Thursday, November 28, 2019

Manyoshu and Kokinshu Interpretive Essay Essay Example

Manyoshu and Kokinshu Interpretive Essay Paper In his famous Kana Preface to the Kokinshu, Ki no Tsurayuki, one of the editors of the anthology, introduces the aesthetic value and core functions of Japanese poetry. As the seed that grows into a flower, Japanese songs, or waka, take human heart and flourish as myriad leaves of words. (Shirane 148) As the master poet, Tsurayuki advises his successors to appreciate the beauty of life, rather than understanding it. One of the functions of waka, Tsurayuki asserts, lies in consoling the hearts of the departed and the living, as the beauty of the song has the mysterious power to assuage even the troubled souls of fierce warriors. Despite the lexical parsimony of waka, the master poets of ancient Japan have honored this legacy and strived to bestow poetic beauty even upon the topic of death. In the Manyoshu and Kokinshu, parting with the loved ones is juxtaposed with mysterious cycles of nature to mediate the emotional burden of loss. Nonetheless, the poeticization of death in two anthologies contrasts in poetic deliverance as well as in narrative structure, as the Manyoshu poet focuses on the poetic deliverance of the protagonist’s emotions, while the Kokishu poem respectively focuses on the transience and emptiness of life. The poeticization of death in Manyoshu is characterized by the protagonist’s emotional confession of continued longing and inability to let go the departed. Upon his wife’s death, the master poet Kakinomoto no Hitomaro composes the following poem, â€Å"crying tears of blood in his grief.† After recollecting his nostalgic romance with his wife in the openning lines, Hitomaro sings, Like the sky-crossing sun sets in the evening We will write a custom essay sample on Manyoshu and Kokinshu Interpretive Essay specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Manyoshu and Kokinshu Interpretive Essay specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Manyoshu and Kokinshu Interpretive Essay specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer Like the light of the moon is obscured by the clouds, My girl, who like the deep seaweed had slept beside me, Had passed away like the autumn leaves†¦ †¦and all I could do was call out her name As I waved my sleeves. I searched for my girl who has lost her way In the thick yellow leaves of the autumn hill But do not know the mountain path. (84-85) By imbuing his wife’s â€Å"passing away† with the rich imageries of cyclical nature, Hitomaro avoids the crude proclamation of death and elevates their parting with elegance and beauty. Never do words meaning death, such as shinu, appear in the original text or the translation of the poem. Like the sun, the moon, and the seasons, his wife, who has now become a fabric of nature, passes away (sugite) from him. Consequent lines with makurakotoba, catalpa gem and catalpa bow, allow the readers to further relate to and vicariously experience his emotions, amplifying the conveyance of grief. It is also important to note that juxtaposition of the loss and imageries of cyclical nature reflects Hitomaro’s hope for his wife to return, as sun rises again and the autumn returns every year. Later in his short poem, the wife is described as having â€Å"lost her way† in the mountain. Despite the mountain symbolizing the insurmountable and unfathomable divide between the two lovers, Hitomaro still yearns for her return believing that he can bring her back if only he had known the mountain path (yamaji shirazu mo). Yet as he cannot venture across the mountain into the forbidden realm, he laments that he can only call out her name and wave his sleeves (sode so furitsuru), a ritual to summon the departed back to life. An unknown poet of Kokinshu also uses nature as a medium for poeticizing death and conveying emotions of loss. After the Horikawa chancellor died and his remains were interred near Mount Fukakusa, the poet composes in Heian style of lexical parsimony, Poem #832 If cherry trees indeed Have feelings, may those Of the fields of Fukakusa This year, at least, Shround themselves in black blossoms. (162) Unlike Hitomaro, the Kokinshu poet neither confesses his lingering feelings nor hopes for the departed to return. However, through a simple imagery of black, mourning blossoms, instead of an emotional narrative, the poet elegantly conveys the burden of his grief. The waka is almost addressed to the cherry blossoms, as the last line ends in volitional form. Furthermore, the essence of the poem is encapsulated in the word sumizome of the cherry blossoms. As if to prepare them for the burial, the poet invokes the cherry blossoms to bloom in â€Å"dyed black (sumizome ni sake).† The word also reminds the reader the word sumu, meaning â€Å"to live.† The prosopopoeia is further intensified by the use of the word, kokoro. Although it is translated as â€Å"feelings† in the text, it may also be read as â€Å"heart†or â€Å"soul.† The poet’s impossible demand for the cherry blossoms not only reflects his remorse, but also informs the reader of the tr ansience and emptiness of life. As one cannot suppress the promised beauty of the cherry blossoms, one can never escape the passing of life. As Tsurayuki opined in his Kana Preface, the cares and deeds of men and women are endless. Yet there is an end to each and every man and woman and the ancient Japanese poets continued to find beauty in death through their myriad leaves of words. Though the autumn leaves will surely fall, the promised mists of spring will come and the fair hills of Yoshino will be adorned, once again, with cherry blossoms. Likewise, though the departed will go across the â€Å"mountain path† and the living will be in â€Å"dyed black,† the songs will live on until the end of time, shedding light into the Japanese heart of kokoro.

Monday, November 25, 2019

5 Steps for Balancing Chemical Equations

5 Steps for Balancing Chemical Equations Being able to balance chemical equations is a vital skill for chemistry. Heres a look at the steps involved in balancing equations, plus a worked example of how to balance an equation. Steps of Balancing a Chemical Equation Identify each element found in the equation. The number of atoms of each type of atom must be the same on each side of the equation once it has been balanced.What is the net charge on each side of the equation? The net charge must be the same on each side of the equation once it has been balanced.If possible, start with an element found in one compound on each side of the equation. Change the coefficients (the numbers in front of the compound or molecule) so that the number of atoms of the element is the same on each side of the equation. Remember, to balance an equation, you change the coefficients, not the subscripts in the formulas.Once you have balanced one element, do the same thing with another element. Proceed until all elements have been balanced. Its easiest to leave elements found in pure form for last.Check your work to make certain the charge on both sides of the equation is also balanced. Example of Balancing a Chemical Equation ? CH4 ? O2 → ? CO2 ? H2O Identify the elements in the equation: C, H, OIdentify the net charge: no net charge, which makes this one easy! H is found in CH4 and H2O, so its a good starting element.You have 4 H in CH4 yet only 2 H in H2O, so you need to double the coefficient of H2O to balance H.1 CH4 ? O2 → ? CO2 2 H2OLooking at carbon, you can see that CH4 and CO2 must have the same coefficient.1 CH4 ? O2 → 1 CO2 2 H2OFinally, determine the O coefficient. You can see you need to double the O2 coefficient in order to get 4 O seen on the product side of the reaction.1 CH4 2 O2 → 1 CO2 2 H2OCheck your work. Its standard to drop a coefficient of 1, so the final balanced equation would be written:CH4 2 O2 → CO2 2 H2O Take a quiz to see if you understand how to balance simple chemical equations. How to Balance a Chemical Equation for a Redox Reaction Once you understand how to balance an equation in terms of mass, youre ready to learn how to balance an equation for both mass and charge. Reduction/oxidation or redox reactions and acid-base reactions often involve charged species. Balancing for charge means you have the same net charge on both the reactant and product side of the equation. This isnt always zero! Heres an example of how to balance the reaction between potassium permanganate and iodide ion in aqueous sulfuric acid to form potassium iodide and manganese(II) sulfate. This is a typical acid reaction. First, write the unbalanced chemical equation:KMnO4  Ã‚  KI  Ã‚  H2SO4  Ã¢â€ â€™Ã‚  I2  Ã‚  MnSO4Write down the oxidation numbers for each type of atom on both sides of the equation:Left hand side: K 1; Mn 7; O -2; I 0; H 1; S 6Right hand side: I 0; Mn 2, S 6; O -2Find the atoms that experience a change in oxidation number:Mn: 7 → 2; I: 1 → 0Write a skeleton ionic equation that only covers the atoms that change oxidation number:MnO4- → Mn2I- → I2Balance all of the atoms besides the oxygen (O) and hydrogen (H) in the half-reactions:MnO4- → Mn22I- → I2Now add O and H2O as needed to balance oxygen:MnO4- → Mn2 4H2O2I- → I2Balance the hydrogen by adding H as needed:MnO4- 8H → Mn2 4H2O2I- → I2Now, balance charge by adding electrons as needed. In this example, the first half-reaction has a charge of 7 on the left and 2 on the right. Add 5 electrons to the left to balance the charge. The second half-re action has 2- on the left and 0 on the right. Add 2 electrons to the right.MnO4- 8H 5e- → Mn2 4H2O2I- → I2 2e- Multiply the two half-reactions by the number that yields the lowest common number of electrons in each half-reaction. For this example, the lowest multiple of 2 and 5 is 10, so multiply the first equation by 2 and the second equation by 5:2 x [MnO4- 8H 5e- → Mn2 4H2O]5 x [2I- → I2 2e-]Add together the two half-reactions and cancel out species that appear on each side of the equation:2MnO4- 10I- 16H → 2Mn2 5I2 8H2O Now, its a good idea to check your work by making sure the atoms and charge are balanced: Left hand side:  2 Mn; 8 O; 10 I; 16 HRight hand side:  2 Mn; 10 I; 16 H; 8 O Left hand side:  Ã¢Ë†â€™2  Ã¢â‚¬â€œÃ‚  10  16  Ã‚  4Right hand side:  4

Thursday, November 21, 2019

Trifles ( A Play) by Susan Glaspell Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Trifles ( A Play) by Susan Glaspell - Essay Example The fact that Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters are addressed as such while the men are called â€Å"County Attorney† and â€Å"Sheriff† somehow simply affords the women a rather cheap, subservient role of a wife and somehow demeans the role of women in society in general. Aside from being assigned subservient roles, the women in the play are shown to be â€Å"worrying over trifles,† which implies that women in 20th century America are concerned about anything but useful (Glaspell). In the play, Haley somehow ridicules the women for â€Å"worrying over trifles† because instead of worrying about the crime, they worry a lot about the preserves that Mrs. Wright has left frozen (Glaspell). The two women also busy themselves with other â€Å"trifles† such as Mrs. Wright’s sewing things (Glaspell). The fact that women are shown to be worrying over trifles may also imply that they too should be treated like trifles themselves. The play also shows that women are inferior to men and should simply just keep themselves silent. What Mrs. Hale means when she mentions, â€Å"We think the—cat got it,† seems to be the old expression to mean that one is speechless: â€Å"Has the cat got your tongue?† (Glaspell; Holstein 285). This means that women in America in the early 20th century somehow did not have a voice of their own in a male-dominated society. In fact, throughout the whole play, Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters are considered ignorant by the men. The suspect Mrs. Wright may also have been forced to keep silent by her husband, and so this could have become her motive for killing him. Moreover, one symbol in the play used to show that the silence of women is the dead bird in the birdcage with its neck wrung. The singing bird was once Mrs. Wright – â€Å"one of the town girls singing in the choir† (Glaspell). However, her marriage turned her into a dead bird that

Wednesday, November 20, 2019

Marketing Process Model by Robert J Dolan Dissertation

Marketing Process Model by Robert J Dolan - Dissertation Example Customer Acquisition 10 2.10. Customer Relation 10 2.11. Profits 11 3. Conclusion 11 References 13 Appendix 14 1. Introduction 1.1 Objective Current paper focuses on the examination of the various aspects of the Marketing Process Model, as developed by Robert Dolan in 1997. The effectiveness and the practical implications of the particular model are analyzed by referring to the literature that has been published in regard to the specific subject. 1.2 Methodology The literature related to the Marketing Process Model has been reviewed for identifying the elements and the role of the particular model. Effort has been made so that only academic journals are used, so that the credibility of findings is secured. 1.3 Limitations The value of marketing in enhancing business performance cannot be doubted. However, the choice of appropriate marketing strategy can be a challenging task for most marketers worldwide. Two are the key reasons for the above phenomenon: the continuous alteration of t he modern market and the lack of skills of individuals involved in the particular activities. The use of marketing models that have been widely used in the international market can help a firm to avoid failures, at least major ones, in regard to its marketing plans. From this point of view, the use of the Marketing Process Model could secure the growth of organizations operating in different sectors. However, not all aspects of the particular model have been carefully reviewed in the literature. Due to this fact, not all implications of the above model are known. This study could help to understand clearer the value of Marketing Process Model and to identify the model’s aspects that should be further studied. 2. Literature Review 2.1. Marketing Process: Initial Considerations Marketing process is a quite complex one. According to the literature published in this field, there are different approaches for promoting a product/ service in a particular market (Jaakkola et al. 2010 ). The Marketing Process Model, as suggested by Robert Dolan, can offer a series of advantages: a) it can employ a high range of methods/ approaches, increasing the chances for success, b) it is flexible and can be appropriately alternated for meeting the needs of the target market, c) it has been widely used in practice, a fact that increases its credibility (Jaakkola et al. 2010). The particular Model, also known as B2B model, can be effectively used in different sectors and under different market conditions (Jaakkola et al. 2010). 2.2. Strategic Marketing Strategic marketing is a term used in order to describe a series of activities that need to be developed in order for a particular product/ service to reach the target market successfully without failures, either in terms of cost or in terms of time (Kotler et al. 2009). The difference of strategic marketing, compared to the traditional marketing, is that the former is highly based on various theoretical models and different app roaches for achieving the target described above (Kotler et al. 2009). These approaches and theories are analyzed in the sections that follow. 2.3. Customers analysis 2.3.1. Needs In marketing, efforts have been made so that the Maslow Hierarchy of Needs theory is used. The particular model can ensure that consumer will be keep motivated in using a particular prod

Monday, November 18, 2019

Review article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 17

Review - Article Example regulated at the transcriptional level but also in the post-transcriptional level, post-translational mechanisms, chromatin remodeling, clock proteins availability, and intracellular localizations (Cermakian & Sassone-Corsi, 61). The work aims to describe and illustrate in detail the general concepts that built the foundation of animal circadian clocks. It has been conceptualized by previous studies that several clock functions and characteristics have been conserved during evolution at transcriptional level but some detailed functions of the loop may somewhat differ from organism to organism. For instance, the feedback loop functions differ among the Drosophila fly, mammals, fungi and bacteria. Thus, these differences among organisms have led the authors of the article to study other levels of regulation of circadian clocks among organisms. Cermakian & Sassone-Corsi found out that contrary to the only role of the input gene products to oscillation, there are some important input and output genes to achieve effective pacemaker function. The work of the researchers also revealed that despite the similarities of the fly and mammalian circadian systems, there are also differences in the negative limb of the loop (Cermakian & Sassone-Corsi, 60). In addition, the work of the researchers also found out existence of inter-genic and intragenic loops and that rhythms are not only generated at transcriptional level but to multiple

Friday, November 15, 2019

What have we learned from obedience to authority

What have we learned from obedience to authority Within society, obedience to authority is an essential part of human behaviour. Without this behaviour, it would be difficult for society to function properly. Obedience to authority is used during different social settings. Examples of this would be, university lecturers having authority over their students, and parents having authority over their children. Although obedience to authority is essential, it also has issues, which cause conflict within society. Stanley Milgram conducted a series of experiments, raising awareness of how this behaviour is necessary in life, yet how conflicts can lead an obedient to follow a command from a high authority. This can cause an act of cruelty, such as murder on innocent victims. His main reason for conducting these types of experiments was to understand more about the Holocaust, and as a Jew himself, the reason behind why the Nazis caused such destructive behaviour due to obedience. (Benjamin Jr Simpson, 2009). Stanley Milgram (1963), developed a shocking experiment that was set out to look into obedience to authority. Male volunteers took part in an experiment in which they believed they had to shock another participant, (which in fact was an actor) from another room. The volts started at 15, all the way to 450. Every time they answered a question wrong, the volunteer had to give an electric shock. A voice recording of distressing behaviour was played as the voltage increased, making the volunteers believe the other participant (actor) was in serious discomfort. Some of the volunteers felt uncertain about participating further in the experiment, but when the scientific researcher used prods such as please continue, and it is absolutely essential for you to go on (Stanley Milgram, 1963, p 374), the majority of the volunteers would obey his commands, and proceed further. Although a few volunteers refused to participate once hearing the distressing behaviour on the tape recording, 65% of the volunteers continued to the end of the experiment. This obedience experiment has had a huge impact on ethical, personality and social psychology issues within scientific research and society. Milgrams (1963) experiment, has been proven to be one of the most influential of scientific research (Benjamin Jr Simpson, 2009), but it has also caused a lot of controversy on the grounds of ethical issues. Milgrams (1963) article expresses how his participants were subjected to extremely distressing behaviour throughout the experiment, such as trembling and stuttering (p.375). Diana Baumrind (1964) critised Milgrams experiment due to the lack of involvement of ethics, deception and informed consent. She explained that this behaviour experienced by the participants could lead to other future issues, such as the inability to trust anyone, low self-esteem/image and possible psychological harm. In Milgrams 1964 article (as citied in Benjamin Jr Simpson, 2009), he argued Baumrinds criticism by gathering data from his experiment, that provided high percentages of what people thought of the experiment, for example, they learnt a lot, and that more types of these experiments should be do ne in the future. The participants were also debriefed after the experiment, to make sure that the volunteers had not been subjected to potential harm. (Milgram, 1963). Milgrams obedience studies have had a huge impact on scientific research, so much, so that his experiments are not allowed to be replicated within scientific research. This is due to the changes in ethical guidelines. Many psychologists believe that Milgrams experiments are responsible for these ethical changes (Benjamin Jr Simpson, 2009), in order to protect the participants from potential harm when taking part in any form of scientific research. Although Milgrams obedience studies had an impact on ethics, is also impacted personality within scientific research. It initially focused on looking at internal explanations of individuals personality traits, such as their mood or attitude in which caused their behaviour at the given time of the situation. However, in the 1960s, due to political and social changes, it shifted to situational and environmental explanations. This therefore focused on how an individuals personality differs depending on the situation they are in, instead of just their internal characteristics. (Benjamin Jr Simpson, 2009). During the 1960s, Walter Mischels (as cited in Benjamin Jr Simpson, 2009) studies were the most modern and relevant to this shift from internal to situational explanations, in finding evidence that individuals personality traits had little affect on the outcome of their behaviour. It further developed in the 1970s by introducing the person-by-situation interaction, which looks at how people react or respond given the type of situation they are in, having more of an impact on how scientific research is viewed on the grounds of personality. (Benjamin Jr Simspon, 2009). Another impact on Milgrams studies for scientific research was social psychology. In the 1950s social psychology was studied by examining how different social situations could have an influence on how individuals behaviour changes (Benjamin Jr Simpson, 2009). Asch (as cited in Benjamin Jr and Simpson, 2009), influenced social psychology within Milgrams experiments, due to Aschs work conducted on conformity, which examined the power of a situation. Milgrams studies has also had an influence on further research, such as Zimbardos prison experiment, which examined conformity and also obedience (Zimbardo, as cited in Benjamin Jr and Simpson, 2009). The impact of social psychology has manipulated the way experiments are now conducted within scientific research. Before Milgrams obedience studies, many experiments were conducted in laboratory settings with high experimental realism, therefore not many experiments were conducted within real life settings, thus having a low mundane realism. (Benjamin Jr Simpson, 2009). Due to his studies, there has been a shift in how research is conducted, and there has also been changes in IRB rules and regulations, therefore allowing more experiments to be examined in real life settings, rather than laboratory settings. In laboratory settings, individuals are likely to follow researchers orders, due to believing they are of a higher authority. In addition, what they are wearing could have an influence on their behaviour, such as wearing a white lab coat. By conducting these experiments in real life settings, the research findings will have a higher ecological validity than of those in laboratory settings. (Benjamin Jr Simpson, 2009). Milgrams studies have also affected society. During the Holocaust, the Nazis said they were not responsible for the killings and destruct they caused as they were just following orders (Benjamin Jr Simspon, 2009). In March, 2010, a French game show replicated Milgrams experiment called the Game of Death (Chazan, 2010). This proved that 80% of participants continued to the end of the game, due to pressure off the audience members and commands from the presenter. Due to ethical issues from Milgrams studies, individuals are now aware of their human rights, and entitlements in life, for instance, choice of medical treatment. So, why do people still obey in society? As children we are learnt to obey from our parents and not disobey, therefore making it easier to obey someone of a high authority. This impacts personality and social psychology, as it suggests that the power of the situation is more likely to have an influence on an individuals change in behaviour. The impact on personality within society is manipulated dependent upon the situation, and not due to personality traits from upbringing. Having a structured situation, for example, hospitals, there is less likely to be changes in personality due to feeling safe, as the doctor is of high authority and can be trusted, than of unstructured situation such as the game show. (Benjamin Jr Simpson). People of high authority are aware of their influence within society, and are therefore not allowed to influence individuals, but who is believed to be of high authority? Milgrams studies were conducted in lab settings, thus proving he is of high authority, but in the game show the high authority seems to be the audience and presenter, suggesting the power of the situation impacts individuals behaviour. In conclusion, due to the impact of ethical, personality and social psychology within scientific research and society, Milgrams studies seemed to have more of an effect on scientists than members of society. Due to huge concerns on how he conducted his experiment, many things have been changed on the grounds of ethical issues, in order to protect participants. Also due to the nature of his experiment, it cannot be replicated, meaning further research on obedience is not allowed to be conducted. Even though Milgrams experiment has had an influence on these scientific changes, it has not seemed to have much of an influence on society. This is because people are still obeying orders off people they believe to be of a higher authority, for example, terrorist attacks, and people in the war, where acts of cruelty is caused, therefore thousands of innocent victims are dying.

Wednesday, November 13, 2019

Reformations of School Essay -- Essays Papers

Reformations of School Education plays a fundamental role in the development of any nation. History is witness that those nations who did not recognized the importance of education were doomed, and education played a key role in the success of the developed nations. A successful country like America faces many challenges regarding education. Some of these challenges are: how to better achieve educational opportunity, and to find ways to deal with such problems and educational dilemmas for American children. To find the answers and solutions to these problems we can not ignore the dialogue of reforming of schools, instead, new ways of education, restructuring of American schools, and recommendations to improve might be the only answer to these problems. In the following paragraphs, problems like weak curriculum and poor standards in the schools have been identified, and recommendations have been made to eliminate these problems. Also the problems and errors regarding the distribution of funds by the governm ent for the schools have been addressed, and recommendations have been made that these funding should be distributed equally and accordingly to the states. The federal government should take this issue more seriously and assist the states on a greater level. It is a very sad fact that even now when we have entered the 21st century, a first world country like America which is supposed to be a role model for the rest of the world is facing the problem of poor standards in their schools such as goals, expectations, and requirements. There is a great contradiction on people’s standards vs. the school’s standards. People set high standards that are very hard and sometimes impossible to achieve by students and teachers, whereas some schools do not match these standards and even pass kids who cannot read or have poor educational skills. In order to have high academic standards there has to be high performance in public education systems. The system needs to be changed fundamentally. Teachers can play an important role and should come together on a common platform to achieve a common goal and that is the improved quality of education. Good communication between school, school boards, and school administration is very important, so teachers can be heard and listened to. School should only hire highly qualified and proficient teachers. Students are usually int... ...me states there is five times as much spending on students in some school districts as in others ($15,744 versus $2,932 during 1994-95 in Illinois, for example)† (by Patricia Albjerg Graham, article#1). If we observe the above data, it is very noticeable that federal government is playing a less active role in financing the education. One way to provide high quality of education is that federal government should get more involve with the current schooling system. Parents in general public can play their part and instead of criticizing the present system, they should elect the candidates in the government who give higher priority for the education and reserve more funds for the improvement and reforming of the school systems. Bibliography: References: Textual Resources: a) Article #1 (Educational dilemma for Americans). b) Article #2 (Restoring the impulse to Dream). c) Article #3 (How to teach a children). d) Class notes. Non-textual Resources: a) American School Board Journal (March 2000 issue). b) Http://education-world.com. c) Reforming American Education from the Bottom to the Top by Evans Clinchy. d) One on one conversation with parents.

Monday, November 11, 2019

Comprehensive Analysis of Staples

Comprehensive Analysis of Staples Harding University Angela Maloch Ashley Perez Keith Miller Ricky Griffin Abstract This paper will review Staples, Inc. comprehensively. The authors will discuss Staples’ visions, missions, and objectives, in addition to outlining the firm’s internal strengths and weaknesses and their external opportunities and threats. Several matrices will be included to provide visual aid and better observations of the operations and current practices of the company. Recommendations will be provided on new courses of action that may benefit the company and help increase sales and brand awareness.Vision and Mission Staples, is the world’s largest office product organization, and a reliable source for office solutions. The company products and services include office supplies, copy and print supplies, and technology to support these products. Staples, also provides supplies for facilities, break-room, and furniture (Staples, Inc, 2012). Staples c onceptualized the office superstore in 1986. It has more than 88,000 associates worldwide, in 26 countries, and fosters annual sales of 25 billion (Staples, Inc, 2012).Many organizations foundations began with a vision and an organizational mission. The vision and mission are set to be accomplished by setting objectives, and implementing strategies to achieve the goals set by the organization. According to Business Improvement Architects: Creating a compelling vision and developing the strategies to achieve it is one of the organization's most difficult challenges. The vision is more than a dream; it must convey a larger sense of organizational purpose, so that employees are able to picture themselves â€Å"building the dream company† rather than â€Å"laying the stones. It is an ambitious view of the future that everyone in the organization can believe in, one that can be realistically achieved, yet offers a future that is better in important ways than what now exists. (Bus iness Improvement Architects, n. d. ) Staples mission is â€Å"to make it easy to buy office products (David, 2013). † The mission is simple yet it encompasses what the organization strives to do with the products and services it provides to its customers throughout the world. Staples, does not have a written vision, but he the organization utilizes a unique approach in identifying the future direction of the company.Staples Soul program is a program designed by Staples, Inc. to help make the organization an employer and neighbor of choice, and sets Staples brand apart from competitors. The program is also aimed at allowing Staples to grow profitably and responsibly (Staples, Inc, 2012). Objectives and Strategies In Staples 2011 Annual Report, Ron Sargent who serves as the organization’s Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer stated: At Staples, we take great pride in our consistent execution and our ability to evolve and meet the changing needs of our custo mers.Throughout our 25 year history we’ve succeeded by setting aggressive goals, acquiring and retaining customers, and being accountable for our performance. We took the same approach in 2011 and made progress on many of our key initiatives, despite the challenging economic environment. (Staples, Inc, 2012) Staples has established goals and objectives to keep the organization viable in the fast changing market, and the sluggish economy. The Staples Soul program, separates the organizations objectives into four pillars, and outlines the strategies to obtaining those objectives.The four pillars of focus of the Staples Soul Program are community, ethics, diversity, and environment (Staples, Inc, 2012). Staples Community Objectives and Strategies Staples is dedicated to bring education, hope and opportunity to the communities of where their customers live. The community efforts are strategically approached through local grassroots programs, and large scale initiatives that build ties in the global community (Staples, Inc, 2012). Staples has donated more than $17 million to nonprofit organizations, in the United States, and around the world in 2011.Through its Choose a Charity program, Staples has enabled associates to donate nearly $1. 9 million to organizations, in which they care about (Staples, Inc, 2012). Staples has also been established volunteer programs, and associate volunteer programs which has led to more than 33,000 hours of volunteer work to being performed in 26 countries (Staples, Inc, 2012). Staples and Ethics and Strategies Staples 2011 Annual report discusses their objective to meeting the ethical component of the organization.The report states: We believe that doing right is just as important as doing well. We hold ourselves to the highest standards of honesty, fairness and integrity, and continually implement strategies to ensure ethical conduct from the boardroom to the supply chain to the store. Our strong ethical foundation, demonstr ated in the daily relationships with our stakeholders, and ensures our continued success. (Staples, Inc, 2012) Staples stress the importance of ethics in the business organization. The good business ethics must span throughout the entire organization.In efforts to achieve and maintain an ethical environment Staples has done the following: * Ethics, helpline, and training and awareness program in every business unit and function worldwide (Staples, Inc, 2012). * Established a new Ethics scorecard that allows senior leaders and the Audit Committee of the Board of Directors to monitor compliance with program requirements (Staples, Inc, 2012). * Created and established a monitoring and measurement framework to assess how well we are preventing, detecting and responding to ethics and compliance risks (Staples, Inc, 2012). Updated the Staples Suppliers Code of Conduct, by adding an Environmental and Business Ethics section, while modifying other sections (Staples, Inc, 2012). Staples, the Environment and Strategies Staples Annual Report focused on environment as its third organizational objective. The organization’s 2011 report states: At Staples, our vision is to generate business and environmental benefits for ourselves, our customers and our communities by leading the way in sustainable business practices. his vision through a continued focus on sourcing more sustainable products; improving our offering of recycling and other green services; maximizing our energy efficiency and renewable energy use; and eliminating waste. In 2011, we communicated several new global sustainability goals and continued to work in several program areas to help move us closer to our sustainability vision. (Staples, Inc, 2012) As mentioned before the environmental pillar of the Staples Soul programs is beneficial to the organization, the environment, the community and the customer.Staples has been instrumental in environmental progress by: recycling more than 67 million ink and toner cartridges, and 13 million pounds of technology waste in the United States. Staples has continued the implementation of its Race to the Top Initiative, which is focused on key suppliers reducing the environmental impact of their product (Staples, Inc, 2012). At the end of 2011, Staples had 286 facilities in the U. S. that have received the ENERGY STAR ® for buildings certification. By the close of 2011 Staples had 36 solar installations at 33 facilities and purchased a large sum of renewable energy certificates.Staples has a goal of reducing operational electrical intensity by 25%, and global carbon emissions by 50% by 2020 from a 2010 baseline (Staples, Inc, 2012). Staples, Diversity and Objectives Staples believes that being a successful company is dependent on people with rich backgrounds and diverse views. Staples commitment to diversity and inclusion opens the doors for the people of different races, gender, nationality, sexual orientation, physical ability, background and thinking styles. This in turn allows the company to be more innovative, because the organizations associate base reflects the diversity of the customers.Staples’ diverse workforce and suppliers help to build and enrich relationships with customers. While building upon these customer relationships, the organization is able to adapt to the ever changing global market place (Staples, Inc, 2012). Although Staples does not have a written vision statement, the Staples Soul Program has outlined the path, in which the organization wants to proceed over its business life. Fred R. David states: â€Å"A vision statement should answer the basic question, â€Å"What do we want to become? † (David, 2013, p. 45) David also states that a comprehensive mission statement is formulated by a clear vision.It is suggested that the vision statement be established first, and should be short approximately one sentence (David, 2013, p. 45). Many organizations have both a vision and a missi on statement. David states that an organization’s mission statement distinguishes one organization from another in the same industry. An organization’s mission statement is â€Å"its reason for being. A mission statement is important for effectively establishing objectives and forming strategies (David, 2013, p. 45). It is important when formulating a vision and mission statement, it is important to include the managers and the employees.When employees and managers work together to formulate the organizations vision and mission, the statements will reflect the personal visions that employees and managers alike feel passionate towards, and sets the foundation for the future. The shared vision leads to a common objective and can motivate employees and remove the mundane atmosphere in the work environment (David, 2013, p. 47). An organization’s vision and mission statement can: * Ensure unanimity of organizational purpose * Provide a standard for allocation of org anizational resources * Establish organizational climate or general tone Serve as a focal point for people to identify with the organization’s purpose * To help translate objectives into a work structure assignments and task * To specify organizational purpose and translate those into organizational objectives (David, 2013, p. 48). The Staples Soul Program sets the tone for a vision statement for the organization. Staples vision statement could read: â€Å"Staples vision is to be a world leader in providing easy assessable office supplies while being committed to improvements in ethics, environment, community, and diversity for those we serve. The Staples mission as stated before states that the company’s mission is â€Å"to make it easy to buy office products. † (David, 2013, p. 69) Staples mission and vision projected through its Staples Soul Program has set then foundation for the organizational to expand and utilize its strengths and opportunities to contin ue to be a leader in its industry. The organization can also utilize this foundation set to identify weaknesses, and potential industry threats. Eternal Opportunities and Threats External Opportunities Opportunities can give an organization an edge over the competition. Staples, Inc. isplays the potential to increase its growth in additional countries. Currently Staples has 300 stores internationally. An international expansion would increase the profits for the organization. According to David (2013) â€Å"Growth is forecast to reach almost $88 billion by 2013, reflecting a five-year average growth rate of less than 1 percent† (p. SM-66). The advancement in technology can provide Staples with a balanced diversity for its shoppers. New technological gadgets continue to bring additional efficiency for individuals in a number of ways such as online shopping, reading books, and playing games. Staples, Inc. artnered with Barnes and Noble to offer an alternate color reader commonl y known as The NOOK. This technological device competes with Amazon’s Kindle and the Apple’s iPad. The partnership with Barnes and Noble will provide Staples with the opportunity to expand within the digital era. External Threats Threats are external and could occur at any time. Threats most often occur from other competing companies. Staples, Inc. continually competes with a number of organizations in regard to price competition and retail competition. Price competition occurs with equal ground stores such as Office Depot and OfficeMax. Staples, Inc. s the largest office supply company compared to Office Depot classified as the second place organization. David (2013) stated the following interesting fact, â€Å"Staples is larger than Office Depot and OfficeMax combined† (p. SM-76). The three organizations display similar challenges in regard to the reduction of sales because of businesses going paperless. The retail competition includes stores such as Wal-Mart, Kmart, and Target. These organizations display the need to obtain additional market share. As stated earlier, Staples, Inc. began the route of digital services with the latest product from Barnes and Noble commonly known as The NOOK.With the consumer trend of digital services reduces the need for traditional supplies. Green initiatives continue to be another factor for the reduction of traditional supplies, which reduces the need to stock a lot of cases of copy paper in the distribution centers. Competitive Profile Matrix External Factors External Factor Evaluation Matrix (EFE) Key External Factors WeightRatingScore Opportunities International growth (only 300 stores overseas). 12 4. 48 Trends towards digital items. 12 4. 48 New partnerships (Barnes & Nobles). 11 3. 33 Implement research/development. 15 4. 60Threats Price competition. 10 3. 30 Retail competition. 12 4. 48 Unemployment rates. 06 2. 12 Oil prices. 06 2. 12 New technologies reduce need for traditional supplies . 10 3. 30 Green’ initiatives might shift demand for products . 06 2. 12 Totals12. 04 The External Factor Evaluation Matrix (EFE) demonstrates how opportunities and threats may affect the company. Similar to the IFE, this gives a visual rating of the importance of external factors that may contribute to or inhibit the success of Staples. Seen in the matrix above, new opportunities can greatly contribute to the success of Staples.With such broad expansion opportunities, it would be easy for Staples to make new connections overseas, whether in creating new locations or promoting online sales. New partnerships should be looked into as well. Staples has already teamed up with Barnes & Nobles, but opportunities with other major brands might impact Staples’ sales in a positive way as well. Implementing a research and development team can give Staples the opportunity to study consumer patterns, marketing techniques, and what products to offer to better meet the needs of society.Comp eting companies that offer similar products are the greatest threat the Staples. To best combat this, Staples needs to be prepared to offer the best customer service and technologies to stay in the competition. New technologies are changing what consumers need in regards to office supplies. For example, most consumers have switched to computer filing, rather than paper filing. This reduces the need for so much paper, files, folders, and filing cabinets. While some may still need this, Staples may want to look at reducing their inventory of these items and offering a larger supply of more current and modern items.Internal Strengths and Weaknesses Internal Strengths Strengths refer to the factors that exist within the company and exhibits formations of competitive advantage. The organization has dominance worldwide in more than 22,000 locations to include China, Australia, Germany, North America, and a number of other countries. Staples, Inc. is an established organization with a well developed infrastructure that offers business services such as supplies, technology, furniture, and office machines inside the stores as well as online. Staples, Inc. has a competitive advantage with the use of its online sales market.Instead of keeping a large inventory, the majority of the retail store locations stock approximately 7,000 products. When customers do not find a particular item inside the store, he or she can receive next day service at the local store when ordering from Staples. com. This avenue provides customers the option to review over 30,000 products in approximately 125 distributions. When the customer orders a product, he or she can request to receive shipment at the local store, at work, or at a home address. This type of service provides convenience for Staples, Inc. shoppers. In addition, Staples, Inc. ade an investment in regard to its delivery system with a purchase of small fleet of electric trucks. The purpose of this investment was to improve the org anization’s efficiency and cost minimization by reducing fuel cost by 75% compared to diesel trucks. Internal Weaknesses Weaknesses are the areas an organization needs to try to correct imperfections for improvement. Understanding potential weaknesses can help an organization to both manage and remove possible threats. In contrast to a limited inventory as strength, this concept can be a weakness in regard to customers not wanting to wait for a specific product.Customers may go to a competitor to purchase the needed product or purchase it online. A number of challenges exist because of the advanced technological era. For instance, Staples, Inc. reported a seven percent decline in stock prices according to its 2010 Annual Report. Internal Factors Internal Factor Evaluation Matrix (IFE) Key Internal FactorsWeight RateScore Strengths Strong international growth and partners. 12 4. 48 Advertising and marketing. 12 4. 48 Strong Online sales market. 10 3. 30 Many convenient Locatio ns. 10 3. 30 Staples Delivery System. 11 3. 33 Weaknesses Only 1. % increase in Sales (2010). 06 2. 12 Stock price fell 7% (2010). 06 2. 10 Poor executive compensation plans. 12 4. 48 Poor inventory management. 11 3. 33 No research/development Budget. 10 3. 30 Totals13. 19 As seen above, the Internal Factor Evaluation Matrix (IFE) is used to provide a numerical and visual score of key factors of the internal strengths and weaknesses. This gives management an idea of how to prioritize any issues that may be affecting or attributing the growth or success of the company. With more than 1500 locations throughout the United States, Staples is easily accessible to the population.Their advertising and marketing campaigns are successful and catchy; this creates brand awareness, and can potentially bring in more consumers. The internal weaknesses have caused such financial stresses on the company that it is very important that these issues are addressed. For instance, in 2010, there was only a 1. 1% increase in sales and stock prices fell 7%; however, the CEO of Staples, Ron Sargent, took a 41% pay increase. Moves like this can set Staples up for failure, so it is important for management to be aware of these internal issues through the use of an IFE.With no research and development budget, Staples is falling behind the trends of fast-paced society. They are not current on what is popular and what issues may be hurting their sales. * SWOT Analysis According to Thompson, Gamble, and Strickland (2006), â€Å"A SWOT analysis is a simple but powerful tool for sizing up a company’s resource capabilities and deficiencies, its market opportunities, and the external threats to its future well-being (Chap. 3, p. 85). A SWOT analysis is a significant portion of the strategic planning model.An organization uses a SWOT analysis that consists of strengths as internal forces of the organization to accomplish the objective; weaknesses are internal forces of the organization t hat harm the objective; opportunities are external forces that can expand the organization; threats are external forces that can destroy the organization’s success. In developing a strategic plan, leaders must ask if the current strategic plan is adequate to achieve the goal and are there allowances for contingency plans if the current plan is not working.Therefore, an effective strategy will consider the internal and external factors of the SWOT analysis by looking at the big picture of what an organization will face in the course of goal achievement. SWOT Matrix Space Matrix Current Strategies Inventory Staples is looking to reduce physical inventory in stores and offer a wider variety via Staples. com (Donoher as cited in David, 2013). In doing this, they can limit the size of store locations and be able to cut building costs, utilities and floor space on new locations.In addition, research done by Shankar, Rangaswamy & Pusateri (1999) indicates that online shopping is mor e convenient than offline shopping and allows consumers to find products to best fit their needs. This strategy, once fully implemented may promote more business to the website and offer better selections. The only issue that may arise is not having an item in stock that competitors might have. It would helpful to research buying trends and patterns of this industry and keep those items stocked. Prices Low prices have been the ultimate focus of Staples.This is understandable in retail today, however customer service and loyalty programs are just as desirable to consumers. Indicated by Shankar, Rangaswamy & Pusateri (1999), customers are not sensitive just to price increases, but rather a mixture of factors that contribute to the overall buying experience. Slightly raising prices and focusing more on customer service can produce a better experience for in-store shoppers and may encourage them to return. Also, in some cases, low prices can correlate with low quality.When Staples offer s their own brand items for extremely low prices, consumers may consider the price in relation to the quality. Recommended Strategies Based on the case study, Staples, Staples has seen gradually declining sales and profits in recent years (Donoher, as cited in David, 2013). In order to turn that around and be a successful office supply company, they need to implement new strategies. Staples is not a competitor with other office supply companies. They cannot maintain desirable inventories of what consumers are looking for and they cannot beat the prices and leverage that other similar stores offer.If left alone, Staples will go out of business. Suggestions on strategies that may offer aid to Staples are outlined below. Retrenchment â€Å"Retrenchment occurs when an organization regroups through cost and asset reduction to reverse declining profits† (David, 2013, P. 146). If Staples would try this strategy, they might be able to save the company and turn it around. In order to implement this strategy, they would stop opening new stores, and perhaps even close stores throughout the United States. Closing stores throughout the United States can greatly reduce costs and increase revenues.It would be most logical to close the locations with the lowest annual sales. In addition, by reducing the number of store openings would allow for more focus to be within what Staples already has. This means there would be more time to focus on customer service, inventory management, product display, management, and online sales. Online sales are such a large portion of their business, it may be more effective to put more efforts into obtaining sales through that medium, rather than brick and mortar locations. Related DiversificationIn order to remain in the competition, Staples must be open to diversifying the products they currently offer. Staples needs to revamp their current inventory and look at what it is consumers want today. With such a boom in technology, there is a consumer desire for new and up-to-date items. The items they rarely sell need to be taken off the shelves or offer a very limited inventory in stores. That clears up space for new items, and a greater inventory capacity. By stocking items that customers want can increase the traffic flow through the store.Often, consumers know competing stores, such as Office Depot and Wal-Mart have more of what they need, so Staples is eliminated completely. Recommended Annual Objectives and Policies Organizational Annual Business reports are a vital tool in making recommendations for annual objectives, and policies. The annual report identifies the company’s short falls, but more importantly it shines the light on the organizations achievements. The annual report also illustrates the plans and strategies to rectify its weaknesses, and refute potential threats.According an article by Jill Leviticus, an annual report; â€Å"provide information on the health of your company to shareholders, stakeholders, the media and your community. † (Leviticus, 2012) The article also states that the organizational annual report provides financial information, highlights achievements, promotes the organization, and other key information to the stakeholders (Leviticus, 2012). Staples 2011 Annual Business Report outlines the organization’s recommended annual objectives and policies, which is based on the needs of the employees, shareholders, and customers.Annual Business Reports and meetings cover a broad range of objectives and policies. Staples 2011 Annual Business Report covered topics on beneficial of ownership of common stock, corporate governance, and election of directors, employee stock plans, and long-term cash plans (Staples, Inc, 2012). Adjustments to these specific objectives and policies will specifically impact the viability of Staples, Inc. The aforementioned Staples Soul Program has been instrumental in making the organization the â€Å"employer and neigh bor of choice. † (Staples, Inc, 2012) Staples has been proactive in implementing policies and objectives to acilitate the organization in achieving goals centered around the four pillars of the Staples Soul Program, which are community, ethics, diversity, and environment (Staples, Inc, 2012). Strategy Review and Evaluation Defining a strategy is an educated guess. The guess is a key process in any organization. The changes that occur in today’s society can make or break an organization. Strategy, as any other process improvement, cannot be determined unless it is measured. There is an old saying that says it is hard to know where you are going until you know where you have been.Strategy has to be evaluated to determine if the direction of change is favorable or unfavorable to the organization. There are acronyms of famous cycles to help lead an organization to improve. PDCA, PDSA or DMAIC are some of the well-known cycles. These cycles define a basic process of evaluati ng changes made to determine if the actions taken reflect the desired results. A similar process of planning, doing, studying and acting has to be defined in each organization. Organizations can vary in the data used but the process will be the same. DataThere are a number of inputs that need to be included into strategy development. External inputs include items such as customer needs, customer survey results, industry trends, regulatory requirements, technological advancements, market risks and competitive intelligence to name a few. Internal inputs include company vision, mission, goals, philosophies, employee survey results, SWOT analysis and balanced scorecard results. These inputs will help determine what a company’s balanced scorecard should be. The balanced scorecard could be used by location moving up to the organizational level.It could also translate down to specific goals and objectives for individual performance management. Measure Once the balanced scorecard has been developed then it is time to capture the results. In most cases these results are measured monthly. There are some cases where the time frame may extend to a longer period of time depending on the metric being measured. For instance, financial information would probably be calculated monthly by an internal team. An external assessment could be used to challenge or protect your company such as Sarbanes-Oxley audit. These measurements help determine direction.Review Periodic reviews of balanced scorecard information are required to determine if the actions taken are effective or not effective. These reviews can occur at different time intervals. Changes or actions taken can immediately take effect or it could be a period of time before the change is realized. An example of immediate effect could be actions taken to reduce inventory levels. Depending on the action the company may see the results on the following month. An example of a longer term effect may be implementing an â⠂¬Å"open door† policy which involves a cultural change that may not be seen immediately.A general understanding of the metric and the anticipated impact time should be rationalized during the review process. Adjustment Once the review has been analyzed actions should be taken to correct metrics that are not performing to the desired results. There are several methods of problem-solving that can be used to help work through the possible contributors of poor performance. The A3 process was derived by Toyota. The process is a collaborative problem-solving tool used to manage individual issues from beginning to end.The A3 process identifies the team, the problem, the metrics used to measure the issue, potential causes, countermeasures to potential causes, responsible party assigned and results. The cycle starts again similar to the Plan, Do, Study and Act cycle mentioned earlier. Recommendation The recommendation for Staples is to have monthly reviews as well as annual reviews. Th e monthly reviews would consist of A3’s developed for each of the metrics. The A3’s would be reviewed to see how the countermeasures are impacting the metric. This type of review will help monitor performance in the short-term time frame.Annual reviews should be conducted on the internal and external inputs and balanced scorecard results. The annual review would be designed to develop the strategic plan for the following year or longer. References Business Improvement Architects. (n. d. ). Understand the organization's vision. Retrieved November 22, 2012, from www. bia. ca: http://www. bia. ca/vision. htm David, F. R. (2013). Strategic Managment: A Competitive Advantage Approach (14 ed. ). Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Prentice Hall. Leviticus, J. (2012). What Is the Purpose of Company Annual Reports? Retrieved November 23, 2012, from www. smallbusiness. hron. com: http://smallbusiness. chron. com/purpose-company-annual-reports-57428. html Shankar, V; Rangaswamy, A. & Pusateri, M. (1999). The online medium and customer price sensitivity. Penn State School of Information Sciences and Technology. Staples, Inc. (2012, April). 2011 Annual Report. Retrieved November 22, 2012, from www. thomson. mobular. net: http://thomson. mobular. net/thomson/7/3218/4642/document_0/SPLS_2011AR. pdf Staples, Inc. (2012, November 14). Corporate Profile. Retrieved November 22, 2012, from www. staples. com: http://investor. staples. com/phoenix. zhtml? c=96244&p=irol-IRHome

Friday, November 8, 2019

Amber Alert System

Amber Alert System A powerful legacy plan was created. In 1996, 9 year-old Amber Hagerman was a little girl who was kidnapped and brutally murdered while riding her bike in Arlington, Texas. Among the community, where Amber resided were shocked and outraged residents when they had heard the worst of the bad news about Amber. Residents in the Dallas, Texas area flooded radio stations suggestion they inform each state through a special broadcast alert over the airways in hopes of preventing suck incidents in the future.In response to the concerns for the safety of children, the Association of Radio Managers met with local law-enforcement agencies state wide and developed this so called innovative early warning system to supposedly help locate abducted children. Statistics showed abducted children's greatest enemy is time. The systems name is, The Amber Alert System. In order to activate the Amber Alert System, there are steps that need to be verified.An example of the information within an Amber Aler...T he National Center for Missing and Exploited Children suggests these steps be met before an alert is activated such as; law enforcement confirms child really has been abducted, circumstances surrounding the abduction of the child indicating the child is in danger of serious bodily harm or maybe even death, enough description information about the child, abductor and abductors vehicle.The Amber Alert System is continued to be broadcasted 24 hours a day until agencies have either, found the child alive or dead or agencies have called off the search due to certain circumstances. The Amber Alert System is not to be played around with. I greatly feel that schools statewide should explain to the children about this new system and advise them not to fool around with the system. For instance, the two Mexican American females who didn't feel like being at church one night had decided to...

Wednesday, November 6, 2019

Greek Mythology - Bible vs Biblos

Greek Mythology - Bible vs Biblos The Bible is sometimes called the Good Book, which is fitting since the word Bible comes from the Greek word for book, biblos. For the Greeks, the bible was Homer, particularly, The Iliad, and Hesiod. The Father of History, the Greek Classical period traveler Herodotus (c. 484-425 B.C.) writes: Whence the gods severally sprang, whether or no they had all existed from eternity, what forms they bore - these are questions of which the Greeks knew nothing until the other day, so to speak. For Homer and Hesiod were the first to compose Theogonies, and give the gods their epithets, to allot them their several offices and occupations, and describe their forms; and they lived but four hundred years before my time, as I believe.~ Herodotus Book IIYou can find a religious world view, morals, customs, genealogy, and more in Homer and Hesiod. However, The Iliad, The Odyssey, and Theogony were not sacred texts. (Depending on your definition, the Greeks had other sacred texts, like hymns and responses of the oracles.)The Opening of The IliadThe Iliad begins, not with the creation of the world in 6 days, but with an invocation of the goddess or muse:Sing, O goddess,followed by the story of the wrath of the great Greek hero of the Trojan War, Achilles:the anger of Achilles son of Peleus, t hat brought countless ills upon the Achaeans. Many a brave soul did it send hurrying down to Hades, and many a hero did it yield a prey to dogs and vultures, for so were the counsels of Jove fulfilled from the day on which the son of Atreus, king of men, and great Achilles, first fell out with one another....and his anger at the expeditions leader, Agamemnon, who has strained relations with his best man by stealing his beloved concubine and committed sacrilege:And which of the gods was it that set them on to quarrel? It was the son of Jove and Leto [Apollo]; for he was angry with the king and sent a pestilence upon the host to plague the people, because the son of Atreus had dishonoured Chryses his priest.(Samuel Butler translation)The Place of Gods in Mans LifeGods in Homers ancient heroic age walked among men, but they were much more powerful than humans and could be prevailed upon by prayer and sacrifice to help human beings. We see this in the opening of The Iliad where the rhap sode (the composer/singer of the story) Homer seeks divine inspiration to create a great epic, and where an old man seeks the return of his abducted daughter.There is nothing in this Greek great book (The Iliad) about taking clay and forming it in a certain likeness or taking a rib from said animated clay, although the latter, the story of the creation of woman (Pandora) by a craftsman, does appear differently elsewhere in the canon of Greek mythology.Next Page: Creation Stories Introduction to Greek Mythology Myth in Daily Life What Is Myth? Myths vs. Legends Creation Stories Titanomachy Olympian Gods and Goddesses Five Ages of Man Philemon and Baucis Prometheus Trojan War Bulfinch Mythology Myths and Legends Kingsley Tales from Mythology | Golden Fleece and the Tanglewood Tales, by Nathaniel Hawthorne Confusing Creation Stories Creation StoriesUranos Revenge Titanomachy Philemon and Baucis Prometheus Version 1: Genesis 1.27 King James27: So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. Version 2: Genesis 2.21-2321: And the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam and he slept: and he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof; 22: And the rib, which the LORD God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man. 23: And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.... the story of the 5 Ages Also see Jewish Legends - Creation Genealogy Shows Mans Relationship to God(s) The stories one polis told about its divine connection might or might not contradict the stories of another polis about its connection with the same god. Sometimes what looks like an effort to smooth out one set of inconsistencies seems to have created others. It might serve those of us coming to the Greek stories from a Judaeo-Christian tradition to remember that there are plenty of apparent inconsistencies in the Bible, too. Reference: [url formerly www.rpgclassics.com/quotes/iliad.shtml] Interesting Quotations from the Iliad Introduction to Greek Mythology Myth in Daily Life What Is Myth? Myths vs. Legends Gods in the Heroic Age - Bible vs. Biblos Trojan War Bulfinch Mythology Myths and LegendsGolden Fleece and the Tanglewood Tales, by Nathaniel Hawthorne

Monday, November 4, 2019

Supplier Base Reduction Individual Business Report Essay

Supplier Base Reduction Individual Business Report - Essay Example Organization may decide to reduce its supplier base due to the following problems or issues: First, increase in the price of the raw materials used by the organization. When the prices of raw materials increases the cost of manufacturing the final products of the organization also increases which hence increases the price of the final products. This increase in price of the products reduces the demand for the products, hence low revenue generated by the organization leading into low profit. Therefore, when the prices of raw materials used to manufacture the final product increases then the organization considers it wise to reduce the supplier base so as not to make more losses in the future. Second, increase in business complexity as illustrated by Joseph (2010) is one of the problems that can make an organization reduces its supplier base. When the supplier base increases, the more complex it becomes. This makes it difficult for the firm to handle the large volume of supplies efficiently and effectively. Therefore, due to high complexity in supplier base the organization decides to reduce its supplier base so that it remains with a small consolidated supplier base that it can interact with to enhance the quality of its products. The third factor is the continuous increase in the level of debt in the organization. As the number of suppliers in the organization increases, there is also increase in the amount of debt to these suppliers. These debts have to be kept very low in the organization through controlling them so that it doesn’t drive the organization to bankruptcy. Therefore, one of the issues that the organization looks at is the debt level of the suppliers when it wants to reduce the supplier base. The fourth problem or issue is the continuous changes in the market. This is also a problem or issue that organizations look at when they want to reduce the supplier base. Changes in market such as a decrease in demand of the products may force

Friday, November 1, 2019

The contribution of the construction industry to economic development Essay

The contribution of the construction industry to economic development in Libya - Essay Example Such estimates signifying the role of construction industry in the national economies, especially in the context of developing economies, could rise further as these figures do not include the informal sectors. In developing economies informal sectors generates significant casual employment in both rural and urban areas (Ganesan 2000). The construction outputs are considered as a major constituent of investment and part of fixed capital which are essential for continuous and sustainable economic growth. In the normal course the outcomes of construction activities produce results that benefits on the whole for a larger period of time. Construction industry is also very important since infrastructure development is very crucial and a pre condition for potential economic growth (Ive and Gruneberg, 2000; Hillebrandt 2000). The importance of the construction industry is due to the role it has in the economy, but that role varies between nations. In developing countries, the construction industry has a pivotal role in providing a significant infrastructure in the form of roads, railways, hospitals, schools, airports, housing and other buildings. In developed countries the emphasis is on professional services, maintenance and repair constructions (Ruddock, 2009; Bon, 1999).The main purpose of this study is to draw attention to the importance of the construction industry in Libya through investigating its relationship with other sectors via linkages which are defined as â€Å"backward and forward linkages† (Raza, 2008- p no?). The construction industry stimulates the growth of other sectors through a complex system of linkages which are defined as backward and forward – directions from an input and output model of the economy. Changes in construction industry usually affect other sectors through its linkages. Therefore, its highest linkages with other sectors provide a more rapid growth in the economy (Song, Liu, 2006). As a matter of fact the backward