a big advantage for my community. If my community didnt have CCTV the crime rate would be high and people will be free to cause trouble in my community. It will be hard for the police to find evidence and use it against the criminals in the court. People also wouldnt feel safe in shopping centres and also when traveling. CCTV cameras can deal with everything from murder to suicides, rapes and paedophiles, although they are very rare. CCTV cameras in my community are also used in shops and supermarkets which help the customer buy stuff safely and securely and it also helps the shop owner and use CCTV evidence against thieves. The crimes that have been tackled in my community by using CCTV cameras are: * Shoplifting * Pick Pocketing * Possessions of drugs * Assault * Unauthorised taking of motor vehicle * Public order offence CCTV is a tool that saves a lot of time. Aside from the disadvantage of not attending school, youngsters can also get into serious trouble if they hang around unsupervised on the streets. So CCTV is the best technology to catch them. Some teenagers in South all are not scared of CCTV cameras as when they are doing graffiti in bus stop and damaging the environment they dont stop, they carry on causing more damage. And when someone inform the police the operator attend the call then he tell the police about the incident and then they will deal about the incident so its a long process for the police to come and deal with the incident and it also cost a lot of money repairing the damage. How ever if there are more CCTV cameras placed in Southall there will be less police on patrol so it wont cost the council a lot of money. CCTV cameras can also help my community to catch domestic and trade litterers in the act as the Council tries to get the message of Project Street clean across and those who refuse to pay their fines will end up in court. CCTV cameras are also use in Southall Railway station and its safer for the community to travel at night time. If people cause trouble they can call in back-up from officers to stop antisocial behaviour immediately and arrest offenders on the spot. They can also stop people intent on harming themselves. There are suicides on railways Southall station so they can stop people committing suicide. There are many advantages of CCTV cameras but there are also disadvantages CCTV increased the workload of officers. Most of the CCTV cameras in Southall are black and white colour so it doesnt have a good quality picture. How does the technology benefit my community? CCTV benefit my community if my community doesnt have CCTV the crime rate would be high and people will be free to cause trouble in the community. People also wouldnt feel safe in shopping centres and also when travelling. CCTV cameras are also used in shops and supermarkets which help the customer buy stuff safely and securely and it also helps the shop owner and use CCTV evidence against thieves. CCTV cameras are place in various places in Southall most of them are placed in Schools, shopping centres, supermarkets and busy roads. It would benefit the community if they use CCTV on busy roads because some drivers drive over the limit of speed. So its easy for the police to catch them. To what extent does the technology meet my community need To some extent CCTV cameras meet my community needs as they can control anti social behaviour and also if they wouldnt had CCTV cameras so people would be free to cause trouble. To some extent it doesnt meet my community needs as most of the cameras arent very clear and they are placed in one place so it cant move round as it makes it hard for the police to see around and they will need to place more cameras. Most of the advance cameras are expensive so overall it cost lots of money to install it in the community. And some time it wont sort out some people who are causing trouble and damaging the environment. As I explained in Page 10 its a long period for the police to arrive and deal with the problem. The police wont be able to catch the people but they can use the evidence of CCTV in the court. Possible development of the technology in the future They can improve the CCTV for the future as in Southall most of the CCTV cameras are black and white colour and have a poor quality so they can replace the old cameras with the latest CCTV cameras. They can have more CCTV cameras in the railways so people dont commit suicide and already in the past the number of suicide has decreased. Internet Learn Direct Explanation of the Technology Learn direct is a program run by a company for the people aged over 16. It a service for people who wants to learn online and doesnt has time to go physically and study. It is also for people who has less education and want to have more education. It also helps people to get educated and have a good future. Learn direct tells people the easier way to achieve what the want in life and help them achieve it. These courses are available for all kinds of people whether they are educated or not. Learn direct have various centres in out community where they provide computer and internet access. Learn direct also covers a range of inter-related services for online learning, advice and guidance. These include: * Learn direct advice service: a government-funded telephone helpline and website providing impartial information, advice and guidance relating to learning opportunities and career development. * Learn direct is online learning service aimed at small to medium-sized enterprises. * A higher education offer aimed at people in work. Deciding whats best for you depends on factors such as your personal circumstances and what you enjoy doing. If youre unsure about what you want to do next, we can learn direct can help you. How Learn Direct works? Learn direct can help you in lots of different ways they can help you find a suitable course or you can search their database on Learn Direct website. Learn Direct have database of nearly one million courses from right across the UK, from short courses lasting one day to longer courses lasting a few years. Learn direct courses are a brilliant way to learn. You learn either online through the Internet or by using workbooks and/or CD-ROMs, so youre free to learn where and when you want, at a pace you choose. You can contact learn Direct on this number 0800 100 900 or email an advisor. How does the technology meet the needs of my community? Learn direct and the courses available meet the needs of the people in my community extremely well because there are courses available for nearly every one. Learn direct meets the needs of my community really well because Learn direct have many branches so there would be no shortage of space for people choosing to do the courses. Another big advantage for the people in my community can be that they can choose their courses online before actually talking to learn direct. There are 900, 000 different courses so there is a course for everyone. Evaluate on the use of ICT good/bad features (advantages/disadvantage of the technology Learn direct is a great advantage to the whole Southall community because most people in my community and in Southall are unemployed and uneducated. The other advantage people who came to this country new they can get a lot of help from Learn Direct. But since this online system is been introduced the unemployment rate have decreased and the amount of people with futures have been increased. Learn direct is a great advantage because it offers great advantages like: there are many courses available for all people whether employed/ educated or not. Also learn direct is available to everyone and people can use it online. Learn direct courses are broken down into bite-sized chunks, so you can do as little or as much as you like at any time, picking up where you left off. And if you get stuck, help is always at hand. The Advantages of Learn Direct are: * Equips people with the skills they need for employability * Is delivered innovatively through the use of new technologies; * Reaches those people with few or no skills and qualifications who are unlikely to participate in traditional forms of learning. There are some disadvantage of Learn direct in my community as some people in my community doesnt have computers and dont have access to the internet so they will need to use the cafà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ so it will cost them quite a lot. Without Learn Direct my community will would have lack of education and uneducated people will still be having problems in the community. Most of the people in my community work and study both, it would be hard for people to go physically to go study centre and it would take more time. How does the technology benefit the community? My community benefits learn direct because there are more uneducated people in my community Learn Direct give advice on phone they give advice on courses and impartial information training, apprenticeships, careers, returning to work, and childcare. They can also advise you on paying for your learning. Any one in my community can get help and advice from Learn Direct its also free. Some people can benefit from learn direct a lot as for women they cant go to college physically because they have kids in the house to look after and in some culture women are not allowed to go to study and college so it will benefit women in my community as they can sit at home and learn. To what extent does the technology meet my community need To some extent it doesnt meet my community needs as some people who come to this country and they are in this community they really need help and advice and most of them dont know about Learn direct. Some people in my community dont know how to use computer so they will need another person to show them. Most of the people in my community also dont have access to computer so they will have to use library and library is not open all the time. Possible development of the technology in the future They can help my community in the future in different ways. All the staffs in Learn direct speak English so some people in my community might need help and they cant speak English and read English so the staff should be able to speak more than one or two languages as in our community some people cant speak English. And also there should be more advertising of Learn direct and in different languages so people can find about it easily. Communication Information Point Explanation of the Technology Information point are screens based in various places it provide a direct link to the council, free email, BBC news and sport, transport information and job search facility. It is free and every one in my community can use it. Information points provide users with local, national and international news. It also allows the user to use free email facility. It helps the people my community to communicate with other people and it lets them access to internet and search for jobs. How Information Point works? Information points are easy to use the best thing about information point is that its touch screen. As you go to the Information Point just follow the instruction on screen. It will tell you all the information about Traffic, News, and your local community it can also help you to look for jobs to the nearest location. How does the technology meet the needs of my community? Information points are located in various places in my community and in Southall Information point in Southall is located in South road opposite the bank. It meets the needs of the community as it makes it easier for people to access to free internet, provide them with latest information and also has link to council. This meets the needs of my community as it makes it easier for the council to contact people and it meets the needs of the people in my community as they can use it at any time and anywhere. If anyone is searching for a job they dont have to go around and ask they can easily search at an information point. It also meets the need of my community as in council there wont be too many people having problem so the council wont need to have a lot of staff and it is also quicker for the staff to solve problems easily. Evaluate on the use of ICT good/bad features (advantages/disadvantage of the technology Information points also attract more tourists in my community as the tourists are able to find information, events and businesses in my community. Information Points are located in various places in Southall for e.g. its located in Southall Broadway Information points are widely used by the people in my community. The content on Information Points can be tailored to suit each client, and ranges from local council, transport and community information to free email and job finding services. Users benefit from the opportunity to access what they need, where and when they need it. The Information Multipoint broadcast screen provides an effective communication tool for councils as they can be used to promote local services to citizens, such as Real-Time Passenger Information for local transport. In addition an Information Point network ensures the most appropriate services to suit the needs of citizens are available, e.g. council, government, transport and local news services. One of the biggest advantages of using Information Point there is not need of IT skills to use Information Point, the information provided is accessible to all. And also some people might dont know about the Councillor of Ealing they can get information about them and also when they have to elect a new councillor they can vote by using the Information Point. The disadvantage is that some of the information Points in my community not weather-proof and resistant to vandalism. How does the technology benefit my community? It also meet makes it easier for people in Southall to search for a job at anytime as there is more unemployment. It also meets the needs of the community as the council wont have to employ more staff. In order to provide Outdoor broadband service for everyone in our Community Information point provides network of interactive touch screen internet-based services on-street. They are free and easy to use. As I said above that unemployment rate in Southall is high and it would be hard for people to find jobs and read news and reviews. To what extent does the technology meet my community need To some extents it doesnt meet the need as there arent many around my community so people need to use their nearest information time. Also most of the people dont know how to use Information points. It is also some time slow and takes time to download the page. And some teenagers do graffiti on information point and damage the point so it gives a bad image to my community. Possible development of the technology in the future Information Point is really useful for my community and it attract tourist. They can improve for the future by keeping clean and in a safe place because people in our community do graffiti and break the glasses. People in my community dont look after the information point so the grand council may not introduce any more information point in Southall and other places. Data Capture Bar Code Scanner Explanation of the Technology Bar Code scanner is specialized for reading bar codes. Bar Code readers are used in various places in my community for example, supermarkets, leisure centres, community centres and local shops. It allows people to buy stuff from supermarkets easily and also they get receipt. How Bar Code scanner works? A barcode reader is a computer peripheral for reading barcodes printed on various surfaces. Bar code scanner is like a flatbed scanner, it generally consists of a light source, a lens and a photo. Additionally, nearly all barcode readers currently produced contain decoder bar code scanner send the information to the computer and it prints the receipt. As I have show a picture of a Bar code scanner on the left they cashier scans the product and the scanner send all the information to the computer. How does the technology meet the needs of my community? Bar code Scanner meets the needs of my community as it convenient for the people of my community. It also helps as cashier cant cheat with their customers as they cant charge people higher price which all computerised and all the cashier has to do is to scan it and the customer will receive the receipt which say the price. Evaluate on the use of ICT good/bad features (advantages/disadvantage of the technology Bar Code scanner is used in various places in my community it is mostly used in Supermarkets, leisure centres and the big stores like Tesco, Sainsbury and Asda. It is used for various purposes e.g. in leisure centres they have provided their customers a membership card which has bar code scanner and when it is scanned all the information comes up on the screen with the picture of the person which helps them to identify the person, in supermarkets it used for products as every product has bar code which is brought to the cashier and it calculates the total price and it also prints out a receipt. Bar code Scanner is also used in the local library in my community it helps the librarian to find all the details about the students and the information about the books. It is used by every single person in my community. It meets the needs of the community as it makes it easier for people to buy stuff efficiently and quick it also gives them a prove (receipt) which is then used to refund stuff which damaged. There are also some disadvantages of Bar code scanner Bar code scanner is when its scan a bar code, the cursor has to be in the correct input data field, and in the correct application otherwise the bar code data will end up in whatever application that is active. This can cause all sorts of problems. Bar code scanner is also more complicated to use as it is hard for new cashier to use and it give the wrong detail to the person who purchase the product and it can cause a lot of problem to the cashier and also to the buyer. So in my community all the people employees have to be familiar with using the bar code scanner. How does the technology benefit my community Bar code scanner benefit my community in many different ways it benefit my community as it makes it easier for people to buy stuff efficiently and quick it gives them a prove which is then used to exchange or refund the stuff which is damage. To what extent does the technology meet my community need To some extents it doesnt meet the needs of my community as it is not available in all the shops and the shops can also charge people high prices. Possible development of the technology in the future They can improve the Barcode in different ways some shops in Southall and in my community doesnt have Bar code scanner, some of do but its not the latest technology. There are many different type of Bar code scanner for e.g. Laser Barcode Scanners This is the most popular bar code scanner. A laser bar code scanner need not be close to or touch the bar code to do its job. A standard range laser bar code scanner can read a bar code from about 6 to 24 inches away, and a long range scanner can read bar code from about 2 to 8 feet away. An extra long-range scanner can read a bar code 30 feet away. Laser barcode scanners vary in price from $200 to $2,000 and come in a variety of models. Future Developments ICT needs to be improved for the new generation. It is hard to cope with the old technology for the new generation. For example community will need more telephone boxes on the streets they will also need to improve the facility for example some of them has the e-mail and news facility. Learn Direct will also need to improve as in the past the population of the community was less now it increased so they need to provide more centres and also more courses to give a wide choice. Community will also need to put more CCTV cameras on the streets as the crime rate increased and to put better quality cameras. My community also need to improve the transport it takes normally about 15 to 30 minutes for a bus to come. To meet the needs of the community in the future the technologies needs to be updated and improved so it will meet the community needs in a better way. Overall Evaluation ICT is a big help to Southall and my community ICT made several changes as in the past most of the organisation had problems dealing with task now with the help of ICT everything is done in less time and with less loss of energy. ICT meets the needs of my community as unemployment rate is high with the help of ICT it provided jobs and decreased the unemployment rate. It also helps uneducated they can learn on learn direct. ICT also provide security for my community as now the crime rate is low as more criminals are caught on CCTV and charged, people can report crimes online which saves time by going to the police station and getting a report written. Lastly with the help of ICT a person who cant afford to buy computer or use internet cafà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ they are provided with information points which lets them send free emails and has information. Overall without ICT people in our community would have problems and small tasks would take them long time.